Cinderfella, Page 7

  “No, I just need to clear my head and I need to go back and feed Gus and all the animals for that matter. You, My Lady, are a total distraction. Don’t go anywhere, okay?” He opens the hatch and disappears down it, popping his head back up making me jump. “Promise to stay here?”

  “Promise.” I smile and let my eyelids fall.

  9: Ash

  “Hey there Gus, sorry to keep you waiting, boy.” I pat his head. He grunts. I think he’s mad, but then again, he’s a pig, he always looks kinda disgruntled.

  “You kept us waiting.” A deep voice that I know all too well, startles me from behind. I turn ready for him.

  “What do you want, Bruno?” I gulp as two of his thickset rugby mates enter followed by my other brother, Jack. I mean, I could probably take on two of them at a push, but this seems unfair.

  “Well now, what could we possibly want?”

  “I don’t know so tell me and piss off,” I snarl, standing in front of Gus like a protective father.

  “We saw the news,” one of the goons’ grunts.

  “And what, you need help to understand it?” I snap, knowing already that they know something about Ellie. I’m totally goading him, but I’m so done with these idiots.

  “You need a good k- kicking?” Another guy asks.

  “Think I’ll pass, but thanks for dropping by.” Crossing my arms, keeping my stance tall. I can’t show them I’m scared. They’re here for one thing, Ellie. But I’ll never give her up, not to them, not to scum.

  “There’s a reward, a big one for The Princess.”

  “And? What’s that got to do with me?”

  “We have that glass shoe.” I look to Jack who is quieter than usual. He looks away.

  “I found that shoe, so what? Dad’s probably pawned it by now. Go ask him about it.” Standing my ground, hoping they’ll see my nonchalance as real.

  “We know you have a new little friend. You’ve been seen about town with her.” Bruno invades my personal space. “So, who is she?”

  “Just a nurse I got talking to.”

  “Liar!” he spits, “So the blonde pieces of hair in your bin along with a box of red dye is whose, Ashes?” I’m lost for words. Shit they know. Why didn’t I cover our tracks better?

  “B-Busted.” The stutter guy laughs. Every part of me clenches. Balling my fists ready, I won’t go down easily.

  “Where’s the Princess, Ashes?” Bruno pushes me against the sink.

  “Don’t know what you’re talking about.” I push back twice as hard.

  “Tell us and we won’t hurt you, too much.”

  “Why do you want to know?”

  “Reward money stupid. She’s gonna fetch us a nice price.”

  “She’s a person, not cattle!” Bruno whips a knife from his back pocket.

  “You want a scar the other side to match?” Sidestepping him, I grab my trusty hay rake.

  “You can try.”

  He runs at me, knocking me to the ground. We scuffle. I hold the rake against me like a barrier, which he tries to force down into my chest, but I’m strong. I hold him off. I toss the rake away; it’s hindering me, and I need my fists. He pushes the knife towards my face. Grabbing his wrist, resisting with all my strength, knocking the knife from his grip, it clatters to the floor. Before I can blink, his friends have waded in and I’m held down at the knees and elbows, whilst Bruno sits on my chest punching my face over and over. Blood spurts from my nose. I’m starting to feel light-headed. I’m outnumbered and out of breath. I catch a glimpse of Jack, who hasn’t moved from the doorway. He’s wringing his hands together and shaking his head.

  “Tell us where she is brother and I’ll not break your pretty nose.” Bruno’s beer-stained breath is an assault in itself.

  “I won’t tell you anything.”

  “Benny.” He beckons to his huge, built-like-a-shed, friend, “Pass me the knife.”

  “Hello? Ash? Are you in here?” It’s Ellie. I told her to stay put!

  “Ellie! Run!”

  “Ash?” She gasps seeing me covered in guys and I’m guessing my face looks like abstract art.

  “Get out!” I yelp.

  “Grab her, Jack!” Bruno orders. Jack grabs her from behind. She kicks against him, screaming and thrashing. “Well now, Princess.” Bruno gets off me and his stuttering friend takes his place. They surround her until I can barely see her.

  “Don’t bloody touch her.” I growl, pushing off my captor who seems transfixed either by Ellie’s beauty or her status. His moment of distraction, I use to my advantage. Using both hands, punching him hard in the gut. He cries out and I push him off.

  “Get off me!” Ellie brings her knee up, giving Bruno a sharp shock to his special area.

  “Why you little Bitch!” Bruno doubles over, groaning before he stands up, brings his arm back and slaps her across the face. The slap echoes through the barn.

  “No!” I gasp. Ellie’s pale and stunned. Her whole cheek, now a bright pink handprint.

  “Bruno.” Jack puts his hand up. “Stop! You can’t hit her. Do you know the trouble you’ve just put yourself in?” He places Ellie at his side, removing her from Bruno’s reach.

  I stand, staggering slightly, before running at them with the last bit of strength I have left. I fly at them. We go down like dominoes. Arms and legs flail about as we all roll around in one giant ball of frenzy. Finding the strength somehow, I manage to untangle myself and push them away, but I’m exhausted. Looking at my attackers, they don’t look so fresh either.

  “Take your filthy hands off me you coward! Don’t you know who I am?” Ellie struggles against Jack’s grip.

  “We do indeed. That’s why we’re here.” Bruno stands, striding toward her.

  “So, get on with it. Take me back. Claim your reward. Just don’t hurt him.” My heart feels like it could burst, realising I’ll never be everything she needs, I can’t even protect her. She doesn’t belong here. I know that now. She is so much better than them, than me.

  “Oh, now you see Princess, we don’t intend on claiming that nice reward, not now. We were gonna just hand you back and claim the money, but now you’ve both made me angry, real angry, so now I want more.” Bruno winks at me. “Now I want four times more.”

  “What?” Jack’s eyes widen.

  “You’re talking about a ransom? You’re all crazy. She’s seen your faces. You’ll never get away with it. You seriously need to think about this.” I look to Jack.

  “Come on, you’re going to some fancy business school…surely even you can see that this is throwing your life away?” He says nothing, but I think, hope, I’m getting through to him.

  “We won’t plan on sticking around.” Bruno laughs. “I hear the Caribbean’s nice.”

  “Are you thick or just really, really stupid?” I roll my eyes.

  “What?”

  “You can’t kidnap a royal and just live a normal life somewhere else.”

  “The new plan will work.” Bruno directs this at his goons rather than me. “I’ve never let you guys down before, have I?” They mutter agreement back at him.

  “Bruno, surely there’s another way?” Jack pleads. Locking eyes with me, he looks panicked.

  “There was, but now I’ve hit her so I’m in the shit now whatever I do. Question is, are you with me or against me?” He eyes each of his gang in turn.

  “And we’ll still get the money, right?” the big guy asks.

  “Yes, just a lot more. We can bolt soon as we have it.”

  “Good luck in prison,” I seethe.

  “You are a pretty one.” Bruno runs his finger down Ellie’s arm. I see red.

  “Don’t touch me!” She struggles against Jack.

  Launching myself at Bruno, his hand closes around my throat. It hurts to breathe but I won’t stop. I clasp my fingers around his neck, pushing hard on his jugular.

  “I’m going…to…kill…you…” he gasps. “Stand in my way… and you’ll …die.”


  “Stop!” Jack yells. A gun fires behind us. I freeze. To my utter shock, Jack has a gun pointed at Ellie’s head. It trembles in his fingers. Her eyes are wide, her face is ashen.

  “Don’t Jack! The money’s not worth her life or yours. Please,” I beg, making eye contact with her, “please…I think…I love her.” She closes her eyes; a tear rolls over her cheek. This is all my fault. I should’ve sent her away the night we met.

  “What? No, you don’t, you can’t!” Jack spits in anger but his expression reads as something else, disappointment maybe or regret? “You’re just saying that ‘cos you think it’ll change our minds.”

  “Aww, does Ashes love a princess? Does Ashy-washy think he could ever be good enough for her?” Bruno laughs in my face. “Look at yourself, you’re lower than the shit in the gutter.”

  “That may be so but I’m still better than you’ll ever be,” I snarl.

  “Give me the gun, bruv.” Bruno holds out his hand.

  “Why?” Jack asks, “What you going to do with it?”

  “Give it!” He commands. Jack shakily places the gun in Bruno’s hand.

  “Nighty-night sweet prince.” Bruno grins at me with his stained, yellowing teeth. I hear Ellie scream and Jack shouting something as the full force of the gun strikes across the back of my skull. Dropping to my knees, my vision blackens. I hit the ground hard. There are footsteps. A warm hand touches my face. Struggling to open my eyes, I hear her voice.

  “Come back to me,” she whispers.

  There are sounds of a struggle somewhere in the distance. I fight to stay awake. Then there’s just the silence and me and with it comes the darkness. It pulls me under away from her, away from me…

  10: Ash

  “Wake up lad!” A voice calls to me, reaching for me through the never-ending nothingness. “Ash? Ashley?” I will my eyes to open, but they’re so heavy. Pain. There’s nothing but pain. “Ash! Wake up right now! Do you hear me?” Someone is pressing on my shoulders and shaking me. Ice-cold water slaps me in the face. I gasp for breath; my eyes shoot open.

  “What?” Spluttering, trying to focus. I try desperately to recall where the hell I am. Pushing myself up on my elbows, instantly collapsing again. Shit that hurt.

  “Try not to move.”

  “Who’s there?” I focus hard until his face comes into view. Little, bald… “Gerry? What happened? Why do I feel like I’ve been hit by a truck?” I bolt upright. “Crap, that hurt.” A pain spikes up my spine, into my neck and through my temples.

  “I told you to stay put.” Gerry sighs. “When will you youngsters ever listen?” Memories of Ellie and the fight come rushing back to me.

  “Where is she?” I grab him by the shirt collar.

  “I was hoping you would tell me…I got here far too late, I’m afraid. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be…I was helping a puppet to lose his strings, lovely lad…”

  “Cut the crap! How long have I been out?” I release him. “Sorry. I’m a little on edge.” Shakily, I rise to stand. Everything hurts.

  “Hurts, huh? You should see yourself. What were you thinking getting into a fight?”

  “I wasn’t thinking.” I snap. “Look, I need to go. She’s out there somewhere…I need to find her.” Side stepping the little man, but he mirrors me, and we end up shuffling back and forth together.

  “Look, we’re dancing.” Gerry raises his bushy brows.

  “Seriously, if you don’t move I’ll move you.”

  “Stay still,” he orders, and to my surprise, I halt, becoming completely still.

  “How did you?”

  “Never mind.” He reaches up, placing his palm across my forehead. “This will just take a minute.”

  “Gerry, I know you think you’re helping but I really don’t have time for this. She needs me.”

  “And you will help her when I’ve taken your pain away and fixed your face. You don’t want her seeing you like this. Trust me. Now, do as I tell you, be still and shut up for once. You’re starting to test my patience. No one has done that since…well, that silly girl with the spindle…what was her name?”

  “Gerry, please I need to go.”

  “All done.” He smiles smugly, removing his hand from my head. “All better. You look as good as new.”

  The pain has totally vanished. Touching my face, it doesn’t hurt at all. I can’t even taste blood on my lips. In fact, I feel better than ever. “Who the hell are you?”

  “Who are any of us?” he chuckles.

  “Really, thank you. I don’t understand it, or you, but thank you. Now I must go. I don’t what they’ll do…”

  “Ash, stop and think.” Gerry places his hand on my chest to stop me leaving.

  “You know I can easily move you, right?”

  “Maybe you can and maybe you can’t. Look, if you go out there all guns blazing, without a plan, well it could make the situation ten times worse.”

  “I guess so.” I rake my hands through my hair. Gus grunts at me from his box.

  “Have you fed him today?”

  “Crap, no. I haven’t fed any of them….”

  “I’ll help you do that and hopefully a plan will materialise.” Gerry smiles. I wish I had his confidence.

  “Then you promise to help me find her?”

  “Promise.” He puts his hand on my elbow and I completely trust him. My anxiety starts to fade, and he nods, like everything will be all right.

  “You feed Gus and I’ll go take care of those noisy sheep out there.”

  “Ash!” My father stumbles into the barn. “What the bloody hell you done this time?” Four armed police officers follow him in.

  “Ashley James Thompson, you are under arrest for the unlawful kidnapping of Her Royal Highness, Princess Elle.”

  My hands are whipped behind my back and cuffed before I take in what they’re saying. I desperately search the barn for Gerry.

  “Gerry? Help me,” I whisper. He’s disappeared. How’s that even possible?

  The officer’s still talking, “Anything you say may be used in evidence…”

  “You don’t understand! She’s in danger! You’re wasting time!” I struggle against my restraints.

  “Easy, son.” A large, hulk of a man holds me firmly in place. “Are you threatening the Princess’s life?”

  “What? No!” I look to my father. “Dad, please?” I beg, hoping to reach that tiny part of him that may still care. He doesn’t blink. I don’t know why I’m surprised.

  “Found this in the rubbish.” A lady officer with a snooty look and an ‘I know you’re guilty’ expression, holds up the bag of Ellie’s hair.

  “Oh, son, what did you do?” My father looks at me like I’m a monster, which is sort of ironic.

  “Is that really what you think of me? You care so little for me that you’d actually believe I’d stoop so low?”

  “You can tell us everything back at the station.” The burly cop pushes me out of the barn. Gus grunts in distress or hunger and I call out one last time for Gerry.

  * * * *

  They’re watching me, I can feel them behind that obvious pretend mirror, judging me. They think I did it. They think I hurt the one person in my shitty life that made it less shitty, who made me want to be a better man. The person that, surprisingly in a matter of days, I’ve completely, stupidly fallen in love with.

  I’m alone. The room has only a table, a tape recorder and three chairs. My hands are still cuffed, only to be unlocked when I first got here when I needed to use the bathroom and even then, I was heavily guarded. I’m trying my hardest not to look guilty, but how do you even do that? It’s been a while now since anyone has spoken to me, hours have passed since they took her, and they could have taken her miles away. This tiny room is making me feel like a prisoner. Guess in their eyes, that’s what I am.

  “So?” The door flies open, and a new guy walks in. He’s clean-shaven and obviously of some importance as he wears an expensive suit and an impressive scow
l. “Ashley isn’t it?”

  “Ash,” I sigh.

  “Hello, Ash. I’m Special Agent Tremaine.”

  “I’d shake your hand but can’t.” I nod at my restraints. He moves behind me and takes off the cuffs. I rotate my wrists in relief. “Thank you.”

  “I’m going to ask you some questions.” He turns on the recorder. “Trust me kid, you’ll want to be honest ‘cos this ain’t looking too bright for you.” He takes the seat opposite me.

  “I didn’t do it!” I throw my hands in the air.

  “Calm down, kid.” He looks towards the ‘mirror.’

  “You must have, what? Like fifty officers in this station? Do you think I’m stupid enough to try anything?”

  “Kid, we have the entire MI5 outside. So, if you wanna take your chances, go ahead.” He narrows his eyes on me. I don’t move. “Would you like a drink?”

  “No! I don’t want a bloody drink! Don’t you people get it?” I address the mirror. “She’s out there somewhere…they could have taken her to France by now!” I stand.

  “Calm down, right now!” he orders.

  “Calm down? Are you shitting me?” I ball my hands into fists, trying desperately to keep them glued to my sides.

  “Sit. Please.” He coolly looks up at me. I sit. “Now, please, take me through your side of the story.”

  “I already told those officers on the way here.”

  “One more time.” He moves his jacket, showing me his gun underneath. “Don’t make me go all bad cop on you.”

  “This is such a waste of time.”

  “We can’t help her if we don’t have anything to go on. And the bad news for you is you’re suspect number one, suspect one and only right now. All we have is you and a bag of hair. Can you imagine how that looks?” Shit. He’s right! It looks like I’m some sort of killer that cuts off body parts for fun. I go through every detail I can, right up to my brothers attacking me and blacking out. “But you haven’t got a scratch on you.” The guy eyes me wearily.

  “Gerry!” I blurt. “He did something. He healed me.”

  “Who is Gerry? Where do we find him? And no offence son, how did he heal you exactly?” He half smiles and I think he might actually laugh.