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‘Yes, Francis has. Oh, I do hope that Josh is all right.’ Irene looked up at the salon as she spoke.
‘You said that Josh had gone to the bank.’
‘Yes, he had, but he came back, and when Francis told him what had happened he went running up the stairs.’
The
crowd on the street was thickening with passersby stopping out of curiosity. A police car, its siren wailing, skidded to a halt outside the salon, two policemen getting out, whilst the driver stayed where he was. Francis started to tell them what had happened. Rose wondered why they were wasting time standing on the pavement when Josh could be in danger. It seemed a lifetime before they finally headed for the salon.
This was her fault, Rose knew. Mr Russell had taken his revenge on Josh because he had helped her.
Within seconds one of the policemen came back clattering down the stairs, and out into the street.
‘What’s happening?’ Rose demanded. ‘Where’s Josh?’
‘Now now, love,’ the policeman said, then called out to the driver of the car, ‘Looks like we’re going to need an ambulance. Chap upstairs has been knocked about a bit.’
Josh. It had to be Josh. Rose ran into the building, ignoring the policeman’s command as she raced up the stairs and into the salon.
Or rather what was left of the salon. Broken shards of the wrecked basins covered the floor, the chairs had been slashed with knives, bottles of shampoo emptied on the floor and hurled at the walls. Nothing had been left undamaged and Josh was sitting in the middle of it all, blood on his face from his obviously broken nose, his lip swollen and cut, the sleeve of his jacket slashed.
There was no sign of the men who had caused the carnage and Rose guessed that they would have left via the fire escape at the back of the building.
The policeman was now questioning Josh.
‘Well, lad, this looks like a professional job to me. Got any enemies? Someone who’d do something like this?’
Josh was shaking his head, whilst giving Rose a warning glance.
The policeman sighed and looked resigned, plainly sensing that Josh wasn’t being truthful.
‘Well, if you suddenly remember that there is someone, you can call round at the station and tell us. In the meantime I hope that you’re well insured.’
The policeman put his notebook and pencil back in his pocket and headed for the stairs, clattering down them as he went to join his colleague.
Rose dropped to her knees next to Josh, and reached for his hand. The knuckles were raw and bloody.
‘At least I managed to give one of the bastards a belting,’ he mumbled.
‘Oh, Josh, this is all my fault, Mr Russell—’
‘Nah, it’s someone’s idea of telling me that I need to pay them some protection money,’ he told her. ‘Happens all the time.’
But Rose didn’t believe him–not for one moment.
‘Policeman was right about me needing to be insured. Pity I didn’t pay the premium when it fell due and bought myself a pair of fancy shoes instead.’
Outside another siren screeched and then stopped, indicating that the ambulance had arrived.
Rose looked at him, thinking at first that he was joking and then realising that he wasn’t.
‘Well, that’s that, then. I reckon by the time I’ve paid for this little lot I’ll just about be wiped out. What do you reckon? Do you think Vidal will give me a job?’
‘Of course he will, but you won’t need it,’ Rose assured him.
There was no time to be lost. They could both hear the sound of the ambulance crew coming up the stairs. Soon Josh would be on his way to hospital and what she wanted to say had to be said now.
Knowing that it was because of her that this had happened, Rose had come to a quick decision.
