was no way to do that without getting involved in some bad stuff. But he did rummage through the backpack and drop the antique brooch on to the carpet.
*
James drove the Vauxhall to the outskirts of London and met up with Wheels, who’d dumped the Lexus in a side street. Apparently a friend in the motor trade was already on his way to collect it and it would be resprayed and shipped off to Eastern Europe within days.
Wheels had taken over two grand out of the cash machines and he gave James half, with a promise of more money when he’d been paid for the car and fenced the stolen gear.
‘You did good,’ Wheels said.
‘So can we do some more jobs together?’
Wheels nodded. ‘But not straight away. You’re only fifteen and I reckon that grand is going to burn a hole on your pocket. The Zoo is full of snitches, so take your time spending it and don’t go mouthing off.’
‘I’m not a complete idiot,’ James said.
‘Sasha’s short of bodies right now, so I’ll put in a word and see if he can find something more permanent for you.’
‘Cheers, and goodnight,’ James said as he popped the door of the car. But when he looked up at the sky he could see the sun coming up behind a line of houses. ‘Or maybe that’s good morning.’
James had left all the stolen stuff with Wheels for him to sell, but he patted the back pocket of his jeans to make sure that he had his wedge of money. It might have been half five in the morning, but the care worker stationed on the entrance didn’t bat an eye as James sauntered in. A couple who looked about thirteen were making out in the non-smoking lounge and a bunch of kids were watching a DVD and smoking in the other one.
But most people were asleep and James crept into the room to avoid waking Bruce. Unfortunately, his trainers made a racket as they crackled on the filthy vinyl floor.
‘What happened?’ Bruce whispered, as James pulled his shirt over his head.
‘Hotel robbery,’ James said, pulling the money out of his jeans and fanning it.
Bruce grinned. ‘I might just know why Wheels was so keen to take you out, even though he barely knows you.’
‘You reckon?’ James said.
‘I was speaking to Junior and there’s a rumour going around that Wheels isn’t exactly what you’d call a ladies’ man.’
‘You mean he’s gay?’
Bruce nodded. ‘It would certainly explain why he took a shine to your pretty blond head within about five minutes of meeting you.’
The idea that Wheels was attracted to him made James uneasy. ‘Well,’ he said. ‘If it’s true it’s kind of worked to our advantage, but he’d better not try anything. And speaking of people who keep things under their hat, what was going on out on that football pitch?’
‘I’ve always been good at football, but I’m not really into it.’
James shook his head in disbelief. Most boys would give anything to be that good at football. ‘You never practise or anything,’ he said. ‘If you did you’d be awesome.’
‘I’m a talented guy,’ Bruce said immodestly. ‘By the way, you might want to be careful when you climb into bed; there’s a couple of teeth around somewhere.’
James raised an eyebrow. ‘Teeth?’
‘Mark and Kurt came by again,’ Bruce explained. ‘They must have realised you were out and thought they’d stand a better chance if it was two against one. They were wrong, obviously …’
27. EXTORTION
It was now Thursday, two weeks from the day Gabrielle had been stabbed. Michael Hendry sat in the Green Pepper café, his plate loaded with spiced chicken and macaroni. The place had been empty in the days after the murder of Owen Campbell-Moore, but custom had drifted back once the cops took down their cordons and stopped hassling everyone who came within a hundred metres.
The customers shot pool, dealt drugs and fattened the owner’s bank balance by stuffing coins into the fruit machines, while the radio was tuned to an internet station bringing news and music out of Kingston, Jamaica.
Michael might have had the same colour skin as the rest of the customers, but he was a middle-class English boy and he’d never have been able to infiltrate the Slasher Boys without Gabrielle’s authentic Jamaican heritage.
Michael glanced at his watch – a gold-strapped Bulgari which he’d bought off one of the Slasher Boys for less than a tenth of its legitimate value. Major Dee was forty minutes late, but