Free A Tangled Web by Ann Purser Page B

the flower beds in the centre and mounted guard over them from his front gate, seeing off any charging children with threats and curses.
    The Turners lived on one side of the square, and the Roberts family almost opposite. Michael and Renata Roberts had produced four children, two of whom had now left home, leaving William and Andrew to cope with the untidy relationship of their parents. Michael Roberts was a violent man. His wife Renata, named after her Italian grandmother, had been an attractive, dark-haired girl who fell for Michael's blustering ways. She was a weak woman, and gave in on all issues, never daring to disagree or venture an opinion of her own. This seemed to her the best course for her to take, since Michael Roberts's idea of an argument was to answer with a blow. All the children had grown up with a keen ability to dodge.
    Michael Roberts was coming back from the pub late in the evening. The moon was full, and in his befuddled state he walked up the wrong side of the Gardens, passing first the Jenkins's house and then the Turners', where a light showed through a crack in the thick curtains.
    'Turner's up late,' Michael Roberts said to himself. He and Bill had a wary relationship, Michael Roberts knowing that Bill disapproved of him, and he in turn despising Bill for not being able to handle a silly woman. He started on a short cut across the grass, swearing as he stepped into one of Fred's precious flower beds, and paused to regain his balance.
    It was then that he heard the scream.
    'Christ Almighty!' he said, looking back to the Turners' house. 'What's that woman done now!'
    Sobered up by the awfulness of the scream, he reluctantly went back and pushed open the Turners' gate. He could see a light on in Bill's shed, and the back door of the house stood open. Sounds of crying and jumbled words came from the kitchen, but Michael was not up to facing Joyce. He went on down the path to the shed and opened the door.
    He couldn't see anyone at first, then noticed a crouching shape in the far corner. He could see it was Bill, and then realised with horror that he too was crying. 'Bill?' he said. 'What the hell's goin' on?'
    There was no reply, but Bill straightened up and wiped his face with a grubby handkerchief. He tried to say something, choked, and then indicated the rabbit cages with a hopeless wave of his hand. Michael Roberts saw that all the doors were open, and he peered inside.
    'Oh God, no ...' he said. 'Oh, good God, no.'
    Each cage contained a small, stiff corpse. Protruding eyes stared lifelessly out at Michael as he went round the shed, unable to believe what he saw. Bill sat down heavily on an old chair, and put his head in his hands.
    'I never thought she'd do it,' he said in a muffled voice. 'She threatened often enough, but I never thought she'd do it.'
    'What a bloody nightmare,' said Michael Roberts, quite sober now. 'They bin poisoned?'
    Bill nodded. 'My fault,' he said. 'I got the stuff to deal with rats eating the feed.' He looked up at his neighbour, and said, 'What am I going to do?'
    'Beat the livin' daylights out of her,' said Michael Roberts. 'I'll do it myself if you're squeamish.' He patted Bill awkwardly on the shoulder and said, 'Come on, Bill, let's go and see to 'er.'
    Bill shook his head. 'Won't do any good,' he said. 'Even if I agreed with you, which I don't. Violence doesn't answer violence. Better go now, Michael, and leave me to deal with her. She's screaming the place down now out affright, scared of what I'll do.' 'You sure?' said Michael Roberts, beginning to wish he was back home where he knew how to act when retribution was needed.
    'Yep,' said Bill. 'I'll just clear up in here, calm down a bit. Ifl go back in there now I shall kill her. You could just shut the back door, Michael, as you go by. Thanks for coming over.' He began to pull out the dead rabbits and put them in an empty sack, stroking each one for the last time before they fell with a dull thud into the