Finding Grace(61)

‘I bet he did.’

‘What’s happened?’

Gregg glanced around them before answering.

‘That shit he sells? Well, it finally put some kid in hospital. Stefan is lucky they survived. Some poor kid who was visiting, too. Not even a student here but the details are sketchy.’

Her scalp tightened and her mother’s face, remembered only from photographs, drifted into her mind.

‘He’s been pressuring me to sell for him so I’ve tried to keep out of his way a bit and… well, I’ve turned a blind eye to it, I suppose. Like we all do.’ Gregg looked as if he’d lost weight. He’d always been pale, but now dark circles framed his green eyes. ‘Are you… you know, working for him yet?’

‘No! We don’t discuss how he earns his money, never have.’

‘Oh! But still, you spend so much time with him, you must know what’s going on.’

‘Honestly, no. I can see with hindsight there have been signs but I didn’t have a clue. He’s so attentive to me, to us… I suppose I’ve been blind to anything else.’

‘That’s what he does at first, how he gets girls hooked.’

His comment stung.

‘Are you saying he’s done this before? Dated someone just to—’

‘Yeah. Sorry. Rhonda told me that’s how he gets girls’ trust. And then he just sort of introduces it casually to the conversation. Before they know it, they don’t really have a choice in the matter.’

The fabulous opportunity he was going to discuss…

‘Do you… work for him?’ she ventured.

‘Not any more but he’s been threatening me, trying to make me change my mind.’

‘What are you going to do?’

‘I’m going home,’ he said, his voice flat. ‘I can’t do this shit any more. I’ve had enough.’

‘Oh no!’ When she’d first arrived, everyone had said how clever Gregg was. ‘I’m sad to hear that, Gregg. I know you had plans to qualify as a pharmacist.’

‘That all seems like a long time ago now. Before meeting Stefan.’ He shrugged. ‘Maybe I’ll start again somewhere else. I’ve wanted to have a chat with you about it for a while, but I couldn’t risk you telling Stefan. He’s quite a powerful figure around here.’

‘I’ve sort of felt something’s wrong, I just didn’t know what.’

‘He gets the gear from some pretty powerful people, He’s got the perfect set-up here, unlimited customers and people he can control to work for him, which is why he never leaves the university.’

So Stefan’s excuses about having an insatiable thirst for knowledge were a load of rubbish.

‘Look, Lucie, you’re a nice girl.’ Gregg sighed. ‘My advice is, stay away from Stefan. He’s into some dark stuff you don’t want to get involved in.’

‘What?’ Her eyes widened. ‘What kind of stuff?’

He readied himself to speak, then seemed to think better of it. ‘Just dodgy business. I can’t say any more and I’d be grateful if you don’t mention seeing me this morning. But he’s not who you think he is and what’s happened, well, it’s serious and he’ll be looking for people to blame. That’s just the way he is.’ He grabbed his bag and began to walk away, turning back to her again after just a few steps. ‘Get out while you can, Lucie.’

And then he was gone.





Forty-Three





Lucie rushed back to her room. She felt out of breath, as if her lungs weren’t taking in enough air.

She closed and locked the door behind her. Sitting on the bed, she crossed her arms to hold herself as she rocked back and forth, raking through everything she knew to try and get some clarity.

What to do? What to do?

She wanted to ring her dad and ask for his advice but she couldn’t do that. The instant she let him know what she’d found and what Gregg had told her, he’d be on the next train to Newcastle ready to square up to Stefan.

No. She didn’t need her dad to tell her the right thing to do here. There were two options. Confide in her tutor about what she’d found or call the police. Maybe both.

As if on cue, her phone rang.

‘Hey, doll, it’s me. I left my bag at your place, so I’ll—’

‘I know what’s happened and I know what’s in the bag,’ Lucie said, surprised at the steely tone of her own voice.

A pause at the end of the line and then, ‘Don’t jump to conclusions. It’s not what it looks like.’

She didn’t say anything.

‘I’ll send a cab now. All you have to do is get in it and come over here.’ He sounded so desperate to see her, to explain. ‘I swear, I swear, it’s not what you think. But I can’t tell you on the phone. Come over and I can explain everything and then, if you still want to shop me then I won’t stand in your way.’

He really did seem devastated she thought so poorly of him. Despite what Gregg said about the other girls, maybe… just maybe… she was different and he really did care for her.

Stefan’s road was rammed full of parked cars, so the cab dropped her off at the corner. She clutched her tote bag closer to her. Inside it, she carried Stefan’s rucksack and its contents. It felt like a living thing, pulsing with threat and danger.