The Promise Read online

  Mandy pursed her lips. Delray wasn’t asking her, he was telling her. She didn’t have a say in the matter. It galled her that he’d only had the kids for one day, and already he was trying to palm the poor buggers off on her. She was so annoyed now. Delray was still a master at shirking his responsibilities. Still getting someone else to do the hard work for him. Mandy had a good mind to tell the man to sling his hook. Only, she knew that would go down like a tonne of shit. Besides, she couldn’t stop thinking about Georgie and that phone call now.

  The girl knew what had happened that night. She’d been there. She’d seen it.

  If Mandy could get Georgie alone for bit, maybe she could get to the bottom of what really happened with Josie and Trevor.

  It was a long shot, she knew; whatever did happen in that house had traumatised the girls deeply but, right now, Georgie didn’t have too many people around her that she could trust. Maybe somehow talking to Mandy would help?

  ‘I’ll get changed,’ she said.

  Delray sneered. ‘Thank God for that! It might be dark out there, but it ain’t quite Halloween just yet. Don’t want to be scaring any of the locals, do you? The state of you, like!’

  Walking from the room, Mandy shook her head. Delray Anderton was pushing his luck, but as she was acutely aware, the bloke probably knew that already.

  * * *

  As the lift doors pinged open and Mandy followed Delray into the apartment, she couldn’t help but be impressed by the look of the place.

  Delray had done more than all right for himself. She’d heard the rumours. Delray had over twenty girls on his books now. All bringing him in a fortune. They weren’t just your average girl either. They were like an army of supermodels. All of them working their arses off under his so-called protection in his brothels and his ‘escort agency’, which cost them just over half their wages for the privilege. And this is what all their money had paid for. Some of Mandy’s money too. Not that she’d been raking in a fortune for some time now.

  ‘Fuck me, this is like something out of a film,’ she said, to no one in particular.

  If Josie wasn’t already inside for murder, she would have been once she saw this place and how Delray had been living it up while she’d been struggling her arse off in that dive of a flat of hers back at the estate.

  ‘Javine?’ Delray called out. He spotted Marnie on the sofa, cuddled up with the dogs as she watched the TV.

  ‘Hello Auntie Mandy.’ Marnie grinned, glad that Delray was back now. ‘Javine and Georgie are in the bedroom doing makeovers. I’m sooooo bored.’

  Marnie rolled her eyes dramatically.

  ‘Right little character that one, ain’t she. A tonic.’ Delray chuckled. ‘She must get it from me. Her sister ain’t said a word. She’s like her mother. An attitude problem and a gob on her to match.’

  Mandy gave a small nod. She couldn’t argue with that. That was Georgie all right.

  ‘Javine?’

  Delray sat on the arm of the chair, glaring at the pesky mutts as they started jumping all over him. Fighting the urge to kick the smelly fuckers across the room.

  ‘Get down.’ He shooed them off the couch; ignoring them, he grinned as Javine strutted out of the bedroom.

  Ready for their night out, she’d changed into a tiny red dress.

  She looked sensational.

  ‘You look stunning, babe.’ Delray beamed. ‘Where’s Georgie?’

  Javine looked at Delray, then Mandy and tried to suppress her excitement.

  ‘We’ve been dressing up and doing make-up,’ she said, sounding every bit the seventeen years that Delray now knew that she was.

  ‘You wanna see?’

  Humouring her, Delray nodded.

  ‘Come on, Georgie. Come out!’ Javine clapped her hands, full of enthusiasm as the bedroom door opened and Georgie stepped out.

  Delray nearly fell off his chair.

  Mandy’s mouth was so wide open her jaw was almost touching her boobs, and that was no mean feat these days either seeing as they were almost down past her belly button.

  Georgie was unrecognisable.

  Javine had curled the girl’s long dark hair and made her face up perfectly. Dark smokey eyes lined with thick dark lashes. A nude pink mouth.

  She was wearing one of Javine’s dresses too.

  A hot pink mini-dress that shimmered under the lights.

  ‘She looks at least twenty, doesn’t she?’ Javine said, admiring her handiwork.

  Surprisingly, she and Georgie had really hit it off. They’d spent the past hour laughing and joking, and Javine found herself really liking the girl.

  ‘Wow, you look beautiful.’ Marnie smiled as she gazed over at her sister. ‘Can I have my make-up done too, Javine?’

  Javine nodded.

  ‘We can do yours tomorrow, okay? I’m going out tonight.’

  Marnie nodded excited that tomorrow she was going to be made to look beautiful like her sister.

  ‘What do you think?’ Javine said, feeling almost proud of her creation. It had helped that Georgie was naturally very pretty anyway; all Javine had done was bring out all her best features.

  ‘Georgie, you look beautiful.’ Delray shook his head. ‘You’d definitely get into the club; you and Javine, you look like best mates.’

  Delray grinned, seeing the look that Georgie shot Javine. He knew it. Georgie had warmed to the girl. A bit of TLC and attention and Georgie was a pushover. Knowing full well he’d sown the seed now, Delray shrugged.

  ‘Probably wouldn’t be your thing though, Georgie. Dancing the night away with Javine, having a laugh. Nice little club it is too. They have a wicked DJ doing his set tonight… ’

  Javine narrowed her eyes at Delray’s suggestion. Georgie might look older than her years, but she was twelve.

  ‘She can’t go to a nightclub. She’s much too young,’ Mandy said, butting in. Looking Javine up and down in distaste, determined to stay loyal to Josie. Mandy couldn’t help but notice that the girl had dressed Georgie up just like her. A little clone. ‘Your mother would do her nut if she could see the state of you, all done up like a dog’s dinner,’ she said, shaking her head.

  Someone had to give the girl a dose of reality. She didn’t look pretty; she looked cheap and tarty.

  ‘Leave her here with me, Delray. She’s too young for clubs.’

  Hearing that her mother wouldn’t approve of her going to the club was like a red flag to a bull to Georgie, still reeling from her mother’s actions. For all of this mess. For Delray being Marnie’s dad. Georgie could think of nothing she’d rather do than piss off her mother.

  ‘I want to go,’ she said.

  Mandy shook her head, but Georgie wasn’t asking her.

  Instead, she looked at Delray.

  ‘Can I?’

  Delray tried to repress his smirk. Once again everything was falling into place with the minimum effort from him. It was as if it was meant to be.

  ‘Oh I dunno, Georgie. I don’t mind, but I said me and Javine would go out. We’re celebrating our engagement.’

  Mandy stared at Delray as if the bloke had had a lobotomy. Unsure if she’d just heard right. Delray was going to marry this bimbo? Fucking hell, as if the last few days couldn’t have got any stranger.

  ‘Javine?’ Delray said, putting the pressure on her now. He knew she’d crumble; she wouldn’t be able to help herself.

  Javine looked at Georgie, apprehensive about the whole idea, but she knew she couldn’t refuse the girl. Not after everything she’d been through. They’d been getting on so well this evening too. Georgie had really opened up to her. The kid was sweet. There was no harm in her having a bit of fun for one night after everything she’d been through; she deserved that, at least.

  ‘It’s fine with me. We’ll have a right laugh,’ Javine said, catching Georgie actually smiling.

  ‘Though you better stick some more loo roll in those shoes, babe. If you think they are hard to walk in, you wait until I get
you on that dance floor for a little boogie.’

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Georgie Parker was in her element.

  She couldn’t believe that she was in a nightclub.

  If her mum found out she would do her nut. In a way that only made the whole night even better.

  Looking around in awe she tried to take it all in.

  The loud thumping music; the glare of all the colourful strobe lights. The fancy cocktails, and podium dancers. The place was packed with people too. Everyone looking dolled up and glamorous and, for once, and thanks to Javine doing her hair and make-up and lending her some clothes, Georgie actually felt like she fitted in.

  No one here was staring at her, or judging her. No one here knew anything about who she was or where she came from and, most importantly, no one cared. This was the kind of place that would have normally intimidated Georgie, especially being so young, but somehow, being here with Javine, Georgie didn’t feel any of that.

  She was far too busy having fun.

  She felt part of something exciting for once. This whole new world that she hadn’t even known was out there and she was determined to make the most of it.

  Twirling around on the dance floor, she giggled as she showed Javine some of her finest dance moves. The ones that her and Marnie did some nights at home when the radio was on.

  Javine tilted her head back and laughed as Georgie pranced about in front of her, doing her rendition of the running man and not caring who saw her. The girl was such a tonic. Javine hadn’t laughed like this for ages. She was genuinely having fun. Tonight had been just what Georgie needed. A night off from everything and a chance to be just herself again. From the little Georgie had told her this evening about her mother, Javine could tell that Georgie had a lot of anger towards the woman. For doing what she had done. For ruining all their lives.

  Javine knew exactly how Georgie felt. She had felt the same about her own mother. She’d been through similar: let down in the worst possible way by the one person that she had loved and trusted. Javine was feeling protective of the young girl, and she could tell that Georgie had taken a genuine liking to her. Who’d have thought after their steely introduction that they would have become such good friends?

  ‘Ahh I think I’m going to go and sit down for a bit; I feel a bit funny,’ Georgie said, hoping that Javine would come with her. The idea of going back to the VIP booth and sitting with Delray and his frumpy old business associates didn’t really appeal to her. She’d spent most of the night on the dance floor for that very reason.

  ‘I ain’t surprised that you need to sit down, you’ve probably knackered yourself with those moves.’ Javine grinned; then seeing Georgie looking a bit peaky, she added: ‘are you okay, babe? You look a little off colour.’

  Georgie nodded, not wanting to admit that she was starting to feel light-headed, dizzy; she didn’t want to tell Javine in case she came across like a silly little kid. She was just going to have to front it out. Have a seat for a few minutes and a drink of her lemonade. Like Javine had said, she’d probably knackered herself out.

  ‘You go and sit down, babe. I’m just going to go and have a quick wee, then I’ll go and grab you a glass of water, okay,’ Javine said, not convinced that Georgie really was okay.

  The girl had gone very pale all of a sudden.

  Making her way back to the table, there was no sign of Delray now and most of the other men had moved away from the booth too – standing in clusters around the VIP bar, or they’d gone off to the dance floor, or outside for a cigarette.

  Sitting down at the table, Georgie took a sip of her lemonade. It had been sitting there for a while now and gone flat. Georgie could taste a strange bitterness to it.

  It was alcohol, she realised. Delray had bought it for her; she’d been drinking it all night. He was letting her drink? That must be why she felt a bit queasy. The alcohol had gone to her head. She wasn’t feeling sick; she was feeling drunk.

  Plonking the glass back down on the table, she nearly missed and dropped it over the edge. She could barely see straight. She felt like she was having a panic attack. The club felt suddenly claustrophobic.

  Scanning across the dance floor, through the hordes of people standing around in groups, draped over chairs, she looked for Javine. She wanted to go home. The music blaring loud; the base thudding through her. She suddenly felt like she might throw up.

  ‘How are you doing tonight?’ Georgie looked up to see the older man from earlier. His strong Middle Eastern accent making him almost hard to understand.

  She knew he was one of Delray’s contacts.

  The one that had been watching her all night.

  She’d told Javine that he’d been making her feel funny, creeping her out, and Javine had agreed with her and told her to make sure she stayed away from him.

  Only, now he was here, sitting beside her in the booth, and Georgie felt too nauseous to go anywhere.

  All she could do was pray that Javine hurried up so that she wouldn’t be stuck with the man for too long, but looking around the club, Javine was nowhere to be seen.

  ‘Can I get you another drink?’ the man said, moving in closer, resting his hand on Georgie’s thigh.

  Georgie froze.

  She could feel his fingers caressing her skin; she could see how intensely he was looking at her.

  But she couldn’t move.

  ‘Have you seen Delray?’ Georgie said, hoping the mention of her being here with Delray would be warning enough.

  The man shook his head.

  ‘You look like you’ve had too much alcohol,’ he said. ‘I think you need some fresh air.’

  ‘I’m fine,’ she said. Though she was feeling worse now.

  ‘Let me take you to Delray. Maybe he needs to take you home?’

  Georgie nodded.

  Allowing the man to put his arm around her shoulder as he guided her through the thick flurry of people, Georgie felt like she was floating.

  The noise, the heat, the drink. It was all too much for her.

  She could barely walk straight. Barely speak.

  She just wanted to get back to the apartment and see her sister.

  She wanted to go to sleep.

  ‘Are we going outside?’ Georgie asked as she saw the man nod his head at the club’s bouncers. He made some kind of comment about young girls who couldn’t hold their drink.

  ‘Is that where Delray is?’

  The man didn’t answer her question, but instead he just told her to watch her step as he led her out the main doors.

  The cold air instantly hit Georgie once they were outside. It intensified how drunk she felt.

  She was trying to keep her head up, to keep her focus but she was feeling really odd now. Her head suddenly too heavy for her shoulders. Watery bile in the back of her throat.

  Her feet scraped against the uneven gravel beneath her as she walked, struggling to keep her balance. The man pulled her in tighter. Trying to keep her upright.

  They were making their way towards a car at the back of a car park.

  A fancy-looking black Mercedes.

  Maybe Delray was in there?

  Georgie could feel the man put his hand over the top of her head. He helped her duck down as he guided her carefully into the back of the Mercedes, before clambering in beside her.

  It was nice and warm inside, but the smell of the leather interior mixed with the heady vanilla aroma of the car air freshener made Georgie feel even worse.

  Trying for the door handle, she needed to get out. She needed some air.

  But the doors were locked now.

  Yanking at the handles, they wouldn’t budge.

  She was trapped here, alone, with this man.

  That’s when she realised they’d never been looking for Delray at all.

  Pushing her way through the people standing around the bar, Javine asked the bartender for a glass of water, before turning back and looking out across the other side of the club to
the booth they’d all been sitting in earlier.

  Smiling, she could see Georgie sitting waiting for her. Sipping her lemonade, looking anxious as she waited for Javine to join her.

  Javine really liked the kid. She was a nice girl; way too young and innocent to be in a place like this though.

  Still, she guessed that was Delray’s business.

  She was just glad that she was here to keep an eye on her. Especially seeing as Delray was typically nowhere to be seen. Javine recognised a few faces that were standing behind where Georgie was sitting at the VIP bar: the rowdy group of Delray’s friends that had been sitting with them earlier.

  Javine eyed one of the older men in the group. An Eastern European man by the name of Hamza Nagi.

  She didn’t know what the score was with him, but she knew that Delray was practically falling over himself tonight in order to please the man. Plying Hamza and his men with an endless supply of Cristal jeroboams, the men had been like leeches, drinking the stuff like it was water.

  Javine had taken an instant dislike to Hamza.

  There was something about the man.

  Georgie had noticed it too. She’d said how the man had kept staring at her, how he made her feel uncomfortable. To be fair, he wasn’t the only man looking at Georgie so lustfully.

  The girl had got herself an awful lot of male attention tonight.

  She looked sexy, and the fact that she was clearly underage hadn’t seemed to put the men off. In fact, Javine thought sadly, it had only added to Georgie’s appeal.

  Seeing Hamza walking over to where Georgie was sitting, Javine grabbed the glass ready to go back to her rescue, and save her from having to endure a conversation with the old perv.

  Turning, she spotted Delray.

  He was laughing and joking with some man next to him.

  Someone familiar, Javine realised, as the man turned just enough that Javine could recognise his face.

  It was Lenny.

  Deep in a conversation together, Delray was smiling and talking animatedly. Tapping his friend on the arm, they certainly didn’t look like two people that had recently fallen out. In fact, they looked like the best of friends.