The Story of Me (Carnage #2)(68)
Before I can speak, Cam replies, “I took her for lunch a long time ago and Terry Riley happened to be in the pub we went to. He’d just come out of nick and was celebrating.” He looks from my dad to me and his head tilts to the side. He closes his eyes for a long moment and lets out a long sigh as he looks back towards my dad. “I’m not proud of what I did that day, Frank, and I apologise now, even though it was twelve years ago, but Terry started given it large.” He rakes his hand through his hair. Bailey is suddenly up on his feet.
“You blew Terry Riley’s kneecaps off with a shooter, in front of my f*cking sister?” Bails turns to me. “Is that what happened? Were you there? Did you watch him do that?” My face burns. I’m in so much trouble. I don’t know how to answer. I don’t want to lie, but I don’t want to get Cam in trouble with my family either. I look from Bailey, to my dad, to Cam, who shakes his head at me.
“She was there. She saw it all. Benny made sure she was safe. I f*cking lost it. What can I say, I’m sorry. I really am sorry. I would never put her in danger.” He sits down on the sofa next to me.
“Sit down, Bailey. You’re making the room look unf*cking tidy,” my dad says.
Bailey sits down next to Marley, who is just staring at all of us like he can’t believe what he’s hearing. If I hadn’t witnessed it myself, I would probably have the same look on my face too.
“He shot someone in front of her, Dad. Does that not concern you? He can spout off about how much he loves her all he likes, but that won’t keep her safe. Same as it didn’t keep his wife safe.” An audible gasp comes from both myself and my parents, and I panic as I see the cold hard stare Cam fixes Bailey with.
“That’s enough, Bailey. That was low. Do not be so disrespectful,” my dad shouts. “Terry Riley had it coming to him. It’s just unfortunate that my daughter happened to witness him getting his dues.” He looks towards me. “It obviously didn’t have too much of an effect on her if it’s the first we’re hearing of it.” He looks from me to my brothers. “I remember someone leaving her in a much worse state and no one had any objections to that relationship.” Oh, God, I don’t think I can take much more. This conversation is just becoming more surreal. Is my dad really saying that because the bloke had it coming, it was okay to shoot him in a pub car park in front of me, and that what Sean put me through, or I put myself through, however you want to look at it is worse? I look at Cam and just start to laugh; nerves, jet lag, the wine, I’m not sure what causes it, but I just can’t help laughing at the conversation going on in my parents’ living room right now.
I hear the front door slam and Ashley walks in with Joe, Connie and Annie behind her. She looks around the room at all of us, her eyes widen as they land on Cam.
“Fuck me, TDH, what the f*ck are you doing here?” Her eyes flick between mine and Cam’s. “Oh, my f*cking God, is everything I just heard on the radio all true?”
I frown in confusion as I look at Cam, but Marley speaks before I can ask Ash what she’s talking about. “How the f*ck d’ya know him, Ash?” He gestures with his chin at Cam. Ashley shrugs and looks at me then back to Marls.
“He’s G’s Mr TDH, babe, I’ve known him years. He owns the wine bar we used to drink in.”
“Why’d you call him TDH?” he asks and I can’t help but smile as I wait to hear her response, Cam’s just gonna love this and it’ll make that self-inflated ego of his even bigger no doubt.
Ashley smiles as she says, “It’s just what we christened him, back in the day, Georgia’s Mr Tall, Dark and Handsome. TDH for short.” She shrugs. I watch Cam as he sucks in his cheeks while trying not to smile; it makes my belly squirm, flash f*cker. Ashley turns back to me. “So is it true, you ol’ slag. Did ya spend Saturday night shacked up in a hotel room with Mr Nine-Inch Nob?”
No, she didn’t just say that?
Out loud?
In front of Cam, my parents and my brothers? This day, seriously could not get any worse.
My mum steers my nieces and nephew out of the room as I sit and stare open mouthed at my friend. I don’t take my eyes from her as I’m too embarrassed to look at anyone else in the room.
“How the f*ck d’ya know he’s got nine inches?” Marley asks. I bury my face in my hands. Please just let me be dreaming all of this. Please let me be hallucinating due to my jet lag.
“Oh, come on, Marls, girls talk about these things.” I take my hands from my face and look up at the ceiling, what must my dad be thinking? I don’t have to wait long to find out.
“Georgia, you said nothing happened in that hotel room Saturday night. Were you lying?”
“No,” Cam and I both say at the same time. I sit forward on the sofa.
“Dad, look, Cam and I had a relationship when Sean and I split up. I was still seeing Cam right up until I got back together with Sean. We haven’t seen each other for years, except for the odd occasion. I bumped into him Saturday night and everything happened exactly like I told you.”
“Nothing happened between us Saturday night. I swear, Frank. Georgia was a little drunk and tearful. It was a tough day for her. I didn’t know that when we first started talking, but once I realised, I got her out of the club and back to her hotel and made sure she ate, and drank some water.” He turns and looks at me. “We talked through a lot of stuff that was never resolved between us and that was it.” Not all entirely true but I’ll go with that.