Read Online Heroin Annie by Peter Corris - Free Book Online

he's got this sort of springy step.’ She giggled again.
    â€˜What?’ Hendrick snapped.
    â€˜Well, I was thinking how he was Mr Clean, you know, not smoking and that. And outside the shop he shoved his hand into this rubbish bin, like a derro. It looked funny but I guess he was throwing something away.’
    He glanced down at me with the look he probably used when he was kicking the kaffirs about ‘Amateur!’ he sneered. I groaned and let him have his fun.
    â€˜Well, I think that winds it up here’, Hendrick said. ‘Get on your feet you.’ He helped me with a kick on the leg and I promised him something for that too. ‘Annie, you're coming with us, and you too.’ He waved the gun at Samantha. ‘You can show us the spot.’
    â€˜I don't know …’ Sam mumbled.
    â€˜Yes, you do. Let's go.’
    â€˜Hey’, Dean rasped, ‘what about my gun?’
    Hendrick looked at the .45 and slowly swung it around to point at the bridge of Dean's nose. ‘It's a good piece’, he said. ‘I like it.’
    I got up slowly trying to look more wonky than I felt. I was glad he liked the gun, a man with two guns isn't looking around for a third; stands to reason. He herded us out of the house and up the steps to his car, a yellow Cortina. Annie moved listlessly and Sam tried to regain some of her oomph, but it was a losing battle, she was stoned and scared. Hendrick gave the keys to Annie.
    â€˜You drive and the blonde can keep you company. I'll cuddle up in the back here with Clifford.’
    Annie drove slowly and steadily and Sam sat rigidly beside her. I slumped back in the seat away from Hendrick and groaned from time to time. The blood had stopped flowing and the pain in my head wasn't worse than an impacted wisdom tooth. I concentrated on blaming the man beside me for the pain and the ills of the world generally.
    After a while Hendrick asked Sam a few questions, and encouraged her replies with a few prods of the .45. He'd uncocked it, but I remembered the speed he'd displayed before—not yet. We slowed down and after a few false alarms Sam found the right shop. It was closed; there was forest on one side of the road and the houses on the other side were set well back from the road and behind high hedges and shrubberies. There was light from a street lamp a little way off but not much of it. There were two rubbish bins outside the shop.
    He got Annie to U-turn and we pulled up twenty feet or so back from the first bin. Hendrick stuck the gun in my ribs.
    â€˜How're you feeling, man?’
    â€˜Lousy.’
    â€˜Good. Now I want you to get out, go up to the right bin and retrieve something. Then bring it back here to me. If you do anything silly I'll shoot you and there'll be all the evidence I need to make it okay. Understand?’
    I nodded wearily and got out of the car. There was a light breeze and it hurt the torn flesh by my ear. I limped up to the first bin, paused a minute and then went to the second. I put my hand on its rim and then collapsed, rolling on to my side where I could see back to the car. Nothing happened for several long seconds, and then Hendrick got out. He still held the .45 and he was very wary. I played dead and let him put his boot toe into my ribs. He seemed satisfied and burrowed down into the bin, still keeping the gun on target. He pulled his hand up with the package and proved he was human—for a split second he forgot me and looked at his prize. Adrenalin was flooding me—I grabbed the gun hand and pulled it down while I swung one foot at the back of his knee. He grunted and came down and I ground the fingers into the cement; I felt his little finger break and his grip relax, and I slammed the hand down again. He let the gun go and whimpered a bit. I got up fast and reached back for the .38. His eyes were wide with pain and surprise as I put the muzzle between his eyebrows.
    â€˜Henk’, I croaked,