For Your Own Protection(40)

‘Matt. Trust me. He’ll be fine. If I’d have wanted to really hurt him, I’d have really hurt him.’

Matt nodded, and followed Harvey back around the corner. He was surprised when he was led back to the club. He just wanted to get away and get out of this place.

‘Do you think this is a good idea?’ Matt said, hanging back from the entrance as the doorman studiously ignored them. Given what had just resulted from his first visit, it wasn’t a place he particularly wanted to return to.

Harvey moved back from the doorway and placed a hand on Matt’s shoulder. ‘It’ll be fine, Matt, I promise.’

‘But what if he comes back?’

Harvey laughed. ‘Tyrone? Nah, man, he won’t be back tonight.’

‘You can’t be sure though.’

‘Oh, I can. He won’t be back tonight.’

Harvey’s certainty didn’t have the desired soothing effect.

‘I’m just not sure—’

‘Trust me, man,’ Harvey said. ‘You said you believe in me. Prove it. I wouldn’t take you back in there if I thought you’d be in any danger. In fact, it’s probably the safest place for you.’

‘Okay then,’ Matt said, his resistance crumbling in the face of Harvey’s insistence.

‘Great, man!’

Matt followed Harvey through the door, but not without taking one last quick glance back down the road, in case Tyrone was following. Thank God, there was no one.

The place was still in full party mood, and Harvey seemed to inhale the atmosphere like a drug. ‘People!’ he shouted. ‘A big welcome back to my good friend Matt, who successfully fought off a cowardly attack by the one and only Tyrone Edwards!’

Harvey pointed theatrically at him with both hands, and Matt wanted to curl up and die as half a dozen people turned to look at him.

‘This is the main man, people!’ Harvey shouted, bouncing up and down on the spot. ‘Bow down to him!’

Matt caught a glimpse of Harmony, watching from the far side of the room. And then he felt a push in his back.

It was Rochelle, angry and agitated. She pushed him again, forcefully. Matt knew this had been a bad idea. He should never have listened to Harvey.

‘Hey, what the hell have you done with Tyrone?’

Matt made to speak, but she wasn’t ready to let him.

‘Tell me what the hell you’ve done to him.’

‘I—’

‘Hey, Rochelle,’ Harvey interjected. ‘Cool it down, babe. Tyrone’s fine. Nothin’ that some superglue and a few dozen stitches won’t sort out. You weren’t plannin’ on motherin’ his children any time soon, were you?’

She turned on him. ‘You better not have hurt him.’

‘’Course I did, sis, but only as much as I needed to.’

Matt wondered if he’d misheard the word with all the noise.

Rochelle is his sister?

Rochelle folded her arms across her chest, her lips twisting in anger. ‘Where is he?’

Harvey pretended to think. ‘Last time I saw him, he was on the floor in the alley next to the club.’

‘Why, Harvey, why?’ she cried. ‘I know you and Tyrone don’t get on, but why do that?’

‘’Cos he was about to cut my friend here. Look, Tyrone’ll be fine. He’s a big boy. I just did enough to protect my man. Have you met Matt?’

Matt smiled tightly, feeling the dictionary definition of uncomfortable.

‘Yeah, briefly,’ she replied. She looked Matt up and down, her face like stone.

‘Matt’s one of my teachers at college. I thought I’d show him some of the local sights.’

‘Lucky him,’ Rochelle deadpanned. ‘Look, I’d better go and see how Tyrone is. Nice to meet you, Mr Teacher.’

‘No,’ Harvey said, reaching out. ‘Don’t go out there alone. Wait for me. I’ll take you back to the flat, make things right with Tyrone.’

She smiled in disbelief and tried, unsuccessfully, to brush him off.

‘I mean it, Rochelle. I don’t want you goin’ out there on your own. It’s not safe.’

She fixed him with a hard stare. ‘Why not?’

‘I can’t tell you, but just trust me, okay?’

‘What you been doin’?’

‘Rochelle,’ he rebuked. ‘Stay in the club . . .’

‘But what about—’

‘Call him if you wanna check he’s okay. Tell him you’ll be home in an hour, and that I’ll be bringin’ you back.’

She nodded. ‘Okay.’

‘Good decision.’

‘Harvey, you said you’d stop gettin’ involved in all that stuff.’

‘I have, sis. I have,’ he soothed. ‘Don’t worry.’

She looked unconvinced. ‘I’ll call Tyrone now. Nice to meet you, Matt. You watch that brother of mine, won’t you?’

‘I will,’ Matt said, as Rochelle turned to head back towards the dance floor.

‘C’mon, Matt, my man. Let’s go upstairs.’





CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE


The room was at the top of a dark wooden staircase. Overlooking the high street, it contained a round wooden table with eight chairs around it. The air smelled of stale smoke, and the deep bass was thumping through the floor from below.