Spider Shepherd 11 - White Lies Read Free

years old,’ protested the man. ‘He is a child.’
    ‘Four thousand pounds a head,’ said Coatsworth. ‘He’s got a head, hasn’t he? Four heads, sixteen thousand pounds. Or twenty thousand euros.’
    The man held out his hands, palms up. ‘I don’t have twenty thousand euros. I have fifteen thousand. That’s all I have.’ There were tears in his eyes and his hands were trembling.
    ‘Bollocks,’ said Coatsworth. ‘You’ve got money, you’re just trying to cheat me and I’ll tell you now that’s not going to work.’
    The man’s wife shouted something in Arabic and the man turned and shouted back at her.
    Coatsworth put a hand on the man’s shoulder. ‘Don’t talk to her, talk to me,’ he snarled.
    ‘I don’t have twenty thousand euros,’ he said. ‘Not in cash. It’s in a bank. I can pay you when we get to England.’
    ‘Yeah, my cheque’ll be in the post and you won’t come in my mouth,’ said Coatsworth.
    The Iraqi frowned. ‘I don’t understand,’ he said.
    ‘Then understand this. No money, no trip. You’ve enough for three people so I’ll take three of you. One of you will have to stay behind.’ He looked at the watch on the man’s wrist. It was a cheap Casio. ‘Does your wife have any jewellery? Any gold?’
    The man shook his head. ‘We were robbed when we were in Turkey.’ The man’s wife walked towards them, the boy in her arms, and said something in Arabic to the man. He replied, and she started talking faster, her free arm waving in the air.
    ‘Bruno, get over here!’ Coatsworth called to Mercier. Mercier closed the suitcase he was searching and jogged over.
    The Iraqi was speaking to his wife in Arabic. Coatsworth turned to Mercier. ‘What’s he saying?’
    Mercier moved closer to Coatsworth. ‘She’s saying she thinks they should wait. And find another way to England. Says she doesn’t like you.’
    Coatsworth laughed harshly. ‘Doesn’t like me? Doesn’t fucking like me?’ He pointed his finger at the woman. ‘You can fuck off back to Arab-land for all I care,’ he shouted. ‘There are plenty of people more than happy to pay me. You and your whole family can just fuck off and I’ll get someone else to take your place.’
    The woman glared at him defiantly. Her husband stepped in front of her and began talking animatedly.
    ‘What’s he saying now?’ Coatsworth asked Mercier.
    ‘He’s calming her down,’ said the Algerian. ‘He says they’re to go ahead and he’ll follow once he’s got the cash.’ He listened for a few seconds and then nodded. ‘They’ve got family in Milton Keynes. Her uncle and her aunt. He wants her to stay with them until he gets over. Says he’ll get the money from the bank and come on the next run.’
    Coatsworth nodded. ‘Finally he sees sense.’ A small group of men and women were still inside the van, watching what was going on. Coatsworth pointed at them. ‘Get the hell out now and bring your bags with you.’
    The Iraqi man finished talking to his wife and came over to Coatsworth.
    ‘My wife, she is very upset,’ he said. ‘You have to understand, her brother and her cousin were killed this year. Her brother worked for the Ministry of the Interior and the Taliban weren’t happy about what he was doing with border controls. Her cousin was a teacher and she was killed because she taught a lesson about female political leaders. The Taliban shot her in the face. We had to leave, you understand?’
    ‘I hear sob stories like yours all the time, mate,’ said Coatsworth. ‘I’m not a charity, I’m a business. You pay, you go, you don’t, you stay. When you’ve got the extra five thousand euros I’ll take you.’ He gestured at the road. ‘Now on your bike.’
    ‘My bike?’ The Iraqi frowned. ‘My bike? I have no bike.’
    ‘Get lost,’ said Coatsworth.
    ‘But how do I get back to Calais?’
    ‘That’s not my problem,’ said Coatsworth.
    ‘You have to help me,’ pleaded the Iraqi.
    Coatsworth