Page 56 of Diamond in the Rough

The screen changed to shaky camera footage, someone streaming the fire live. Flames spat out of the front window, and the glass on the path glittered like embers. The fire excited the prisoners, and they whistled and gasped at the blaze.

Gavin snorted. “I’ve seen bigger.”

Maddox got to his feet. His heart beat hard enough to distort his vision. After each pulse, it blurred, then snapped back into focus. Stationery Corner engulfed in a fireball.

“At least it was after closing time,” Keiron said.

Maddox gripped the chair closest to him to stay upright.

“What is it?” Ernie asked.

“I hate the smell of burning plastic and burning hair…”

Maddox frowned at the words, wondering why they were familiar. He couldn’t tear his eyes off the orange glow on the screen, but the words spun in his head. The voice unfamiliar, but the words very.

“The worst is singeing skin. It’s not just a smell but a taste, and it disgusts me, but I’ll endure it if you don’t give me what I want.”

Maddox realized they were his words, said to Billy when he’d been tied to a chair. He’d threatened him with his Zippo, held it so close it had burned part of his eyebrow.

With difficulty, Maddox turned his head and found the source of the words. One of the guys always eyeing him up, attempting to stare him down. He glared at Maddox, and Maddox glared back until the pull of the fire was too intense. He broke eye contact for the first time and looked back at Stationery Corner.

“He said you shouldn’t have broken your agreement. His death’s on you.”

The flames fed Maddox’s anger. He could feel the heat of the fire inside and out, and his body started to shake. Pure fury took over his mind, and when he turned back to the glaring man, his confidence shrivelled up, and he backed away towards his cell.

“Maddox…”

He heard Ernie’s warning, but he wasn’t himself anymore. He was a caged beast who had been tormented for too long. Red descended over his vision, and his body acted with no thought. He wanted blood, and he was going to get it.

Maddox rushed across the room and launched a brutal punch. The prison erupted into chaos, shouts, and jeers, banging tables, stamping feet, all sounds he despised. He didn’t hear the man’s bones break but felt the vibrations, and they transformed into a pleasant music in his head, a score sheet of violence.

He imagined Beethoven as he punched, fast but powerful. Maddox flared his nostrils at the scent of blood; it overpowered the smell of cheap food and cheaper coffee.

Batons rained down, and hands closed on him and dragged him away. He was numb to it all, no longer a man but a wild animal frothing at the mouth for violence.

Chapter 10

Jake spied through the tattered net curtain. A blacked-out car had pulled up in the hotel car park. It was dark, and the eerie glow of the outside lamps convinced Jake the sinister car had been sent for him. He clutched the brown packet to his chest, a heavy weight to bear when he knew what he’d have to do.

A woman strolled over to the car dragging her suitcase behind her. She popped open the trunk, flung the suitcase inside, then opened the door to the back seat.

Jake exhaled and walked backwards until his legs hit the bed, then collapsed. It was the second night he’d been in the hotel. No one had followed him, he was certain of it, but time seemed to slow in the depressing room. The décor hadn’t changed from the 1950s and the only modern appliances were the kettle and the TV. The room had an odd aroma of stale smoke and damp, and there were stains on the duvet. He’d wanted to wash, but one glance at the hairy plughole in the shower had made him shudder and rethink.

He stared up at the smoke detector on the ceiling and wondered whether it was in fact a camera. Either way, it felt like it was looking at him, so he looked back. His stomach whined and broke his staring contest. He patted his stomach, then rolled onto his side and reached for the snacks he’d bought from the vending machine.

When he’d forced down the last chocolate bar, he swore he’d never eat one again, then wondered what Carl would’ve made of his chocolate and crisps diet. He’d probably deconstruct the ingredients and manage to make a sandwich out of it. Jake smiled at the thought.

He shuffled up on the bed, grabbed his phone, and called Carl. They’d spoken that morning, Carl checking in on him to make sure he was all right. His voice had been tense, but once Jake had reassured him, Carl had relaxed and talked Jake through his lavish breakfast. Jake had cursed at him for teasing him before hanging up.

Carl didn’t pick up the second time, and Jake tossed the phone aside. He found the remote, as worn and broken as his own at home, and switched on the TV.

Jake’s chest tightened at the sight of fire. Fierce red fire dancing in the sky. The building was unidentifiable, but the banner running across the screen filled in the blank. Stationery Corner was on fire, and fire crews were struggling to contain the blaze.

Jake tried Carl’s number again, but there was no answer.

Maddox had feared retaliation, and it had come in the form of arson. Jake tracked the text on the bottom of the screen: the fire had been reported at seven, ninety minutes after closing time.

He pressed down on Carl’s name again and counted the rings, but Carl didn’t pick up.

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