The Lost Boy and The Gardener's Daughter Read Online Free Page A

set it alight oan the instructions ae Mad Mick Murphy, the nasty, evil, drunken basturt who hated Skull wae a vengeance fur gieing him a bit ae lip o’er Mick’s inferior knowledge ae fleeing the doos.  As soon as Tiny hid blurted oot his confession, there hid been nae chance ae them helping him oot ae that tank and they’d left the wee shitehoose tae fend fur himsel.  Their attitude hid been that the wee gnaff hid goat himsel intae the situation, so it wis up tae him tae get himsel oot ae it.  The Mankys hid known fine well that he wis a deid man.  Tiny’s bloated, droont body hid been found aboot a week later.  Oan the Mick Murphy front, the basturt who’d gied Horsey John and Tiny their orders, The Mankys hid decided tae buy a gun fae Erchie The Basturt, wan ae Glesga’s biggest gun dealers, wae the dosh they’d got fae selling some Chevalier Casino betting chips that they’d picked up daeing a wee job for The Big Man.  Oan the night ae Tiny’s funeral, they’d followed Mick, who wis pished as a fart, hame fae the wake that wis held in The McAslin Bar, a pub belonging tae The Big Man.  When they’d confronted Mick in his living room, insteid ae pleading fur his life, the mad basturt hid started tae hiv a go back at them.  Paul wis the wan that wis supposed tae hiv done the business, bit despite encouragement fae Tony Gucci, he jist couldnae pull the trigger.  Luckily fur Paul, Joe, Tony and Johnboy, and unluckily fur Mick, Mick hid poured the contents ae a bottle ae whisky o’er himsel at the same time as flicking his Zippo lighter, challenging the boys tae come and get him.  The daft basturt hid tripped o’er his wee coffee table at the same time as his Zippo hid ignited and he’d gone up in a blue light.  Paul couldnae remember too much ae whit hid happened next, other than seeing Mick go up in a blue flame, screaming the place doon, while bouncing aff the walls and setting the curtains and everything else he came intae contact wae alight.  The rest ae The Mankys hid fucked aff as soon as Mick hid turned intae a human torch.  Paul couldnae remember how long he’d stood there, frozen tae the spot, petrified by whit he wis seeing in front ae his eyes.  He could vaguely remember Johnboy Taylor arriving back oan the scene efter everywan hid disappeared, shouting at him and dragging him oot ae the living room, which wis by then full ae orange flames and thick black smoke.  Although the lights hid been oan, the place hid been in semi-darkness because ae the amount ae smoke billowing aff ae Mick’s black plastic covered couch.  The record player hid still been blasting oot music, although he couldnae remember whit the song wis that hid been oan the turntable.  Efter they’d ditched aw their clothes and the gun, the bizzies hid stormed the den where they’d been hiding up while they wur oan the run.  Paul, Tony and Joe hid managed tae get away, bit Johnboy hid goat nabbed by the two local polis sergeants fae the area, The Stalker and Bumper, who’d carted him aff back tae the jail and Thistle Park, the approved school that he’d originally escaped fae.  The rest ae them hid only lasted another week before they’d goat nabbed in a derelict tenement in Barony Street where Skull used tae live.  Paul didnae know whit hid become ae Tony and Joe.  He assumed that they’d been sent back tae Thistle Park tae join Johnboy.  As he wis oan the run fae St Ninian’s in Gartmore, near Stirling, he’d been sent back there.  Within aboot five minutes ae arriving back, he’d been stripped naked and whipped wae an electrical cable and hid the life kicked oot ae him by hauf a dozen big priests who ran the place.  Alang wae being deprived ae food and water, the beatings hid been repeated aboot four times a day o’er a period ae a week, before he’d been allowed back intae circulation.  Paul hidnae been too bothered aboot the lashings, as that wis tae be expected efter being oan the run.  At least