“When?”
“’Bout a year ago. Ended up working in the same gang as me.”
Melissa sniffed and took a swig of her tea. She hadn’t once looked up. It was as if mumbling at the floor might prevent Lyra from hearing her betrayal.
“Which gang?” Tony queried.
“Anton Gardiner.”
Tony looked at Helen. The name was familiar to both of them. Anton Gardiner was a violent drug dealer and pimp who ran girls in the south of the city. He worked alone and lived in the shadows, occasionally attracting the attention of the police by acts of incredible violence against his girls or his rivals. He was rumored to be wealthy, but as he didn’t believe in banks, this was hard to confirm. What was undoubtedly true was that he was sadistic, unpredictable and unbalanced. He often picked up girls from care homes and shelters—which meant that Helen had a particular hatred of him.
“Why did she choose Anton?”
“She wanted drugs; he could get them.”
“And how did they get on?” Tony continued. Melissa just smiled and shook her head—no one “got on” with Anton.
“Where is Lyra now?” Helen asked.
“Don’t know. Haven’t seen her in over a month.”
“Why?”
“She took off. Had a row with Anton and then...”
“What about?”
“About why he was such a sadistic fuck.”
For the first time, Melissa looked up. Her eyes flashed with anger.
“Go on,” Helen continued.
“Do you know what he does to his new girls?”
Helen shook her head. She had to ask, but didn’t really want to know.
“He gets them to strip, then bend over and hold their ankles. He tells them they have to stay like thatthe whole day. He leaves you alone for the first few hours. Leaves you until your legs are cramping, your back is in agony, and just when you can’t take it any longer, he does you. An hour later, he does you again. Over and over. That’s how he breaks you.”
It was clear that Melissa was talking from personal experience, her voice trembling as she spoke.
“And if you ever step out of line or don’t bring in enough cash, he does the same again. He doesn’t care about anything or anyone. He just wants the money.”
“So what did he do when Lyra left?”
“No idea. Ain’t seen him.”
“You’ve not seen him since?” Helen said, suddenly alert.
“No.”
“I need you to be clear on this one, Melissa. Did you see Anton during or after his confrontation with Lyra?”
“No.Shetold me about it, not him.”
“Did you look for him?”
“Not at first. You don’t go looking for someone like that. But after a few days, I asked a few questions. I needed a fix. But he wasn’t at any of his usual places.”
