Somewhere to Hide (The Estate, Book 1) (14 page)

Jess shrugged her shoulders.

‘But you left with her. Where did she get to?’

‘
She
got into a stolen car with Danny Bradley, leaving me to make my own way home.’

‘What?’ Cathy put down her magazine.

‘I would never have done that. Mates don’t leave other mates behind. And she knows I fancy Danny Bradley. She is so dead when I get hold of her.’

‘But you shouldn’t have left her on her own! Where did you last see her?’

‘I’ve told you,’ Jess snapped. ‘She got into a stolen car with Danny Bradley and some other bloke called Austin. How the hell should I know where they took her?’

‘But I trusted you to look after her and –’

‘This isn’t my fault. I told her not to get into the car but she ignored me. And then they left me to walk home! Do you think I wanted to walk miles? My feet are killing me.’ She took off a shoe. ‘Look at my blisters. I won’t be able to walk tomorrow. But what sympathy do I get for doing the right thing? All you do is moan at
me
.’

Cathy touched her arm gently. ‘Sorry, I’m just worried about her. I never expected Becky to go off the rails.’

‘Like me, you mean.’

‘No, I didn’t say –’

‘If you’re so bothered about your precious bloody Becky, then maybe you’d better start looking for her.’

Cathy stood up. ‘I think I might do that.’

She was outside in the driveway when a police car pulled up in the street. Cathy flew into panic mode. An officer got out of the driver’s seat. Luckily, it was PC Andy Baxter.

‘I believe I have something – or someone – that belongs to you.’ He opened the rear door. Becky climbed out.

‘Where the hell have you been?’ cried Cathy.

‘I’m not late,’ Becky retorted.

‘I picked her up not far from where a stolen car was abandoned,’ Andy explained. ‘We’d been following it for a while: two males and a female inside it. Looked suspiciously like Becky but she’s denying it.’

‘It wasn’t me!’

‘She won’t tell me who was driving it and I didn’t get a good look at him. But I have my suspicions about that too.’

Becky gulped. This was all she needed. After the mix up with Danny, they’d been on their way to drop her off. It was when they were driving past Vincent Square, heading for Christopher Avenue, that they’d first heard police sirens. Through the back window, Becky noticed an unmarked car, only a few feet behind them. Danny had raced around the estate for several minutes trying to lose them. But in the end, he’d driven into a large fenced yard and he and Austin had got out. They’d legged it up and over a row of garages and dropped into the field behind. Becky had sneaked through a privet hedge and ended up in someone’s garden. She’d run down the path and was out in the street when Andy had collared her.

Now she was in big strife and not only from Cathy. She could see Jess watching from the doorway, running a finger across her throat as if she were threatening to kill her.

‘Jesus Christ, Becky,’ said Cathy. ‘Every time you go out, you bring home trouble. I –’

‘I didn’t have any choice! And – and Jess left me, you should be mad with her too!’

‘Don’t try and put the blame on me, you cow!’ said Jess.

‘You –’

‘Ladies!’ Andy nodded towards the house. ‘Shall we go inside? Dirty laundry and all that?’

Becky marched past Cathy to go into the house. But Cathy pulled her back. She grabbed Becky’s chin and sniffed.

‘I thought so. You’ve been drinking! I told you to be careful. In your state, you shouldn’t be drinking at all. What were you thinking of!’

Andy didn’t look at all shocked by the news that Becky was to become another teenage statistic.

‘You don’t look pregnant,’ he told her. ‘When’s it due?’

‘Never if it’s got anything to do with me.’

Cathy squeezed her arm roughly. ‘I could slap your stupid face, do you know that? I wish you weren’t so… so… You can ruin your own life, Becky, but you have someone else to think about right now.’

‘I don’t want to be pregnant,’ said Becky tearfully.

Cathy calmed a little at this remark. Maybe this could be an opportunity to get to the bottom of her little secret.

‘Kitchen. Now,’ she demanded but her tone was a little bit lighter. Andy followed them in. Close on his heels was Jess. Cathy stopped her in the doorway.

‘I’ll handle this.’

‘But –’

She closed the door, leaving her protesting in the hall. Then she sat down beside Becky at the table.

‘You and I need to talk,’ she said. ‘And I’m willing to sit here all night if I have to.’

‘I’ve got nowt to say!’

‘I have.’ Andy sat down next to Cathy. ‘I’m going to let you off with a caution this time,’ he took out his notebook, ‘because you’re new around here and because, technically I can’t prove whether you were in the car under your own volition. But if there is
one
more next time, I won’t be so lenient.’

‘Thanks, Andy,’ said Cathy.

‘But it wasn’t my fault! They locked the doors and I –’

‘Will you shut up and listen to him! He’s giving you a second chance. Not that you deserve one but –’

‘Are you going to be seeing Danny Bradley again?’ Andy interrupted, addressing Becky.

‘Not if she wants to stay here,’ Cathy answered for her.

Becky stood up, scraping her chair noisily across the floor. ‘Leave me alone, both of you. I don’t need your help, or your concern. I can look after myself, and my baby. I‘ll go to the housing association first thing tomorrow, get myself a flat and move out of here. You can wash your hands of me. That’s what you want to do, isn’t it?’

‘Of course not.’ Cathy touched her arm.

‘No, I mean it! I’ll pack my things now. You won’t see me again after tomorrow.’

She stormed across the room. This time, Cathy left her to it.

Andy shook his head. ‘I still don’t know how you do this, Cath. You have far more patience than I’ll ever have.’

‘I don’t always feel patient but I have to keep my wits.’ Cathy sighed. ‘What else is out there for them? I can only take in four of these girls at a time. God knows what happens to the ones that I miss.’

‘I wish Becky would see that.’

‘She’ll come round,’ Cathy said, more confident than she felt about it happening.

Becky paused momentarily when she saw Jess waiting outside her bedroom door.

‘You’re dead when I get you on your own,’ Jess told her. ‘Don’t think you can treat me like a piece of shit.’

‘Leave me alone.’

Becky pushed past her and into her room. Jess grabbed for her arm but she was too quick. In a flash, the door was shut and locked. Sliding down to the floor as Jess hurled a torrent of abuse from the other side of it, she held her head in her hands.

What was it with her lately? Is this how her life was going to pan out? Getting into trouble all the time and then what? Drugs? Prison? If she carried on like this, they’d take her baby into care. Then she’d be alone again.

She rested a hand on her stomach. That was laughable really. What could she give a baby when she couldn’t look after herself?

More to the point, what had got into Danny Bradley? Becky might have let him shag her but he didn’t own her. And now Austin thought they were an item, it looked like she’d lost her chance with him. He was much cooler than Danny Bradley would ever be. God, she would have to toughen up.

Exhausted and emotional, she dragged herself across to the bed and flopped down onto it.

‘Stuff you all,’ she said. ‘Stuff the lot of you. I don’t need anyone else.’

Then she burst into tears.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

‘I will not tolerate this kind of behaviour,’ Cathy repeated to Becky over breakfast the next morning. ‘It’s bad enough that you came in drunk and woke up the whole street when you first arrived but to be brought home by the police? Well, it raises eyebrows and I don’t want any of that.’

‘But I told you, it wasn’t my fault,’ Becky cried. ‘They wouldn’t let me out of the car. They left Jess behind.’

‘
They
left you behind to take the blame.’

‘
They
are going to kill you when they get hold of you,’ said Jess as she joined them in the kitchen.

‘I never grassed them up!’

‘You’re both as bad as each other,’ said Cathy. ‘I was so sure that you two would become firm friends.’

‘Just because we’re both teenagers doesn’t mean we’ll get on.’ Jess slumped down next to Becky and rested her chin on the heel of her hand. ‘And friends would look out for each other, not leave them in the lurch to walk miles home on their own.’

‘I’m sorry, okay! I didn’t know they’d leave you behind.’

Cathy sighed. All she wanted was a bit of peace and quiet every now and then. But while she had the two of them together, it seemed a perfect time to keep the conversation going.

‘I want you – both of you – to start thinking of other people for a change and show some respect,’ she said. ‘It isn’t much to ask.’

‘I don’t know why you’ve dragged me into this,’ Jess remarked. ‘It wasn’t me who was brought home by the plod last night.’

‘Not this time, but it has been on occasion.’ Jess opened her mouth to complain but Cathy didn’t give her the chance to speak. ‘You know I can’t settle until you’re home because I worry. What do you want me to do? Buy a notice board and get you to write on it where you are and what time you’ll be back?’

‘I’m not doing that. It’d be like being at school.’

‘If you act like children, then I’ll treat you the same. This talk is again to remind you of the rules.’

‘Not those frigging rules.’ Jess folded her arms. ‘You don’t have control over our every waking minute.’

‘Of course I know that,’ said Cathy. ‘But while you are here, you will show me some respect. You came in late the night before last and I turned a blind eye as you were coherent.’

‘So?’

‘Put yourself in my position. I have a full house now that Cheryl is back. I have five people to think of and worry about all the time. Can you imagine what that is like?’

‘Six,’ said Becky quietly.

‘What?’ Cathy turned towards her.

‘There are six of us to look after.’ Lightly, she ran a hand over her stomach.

‘You keeping it then?’ Jess nudged Becky.

Becky blushed. She nodded slightly, although she wasn’t at all sure.

‘At least you’ll get out of here quicker that way. Single woman with child gets further up the list. You’ll have a flat in no time when some other poor slapper does a runner. That Josie Mellor will be round here soon, trying to move you on.’ Jess pointed at Cathy. ‘That’s what she likes to do, move you on so that you’re someone else’s problem.’

‘That’s a lie!’ Cathy banged her hand down on the table. ‘You know I always do what I think is best for you – the best for you all.’ She pointed at her. ‘
You
had better watch your step and be a good friend to this one, and you,’ she pointed to Becky, ‘need to get streetwise pretty sharpish or you’ll be shat on from a great height and used for God only knows what.’

‘Like me,’ said Jess.

Cathy gave her a sarcastic smile. ‘Yes, like you.’

‘I’ve had enough of this. I’m getting out of here.’ Jess scraped back her chair and stormed out of the room. ‘Be sure to tell Cheryl about the rules again when she gets out of her pit.’

The kitchen door slammed and finally there was peace. Becky stayed quiet for a moment.

‘You won’t make me leave, will you?’ she asked then.

Cathy shook her head. ‘No, I won’t. But you, as well as Jess, need to show some respect. I can only do so much to protect you. You’ve been here a while now and for the most part of it, you’ve behaved yourself. But I don’t want you getting in too deep with the wrong crowd.’

‘I don’t really know a crowd.’

Cathy gave her half a smile, not sure if she was trying to make light of the situation or not. ‘All the same, I don’t want to ruin my relationship with PC Baxter. It’s a good job I have him. Do you hear me?’

Cathy pulled her arms high and stretched. It was one am. She felt exhausted but was glad that she’d managed to see the end of the film. She switched off the television and listened. Silence. The house was quiet and there was nothing going on out in the garden.

Since their little chat this morning, both girls had been behaving themselves. This evening, Becky hadn’t gone out at all but had stayed in her room and Jess had come in about ten, not a whiff of alcohol. She’d apologised for her outburst that morning and they’d talked a while before she’d gone off to bed. Even Cheryl hadn’t come home in a stroppy mood. All in all, it had been a better day.

She sat still for a while. This was her favourite time of night, when everyone was home, safely tucked up in their beds, and she could switch off completely. Ten minutes later, she yawned loudly. She picked up the empty mugs and went to draw the bolts across the front door. But her high mood was short-lived. There was another envelope sitting on the mat.