Friendship, belief, honour, honesty.  All the elements which comprise trust.

Childhood, separation, rendezvous, hope.  There is more to this friendship than two people meeting up again.  The tale told starts slowly, gently, and builds into a fast climax…  There are gangland meetings, there’s embezzlement, there’s fraud that’s smart, there are traditions.  There are also disturbing scenes, which push the boundaries of acceptability.  In the middle are two people, who think they know each other…  A tale which, before it ends, may tell the reader more about him or herself than they would expect when they started to be ‘involved.’

 

Two school friends, one a little naïve, one a ‘wide boy’, meet up again years later.

This starts a series of events which involves leading members of the local underworld, including the Triads. Harrison (the wide boy), perpetrates an ingenious crime, which has gangland’s ‘finest’ chasing him. Donaldson (the naïve) is drawn into it and joins the chase.  The book is a fast-paced thriller, which involves betrayal and revenge. Read and enjoy.

 

Extract:

 

'Donaldson!'

Twenty-nine pairs of eyes - variously curious, excited, mischief-making, friendly and unfriendly scanned the room for the unlucky victim.

James looked straight ahead - at the plump, hard-looking lady at the front of the classroom. She was almost as round as a football, an object he loved and admired, with a heavy blue dress on and tan coloured stockings: so thick that her legs couldn't be seen beneath. Where her tummy should be was a ring, all rounded, reminding him of one of those hoops that children wore when they played in the water. She was a lot older than his mother, no idea how old, just very. Her head was unlike any he had ever seen: she had black hair which was cut in straight lines all over, even at the front and it seemed to change colour in bits when she moved. Her eyes were very dark, they looked black but weren't - nobody had black eyes! She had a little stuck-up nose and her mouth had lips which were so thin they looked like pink pencil lines. And a moustache: women didn't have moustaches did they? And three chins, that was just greedy - no one should be allowed to have more than one chin.

While he was looking at her and thinking, he'd forgotten about the funny feeling in his stomach - his mother had said they were called butterflies: you got them when you were scared or excited. He thought he was both so did that count?

'Donaldson!'

Shouted louder now, and it sounded a little angry. He couldn't speak, it would have been silly or baby talk. He shook a little and a puddle appeared on the floor. He didn't feel a baby about this - there were other puddles under desks. He raised his hand, haltingly; it jerked to straightness.

'Ah, you're here are you?'

'Mmmn,' he said through a closed mouth. Eyes around him popped and a very pretty girl in front put a hand over her mouth and giggled just a little.

He hadn't noticed the boy next to him before. He felt a hand on his back, some light pressure and on looking at his neighbour saw a smile, ever so quick but enough. So he wasn't alone. The boy had hair the colour of straw - thick, shiny and dangling in strands. His face was covered in horrid red spots, some had little yellow middles. He had a big nose that curved out, a funny mouth with a lower bit which bent and shook when opened and the greenest eyes ever. But the face was friendly, and the smile changed it from a naughty look to a 'Hi there': a new friend.

The faces around him, although all different, felt like he did, he thought: it was very exciting but he missed his mam. This lady looked a little frightening but he'd be good, nice and see what happened next.

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© 2007-2010 Michael J Donnelly

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