Nine Inches by Colin Bateman

Author:Colin Bateman
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: (¯`'•.¸//(*_*)\\¸.•'´¯)
ISBN: 9780755378661
Publisher: Headline Publishing Group Ltd
Published: 2011-10-12T13:00:00+00:00

28

I was through the front door almost before Patricia had opened it. And before she could say anything, I was spitting out: ‘Where the fuck is fucking Peg Leg?’

‘Dan . . . Jesus . . . what’s got into you?’

She followed me down the hall. When he wasn’t in the kitchen, I went into the lounge. When he wasn’t in the lounge, I went into the living room.

‘Where is he?’

I went to leave the living room, heading upstairs. Trish stood in the doorway.

‘Dan. Settle down.’

‘Don’t tell me to . . . The little fucking—’

‘Dan.’

I had the Xbox in my arms. I blew air out of my cheeks. I sucked it back in again. In, out, in, out.

‘Right,’ I said. ‘Sorry. Where is he?’

‘Upstairs.’

‘Call him down. Please.’

‘Not until you tell me what—’

‘Trish. It’s fine. Honestly. All will be revealed.’

‘It’s not fine if you’re going to smack him.’

‘He’s fourteen, I’m not going to smack him. I’m going to punch his head off. Please. Just get him.’

She raised an eyebrow. I raised one back.

‘Sure?’

‘Sure.’

She turned for the stairs. I retreated back across into the living room and set the Xbox on the coffee table. I heard her calling him. I paced. A couple of minutes later he came into the room. He had on an old pair of my football shorts and a twenty-year-old Liverpool top. His eyes immediately went to the Xbox. Patricia leant against the door frame, arms folded.

‘Got your Xbox,’ I said. He grunted. He moved towards it. I said, ‘Why don’t you plug it in, we can have a game.’

‘There’s a TV in my room.’

‘I’ll come up there, then.’

He screwed his eyes up. ‘Yeah, right. I just want to play by myself.’

‘Hey, son, you’re here as our guest; the least you could do is have a game. Our wee family. Go on, plug it in. I got you a game. A new one. Thought you’d appreciate it. Grand Theft Auto Remember 1690. It’s a special Belfast edition. Come on, plug it in, Bobby. Plug it in.’

He stood where he was.

‘Dan . . .?’

‘PLUG IT IN!’

‘Fuck off!’ Bobby exploded. He spun on his one heel and would have fled if Patricia hadn’t blocked his path. ‘Get out of my fuckin’ way,’ he growled. His fingers bunched into fists. His head jutted forward, right up against Patricia’s. ‘GET OUT OF MY FUCKIN’ WAY!’

He didn’t know Trish. She could have made the defenders of Stalingrad look flaky. She remained resolutely in position, even as he grabbed her blouse and tried to drag her out of the way. That lasted for all of one second; then I had him by the throat. I dragged him backwards and threw him down. He landed in a heap. I stood over him.

‘You ever put a hand on her again, and I’ll fucking kill you. Do you hear me?’ He said nothing. I crouched down. I took a hold of his hair and pulled his head up. ‘Do you fucking hear me?’

Still nothing.

Patricia knelt beside me. ‘Dan .

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.