The Killing Hour

‘No can do, partner. She comes with me.’

‘You don’t need her.’

‘Oh, but I do, I do, yeah. I get lonely during the day.’

‘I can get the money first thing! Please! By ten o’clock everything can be settled.’

‘Sorry. I’ll be sleeping like a baby.’

‘What about in the afternoon? Come on, give me a break here.’

‘Don’t sound so desperate, little Charlie, little, little. The day’s no good for me. The night’s no good for me either. I’ve got plans.’

I don’t want him alone with Jo for two whole days. I don’t want that at all. ‘No deal.’

He reaches out and shoves Jo against the car, then points the gun at her. ‘Pick a limb, partner.’

I raise my free hand. ‘I can get you the money. But two days? Jesus, surely you can see my problem with this.’

‘And that’s just it. It’s your problem, not mine, not yours, but, well, yours.’ He laughs. ‘Partner, if you’re unhappy we can cancel the whole transaction. Is that how you want it?’

I shake my head. I’ve seen how he cancels transactions.

‘Good. I’ll ring you at home at nine o’clock tonight. Be there.’

‘If you touch her …‘

‘You’ll what? Huh? Kill me? Don’t worry, partner. I don’t damage my investments.’

He pushes her into the driver’s seat and slams the door. Clutching his stomach, he moves around to the passenger side. I stare through the side window at Jo. She stares back and attempts a smile that says, ‘Don’t worry, things will be fine.’ I attempt the same smile, but who are we kidding?

I meet Cyris’s eyes. I want them to be dead, reflecting only a vacant mind, but they’re alive and brimming with ideas. Half a minute goes by, then Jo puts the car into gear and slowly pulls away. She goes only ten metres before the brake lights come on. Her arm appears out the window and she tosses out the handcuff key and my car keys. They land in the middle of the road. Then the red brake lights die and the car rolls forward.

By trying to be a hero on Monday I’ve signed Jo’s life away. I rest my head against the door. The headache is back. I can taste failure in the back of my throat. I could have driven into a tree. I could have fought Cyris while he was behind me in the car. I look down the road. The tail lights are two distant red specks riding towards infinity. They look like eyes – demon eyes. They disappear around a distant bend.

They disappear and I am alone.





34


The rain cannot wash away the rage or the fear that leaves me standing motionless next to my car. Hope and despair have both reached out for me but hope couldn’t get a grip. And why would it? My clothes are soaked and I’m shivering. My feet are ice cold because I took my shoes off in the car. My mind has recognised defeat and is slowly shutting down. Jo is dead even though she’s behind the wheel of her car and speeding towards the city.

I lean into the car and release the handbrake. I grab my shoes and tug them onto my feet but I can’t do them up. I push against the doorframe with my left arm, my right beneath my left armpit because of the handcuffs. My legs try to tangle as I gain more speed, and when my left leg clips the edge of the car I lose my balance. My hand slips from the doorframe and I fall, my right knee hitting the asphalt, and I wonder why I’m even bothering. I pull myself into a sitting position and get onto my feet. I can feel air on my knee and know I’ve torn my jeans and grazed my leg.

I tighten my grip on the car and start over. The car builds speed once again, and when I can tell momentum will take me to the keys, I limbo into the car and put both hands on the wheel. I can’t steer because the steering wheel has locked, but I pull the handbrake when I reach the keys. I twist my body and lean out. The keys are closer to the other side of the car, out of reach. I look for something to help and find it when I look up and see my aerial. I pull it upwards and when it’s at its longest I bend it back and forth until it snaps off. I lean down and start fishing. It only takes a few moments to hook my keys, which have the handcuff key attached to them. I undo the cuffs and drop them onto the passenger seat.

Racing towards the city, I search for the tail lights of Jo’s Mazda but can’t find them. When I enter the city I drive aimlessly around but it’s pointless. They’re gone. And there’s nothing I can do until I pay to get her back.