‘Bloody hell, you’ve just missed Sapphire,’ said Moira. ‘She’s been looking for you again. She was in here last night too. She seemed to think it’s urgent, whatever it is.’
Amber was intrigued. ‘Really? Any ideas what it’s about?’
‘No, she wouldn’t say but, like I say, she seemed to think it’s urgent. Anyway, she’s gone now so why don’t you give her a ring and ask her what she wants?’
‘Thanks,’ said Amber. ‘I will do in a minute.’
Then she realised that, actually, she didn’t have Sapphire’s number. She’d had no need for it before. Up to now Sapphire had just been one of the girls who she hung out with in the pub, and their friendship hadn’t progressed beyond that stage.
‘You seem frazzled,’ said Moira. ‘Are you alright, love?’
‘Yeah, it’s just… my mum and Nathan have been arguing as usual and they’ve made me late for work. She’s not very happy because he’s just told her he’s leaving home.’
Moira smiled. ‘Families eh?’ Then another customer grabbed her attention and she didn’t have chance to comment further.
Amber managed a swift double whisky and then set off for work. She had wanted more but it was getting late. As she felt the whisky warming her insides, she was glad that it should at least quell some of the anxiety she always felt when she worked the beat these days. She’d rely on her usual drugs to do the rest.
She had almost arrived at her patch at the back of Piccadilly when she noticed it was occupied by another girl. She sped up, determined to let this interloper know that she wasn’t welcome on her spot. It was only when she drew nearer that she realised it was her friend Sapphire who noticed her at about the same time.
As soon as Sapphire spotted Amber she dashed towards her. Straightaway Amber felt ill at ease. For a start, she knew that Sapphire worked in another part of this beat so it was strange that she should even be here. Then Amber remembered that she had also seen a girl the previous evening when she was in a punter’s car. She’d thought at the time that the girl bore a remarkable resemblance to Sapphire but she dismissed it, knowing that Sapphire worked a different area of the beat, and presuming it must have been somebody else who looked like her. But maybe it had been Sapphire after all.
Amber was also alarmed by the speed at which Sapphire was hurtling towards her and the fact that Sapphire had been looking for her two nights in a row. It struck her that Sapphire must have something urgent to tell her if she was going to all this trouble. A street girl desperately wanting to tell another something of huge significance was never a good sign and she felt a flutter of nerves inside her tummy.
‘Thank God I’ve found you!’ said Sapphire when she reached her. Then she bent forward with her hand resting on Amber’s shoulder while she paused to regain her breath.
‘Shit, Sapphire! What the fuck is it?’ asked Amber. ‘You’ve got me really worried.’
Sapphire straightened up, took a deep breath, and said, ‘It’s about Kev but you need to promise me first that you’ve not heard this from me.’
Amber was so eager to find out what the problem was that she would have agreed to anything, and the mention of Kev’s name made her feel even more alarmed. ‘Yeah, sure. You know me, I won’t tell a soul.’ She looked at Sapphire, expectantly.
Sapphire looked around before breaking the news to her. ‘It’s him that did Cora.’
Amber’s first reaction was one of alarm and she could feel the flutter in her stomach turn into a grumble. Then she became defensive. The notion was so ridiculous that she refused to entertain it.
‘No! No, you’re fuckin’ joking. Kev wouldn’t do that. He’d never hurt a woman. Who the fuck’s told you this?’
‘Straight up, Amber, it’s true. A mate of mine told me.’
‘And how do you know she’s not lying?’
‘It’s not a she; it’s a he. And he isn’t. I can’t tell you his name. He’s shitting himself already in case there’s any comeback. But take it from me, he ain’t lying. He saw it with his own eyes.’
‘No chance! What did he see? And where?’
Sapphire took another deep breath and to Amber it felt like she was becoming exasperated with her. ‘He used to live in the same squat as Cora. She had her own room there, an old office that she’d made nice with all her stuff. There were some windows in it that looked out onto the main office area. My mate just happened to be peeping through a gap in the curtains when he saw them.’
‘No! Hang on,’ said Amber. ‘I don’t like the sound of this. Why the fuck would he be looking through the window unless he’s a fuckin’ peeping Tom or summat?’
‘I don’t fuckin’ know, do I? Look, Amber, I’ve gone to a lot of trouble to tell you this. I should be at work now, not trailing you all over Manchester. So, don’t shoot the fuckin’ messenger.’
‘Sorry, Sapphire, but this mate of yours doesn’t sound reliable to me. Where is he now? Can I have a word with him?’
‘No, I’ve already told you, I can’t tell you who he is.’
‘Aah, I know, I bet he’s staying at yours, isn’t he? Don’t worry, I won’t tell Kev. I just want to hear it from the horse’s mouth, that’s all.’
‘No, he isn’t staying with me. I wouldn’t have him living with me.’
‘Why not if he’s so reliable?’
Amber was still in denial, but Sapphire surprised her when she grabbed her by the arm and pulled her closer before speaking directly to her. ‘Trust me, Amber. I’m telling you all this for your own fuckin’ good! If my mate says he saw it, then he saw it. I know him and he might have his faults,
