Chapter Sixteen

Annie watched Bella as she stood on the brothel doorstep, waving her latest punter off and shouting goodnight. She looked down at the money in her hand, counted it and then tucked it into her padded bra, before closing the door and turning into the room.

‘Oh bejesus, it’s freezing. He was a good tipper, so I had to wave him off, didn’t I?’ she said as she turned to the drinks cabinet and poured a large glass of whisky. ‘But then again, I did give him a few of the optional extras.’ She gave out a dirty laugh, placed a tongue in her cheek and held the glass in the air. ‘This and a hot bath will be my treat tonight,’ she announced as she sipped at the drink. ‘What about you, Annie? Are you finished for the night, or what?’

Annie seethed inside. Bella had asked the question in the knowledge that she hadn’t had any work all night. All the punters had chosen either Bella or one of the other girls, meaning that Annie would have to hit the streets as the clubs came out and would most probably still be working way after they’d all gone to their beds. What’s more all tonight’s men had arrived, done the business and gone quickly. They’d all paid up without an issue and, by the sounds of it, Bella had ended up with a few quid extra for her multiple services.

‘Think I’ll take a walk down the road, see if anyone’s looking to score a trick or two in their car,’ Annie answered as she slumped towards the stairs. Her legs ached and her heels were raw with wearing charity shop stilettos that were far too tight. Kicking them off for a moment, she began to climb the stairs. It was winter and she needed to change; the skimpy underwear that she currently wore would be no good out in the cold and the rain, but her distinct lack of clothes meant that her choices were limited.

‘Well, I’m going to lay in a bubble bath for at least an hour,’ Bella said as she smugly turned on her heel to follow Annie up the stairs. ‘Think I’ve got enough to pay Griff off now, so tomorrow, my darling, the punters are all yours. I might even have the day off and go do some Christmas shopping,’ she smirked. ‘Buy my mammy and daddy something nice for the big day.’

‘All right for some,’ Annie threw back. ‘So how do you do it, Bella? Two grand is a lot of money for you to have come up with that quickly.’ Annie tried to calculate the amount of work Bella must have had over the past two days. She pondered for a moment; at around fifty quid a go that would have been forty blokes, and surely there hadn’t been that many that had come through the doors? In fact, she knew there’d only been twenty at the most, and with that in mind, Annie tried to think back over Bella’s movements. Had she been in the house all the time, or had she been out working on the side? She shook her head. None of them could earn that in a day or two, no matter how many extras they offered, not unless those extras were drugs.

Annie tossed the stilettos through her bedroom door but hovered on the landing, while she watched where Bella went. Whatever Bella was up to, whatever she was doing, it wasn’t a few quickies with the punters, and Annie’s mind went to the small bag of heroin she’d produced to help her out. Was she dealing? Was she selling it along with the sex? If she was capable of earning two grand that quickly, and apparently that easily, then she could earn it again.

‘Looking forward to seeing my mammy Christmas day,’ Bella said, ignoring Annie’s question. ‘They’ve invited me for Christmas dinner. First time in three years and I reckon it’s all cause I helped my mum. She must have really appreciated it.’ She looked pleased with herself, but Annie was annoyed. She could feel the steam coming out of her ears as she stamped around at the top of the stairs. Bella was gloating just a little too much and Annie could feel herself getting more and more angry. But her anger would be short-lived. Annie had a plan and in the end Bella could gloat as much as she liked, but it’d be Annie that won the war and her that would have the money. After all, why shouldn’t she? Bella had known what she’d been up against, she’d known what Griff had demanded, what he’d threatened and she’d known what he was capable of, yet even with all that at stake, she didn’t seem to care. All she cared about was saving her own neck and paying her own debts.

Pushing the door to her room wide open, Annie went inside, kicking rubbish to one side as she went. She sat on the bed and began picking up her outdoor clothes from the floor, but then tossed them back where they’d come from. She didn’t want to go out there tonight. It was too cold, it was raining and whoever wanted to score would be half paralytic by now. She sighed. ‘There has to be an easier way,’ she whispered to herself. Then she thought of the money. Could she really take Bella’s money, or was it better to admit defeat, and to just give Griff the child? Annie knew what those animals would do to Lily, but did she care enough? Was it better to sacrifice her daughter than to take the wrath herself? It was the first time Annie had really wondered whether Griff would actually take her. Was it worth it to clear her debt? And if not, could she deprive herself of the drugs while trying to pay Griff off?

She thought of the heroin. Could she go without it? She shook her head. ‘Not a chance,’ she said to herself as she scratched at her arm. The track marks were more than apparent, her arm was filled with sores, and she made a study of where she’d next find a space in which to inject.

Along the corridor a door opened, and then slammed shut, right before she heard the water run in the bathroom.

‘You said you were going to lay in the bath for at least an hour,’ Annie repeated the words that Bella had used and walked to the door. ‘Well, good for you,’ she whispered as she stood with the door half open, listening to the sound of the water swooshing around and Bella singing. Her mind went back to the day before. Bella had drugs hidden in her room. Annie smiled. There were only one or two places big enough to hide anything and Annie thought about the floorboards, how loose they always seemed and how she’d often hidden things under there herself. And with a good-sized hiding place, she was sure that Bella would have hidden the money there too. Again, Annie listened to the noise of the water swishing around behind the closed door. With Bella saying she was going to take such a long and luxurious bath, she’d be gone long enough for Annie to go in, find the hiding place and take it all for herself.