Knife's Edge

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

"Bye, Paul! Bye, Ellie!" I call as I leave the café at the end of my double shift. I haven't heard anymore from Owen so I assume no one caught him sneaking back into school. It was a lucky escape, if you ask me. Last time he got caught Stella and George were called in and he got grounded for a month – he hadn't been happy.

The evening sky is slowly darkening, not quite dusk but not quite daylight as I make my way home. A car drives past, not bothering to stop at the zebra crossing as I reach it. I roll my eyes, unsurprised, and wait for the car to clear before stepping out and crossing the white–striped road.

Idiot drivers, thinking they own the place.

Yes, I am aware that I'm only bitter because I, as of yet, don't own a car. I haven't even taken my first driving lesson. It's just too expensive, especially whilst I'm trying to save all I can for going off to university. Living expenses aren't cheap and I know Stella and George won't be able to help me out, it wouldn't be fair to ask. They have their own expenses to cover.

For the unforeseeable future, I'm going to be stuck on foot.

Up ahead I see a group of three guys, not exactly skulking outside the chippy on the corner but not looking like your ordinary reputable citizens either. I don't recognise them, one short, one tall and one a little on the tubby side. As I get a little closer I see that one of them, the short one, bears a snake tattoo – it slithers up his neck, curling around the left side of his face before ending just above his eyebrow.

If that doesn't scream avoid-me-at-all-costs, I don't know what does. I doubt even Neil Gareth would fuck with these people.

I cross to the other side of the road, trying to pray myself into an invisible existence so that I can walk past unnoticed. There's no one else around on this road and that fact alone makes me nervous.

"Hey," one of the guys' calls out, a clear indication that my invisibility power is severely lacking. I pretend I don't hear him and continue to put one foot in front of the other, hoping they'll just leave me alone.

No such luck.

"Hey, I'm talking to you," snake-tat says, stepping into my path and forcing me to stop. He's soon followed by his friends. The smile he gives me is far from comforting, his eyes holding a shine of craziness that has me taking an involuntary step backwards. It's strange how someone so small – because he is, in fact, tiny – can seem so dangerous. He just has a vibe about him, one I know all too well having grown up in a town like Greencliff.

I remain silent, not trusting my voice. If you can't sound strong then it's better to not sound anything.

"You're the Coleman's new bitch, right?" snake-tat continues, taking a step forward. He tilts his head, still studying me with that psychotic smile of his.

I'm sorry. I'm the who what now?

"Yeah, this is definitely the Coleman's bitch," the taller of the trio speaks up, his arms folded as he stares down at me through narrowed eyes.

Again, I say nothing.

"You a deaf bitch, too?" snake-tat asks, starting to look a little irritated. "We're talking to you."

"I don't want any trouble," I say, finally finding my voice again. I ball my hands into fists so they don't see them shaking. I don't bother explaining that I have nothing to do with the Coleman's, they don't really come across as the type who'll listen.

"Yeah?" he asks. "Neither did we. I'm just trying to finish what your dear friends started." He grits his teeth, flashing me a glimpse of his crooked yellow chompers. "So I'm gonna need you to pass on a little message for me."