Love My Enemy (3 page)

But it was too late. Two lads marched straight up to
them. One with golden curls and biro-blue eyes planted
himself right in front of Conor, hands on hips.

'Well, well,' he called out loudly, 'look what we have
here, lads. A Fenian!'

Anticipation shivered across the crowd. For a
moment all that could be heard was the frenzied crackling
of the fire. People began edging back, their faces
reflecting wild, cavorting flames. Zee could taste the
smoke, the danger, even her own fear. She must
overcome it, she had to speak out. She couldn't just
stand by and see Conor get beaten up.

'Leave him alone!' she squealed, and then, finding
more authority, she said, 'D'you hear me, Gary? Just
you leave Conor alone.'

'
Your
Gary?' asked Tasha, her voice incredulous. 'He's
your brother?'

'Yes,' Zee admitted and she felt shrunk somehow.

Gary was standing close up to Conor, eyeballing him
like a boxer.

'What are you doing here?' he demanded, but before
Conor could answer, the other youth butted in.

'And you, Zee? What the hell are
you
doing with the
likes of him?'

'Mind your own business, Des Gordon!'

Her voice sounded an awful lot braver than she felt, and
she shuddered as Des's eyes roved up and down her body.

'I just came over to say hello to Zee,' Con told them,
'that's all.'

'You stay away from her,' snarled Des. 'Stick to your
own kind.'

Tasha cleared her throat but if she was trying to catch
their attention she failed completely.

Gary punched Conor's shoulder, none too lightly.
'You should be at home, pillock. This is
our
night.'

Conor kept his balance, and looked Gary straight in
the eye. 'There's supposed to be peace, isn't there? I can
go anywhere I want.'

'In your dreams!' Gary hissed. 'Peace? Too many
scores to be settled for that.'

'Not between us, Gary. It's not long since you and me
were kids playing football in the street.'

Des moved in, pushing his fist hard into Conor's
chest, forcing him back a step. 'You two were never
mates, Fenian boy.'

'Stop it!' yelled Zee.

But Des had bunched Conor's shirt in his fists
'C'mon, Gary! Let's teach him a lesson!'

Excitement rocked those nearest in the crowd. Some
folk turned on their heels and hurried off but others
waited expectantly. The rest of the gang had gathered
round and they began shouting and egging them on. Zee
saw a baseball bat being shoved into Gary's hand.

'No, Gary, don't!' she screamed.

'O'Keefe needs a good kicking,' thundered Des.
'C'mon, Gary!'

Then came a new voice. 'Back off, Des, leave thon
lad alone.'

It was a girl's voice and she sounded a whole lot
calmer than anyone else. 'Ye heard me! Leave him be.'

The girl detached herself from the crowd, walked
over and put her arm through Gary's. 'Ye headbanger!
Put thon bat down before someone gets hurt.'

Gary hesitated for just a moment, then he tossed the
bat back to its owner.

Zee stared in astonishment at this miracle worker.
Dressed in a fringed black skirt and a black leather
jacket, she wore a dozen silver earrings through her ears
and nose and eye-brow, and her hair was as tangled as a
road map. She was a few years older than Gary and she
spoke with a broad backstreet accent.

'Des,' she was saying now, 'let him go.'

'I'm gonna make sure he doesn't come back, Ruby.'

'He won't,' Zee put in earnestly. 'He's going home
right now,
aren't you
, Conor?' But to her annoyance,
Conor just stood there staring at Gary. Zee grabbed his
arm and tried to pull him away. 'You come too, Tasha!'

Tasha didn't move either. She was gazing at Gary as
if hypnotised. Zee couldn't believe it. Couldn't either of
them see the danger they were in?

'I mean it, Gary,' said Conor quietly. 'I'd like to be
friends.'

Gary swung right round and spat. Saliva glistened on
Conor's boot. There was another sharp intake of breath
from the crowd and Zee pulled Conor's arm even harder.

'For God's sake, c'mon!' she said. 'Tasha, let's go.'

'I think I'll hang out here,' replied Tasha.

'What? You can't! You're new here . . . you'll get lost.'

At that moment, Gary seemed to notice Tasha for the
first time and he lost all interest in Conor. 'I'll take care
of you, Tasha,' he said.

'Cool,' said Tasha, smiling at him.

'But we're supposed to stick together,' Zee reminded
her.

Tasha was not listening. Gary was smiling back at her.
Beneath the golden curls his face lit up like a neon light
and, for a moment, even Zee could see that her brother
was good looking. She glanced at the girl, Ruby, who
had intervened, but she didn't seem to mind a bit. Only
Des was still glowering.

'You should watch the company you keep,' he
growled at Zee. 'And Gary – you should make her. I
would if she was my sister.'

In the end Zee felt she had no choice but to leave
Tasha behind; she could hardly force her home. Stares
followed her and Conor as they threaded their way
through the crowd and people nudged each other,
whispering. It felt so sinister that Zee's heart thumped in
her ears and she gripped Conor's hand tightly.

It's a celebration of Protestant over Catholic
, her
mum had said earlier. What if some other hot-head took
exception to Conor's religion? What if they never got
home?

Suddenly they were out, expelled from the crowd
which closed like a zip behind them. Zee sucked in deep
cleansing breaths of night air. The space around her had
never felt so good, the long tongue of tarmac road in
front had never looked quite so inviting. She gazed up at
the Milky Way, a vast pin cushion high above them.

'Look at all the stars,' she enthused, overcome with
relief. 'Millions of them stretching over whole continents!
God, I can't wait to get out of this country!'

'Can't you?' Conor sounded surprised.

'No. Even if the peace works, it'll make no real
difference – not deep down.'

'How d'you work that out?'

'It won't stop people hating each other. It won't take
the religion or the politics out of them.'

'It'd be pretty dull if it did,' he said. 'But we can learn
to live with each other.'

'I didn't see much sign of it just now. And
you
– why
did you wind Gary up about being friends? Are you
crazy?'

'I had my reasons,' he said darkly.

'Aye – pride. Honestly, boys!'

'Boys? I'll have you know I'm nearly seventeen.' He
slipped his arm around her waist. 'All grown up. Shall I
show you?'

'No!' She was amazed and thrilled and embarrassed
all at once, but she spun out of his reach and passed it
off with a laugh. Fancy making a move on her just now.
Some fellas had no sense of timing.

'Are you training for a marathon?' he asked a moment
later and she realised that she had quickened her pace so
much they were practically running along the pavement.

'Sorry, I'm just fed up. I can't wait to get outa here.'

'So you said.'

'Tasha's travelled, you know. She's been all over the
place on holiday.'

'Has she? It doesn't show.'

'I can't believe she stayed behind like that. You do
think she'll be okay, don't you?'

'At Gary's tender mercy?' He laughed teasingly. 'Of
course she will, Zee.'

'Don't you like Tasha?'

'I like you better.'

He grinned down at her and Zee's stomach
somersaulted. 'I'm not going to be around much longer,
you know. I'm going to be a journalist,' she said. 'In
Fleet Street.'

'I'm impressed.'

Was he really? 'What about you, Con? You must have
sat your GCSEs last month.'

'I want to do medicine eventually – if I get the grades.
I'm aiming to be a surgeon one day.'

'A surgeon?' Zee really was impressed. 'Plenty of
demand for surgeons if you stay here.'

'I plan to. And what will you do after Fleet Street,
Zee?'

'I suppose I'll get assignments – Bosnia, Africa, the
Middle East – anywhere but Belfast.'

He burst out laughing. He hooted and howled and
practically doubled up.

'What's so funny?' she demanded.

'You are. Do you really think those places will be any
different to here?'

'Of course they will. Stop laughing at me!'

'After what you did back there? I wouldn't dare
laugh.'

But he was in stitches. She could see that by the
streetlights and she could hear it in his voice. It was just
that she hardly dared look at him now. She had always
thought her neighbour was good looking, and now they
were actually talking she felt all hot and bothered and
confused. Thank heavens they were almost home. The
lights were still on in her house and in Conor's house
too, just a few doors up.

'I'm glad we bumped into each other tonight,' he said
when they reached her gate.

'Aye, almost lynched we were – great fun.'

'Seriously, thanks. You're the bravest girl I know.
Lucky for me you were there tonight.'

Zee felt ridiculously pleased. She had to look away to
hide the blush that rose from her neck. 'I'm sorry about
Gary,' she said.

'Don't you worry about him – I won't.' Conor kicked
at a loose stone. 'So . . . d'you fancy going out some
time?'

Zee's heart just about stopped altogether. She was
grateful for the darkness; at least he couldn't see her face
properly. 'Um . . . '

'We could go for a walk,' he suggested, 'take a picnic
– tomorrow, maybe?'

'What about Gary?'

'No, I think we'll leave Gary behind.'

She laughed loudly. Conor was right; why should she
let Gary rule her life? Maybe, like Tasha, she should
grab her chances. 'A picnic sounds great,' she said.

'Well, I thought I'd better ask you before you make
that dash for Fleet Street.' His eyes were twinkling as
brightly as the stars. 'G'night, Zee.'

And he kissed her, ever so lightly, on the tip of her
nose.

Tasha had never felt quite as lonely as she did when Zee
disappeared into the crowd. The Irish were wild, weren't
they? Everybody said so. What if they suddenly turned
against her? What if Gary disappeared? She would be
lost, totally lost, in a strange city.

'All right?' Gary asked, putting his arm around her.

'Yes, thanks.'

Someone threw him a can. He bent back the ring pull
and lager frothed up with a hiss. 'Have a drink,' he told
her. 'Enjoy the fire. In a wee while we'll move on.'

Tasha would have liked to ask where to, but instead
she knocked back the lager coolly.

'So where is it you're from?' asked Des, and though
he was the last person in the world Tasha wanted to talk
to, it seemed only polite to answer.

'London,' she replied.

'Ooh!' he teased and some of the others laughed.
Tasha might have fled if the girl with the broad accent
had not came to her rescue just then.

'Better a plum in her mouth than straw in her head
like ye, Des.'

'Nice one, Ruby,' yelled someone.

There was laughter, even applause. After that people
were friendly enough but Tasha was relieved when the
boys started talking among themselves, and she had a
few moments to relax.

Huge flames still lunged heavenwards from the
bonfire and the faces all around her were burnished with
firelight. Tiny kids waved Union Jack flags and when an
accordion struck up, folk began to sing along and dance.
The air filled with beer and laughter again.

'Ciggy?' asked Ruby, and Tasha didn't refuse. She
had smoked at school once or twice. What the hell?

Ruby blew out impressive smoke rings, 'So, ye fancy
our Gary, d'ye?'

'That's my business,' said Tasha tartly but Ruby just
laughed. Between that and the cigarette, Tasha felt a bit
silly. 'Okay, so I do fancy him. Does it show?'

'Just a touch.'

'Glad I'm amusing you.'

'Aw – don't be so starchy! We gotta get our laughs
somewhere. God knows there's enough misery around.'

Tasha struggled to understand Ruby's accent but she
knew the older girl would have buckets of useful info on
Gary. 'Has he got a girlfriend?' she asked.

'No way. Plenty have thrown themselves at him, mind
– includin' me.'

'You?'

Ruby laughed again and her big hair fluffed out. 'Aye,
we had a wee fling in the early days.'

She shrugged as if it meant nothing to her, as if she had
a million other lads queuing up to take her out, with her
raggy hennaed hair and her cheap jingling jewellery. Tasha
was not even sure that she believed Ruby. How could
someone like her be so cheery about being dumped?

'Has Gary got his eye on anyone else?' she persisted.

'Only you, darlin'. I haven't seen that look in Gary's
eye for a while.'

Tasha flushed happily but Ruby edged closer.

'Just don't expect too much of him, know what I mean?'

'Er – no . . . what
do
you mean?'

'When I went out wi' Gary, it was like havin' a
relationship with someone wearin' armour.'

Tasha bit back a bitchy remark. So Gary hadn't
wanted to get close to Ruby? Surprise.

'We look out for him so we do – all of us,' said Ruby.

'Don't gangs always look out for each other?' asked
Tasha.

'We're not a gang – just a crowd who hang out
together.'

'I'll tell Conor that.'

Ruby stared at her, really stared. 'Ye don't know
what I'm talkin' about, do ye? I thought his sister
would have said.'

'Said what?'

'What happened.'

Tasha swallowed hard. She felt like a little kid again,
left out, sent off to the playroom while her parents argued.
She felt about five years old. 'So what did happen?'

'Their da was shot dead a coupla years back. Two
hooded gunmen came to the house, murdered him right
there in the livin' room.' Her voice dropped and she
looked a little distant. 'The like of that's not supposed to
happen in a livin' room, is it?'

Tasha stared back at her, horrified. 'I'd no idea,' she
said at last. 'Oh, God! Poor Gary. . . poor Zee.'

Ruby nodded, making her metal jewellery clang.
'Afterwards Gary turned kinda bitter. . . closed off like.
So, I'm just warnin' ye, don't expect too much from him.'

Zee's words yesterday evening came echoing back to
Tasha.
There's just Mum
. . . she had said, and Tasha had
assumed that meant her parents were divorced. After all,
her own parents were divorced. Half the world was
divorced or re-married. The fire roared in her ears.
Being dead, let alone shot dead, had never even entered
her head.