Blade 4: Running Scared

Tim Bowler talks about Blade

‘This gobbo’s trouble. Big trouble too, dangerous. You don’t risk your neck like he did for nothing. He gritted it big time to get me away. So what does he want?
Whatever it is, Bigeyes, it’ll be messy.’


Blade is frightened. He's been badly injured and he's escaped from one set of enemies only to be captured by another. But who are these new people and what do they want? Is it to kill him? Or do they have other plans?

Thoughts of Jaz keep haunting him and he's plagued by guilt from the past. Mary has told him to give himself up. But it's too late for that now. He's surrounded by big, new dangers, his strength is failing, and he's Running Scared...


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The night, the motorbike, the twisting lane. The beam from the headlights stabbing the dark. It might as well be stabbing me. Cos I'm dead all over again. I know it. I'm hurtling through blackness, perched on the back seat.

And I'm dead all over again.

I don't even know the rider. I heard his voice, caught his eyes under the helmet. That's all. But I know enough. I jumped on like he told me to. Right thing to do cos it got us past the grinks. But it's only putting death off for a bit.

Cos this guy's a grink too.

Trust me. I got too many enemies. And no friends. So work it out for yourself. This gobbo's trouble. Big trouble too, dangerous. You don't risk your neck like he did for nothing. He gritted it big time to get me away. So what does he want?

Whatever it is, Bigeyes, it'll be messy.

I'm guessing a contract job. I told you before there's different types of grinks. There's the ones who want me for stuff I know. Once they've tortured that out of me, they'll stiff me. And there's the ones who want me for stuff I've done. I'm hoping they'll just stiff me quick and sweet.

But I don't suppose I'll be that lucky.

I'm guessing this gobbo's one of the second kind. Sent by some spike from the past who's got a grudge against me. There's enough of 'em. I turned over too many slugs to have a quiet life. Maybe I turned over one of his crew. So he sent this gobbo to get me.

And now it's payback.

Going to be bad, Bigeyes, whatever happens. And I'm weak as piss now. Wound in my head's slamming me, body's blasted after all the chasing, and my mind's stuffed after seeing Jaz and talking to Mary. What's left to fight another grink?

Not much. Maybe not anything.

But I still got some kind of a chance. That's why I jumped on the bike. This way there's just two of us. For the moment anyway. Won't be for long but right now it's him against me. Better odds than before. So I'm clinging on and hoping. He's got to stop some time.

And that's when I'll know what to do.

Fight or run.

Or both.

We're still moving fast. This is some machine, I'm telling you, and the gobbo's some rider. I'll give him that. I'm checking him best I can. Big guy, solid. More beef than your average dronk. Glance behind me.

Thought so.

Headlights coming after us. Only they're not motorbikes. They're cars. And there'll be more coming the other way in a minute. The grinks back there'll have mobiled their mates. Second wave, case I got through the first.

Like I just did.

So this motorbike gobbo's in trouble too, whatever he wants from me. And he'll have to do something soon cos the motorway's just ahead, and there'll be a reception committee. Only wait a second….

He's switched off the lights and we're slowing down. We're still moving but there's darkness all around now. I don't like this. Can't see a thing hardly. Glance back.

Headlights getting bigger. They're racing after us but they're still some way off. Lights ahead of us too now, coming from the direction of the motorway. But we're still running through darkness.

Only now we're turning off the lane. We've slipped through an open gate – I can just make it out – and we're bumping down a track with a field to the left and a fence to the right. Peer at the rider.

He hasn't looked round once, hasn't checked to see what I'm doing or who's following. He's bent forward like he's been from the start, his helmet gleaming. But that's all the light that's coming from us now.

The bike's as dark as the night.

We're still bumping along the track, and now there's another gate in front, open too, and we're through that, and we're on another track, heading towards some trees. Maybe that's it, Bigeyes. Maybe that's where his mates'll be waiting.

Where it all ends.

A club, knife, bullet. Cute little grave. No one'll find me if they do it right. Look behind me again. Lights flashing down the lane, both directions. None of 'em coming our way.

But they will. They'll know we haven't got as far as the motorway. They'll regroup and come looking. They'll search every gate and every field. Yeah, Bigeyes, they want me that bad. But I got other problems now.

Check round. Still too risky to jump off the bike. We're going slower but not so slow I won't hurt myself if I try and bunk it. Got to wait a bit longer. Track's come to an end but he's driving on. We're in among the trees, bouncing along, lights still off.

Then suddenly he pulls up.

We're in a little clearing. Nobody else around, nobody I can see anyway. I scramble off the bike, scuttle back a few steps. Guy glances round, climbs off, clicks the bike onto its stand. Stares at me through the slit in his helmet. Then he moves.

I edge back further, but not too far. Got to watch this gobbo every second. If he's working on his own, that's better for me but it's still bad. He's big and strong and I won't get away by running. Even if I wasn't weak, I couldn't outpace him.

Got to wait, watch, see what he wants.

He's stopped by the back of the bike but he's still looking this way. I'm watching him cute. There's something about this guy. I've only just noticed. Something in his manner. I've seen him before somewhere.

But I can't work out where.

We're both still now, both staring hard. Behind him, where the lane cuts towards the motorway, I catch the flash of headlights. I can't see the cars. They're hidden below the rise of the land. But I can see the beams. And this gobbo must know they're there too. But he's not looking at them. He's keeping his eyes on me.

I call over.

'You're either brave or stupid.'

He doesn't answer, just goes on staring at me. I peer through the darkness at the slit in his helmet. Can't make out his eyes from here but I got a sense of 'em. Maybe if I could see 'em better, I could work out where I've met him. But that means trigging closer and I'm not that big a dimp.

I nod towards the lane.

'They're going to want you now. Not just me.'

Again he doesn't answer. Just reaches out, opens the panier at the back of the bike and pulls out another helmet. Then, without warning, he flings it over. I don't try and catch it. Just let it land close to my feet, then bend down and pick it up. He closes the panier, steps in front of the bike, faces me across the clearing.

'What do you want?' I say.

He nods to the helmet in my hands.

'Put it on. You need to look legal.'

And then I get it. The voice. It wasn't enough before, when he told me to get on the bike. It was gruff and hurried and there wasn't time to think. But now it's different. Just those few words, but I can hear the drawl. And I know who it is.

He doesn't need to do any more. But he does anyway. He pulls off his helmet and let's me see his face.

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