Songbird

But Maddy wasn’t listening to reason. All she could think of was her injured friends. ‘Let me go!’ Frantic, she tore herself away. ‘I need to go to them.’ And no matter how hard she tried, the girl could no longer restrain her.

As Maddy rushed down the alley, total confusion was unfolding all about her. Police were everywhere; some grappling with the thugs, others handcuffing Drayton, and people were being ordered to get inside, where they should remain for questioning.

The first ambulance drove in and attendants tumbled out, armed with all manner of equipment. Maddy saw how one of them went straight to the big man, now lying silent in a pool of blood, looking up and shaking her head to indicate there was nothing to be done for him. And then they moved on to Jack, who was crumpled against the far wall.

Maddy got to Alice first. ‘Alice … it’s me, Maddy.’ Tenderly holding her hand, she looked down on that dear, still face and her heart broke. ‘You’ll be all right,’ she promised brokenly. ‘They’re here to help you.’

Turning, she shouted over the chaos, ‘OVER HERE – please hurry!’ But her cries fell away in the wake of all the confusion. Through the hordes of people being herded back to the club, she could see ambulancemen tending to Jack, and others bringing out more equipment and stretchers.

Terrified that assistance might come too late, Maddy sobbed, ‘Alice, please don’t leave me,’ devastated when it seemed that the injured woman was beyond hearing her. ‘We need you,’ she pleaded. ‘Me and the baby.’ Giving the limp hand a little shake, she said, ‘Alice, wake up. Please! You can’t leave us now. What will we do without you?’

When Alice grabbed her hand in reply, Maddy thought her heart would stop. For a moment she couldn’t speak. Then she quietly thanked the Almighty for sparing her friend, and carried on gently patting her hand, like a mother soothes her child; and now she was telling her softly, ‘You’ll be allright … you’ll see. Help is on its way… you’ll be allright my darling.’ Turning her head she gave another frantic shout, ‘OVER HERE … SHE’S HURT … HURRY … PLEASE HURRY!!’

‘Go from here.’ Alice’s voice was almost inaudible, gasping. ‘No more contact with him …’ Slipping fast away, she could hardly make herself heard. ‘Promise me.’ When she now took a breath, it was a rasping, frightening thing for Maddy to hear.

‘Be still,’ the younger woman pleaded. ‘Be still, be still.’

But Alice would not be still. With a huge surge of strength, she had slightly raised her head and was looking the girl straight in the eye.

‘Promise,’ she said, then fell back again.

Desperate, Maddy shouted again, this time her voice charged with anger. ‘Hurry! For God’s sake, hurry!’

In that moment, one of the ambulancemen looked up from treating Jack and spoke to his colleague before making his way over to them.

With Alice’s flickering gaze trained on her, Maddy gave her her word. ‘I promise,’ she whispered, holding her close. ‘I’ll never come back … I swear it. Just hold on, please, Alice. Help is on its way. Don’t die, please don’t leave me all on my own. I can’t bear it.’

As the medics took over, Maddy clambered up on shaky legs, and looked straight into the face of the devil himself.

Two policemen had arrested Drayton. Handcuffed, he was being marched towards the waiting squad car. Before they managed to get him inside, however, he turned and spat a message at Maddy, the words of which would haunt her for the rest of her days. ‘Your card is marked, you bitch. Keep looking