Boss (20 page)

“Oh, Joshua,” she sighed as she pulled up beside it, “you’ll tell yourself any lie, won’t you?”

As they climbed out of the car, he hoped, just hoped that this time, it was a lie worth believing in.
Why is he around every corner?

“Jade?” Ezra kicked her foot, “Jade, get up.”

She stirred for a second before rolling over to hug her vodka bottle, squashing Ezra’s lilies in the process. They were the only fresh flowers on her grave.

“Piss off,” she attempted to spit at his feet but it just dribbled along her chin.

She looked and smelled unwashed. Her brown hair was ratty, her face looked dirty and her clothes looked like they needed burning. Gone was the sweet girl he had fallen in love with in school. Jade had always cared so much about how she looked but the woman at his feet clearly had no fucks to give.

“Why did you call me?” he planted his hands on his hips, “It’s my first day off all week and you had to fucking call me.”

“Busy?” she snorted, “Balls deep?”

It was probably the first day off in a long time that he hadn’t spent like that. Joshua had temporarily turned him off men all together.

“Up,” he looped his arm under hers, “get up. Help me out here.”

Using Lily’s grave as a hoist, she stumbled to her feet with the vodka bottle still tightly in her fingers. She stumbled on the spot appearing to have lost function of her knees and ankles but her fingers were working perfectly.

“It’s getting so close,” she screwed up her face and stroked the stone, “I bet you didn’t even know.”

It took all of his strength not to leave there and then. Something kept him watching her pathetically hurl insults at him.

“White lilies,” he picked them up and tried to rescue the ones she hadn’t squashed, “every year I bring white lilies.”

“That’s you?” she staggered sideways.

You know it’s me. I’m the only one who bothers to bring flowers here.

“I’ll take you home,” it was a reluctant offer, “how long have you been here?”

He tried to reach out to help her but her uncut nails struck his skin. Blood instantly rose to the surface of his hand in four neat lines.

“Fuck you,” he wiped it on the back of his jeans, thankful they were black, “I didn’t have to come here. Fuck you, Jade.”

He turned, ready to leave her to continue spiralling but a soft whimper broke through the grim exterior freezing him to the spot.

“I – just -,” she choked on her tears as they all tried to come at once.

Clear streaks ran down her cheeks, clearing away the dirt from sleeping in the grass. He wanted to reach out, to take her in his arms but he stopped himself.

“C’mon,” he inhaled deeply, “I’ll take you back to mine. You can get cleaned up.”

She shook her head, rubbing the tears bitterly away with the cuff of her jacket. Her hands ran tightly through her hair, slicking it back to her scalp and for a fleeting moment, she looked like she was semi aware of what was going on around her.

“No parent should lose a child,” she snarled.

Ezra wasn’t sure what he was supposed to say to that. Was he meant to pretend he hadn’t gone through the same thing she had just so he could extend her five-year pity party? He had held back for five years. Could he really do it for much longer?

“She was my daughter too,” he swallowed the dry lump in his throat, “I lost her too.”

As the tears forced their way forwards, he looked up to the sky to try and force them back in. It was a beautiful day and he could hear birds chirping delightfully as the breeze licked his face.

“It’s your fault,” she thrashed her fists against his chest, “if you hadn’t -,”

She broke down, collapsing into his shirt. He didn’t know what to do. It had been so long since he had hugged her. He wanted to remain his calm and casual self, always in control of what he was doing but he lost control. Pulling her in close, he let her have her moment.

It didn’t last long before she pushed herself away. After a quick swig of her vodka, she was ready to go back to how she had been for five years.

“If you weren’t out fucking that guy, this wouldn’t have happened.”

Ezra had been waiting for it. The accusation and blame he’d had to live with. The guilt he got every time he lay with another man in bed. It would always transport him back to that night.
What if I could have changed things? What if I could have saved my daughter?

Clenching his fists behind his back, he was tired of having to take the blame.

“You were drunk,” he said calmly, “you fell asleep smoking a joint with our daughter in the other room. You started the fire, not me.”

She spat her venom at his feet again, some of it hitting his shoe.

“No,” she shook her head, “you should have been there. You could have got her out.”

“Because you were too wasted to?”

She shook her head again, clamping her hands over her ears.

“You should have -,”

“Jade!” the angry shout left Ezra’s mouth before he knew how to silence it, “Stop! This has gone on for too long.”

She wasn’t listening. Staggering forwards, she bent down by their daughter’s grave to kiss the picture he had replaced only a couple of days ago. Didn’t she wonder where the fresh pictures always came from?

“You slept with men behind my back,” she slurred, “and you paid for it.”

Another knife twisted in his gut. Jade had always known what to say to hit him where it hurt.

“This wasn’t some act of God, Jade. We both fucked up here. Don’t pretend like you weren’t fucking Brian O’Donney every chance you got.”

She shot him a look that read ‘
how did you know?
’ but he was five years too late. They had been high school sweethearts who married far too quickly. Their relationship would have died out long before it did if she hadn’t fallen pregnant.

“Fuck you,” she mumbled, “Fuck you.”

“Go home, Jade,” he pinched between his eyes, “this is our daughter’s grave.”

She stood up and he thought she was going to take his advice. Instead, she launched herself at him. He felt her nails dig into his neck. Hot blood quickly trickled between his skin and shirt as he struggled to restrain her. Picking her up around the waist, he carried her towards his car.

He didn’t care how much she was thrashing. He didn’t care about the cruel and twisted things she was saying. For the sake of his daughter, he was going to get her out of here.

“Put me down!” she growled, “You’re scum, Ezra. You’re scum.”

With one swift thrash of her heel, he doubled over as the sharp pain in his balls knocked him sick to his stomach. He dropped her onto the hard ground and the vodka bottle smashed, spilling her precious distraction.

“You bitch,” he wheezed, clenching his groin.

“Jade, you okay?” he heard an old familiar voice.

Straightening himself up, his hand clamped the fresh cut on his neck. It burned but it was nothing compared to the pain inside. Jade had a habit of ripping that wound open just with her presence.

He watched as the unmistakeable sight of Brian O’Donney swaggered across the car park with his scummy friends behind him. He was the same age as Ezra, twenty-five, but he hadn’t got the memo that nylon tracksuits and caps didn’t quite look so great anymore.

“You messin’ wiv my girl?” he smacked his tongue against his teeth as three of his friends lingered behind him.

“Yeah, he is,” Jade stood up, suddenly sober enough to hold herself.

Brian rammed his tongue down her throat and Ezra dreaded to think how long it had been since either of them had brushed their teeth.

“Piss off, Brian,” Ezra glanced to his car, “isn’t there an underage girl that needs impregnating?”

Brian pushed Jade into the car so his gang could step forwards. His teeth were blackened, his skin was pockmarked and the bags under his eyes were practically hitting his toes.
Am I looking at my alternative reality?

“Ezra Fucking Steele?” he got into Ezra’s face, his rancid breath almost making him retch, “You’re not wanted ‘round ‘ere.”

“I don’t know if you heard, Brian, but mouthwash is a thing now.”

The joke clearly went over his head. Of course, that didn’t stop him reacting in the only Neanderthal way he knew. Before Ezra could react, their foreheads were colliding with a splitting crack. Ezra stumbled back, clutching his head. He peered through his fingers at Brian, who was doing the same.
Didn’t your dad teach you nobody wins in a head-butt?

“G’won, Brian,” Jade egged him on, “fucking flatten him.”

Part of him wanted Brian to, if that’s what Jade needed to move on.
She’ll never move on
. He regained himself, quickly cracking his knuckles before Brian launched himself again.

Being the idiot that he was, Brian tried to go in for another head-butt. Ezra’s fist was waiting for him and he struck him right under the jaw. He felt the skin split under his fingers. Brian crumbled to the ground, clutching his face and Ezra knew he was probably too high to even know what was going on.

With their leader out, Brian’s three equally scummy friends launched for Ezra. He took a couple of punches and threw a couple but he knew he didn’t stand a chance three against one. The sound of glass smashing and the undeniable sound of his
Huracan
’s alarm screeched painfully.

Ezra fell to the ground and pathetically clutched his face, unsure of what to do. Every time he thought he would be able to get up to his feet another foot would plant in his stomach and another fist would strike his skull.

Ezra knew how to take a punch, he had been raised on these streets. It wasn’t the first time he had been taken on by more than one person but it was the first time he had practically given up hope.

The barrage weakened and he peered through his fingers. There was a flash of hair and somebody being thrown. He was sure that only one person was hitting him. Taking his chance, he swiped at the knee in front of his face, causing the thug to collapse in on himself.

Clambering to his feet, he was sure that he was dreaming when he saw Joshua Silverton laying into two guys at once and winning. Dazed and confused, Ezra took on the third guy.

Brian scrambled to his feet but the distant sound of police sirens made him call his men to retreat. Between them they would have enough warrants and fines that is wasn’t worth beating up a toff from Holland Park.

“This isn’t over, Ezra,” Jade spat at his feet before picking up another rock from the church garden and launching it at his precious car.

It missed the window and bounced off the bonnet, leaving a crater in its wake. The car’s alarm split his ears. Rubbing his face, he let his mind catch up to what had happened. He clicked his car keys to silence the noise.

In the doorway of the church he saw Violet along with the vicar and a couple of Saturday worshipers. They all clutched their mouths as they looked on in horror. He didn’t care about them. He only cared about the one man who had jumped in to save him.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” he turned to Joshua.

“You’re welcome,” he clutched his hips as he struggled for breath, “I haven’t fought like that since I was a kid.”

He held up his finger to tell Ezra to give him a second but Ezra couldn’t. He didn’t know why Joshua was there but in that moment, he found himself suddenly believing in something bigger than himself. Maybe it was the setting or the blows to the head but Joshua had saved him.

He stumbled forward, pulling Joshua into the tightest hug he had ever given somebody. The pain in his body screamed out but he didn’t care.

“Thanks,” Ezra whispered into his ear.

“I couldn’t just stand by and watch them kill you,” Joshua rested his chin on Ezra’s shoulder, “I’m not that heartless.”

“I never doubted you.”

“Jesus Christ,” Violet ran over and pulled them apart, “sorry, Father.”

She waved back to the vicar but he gave her the permission to blaspheme away, given the circumstances.

“That was like something from
Mortal Kombat
, you badass,” Violet hugged him before turning on Ezra and hugging him, “who were those skanks?”

“I don’t know,” Ezra lied.

Joshua caught his gaze angrily, clearly not believing him. He was about to start thinking up more excuses but the vicar dragged Ezra off towards the church to get cleaned up.