They put me back in the windowless room after allowing me to take a piss. I was weary and fell asleep on the hard bench, pillow or no pillow. I was awake when the door opened and Clement beckoned me out. 'She's here. Looks more human than her sister.'
'What would you know about humanity?'
'Keep it up, Hardy.'
He herded me back to the sick room where Thomas was standing on one side of the bed with Sharon on the other. The look she gave me would have cut glass.
'I'm sorry,' I said. 'Did you phone Sarah?'
'Yes,' she said, not looking at me. 'Craig's on his way.'
Thomas rubbed the grey bristles on his face. It'd been a long day for all of us, him included. 'Let's get on with it, Ms Marchant. See if you can get a response from her.'
'Is she sedated?' Sharon asked.
'She was, mildly. It must have worn off by now. My colleague here has some medical knowledge and believes she's faking. He's in favour of… sterner measures.'
'Torture,' I said.
'Shut up, Hardy,' Thomas snapped. 'You're not helping. The sooner we find out what we need to know the sooner everyone can go home or into hospital or do whatever the hell they want. With certain exceptions.'
Sharon leaned closer to her inert sister. 'She's very thin in the face, gaunt. She looks dehydrated. She was deep in malnutrition…'
'They put her on drips in the hospital and treated the pneumonia with antibiotics,' Thomas said. 'She's functional. Get through to her, lady. Convince her that the best course is for her to talk to us.'
Sharon shook her head. 'She's a burnt-out case. Maybe the best course is for her to die here peacefully and for all you bastards to just fuck off.'
'Sharon?' Billie said.
Thomas smiled. 'Good work.'
'Not for you, bandy legs,' Sharon snarled. 'Billie, babe, we've really got ourselves in the shit here.'
'I know,' Billie said. 'I was hoping they'd just give me a shot of something eventually and let me just…'
'You're finished with shots of something. I've got twenty grand to put you in detox, rehab, whatever, and get you back on your feet. Come on, babe, there's Sammy to consider, and me and Sarah.'
'Sammy,' Billie whispered. 'Is he okay?'
Sharon smoothed sweat-stiffened hair from Billie's face. 'Yeah, he is. But these people've got a long reach. They threatened Sarah.'
Billie made an effort and hoisted herself up a little so that she wasn't just lying flat on the bed. Sharon adjusted the pillow behind her. 'Jesus,' Billie said, 'I don't know what's going on. It's been a blur for a while and, fuck, I could do with a fix now.'
'No chance,' Clement said.
Thomas looked as though he wanted to hit him. 'Just possibly,' he said.
Sharon shrugged and murmured in tune-' "The kids are all right". Remember that? It applies now. Maybe we should just tell these bastards to get fucked. We've provided the next generation. What's so great about life right now?'
Clement pushed me aside and moved closer to the bed. 'Listen, you cunt. I can give you so much pain you'll tell me where this Sammy is and plead for me to kill him rather than go on doing what I'm doing to you.'
'He's capable of it, believe me,' Thomas said.
The colour drained from Sharon's face but she stood her ground. She turned away from Clement and addressed Thomas: 'I'm not going to do a thing while that animal's in the room. Get rid of him and I'll talk to her.'
Clement protested but Thomas overruled him and ordered him out. As soon as the door closed with a well-sealed hiss, Thomas took out a pistol, waved me to a corner of the room and spoke urgently. 'He's very dangerous.'
'Who's to say you won't just kill us if you get what you want?' Sharon said. 'And what if Billie doesn't know anything?'
'I know plenty,' Billie said. 'You sure about that twenty grand, sis?'
'I've got it,' Sharon said.
Billie turned, propped herself on an elbow, and looked at me. 'Is he any fucking use?'
Good question. 'Listen, Rhys,' I said. 'I know you're working for Greaves, not Clement.'
The look on Thomas's face told me that I was right on the money. His secret was out; he was in danger and he knew it. The question was how would he react? He could probably afford to kill me, but not Sharon and Billie. He must have been playing a cagey game between Clement and Greaves for some time but he hadn't anticipated this and it threw him. I had to move quickly to make the most of the advantage.
'Clive McGuinness told me when I put him under some pressure,' I said. 'But he's out of the picture now, on his way to Bangkok.'
'Fucking McGuinness,' Thomas said. 'That's how you got here.'
'Yeah, that's right.'
Billie's cigarette and booze eroded voice cut in: 'Who-?'
'Shut up.' I pointed to the door and got Thomas's attention. 'Young Clement's nuts, you can see that. You've barely got him under control. Get what you want from Billie and I'll help you take care of him. Then you can play it your way with Greaves and we're out of here and we've never heard of you.'
It wasn't ideal, with everything coming down to Billie. From what I'd heard of her, and given her state of health, there was no way to tell which way she'd jump. She'd showed some spirit, but now she was looking dubiously at all three of us about equally. She had no way to know whether to trust Thomas or me and I could sense the history of conflict between the two sisters. She closed her eyes and Sharon grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her.
'Billie, you can't flake out now.'
'What about something to get me up and running?'
'Maybe,' Thomas said, looming over her. 'But let's make this quick. Hardy's right about Jonas. He's dangerous. He hates me, hates his old man, hates everybody and particularly women who give him a bad time. Here's what I want to know. It's likely what got Eddie killed. Don't you make the same mistake. Where's Peter Scriven?'