The Stranger by Mark Ayre (ebook reader wifi .txt) 📕

side of the road to the tunnel. The moment she heard the shouts, she stepped off the pavement and crossed the street. On the other side, she moved quickly to the end of the tunnel and peered into the darkness.

The voices were low but agitated. Even from this distance, Abbie struggled to make out what they were saying. She could tell now that, unless there was a silent party, it was definitely two men. Or one, arguing with himself and good at changing his voice.

The tunnel was short. Abbie stepped in and crossed to the wall closest to the men. They were out the other side, around the corner from the wall which Abbie now pressed against. The carpark itself was gloomy. Lit by a single lamp on the back wall of one of the offices.

As Abbie edged up the wall, the voices became clearer.

“You honestly think I could just walk away?”

“You have to.”

“My life is here.”

“What life?”

This brought a stunned silence, and in that silence, Abbie could almost hear the hurt of the man who had been told he didn’t have a life.

“Danny, sorry, I didn’t mean—“

“You think ’cause I ain’t got the wife and house, baby on the way, I ain’t got a life? You think I can just walk away and start again?”

“I’m not saying it’ll be easy. I’m saying it’s your only choice.”

Abbie had reached the end of the tunnel. Her back remained pressed to the wall. The men stood around the corner, probably only a couple of feet away.

“There’s always more than one choice,” said Danny. “And I choose to come home. To my brother, my friends. To my…”

He cut off. Abbie stayed pressed against the wall but felt uncomfortable eavesdropping. It wasn’t her style.

“Your what?”

Danny took a breath as Abbie stepped away from the wall.

“You know who I mean,” he said. I love—”

“You can’t be serious.”

“I am.”

“You’re a moron.”

Abbie stepped around the corner as Danny punched the other man in the face. As Man Two staggered back, Danny came forward and swung another fist. Wild, reckless. He got lucky, and Man Two went down.

Danny wasn’t done.

He made to charge.

Abbie grabbed his jacket. Yanked. As Danny came back, Abbie lifted a leg and tripped him. Took him to his behind on the concrete path.

She said, “I think that’s probably enough.”

Man Two was already rising. From the floor, a dumbfounded Danny stared at Abbie as though she were an alien.

“Who the fuck are you?”

“Come on, Dan. There’s no need for that.”

“Fuck off, Eddie,” Dan said. “I’m not talking to you. I’m asking this bitch a question.”

Danny turned back to Abbie, but she was looking at Eddie. Having fallen between two empty parking spaces, he’d risen right in the line of the lamp on the back of the building. The glow illuminated his face as a spotlight will illuminate an actor’s on stage. He blinked and stepped to one side before it blinded him. Even in the gloom, Abbie could clearly make him out.

Eddie was her stranger. The man from her dream.

“Hey, what are you, deaf?”

As he spoke, Danny rose and grabbed Abbie’s arm. When she’d grabbed his jacket, her sleeve had ridden up. His fingers touched her skin, and she jerked away.

“Damn, your hands are cold.” She pointed at Eddie. “I feel even more sorry for you now. Must have been like getting smacked by an ice block. A limp, soft ice block but still.”

“Bad circulation,” said Eddie. “He’s always had that.”

Always. Abbie looked from Eddie to Danny, noting the similarities. The puncher was like the punchee, only five years younger, less well-fed, and lacking a decent hairdresser. Brothers.

Having stumbled as Abbie batted his hand, Danny’s anger was building. This didn’t worry Abbie. It must have concerned Eddie, who stepped forward and raised a palm towards his brother.

“Calm down, Danny.” Turning to Abbie, he said, “My brother and I were having a discussion. Didn’t mean it to get heated, but you know what siblings are like.”

“Not personally,” Abbie said, feeling the stab as her sister’s face came to mind. Her beautiful, perfect sister.

“Well, Dan and I are like cats and dogs. Always have been. When I was fifteen, and he was ten, he pushed me out a window. All in good fun, of course.”

“Naturally.”

“So, would you mind leaving us to it? We got some stuff we need to discuss.”

A need for late-night discussions seemed to be going around. Abbie glanced over Eddie’s shoulder to Dan. The younger brother was like a revving car, building up to blast off. He was all pent up anger and testosterone. He wanted to fight.

Still, Abbie needed Eddie onside. A task that would be hard enough without her getting off on completely the wrong foot with the guy by punching his brother.

“Alright,” she said. But Danny jumped in.

“No. Forget it. We were done anyway.”

Eddie’s face reddened. “No, we weren’t.”

“Yeah, we was, and I need some sleep. You wanna speak again, we can do it tomorrow. Afternoon. I got people I need to see first.”

Danny turned, entered the tunnel. Frustrated, exasperated, Eddie brushed past Abbie and rushed after his brother.

“Don’t you walk away from me, Daniel. We’re not done.”

“Piss off, Ed.”

As Abbie entered the tunnel after the guys, Danny spun and punched Eddie in the face. Again. This time, Eddie fought back. Bending at the waist, he charged like a bull, smashing Danny in the stomach. Both men went down. Then they were on the floor, slapping and hitting and kicking. Two grown men, one late-twenties, the other early thirties, wrestling like children. Grown-up brothers, still fighting like cats and dogs.

Danny produced another lucky shot. An elbow to the nose.

Eddie screamed. Blood burst across the dark concrete and clothes of both fighters. While Eddie recoiled, grabbing his face, Danny leaned back, pulled in both legs, and fired them into his brother’s chest.

With another howl, Eddie rolled away, and Danny was scrabbling to his feet. He pointed at Abbie.

“Don’t try and stop me.”

Abbie glanced at Eddie, writhing on the floor. Then back to Danny.

“I shouldn’t need to.