By
Jan
Chapter 10
Nikki
turned Helen round and, with the muzzle of the revolver pressed against her
spine, urged her towards the living room.
Jim
and Shell were sitting together on the settee and the woman gave her a scornful
look as their eyes met. She flashed Shell a confident smile, her outwardly calm
exterior belying the pounding of her heart. She was out on a limb and she
wasn’t even sure what her next move was going to be. She had to get back to
people she trusted and there was only one person she would trust with her
life…Trish!
“We’re
leaving now, Jim,” Helen told him, trying to force a smile to her lips.
“I’ll see you out.” Jim started to rise, his
face contorting in agony with the effort.
Nikki
nudged Helen warningly. The last thing she wanted was Fenner getting close
enough to try anything stupid. Kneeing him was one thing but killing him in
cold blood was an entirely different matter.
“It’s
okay. Stay where you are,” Helen said quickly. “We’ll see ourselves out,”
Jim
dropped back down and, to Nikki’s watching satisfaction, gasped with pain. The
wimp wouldn’t be sitting comfortably for quite a few days!
“Thanks
for having me,” she piped up sarcastically.
“Can’t
say it was a pleasure,” muttered Shell.
As
they reached the top of the stairs, Nikki stooped and picked up the bag Zandra
had left, whilst keeping a watchful eye on her captive. Outside, she slid the
revolver into her pocket but kept a firm grip on it then pushed Helen towards
her car. “Get in and don’t try anything.”
Helen
turned to face her. “There’s no need for this you know.”
“You
think not?” Nikki sneered.
“No,
there really isn’t. We’ve had the preliminary post mortem report. The angle of
the wound proved that Sean was killed by someone much shorter than yourself.”
She smiled. “You’re in the clear.”
“I
don’t understand. Barbara said the police were looking for me.”
“Not
any more. I told them I’d spoken to you and I was satisfied you’d left the club
before Sean got there,” she replied then added defensively when she saw the
surprised look Nikki gave her. “It would only have complicated matters to tell
them otherwise.”
“Didn’t
they wonder why my car was still in the car park?”
“I
said you’d had too much to drink and had taken a cab home.”
Nikki
laughed cynically. “Better a drunk than a murderer.”
“Now
why don’t you give me the gun?” Helen said gently, her heart constricting at
the doubt she saw in Nikki’s eyes. “Do you honestly think I would hurt you?”
“Nice
try, Helen!” Nikki retorted bitterly.
“What
do you mean?”
She took the revolver from
her pocket and pointed it at Helen. “”What’s it like being on the other end for
a change?” she asked mocking. “Is this the gun you tried to kill me with?”
“You think I tried to kill
you?” she asked incredulously.
“Someone did.”
“But not me,” she countered.
“Jim saw the bullet hole when he came out of the hotel and guessed what had happened.
I think someone is trying to kill you that’s why I have the gun.”
A half smile touched Nikki’s
lips. “So you’re trying to protect me?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Bullshit!” Nikki spat out.
“You’re trying to protect yourself. You know I heard you in the club arguing
with Sean and you wanted to shut me up!”
“I wasn’t the one you heard
arguing and I didn’t kill Sean.”
“Yeah, right.”
“It wasn’t me!” Helen
repeated.
“You can’t expect me to believe
you now when you’ve done nothing but lie to me since the day we met,” she said
accusingly.
“I had no choice.”
“I was prepared to give up
everything for you and all the time you were deceiving me!” she continued
relentlessly.
“There was no other way.”
“So you made me fall in love
with you.” It was a statement rather than a question.
“No…I…” Helen hesitated. She
felt guilty although Nikki was only partly right. She had set out to seduce her
but she hadn’t meant for Nikki to fall in love with her.
“Don’t lie to me! Not any
more. Now get in the car!”
They drove into the
nightclub car park, Helen at the wheel and Nikki sitting beside her with her
arms folded across her body, the revolver in her left hand firmly pointing at
Helen’s side.
Yellow
tape proclaimed the club was a crime scene and there was a uniformed constable
standing at the door who followed their every move with his eyes.
“Do
you know him?”
“No.”
“Alright,
get out of the car slowly. If you do anything stupid, I’ll shoot him first and
then you,” she said menacingly as she again pushed the revolver into her
pocket.
They
walked up to the doors and Nikki flashed the policeman a friendly smile as she
reached him. “I’m Nikki Wade. This is my club and this is Miss Stewart, my
business advisor.” she informed him then breathed a sigh of relief as he moved
to one side to allow them to pass.
Inside,
she glanced round the dimly lit foyer. The double doors that led to the dance floor
were sealed so, nudging Helen in the back, they went through to the other bar
and found the two Julies sitting on bar stools, unsure of what to do but
reporting for work because they couldn’t afford to lose money by staying at
home.
“Trish?
Is she here?” She demanded.
“She’s
in the office with Sylvia,” Julie Saunders informed her.
“Okay.
We won’t be opening tonight so you two push off home.” They looked about to
object until she added, “Don’t worry, you’ll still get paid the full rate.” She
smiled pleasantly at Helen. “Shall we go through to the office?” Once they were
through the door marked ‘private’ she took Helen by the upper arm and almost
dragged her down the corridor to the office.
“Nikki,
you’ve got it all wrong!” Helen protested as she tried to free herself.
“Shut
up!” Nikki ordered, digging her fingers into the tender flesh. She opened the
office door and pushed Helen inside but
she was momentarily forgotten when she saw Sylvia Hollamby sitting at
the desk and Trish standing behind her massaging her shoulders. “What’s going
on?”
Trish’s
hands stilled and she looked at Nikki guiltily. “Nik, I…It’s not what you
think.” She moved backwards but Sylvia caught hold of her hand.
“Tell
her the truth, my love,” Sylvia said in a voice that was surprisingly tender.
“Tell
me what?” Nikki asked in a quiet voice
“Use
your imagination,” Sylvia remarked then kissed the back of the hand she had
been holding.
Nikki
laughed incredulously. “You’re joking! You’re not trying to tell me that you
two are…” Her voice tailed off as Sylvia opened the top drawer, drew out a
revolver and placed it on the desk in front of her.
“I’m
glad it amuses you,” she said icily. “The last person who laughed at me was
laughing on the other side of his face by the time I’d finished with him!”
“You
murdered Sean!” Nikki exclaimed.
“It
wasn’t like that,” Trish put in anxiously. “Sylvia and I…we came to the club
that night to tell you about us. I got upset and she was comforting me when
this drunk lurched in.”
“Spare
me the sickening details!”
“He
started laughing and making obscene comments about us,” Trish continued. “Then
he attacked me. Sylvia only did it to protect me.”
“How
noble of her,” Nikki sneered. “I suppose she tried to shoot me to protect you
too.” She heard Trish’s sharp intake of breath. “You mean she didn’t tell you.
That’s one murderous bitch you’re mixing with.”
“She’s
not…”
“Although
I don’t know how you knew where to find me.”
“Handy
things, re-dial buttons,” Sylvia remarked smugly.
Nikki
thought back to the telephone conversation she’d had with Trish and the feeling
she wasn’t alone. “Christ, you were together!” She shot Trish a look of
disgust. “In our bed?”
“It
wasn’t the first time and it won’t be the last,” the older woman sneered.
With
a cry, Nikki lunged forward and Sylvia snatched up the revolver and pointed it
at her. “You’re not being very smart are you? Do you want to shorten your life
even more?”
“Nikki,
don’t do anything stupid,” Helen said warningly.
“You
should listen to her,” Sylvia advised, her lips twitching into a malicious
smirk.
Helen
spoke again. “I have to inform you that I’m a police officer. I suggest you put
down your weapon…”
“And
I suggest you shut your mouth before I shut it for you,” the older woman said
viciously.
Nikki
looked at Trish appealingly. “Trish, are you going to let her kill me?”
“We
have no choice,” came the almost apologetic reply. “You saw what happened…”
“No
I didn’t. I heard a woman’s voice but never in a million years did I think it had
anything to do with you.”
“You
ran away.”
“I
had to. They would have thought I’d done it.”
“That’s
what we were hoping then we would have been rid of you once and for all,”
Sylvia put in maliciously.
“How
long?”
“W…what?”
Trish asked nervously.
“You
and her?” Nikki exclaimed angrily. “How long?”
“About
a year.”
“A
year!” she exploded. “And you still made love to me?”
“Shut
up!” Sylvia’s command cracked through the air like a whip.
Nikki
smiled mockingly, as she slid her hands casually into her pockets, feeling the
reassurance of the revolver. She slipped off the safety catch and curled her
hand around the handle. “What’s wrong, Sylvia? Didn’t she tell you she was
still having a very healthy sex life with me? Tut, tut, Trish. You really do
want to have your cake and eat it, don’t you?”
“Damn
you! Shut your filthy mouth!” Sylvia snarled as her finger tightened on the
trigger.
“Sylvia,
don’t!” Trish cried.
They
both fired simultaneously…Nikki through the material in her jacket…and as
Sylvia’s bullet hit her and knocked her off balance her aim was deflected and
she saw her own bullet rip into Trish’s slender body.
A
distraught Sylvia fired again and Nikki heard Helen gasp beside her before she
crashed to the floor.