Today I am pleased to be able to
participate in the blog tour for Dangerous Score by Michael Bearcroft. My thanks go to Rachel's Random Resources.
Football hero Jason Clooney is
riding high....until a date with a beautiful woman lands him in trouble with
the media, and into battle with the criminal underworld.
Now against a backdrop of an
uncertain professional future, Jason has to confront disturbing revelations
surrounding his new girlfriend’s family. From football action on the pitch to
behind the scenes plotting. To battles with a criminal gang and constant media
attention, all adding to the toughest challenges he has ever faced in life,
love, as a player and as a man.
EXTRACT
Now
that the prodigal son had returned home he got his mother’s equivalent of the
fattened calf, which meant they sat down to Jason’s favourite meal. Melon
followed by mum’s own special homemade turkey and vegetable pie, with mashed
potatoes and sweetcorn all to be finished before bananas, raspberries and
home-made ice cream. You certainly wouldn’t have wanted to play football after
eating that lot!
Afterwards
they all helped clear up, then mugs of coffee in hand it was back to the
conservatory. Clooney tried to keep them talking about what they would do in
Canada, but Sue was having none of it, always bringing the conversation back to
him, trying to fathom out just what was going on in his life.
His
dad had printed off loads of stuff he had found out about Thresham on the
computer. Sue thought Jess looked a real stunner in her photos, and worried for
the well-being of this young woman she had never even met. They watched some TV
in the lounge, then after Mrs Clooney retired Jason and his dad opened the
brandy he had bought, while John pressured him with more of what he had
discovered online. Once Clooney senior was sure his wife was out of earshot, he
spoke quietly, seriously.
‘I’ve
found out a lot about this Thresham,’ he said. ‘Old friends in the police
force, revenue and business people have all convinced me, how dangerous he is.’
Martin
Thresham was the youngest of seven kids, brought up, or should that be dragged
up in a council house in Raunds, Northamptonshire. Martin was nearly expelled
at eight when he hit a fellow pupil with a house brick. Age twelve he was
convicted of shoplifting and demanding money with menace from two
eight-year-old girls. He was taken into care, but three years later he was
banged up in a young offenders’ institute. He had taken part, in fact the
police believed he was the ringleader, in a vicious attack on a courting
couple. The man had been beaten so badly he was hospitalised for weeks and the
woman had been subjected to an appalling sexual attack. Upon his release, now
too old for school, not that any would have had him, he started work on a
building site as a labourer. Six months later having stolen tools and materials
from the site, he was back inside. He never learnt the error of his ways, and a
short time after his release he was involved in a fight in a brothel in
Bedford. He punched a prostitute, the owner and the two policemen who arrested
him. His next sojourn at Her Majesty’s pleasure was the last to date. He had a
twin brother, Karl, who worshipped him, God knows why, who also did time for
various offences. Sadly, of the seven siblings only one worked at a normal job,
a school teacher, and she had nothing to do with the others.
Thresham
moved abroad upon his release, where and to do what, no one knows. But he
returned with enough cash to buy a small, struggling, caravan manufacturing
firm, Nene Valley Caravans. He had some talent, because he turned the company
around and opened sites in France and Spain. Then over the years a casino in
Northampton, a club in Corby had followed, and even a hotel in Florida, as well
as other illegal businesses like brothels that he was suspected to
control.
By
the age of forty he was reputed to be a multimillionaire. Though Mr Clooney’s
contacts had hinted some of his wealth was a result of tax evasion, people
trafficking, drugs and prostitution, rather than legitimate business. He really
was a man to be very wary of.
John
Clooney had also discovered things about Jess and Amanda’s real father, Colin
Granger. He had been the manager of Shipsmore Removals, a transport company
owned by Thresham. Colin and his family lived in the village of Woodford, just
a few miles from work. Every day after finishing work he used to drop into his
local, drink two halves of beer, never more, before walking the couple of
hundred yards back to work, collecting his car and driving home. Only one night
he never made it. He was knocked down by a hit and run driver. At the inquest
it was reported that he had seemed stressed that last night in the pub and was
definitely not his usual self. No one was ever found or charged, and the
coroner’s verdict was manslaughter by a person or persons unknown. To this day
the driver had never been found.
Thresham,
Granger’s boss, had supported the family financially; he paid for the funeral,
paid off their mortgage and supplied Mrs Granger with a decent pension. He paid
for the girls’ holidays, even bought Paula Granger her first car – she was too
upset to drive her late husband’s. He was so kind and considerate to the
family, it was really no surprise when some years later he and Paula married.
The girls’ names were changed to his, the big house in Loddington was built and
Mrs Thresham, née Granger, apparently thought he was a saint, even though most
people thought he was the devil.
Jason
couldn’t help being surprised at all his father had found out. He knew his
parents loved him, but to go to these lengths, just proved how much. The quiet
way his dad had told him, the research he must have done, told Jason how
worried they must be, but to put all that effort in, it just reminded him, do
kids ever really know their folks and just how much they care?
There
was little to be said after that, except he again promised to look after
himself, and he thanked his old man for all he had found out. There was a last
surprise though, when his dad said Blister had phoned them.
‘He
guessed we would be worried when we saw your injuries, he just wanted to let us
know he was keeping an eye out for you and we weren’t to worry.’
Jason
was stunned by the thoughtfulness of the man he now regarded as a dear friend,
then pleased, because he knew it would have the desired effect of making his
folks worry less. He was even more humbled by the old soldier now.
They
said their goodnights and retired to bed.
Interested
in the book well pop across to
Amazon http://amzn.to/2BAaf6j
or enter the Giveaway – Win 3 x Signed Copies of Dangerous
Score by Michael Bearcroft (Open Internationally)
About
Michael Bearcroft
Ex Sheffield United
Junior, former Chairman Corby Town FC, Actor and stage director, former British
Red Cross Regional Director.
Follow the rest of the blog tour to see what my fellow bloggers views are
about the book.
