That night I have a dream. I never threw the pendant away. I kept it on the chain still, locked away in its little box. I was still with Dayson, but I was the unhappiest I’d been for a long time. Our conversations never flowed since all he wanted to talk about was scissors that stabbed. Things got so bad that eventually the words that came out of his mouth weren’t words at all. They were a whirring sound, like a—

I crank my eyes open, only half aware of the intense pain in my neck. When I try to move, a fiery hot stab bursts through me, causing me to groan.

Blinking into the semi-darkness, I lift my head. My arms are surrounded by plush. Confused, I bend down to find myself sitting in the desk chair. Then it all comes back. I must have woken in the middle of the night to move to a more comfortable position.

The dream is still with me and I try to catch the last few tendrils of it before it fades away.

I shouldn’t have thrown that pendant away, I realise. It was a stupid thing to do. Plus that charm was too precious to be unceremoniously flushed down the loo.

But I guess I was acting in the heat of the moment. I always do. There’s no time to step back and think about the decision; there always has to be the white-hot anger that surges through my veins and clouds my judgment.
But I have one thing clear.

Pendant or not, Dayson is still out of my life and, surprisingly, I’ve been the happiest in a long time because of it.

I lie there in the dark, contemplating about the deepest things.

And then more memories arrive. Amias.

Amias!

I leap from the chair and almost crash into the door.

“Amias?” I call.

Silence.

“Amias?”

A small, groggy, “Yeah?”

I lean back and sigh in relief. So he didn’t leave me. He’s still here. You’re safe.

“What?” Amias asks. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” I reply, relief flooding into my voice. “Just wanted to see if you were awake or if you’d left.”

There’s a pause which I assume is him sitting up.

“You thought I’d actually leave?”

“Well, sleeping on a hard surface is a bit too much to ask.”

“I’ve slept in a lot more uncomfortable places.”

And that’s all we can have for a conversation because there’s a creaking sound and then Amias swears.

“Shit! There’s a man coming!”

“Andre?”

“Tall, beard, looks like a rich player?”

“Yeah.”

“Hold on. Just play along if it comes to it, okay? I need to try and get the key.”

“But Megan has it.”

“She’ll have put it back in his wallet since I bet she didn’t want to get in trouble.”

Smart, I think. Not only can he handle a gun but he stays an entire night here to make sure I’m okay. And he’s not an idiot like some people.

“Who the fuck are you?” booms a voice. I clench my jaw at the sound of it.

“Good morning, sir,” comes Amias’ cheery voice. “How can I help you?”

“By getting the fuck off my floor and telling me what the fuck going on.”

“Complications, that’s what.”

“Eh?”

“A little missus has gotten stuck in your office.”

“Eh?”

“You know Chandy Dixon?”

“You bet to the gods I know her. Little bitch.”

“Well, she’s in there.”

“Why?”

“Dunno,” Amias says with what I think is a shrug. “You’ll probably know. Kept her in there, did you? Had a nice time? Did you forget to take her out when you left? Well, I mean you seem to have a history with women—”

“Stop right there,” he says angrily. “Who the fuck are you? And why are you so bloody intrusive?”

“Know of someone called Amias Yousief?”

“No—”
“I think you do. Amias Yousief.” A pause. “Gabriel Derry?”

Andre seems to stutter on a single syllable.

“Right, so you do know both of us.”

“You little shitheads.” Andre whispers.

“Perfect, just what I wanted my public persona to be.”

“Get the fuck out of my office.”

“Kindly, but I want something first.”

“Hm?”

“The key to the office. Now.” Another pause. “Ain’t got all day. Chop chop!”

“You don’t—”

“Think about who you’re talking to, Andre Arenas. I got your name now and I could—”

He stops after I hear a jingling.

And then the office door opens.

Light floods into the room and I have to blink it away.

“There she is,” says Amias in relief.

He’s standing by the door, peering inside as though curious.

He has a huge lump on his cheek. I see pink where Gabe hit him, and one eye looks slightly larger than the other. His hair is dishevelled, his clothes crumpled, but despite his horrific appearance, his bright smile is still there.

“Out,” Andre snaps, flapping me away like a goose he doesn’t want to see. “Out!”

Before I can react and connect my fist with his nose, Amias grabs my hand and bustles me out of the door.

I try to yank my hand free. “Let me go! I didn’t get to punch him!”

“No punching this early in the morning,” Amias replies tiredly. “Please.”

That makes me relent. For a second I stop the struggle and he uses the time to lead me to a flashy car parked by the kerb.

Its black and curvy, with a glossy finish that causes it to gleam in the morning sunshine.

“In,” Amias commands, pushing me towards the door.

I feel like a heavy weight as he pushes me. But I can’t move. I can’t stop staring at it.

“Where did you get it?”

“Not mine, remember? It’s a friend’s. I came in it last night.”

“And where did he get it?”

“Stole it, probably.”

Don’t they all? I think dryly.

“In,” Amias prompts again. I take that as my cue to enter the glossy car. Like Megan’s, the seats are leather, all the surfaces are curved, and there doesn’t seem to be a single sharp edge.

He revs the engine with a small smirk, which only causes me to give him an eye roll. Then, like last night, we’re speeding down the road and he has this look of pure excitement on his face that it only brings a smile to mine too.

“Where did you say you lived?” he calls out above the sound of the engine.

“Morgate Avenue,” I reply. “Next to the Sainsburys.”

He nods and then slows the car down at the junction.

“Is your face okay?” I ask.

He shrugs. “I’ve had worse.”

“So how did Andre know you guys?” I ask him as we come to a stop at the lights. I trace my hand over the bruise on his cheek. “He knew you and Gabe as soon as you mentioned your names.”

“An evil man will always know an evil man,” Amias replies, breath warm against my hand. “Andre’s been involved with the gang a few times.”

My heart almost skips. I pull my hand away. “Andre? Involved—”

“No!” Amias cuts in. “Not like that. He doesn’t work with us. He’s just been our client for a number of years.”

“What?”

“That man holds grudges,” Amias explains with a shrug. He taps his fingers in the wheel. “And what better way of getting back at your enemies with a bit of gang work?”

“And you let him?”

Again, he shrugs. “Gabe organises it with him, not me. We just get money out of it – and Andre does pay a fair share for a job well done.”

“What job?”

For a second he looks uncomfortable. He begins glancing at the lights as though willing for them to turn green. When they finally do, he slams his foot so hard down on the accelerator that I whip back against the seat.

“What jobs?” I insist. “You tell me your shit, remember?”

“He gets us to injure people,” Amias says uneasily. “I’ve had many jobs, mainly just crashing into people with vehicles – it hardly ever resorts to knife crime.”

I snort. “Don’t give me that shit. You’ve killed people. I know you have.”

“I regret it everyday,” he mumbles to the dashboard. “I fucking hate this life.”

Again, we lapse into silence but I’m not really sure what to say.

“Kylie was there last night,” Amias says out of the blue.

I frown. “What?”

“At the jeweller’s last night. She offered to help Gabe pick the lock and everything.”

The frown deepens. “So she’s joining in with the illegal fun?”

“No clue.” He scratches his head. “Maybe you should have a word with her since you’re best mates and all, but I really really don’t want her to get involved in that.”

“Why?”

“Why?” he scoffs. “We’re gangsters, that’s what we are. And I don’t want anyone to go through that shit.”

“I’ll talk to her,” I say, gritting my teeth but all I can think about is her betraying me like that.

What does that say about Amias? He’s involved in this too!

I can only think of her words at the party.

So surely, if I were to break up with Gabe because of this, you’d have to cut things off with Amias.

And now she’s gone and joined Gabe.

Hypocrite.

“I’ll drop you off here,” Amias says, indicating to park in a small bay on my street.

“Thanks,” I say with a smile. “Honestly.”

“Not at all. I want you to get home safely. Couldn’t imagine you alone with Andre.”

I shudder at the thought. “Thanks anyway.”

“One thing.” He pauses and it seems the world stops.

Then I realise what he means. Grinning, I lean in and peck him on the lips.

“Bye,” I say, opening the door. I’m almost at the pavement but I have to see him again so I turn to his rolled-down window to where his lips look so soft.

“You’re fighting the urge,” he observes.

“Fuck me,” I hiss.

“Was that an insult or a command?” he says.

“Shut up!” I reply and then I lean in to kiss him through the window.

It’s rewarding but frustrating at the same time since I can’t wind my fingers through his hair and deepen the kiss.

“You’re too good at this,” he whispers when we pull away. “I get tingles whenever I kiss you.”

I grin all the way to the pavement when he says that.

“Bye!” he calls once I’m outside my door. I give him a cheery wave and then he’s driving off.

I turn to the front door and full-on grin.