fist.’
‘Look, I understand why you’re being like that.’ He was alongside me now, waving his arms around. His pal had more sense, being about ten paces behind. ‘It’s natural for black people to have a chip on their... Alright! Alright. I won’t say no more about the righteous struggle. I just wanted to let you know, well...’
He looked left and right. Birchwood Road was deserted. When he turned his head I saw the five inch long slash, butterflied up on his cheek.
‘Where’d you get that?’ I said. Not that I gave a shit. ‘Cut yourself shaving? Give it a couple more goes and you’ll get the hang of it.’
‘I don’t mind it. I’ve adjusted to it already, see? Only got it stitched half an hour ago and I’m easy with it. That’s what I’m about. I adapt and react - that’s how I’m gonna take over here. People will call me Scarface from now on.’
‘People will call you wanker. Same as they do now.’
‘Whatever. I ain’t fuckin’ around here. You put in an order, I’ve come through for you.’
‘What order?’
‘You know what.’
‘A gun? You already gave me a gun. A shit one.’
‘This ain’t about the gun. I’m on about the other thing you wanted.’
‘ What? ’
He chewed his gum five times. ‘Graven.’
My balls tightened.
19.
I was driving.
I insisted.
Even with all this shit going on, I still found it in me to enjoy the smooth handling of the Beamer. Even a knackered old 316i like this one. Kraut engineering stays the course, no matter how hard you thrash it.
I was thrashing it now.
‘Just tell me,’ I said. It was the second out of three times I was going to say it in a polite and patient manner. Three strikes and you’re out was being very generous, I thought. Next time, he was going to find out how it feels to be out.
I made sure he wasn’t strapped in, then looked across his lap at the passenger door handle. Seemed like an easy movement.
Reach. Open. Shove.
You’re out.
‘Just through the grapevine, you know,’ he said, touching his stitches. ‘Like Marvin Gaye.’
‘How did I know you’d mention Marvin Gaye?’ I said.
He gave me an innocent smile. ‘Do you think black minds think alike?’
‘What I think is that I’m gonna ask you one more time. How do you know Graven is at this address?’
The lights I was heading for turned red. Fuck it - no one was about. I bombed them, swerving easy around the cyclist coming over the junction just then. I looked in the rear-view and watched him wave a fist at me. Such misplaced rage. I slipped my eyes sideways and checked Gnash on the back seat. Maybe he’d give me some aggro when I dumped his cohort on the tarmac. I worked out a follow-through move to tag on the end of that without even taking my right hand off the wheel. Should be easy.
And it looked like it was gonna happen. I said:
‘Five.’
‘What?’
‘Four.’
‘What? Four what?’
‘Tell him, Sid!’
‘Three.’
‘Get off me, Gnash! Tell him what?’
‘Tell him how you know Boo... erm, Graven is where he is!’
‘Two.’
‘Tell him!’
‘One.’
‘Alright! Alright, I’ll tell you, if it means so much.’
‘Tell him, Sid!’
‘Fuck off, Gnash! You touch the back of my head again and I’ll stripe you!’
‘Come on, just tell the bloke.’
‘Alright, well... What I did, see, is I thought about what you said. Chain of command, you said. In any kind of organisation, you’re only dealing with the one above you. And that’s Booker. You try to get past him to the one higher up, you’re making Booker sort of like unemployed, know what I mean?’
‘Redundant.’
‘Yeah, that. You’re making him redundant, like my dad is. So he’s gotta protect his ass. He’s gotta make the one above him invisible , so you don’t even try to get to him.’
‘That’s very clever,’ I said. ‘You got initiative, son. I can see you climbing a ladder one day. Cleaning windows, perhaps.’
‘You asked, I’m telling,
‘Look, I understand why you’re being like that.’ He was alongside me now, waving his arms around. His pal had more sense, being about ten paces behind. ‘It’s natural for black people to have a chip on their... Alright! Alright. I won’t say no more about the righteous struggle. I just wanted to let you know, well...’
He looked left and right. Birchwood Road was deserted. When he turned his head I saw the five inch long slash, butterflied up on his cheek.
‘Where’d you get that?’ I said. Not that I gave a shit. ‘Cut yourself shaving? Give it a couple more goes and you’ll get the hang of it.’
‘I don’t mind it. I’ve adjusted to it already, see? Only got it stitched half an hour ago and I’m easy with it. That’s what I’m about. I adapt and react - that’s how I’m gonna take over here. People will call me Scarface from now on.’
‘People will call you wanker. Same as they do now.’
‘Whatever. I ain’t fuckin’ around here. You put in an order, I’ve come through for you.’
‘What order?’
‘You know what.’
‘A gun? You already gave me a gun. A shit one.’
‘This ain’t about the gun. I’m on about the other thing you wanted.’
‘ What? ’
He chewed his gum five times. ‘Graven.’
My balls tightened.
19.
I was driving.
I insisted.
Even with all this shit going on, I still found it in me to enjoy the smooth handling of the Beamer. Even a knackered old 316i like this one. Kraut engineering stays the course, no matter how hard you thrash it.
I was thrashing it now.
‘Just tell me,’ I said. It was the second out of three times I was going to say it in a polite and patient manner. Three strikes and you’re out was being very generous, I thought. Next time, he was going to find out how it feels to be out.
I made sure he wasn’t strapped in, then looked across his lap at the passenger door handle. Seemed like an easy movement.
Reach. Open. Shove.
You’re out.
‘Just through the grapevine, you know,’ he said, touching his stitches. ‘Like Marvin Gaye.’
‘How did I know you’d mention Marvin Gaye?’ I said.
He gave me an innocent smile. ‘Do you think black minds think alike?’
‘What I think is that I’m gonna ask you one more time. How do you know Graven is at this address?’
The lights I was heading for turned red. Fuck it - no one was about. I bombed them, swerving easy around the cyclist coming over the junction just then. I looked in the rear-view and watched him wave a fist at me. Such misplaced rage. I slipped my eyes sideways and checked Gnash on the back seat. Maybe he’d give me some aggro when I dumped his cohort on the tarmac. I worked out a follow-through move to tag on the end of that without even taking my right hand off the wheel. Should be easy.
And it looked like it was gonna happen. I said:
‘Five.’
‘What?’
‘Four.’
‘What? Four what?’
‘Tell him, Sid!’
‘Three.’
‘Get off me, Gnash! Tell him what?’
‘Tell him how you know Boo... erm, Graven is where he is!’
‘Two.’
‘Tell him!’
‘One.’
‘Alright! Alright, I’ll tell you, if it means so much.’
‘Tell him, Sid!’
‘Fuck off, Gnash! You touch the back of my head again and I’ll stripe you!’
‘Come on, just tell the bloke.’
‘Alright, well... What I did, see, is I thought about what you said. Chain of command, you said. In any kind of organisation, you’re only dealing with the one above you. And that’s Booker. You try to get past him to the one higher up, you’re making Booker sort of like unemployed, know what I mean?’
‘Redundant.’
‘Yeah, that. You’re making him redundant, like my dad is. So he’s gotta protect his ass. He’s gotta make the one above him invisible , so you don’t even try to get to him.’
‘That’s very clever,’ I said. ‘You got initiative, son. I can see you climbing a ladder one day. Cleaning windows, perhaps.’
‘You asked, I’m telling,
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