The Choice. Kerry Barnes

importantly, they couldn’t have had the force to intervene or they would’ve done so. They wouldn’t know that we would hold Torvic hostage, would they? Not even I knew that at the time until Torvic told us he was working for Barak. So, that much we do know.’

      Neil nodded. ‘Look, we’re all safe for the moment, we’re all here and accounted for, so I reckon you’re right. They didn’t have the manpower to take over last night.’

      Zara suddenly went white. ‘Shit! Joshua! I haven’t called him.’

      She quickly pulled out her phone and made the call; yet it went straight to voicemail. Her mouth felt dry. Her cousin had been the first one to leave last night. She tried again but there was still no answer. Then she scrolled down to find his landline number. His wife would know if he had got home safely or not. Zara felt sick and filled with guilt because Joshua was only called in to help her. He didn’t live her way of life anymore. He was a sweet, gentle man who now lived for his children.

      The phone rang and rang until, finally, Bella answered in a flustered voice. ‘Hello, Josh?’

      ‘No, Bella, it’s me, Zara. I take it Josh hasn’t arrived home?’

      There was a long pause. ‘Er, no, Zara, I was hoping he was still with you. I’ve waited up most of the night, but I’ve heard nothing. His phone just goes to voicemail. Oh my God, Zara, do you think he’s okay?’

      The terrifying thought drained the blood from Zara’s face. She swallowed hard before she was able to speak. ‘I’m sure he’s fine,’ she lied. ‘Listen, don’t worry. He had a few errands. I was just calling to see if he’d finished, that’s all.’ She hoped she sounded convincing.

      ‘Okay, Zara. Please tell him to call me, once you hear from him. I’m so concerned because he always answers his phone.’

      ‘Oh, it’s probably run out of battery.’

      ‘Maybe,’ came the deflated voice.

      ‘I’ll call, Bella. Goodbye.’

      The men all stared open-mouthed, waiting for some explanation.

      ‘Josh didn’t go home, and he ain’t the type to go off without telling Bella. They’ve got him. I’m fucking sure, but if they …’

      Her anger was rising, and she could feel her heart beating relentlessly. The notion that her sweet cousin was being tortured or mercilessly killed at the hands of Torvic was hard to bear.

      ‘I swear to God, I’ll shred every fucking piece of skin from the man’s bones if he …’

      Mike gave her hand a squeeze. ‘Hey, listen, we don’t know what’s gone on yet. Please, Zara, babe …’

      Not wanting to crumple, Zara stiffened. ‘I’m fine, Mike. I think we need to establish first whether it was Barak or just some of Torvic’s druggies in his firm. Once the kids are out of the country, we need to check out all the places from where that shit drug Flakka was sold. Let’s find out what’s going on.’

      She looked at Neil. ‘Look, no disrespect, but I want you to go back to Ireland with Shamus. Torvic will want to pick us off, one by one. I need you away …’ She tried to find the right words that wouldn’t insult him.

      ‘No!’ he said, sharply, before lowering his tone. ‘I’m your equal business partner, so this fight is just as much mine. Shamus and I will check out your restaurants. Torvic and his gang of druggies may not start with the families. He could try to destroy your businesses first.’

      Zara nodded. She knew he had a valid point, which made her realize that her knowledge of Torvic’s sick acts probably only scratched the surface.

      ‘Fine, but never alone.’ She shot a look at Shamus, who nodded in agreement.

       Chapter 2

      Arty washed his face and combed his hair. He then searched Lance’s bathroom for some hair gel. Liam stood in the doorway. ‘Fuck me, mate, this is serious shit. Me ol’ man sounded right worried.’

      Arty looked at his reflection in the mirror once more and turned to face Liam. ‘I dunno what I’m gonna do, Liam. I ain’t even got a toothbrush, let alone a change of clothes. And Spain, I hate mainland Spain. They could’ve booked flights to Ibiza.’

      Liam shook his head. ‘Arty, mate, you can buy as much fairy fart smellies and Hugo Boss T-shirts as ya like, once we get there. We gotta take this seriously, right? I ain’t never heard me dad talk like that before.’

      Arty chewed the inside of his lip. ‘All right, mate. How are the girls doing?’

      A cheeky grin slithered its way across his face. ‘Poppy’s using me as a crutch, which I kinda like. I can’t believe the bird likes me. I mean …’ He pushed Arty away from the mirror and pointed. ‘Look at that face. Who the fuck would fancy that, eh?’

      Arty put his arm around Liam. ‘You ain’t so bad, Liam, mate. Stop doubting yaself.’

      Liam looked Arty up and down. ‘Aw, come on, Art. You look like you’ve stepped outta an action-packed movie, but me, well, I’ve stepped outta a fucking horror film.’

      Arty laughed. ‘See, bro, I may have the looks, but you have the humour.’

      Liam looked again at his long, bent nose and skinny, lanky body. ‘Yeah, I guess I gotta have something, eh, ’cos that Poppy is one stunner and she likes me.’

      Arty ruffled Liam’s hair. ‘Nothing to do with ya big dick, then?’

      Liam giggled. ‘Nah, she ain’t met that yet. That’s gonna be a bonus.’

      * * *

      Poppy stared down at her cornflakes. ‘Brooke, it’s all exciting and fun, but, in reality, this is so alien to us. What the hell do we know about this way of life, and why is Lance so determined to keep us safe? He’s not even really related to us.’

      Brooke, her twin sister, reached across the table and grabbed her hand. ‘You are the clever one. I thought you would have worked it out by now.’

      Poppy looked up and frowned. ‘Worked what out?’

      Brooke moved a loose long blonde strand from her face. ‘I think Lance is actually our real father.’

      Poppy nearly choked on her cereal. ‘That’s absurd.’

      ‘No, it’s not. Listen. While you were in the hospital, and I was here, Lance said don’t go poking around. Well, I took a leaf out of your book and became the Secret Squirrel. I did have a good snoop and …’ She got up from her seat and wandered over to a cabinet.

      ‘What are you doing?’ asked Poppy.

      Brooke removed an album from the top drawer. ‘Look!’ she said, returning to her seat and opening the first page. She pointed to a picture of a woman.

      Poppy pulled the album closer, to get a better view, and suddenly gasped. ‘Who the hell is that? Oh, my word, she looks just like us. I mean, she could be our mother. Let’s face it, we look nothing like our mother, do we? And we certainly look nothing like Alastair.’

      ‘No, exactly. I looked at the other photos, and there are some with Lance and her. I think she’s his sister, which means that we could be his family.’

      Poppy leaned back on her chair. ‘Oh, I don’t know. Maybe it’s wishful thinking. Perhaps we are just scrabbling around for answers. I mean, our mother is hardly the motherly type, and as for Alastair, he isn’t really the ideal parent, and both you and I came to the same conclusion. So perhaps we are purely fantasizing.’

      Brooke was adamant. ‘No, Poppy, of course it’s possible. Think about it. Kendall was only a year old when we were born. Kendall was Lance’s daughter, although Mother did insist we all have the same surname. So