Free The Faithless by Martina Cole Page A

knew he was providing for them more than adequately, not that she would ever tell him that, of course. But that was not enough for her, would never be enough for her; she wanted what her sister had. The lion’s share was all she would ever be content with, was all she would ever accept. Even she admitted to herself that at times her jealousy got out of hand, but she couldn’t help the feeling that life was pissing on her from a great height. That seeing that mousy little sister of hers getting one over on her was all she could ever think about. She should have been the one to have achieved it; she had more brains and more savvy than Celeste would ever have. It was unfair, it was so unfair. Not that he would ever understand that, of course.
    But as he looked at her now, disgust and dislike in his eyes, she knew they had somehow crossed a line. Never before had he fronted her up like this, it had always been the other way round. Something had given him some Dutch courage that he’d never previously had, and she had a suspicion what that something was.
    ‘You, calling me stupid?’ he said. ‘You, who wouldn’t know how to earn a crust if your life depended on it?
You,
who can’t even bloody get yourself together long enough to take care of your own kids!
You
dare to question me, and what I do for this so-called family?’
    She didn’t answer him, didn’t know how to.
    ‘I fucking get up and go out twenty-four seven. And do you know what?
That’s
why Jonny looks after us, you stupid mare. He offers me a taste, a bit of what he’s doing and I am thrilled to take it. Because without him we’d be scratching a living, like we were before. So you had better wind your fucking neck in, shut your trap and be grateful for what you have got, instead of constantly harping on about what you think you
should
have. I’ve had it, Cynth. I’ve had you and your fucking wants till I’m dizzy.’
    Cynthia looked at her husband in complete amazement; if someone had told her he would turn on her like this she would have laughed in their face. But she shouldn’t have been so shocked; she had watched him getting too big for his boots, saw him blossoming as he became more and more successful in his chosen field. She had seen him become a man of renown almost, knew he was respected because he could hide a few quid from the tax man and the law. Now it seemed he thought he was better than her, the mother of his children. She also suspected that he had acquired a habit of sorts – a severe case of the sniffles. In fact he was often assaulted by a case of Colombian flu. She was pretty sure her goody-two-shoes husband was a bit of a cokehead.
    Oh, how times changed.
    ‘You can’t talk to me like that! I won’t swallow
you
of all people treating me like a fool.’
    Jimmy laughed then and, pushing her backwards on to the sofa, he said seriously, ‘
Fuck you,
Cynth, do I look like I care what you think these days? I’m over you and your viciousness. You bring my kids back home or you can fuck off. I’ve had you up to my eyebrows. You’re a vindictive cunt, and a bully. But I ain’t swallowing no more, so you better sort yourself out.’
    Jimmy couldn’t believe what he had just said, let alone that it was to Cynthia! All the things he had dreamt of saying he had finally said. He knew it was because he had partaken of a few lines of cocaine. Lately he had found that he liked the way it made him feel. He didn’t care what anyone thought of him after a few lines, and he felt invincible. He felt that he could do no wrong. He also knew that if Jonny Parker found out about it he would go ballistic. Jonny didn’t like drugs, especially not in his personal circle of friends; he might sell them of course, and in large quantities, but that was just business as far as he was concerned. As long as Jonny didn’t know about his newfound habit, Jimmy knew he was OK. He also knew that his wife, who he still loved after everything, was a woman who