The widows, p.18
The Widows, page 18
Now, the woman she despised most in the whole world was coming to see her in jail. Bella had been sober for four years and a lot had happened. She had moved her life on, because Carole had always refused to let her see her son. She told herself that he was used to a life without his mother. Was she coming here to see her and gloat?
Bella tried to take deep breaths and stay calm as she sat at a table in the visiting area, along with a few other women who were also waiting for visitors. She’d managed to get through the lunch service in the canteen and focus on her work, full of dread and confusion as to why Carole was coming. She was bracing herself. Because Carole Prentice was a tough bastard who pushed all her buttons and she had to be able to handle it at all costs. The sliding door opened at the top of the hall and a prison guard came in, followed by a few visitors. Bella kept her eyes fixed on each one of them as they filed in. Then at the back, there she was. The tall, slim figure of Carole Prentice strode in and stopped for a moment as she glanced around at the pale green walls and wooden tables with plastic chairs, her face twisted in a look of disgust that Bella had seen on her so often. Then her eyes rested on Bella and she stopped in her tracks, sniffed for a moment, then walked confidently towards her. Bella looked up as she stood over her, dressed in a cream woollen sweater and a camel-coloured cashmere coat, her shoulder-length hair coiffed and styled to perfection. But no matter what she did and how well she applied her make-up, the badness was still oozing out of her.
‘Well, well . . .’ She looked at Bella, her lips curling into a snarl. ‘Who’d have thought you’d end up in a shithole like this.’
Bella swallowed but didn’t answer.
‘Even I was bloody surprised, Bella,’ Carole said, almost chuckling. ‘You’ve excelled yourself on how fast you can sink to the gutter.’
She pulled back a chair and smoothed down her coat as she sat down.
‘Hello, Carole,’ Bella said, her throat tight. ‘How’s my son?’
Carole glared at her, then examined the back of her hand, with her manicured pink nails and the diamond ring that glittered under the harsh ceiling lights.
‘My grandson is thriving. No thanks to you.’
‘He’s still my son. You can never take that away from me, Carole.’
Carole met her eyes and held her gaze.
‘Yes. The son who went hungry while you were pissed most days. The son you didn’t give a shit about when you were knocking back vodka first thing in the fucking morning. That son?’
Bella felt her insides shaking. She looked down at the table then back at her. ‘You stole him, Carole. You stole him from me. But he’ll always be mine,’ she managed to say.
‘Stole him? I saved the boy’s life, I did. If he’d been left to you, Christ knows how he would have turned out. He might have ended up like you, dealing drugs and banged up in jail before he was a teenager. I saved him.’ She paused. ‘How long are you going to be in here for, eh? I must say, I knew you were a lowlife, but I didn’t expect you to be dealing drugs. You’re a fucking idiot, you are.’
‘I didn’t do anything. Nothing. We were set up.’
Her mother-in-law puffed out a half-laugh.
‘Yeah. They all say that.’
‘It’s true, Carole. On my Matthew’s life, it’s true.’
Carole stared her down, then glanced at her watch. Then she put her hand into the pocket of her coat and pulled out an envelope.
‘Well,’ she said. ‘I’m not here to listen to your lies.’ She put the paper down on the table and Bella could see it was some kind of lawyer’s letter. ‘I’m here for you to sign this.’ Carole picked it up, but put it down so quickly Bella couldn’t see what it said apart from the headed lawyer’s notepaper.
‘What is it?’
‘I’m going to officially adopt Matthew.’
The words hit Bella like a blow to the head. They echoed and rang in her ears and she felt suddenly dizzy. She thought her heart was going to explode. She tried to take a breath but it wouldn’t come. Carole looked on, her face like flint.
‘Over my fucking dead body you’ll adopt my son,’ Bella spat. ‘You can’t do that. You can’t do it unless I agree. And I’ll never agree.’
‘Look, Bella,’ Carole said, her voice suddenly sounding reasonable. ‘You know it’s for the best. For Matthew. He’s well settled now, and he loves his school and his mates. He’s got a big future ahead of him. He’s a bright boy. I mean, look at you, languishing in jail for God knows how long. If you love him, you’ll let him go.’
Bella felt her face reddening. ‘Never,’ she croaked. ‘I’ll never let him go.’ She bit back tears. ‘Carole’ – the name choked her – ‘Matthew is my son. I love him. I’ve never stopped loving him. I’ve been sober for years, my life was going well, and all that was missing was him, because you managed to convince the courts that he’s better off with you. When I was in Spain, he could have been with me going to school and having a good life.’
‘What, with that Billy Dalton as a dad? That fucker! My son would be spinning in his grave at the thought of his son living with that thug.’
‘Your son?’ Bella tried to stop from shouting. ‘Your precious son was a cruel bastard long before he died. He didn’t give a shit about Matthew.’
‘Fuck off, Bella! My Johnny was a good boy – a bit misguided and hot-headed, granted. But he was my son, and I lost him. He was murdered by bastards like Billy Dalton, the man you took up with. You think for a minute I would let my grandson into that snake pit?’
‘He’s living with you, and his grandfather,’ Bella said, indignant. ‘But your Dave is as big a gangster as any of them.’
‘We happen to be retired and comfortable. And we have a perfect place to bring up our grandson on the Epsom Downs. Unlike you, sitting here rotting in prison.’
‘We’re innocent. And we won’t be in here for long.’
‘Sign the form.’ Carole pushed it across to her. ‘Be a real mother and do what’s best for your son.’
Bella picked up the letter and tried to read through it, the words hitting her like a gut punch, words like ‘agree to adopt’ and a space for her signature at the bottom of the page. Then she held it up and tore it into several little pieces. Carole’s neck flushed with rage.
‘You little fucking bitch.’
Bella stood up, looking down on Carole, whose face was fizzing.
‘You will never keep my son.’
‘You’re wrong about that. You’ll never see him again.’
Bella glanced over at the guard who had been watching the scene unfold. She nodded to her that the visit was over.
‘Get out!’ Bella said.
Carole stood up and squared her shoulders.
‘Matthew is my grandson. He doesn’t even ask for you. He’s nearly ten years old now. The poor boy has thankfully forgotten all about you.’
Then, before Bella could answer, Carole turned on her heels and left. Bella felt her legs shaking and slumped back into the chair, her head in her hands, and sobbed like she hadn’t done for years.
Cissy was waiting for her in the community area and got to her feet when she came in. Bella knew Cissy could see she’d been crying.
‘You all right, Bella? That bad?’
Bella nodded, sniffing.
‘She wanted me to sign adoption papers for Matthew.’
‘Fucking witch.’
‘I ripped them up in front of the cow.’
‘Good for you.’
Bella composed herself. ‘Cissy,’ she said, ‘I think we should get the lawyer in and agree to a plea. I can’t risk getting seven or eight years in here.’
Cissy put her arms around her and hugged her close.
‘Yeah. Let’s do it.’
CHAPTER THIRTY
Three years later Glasgow
It hadn’t taken long for Ruby to get back into her old ways. But this time it felt different. This time it was all about revenge, and making sure that when Bella and Cissy got out of jail, they would see that she’d never abandoned them. They would understand that what she’d done was all for them and their future together.
She was working with Leo now, who, despite living in Spain, seemed to have contacts everywhere. He was able to find out everything about Tommy Mallon’s organisation, stuff that she’d never been aware of, even though she’d been Tommy’s woman for so many years. She’d always known that although she lived a lavish life with Tommy, none of it was hers, and it was him who called all the shots. She’d been bitter about this for a long time, but now that she’d had so much time to look back, she burned with rage. Nobody would ever treat her like that again. She would be her own woman from now on. She got it, that Tommy would be shattered at losing his lifelong friend in Terence, but what the vicious bastard had done to Cissy meant he’d had to go.
For two hours Ruby and Leo had been sitting in the car a couple of hundred yards from the house where they were told the men would be leaving with the money. They’d been watching and waiting for the lights to go out, and the car in the driveway to reverse out onto the street. It had been weeks in the planning, and Leo had had to grease the palms of a few associates who’d been wronged by Tommy and Terence over the years to find out the layout of the place. At first, they’d been afraid to speak and told Leo they were signing their own death warrants by even talking to him. But banished as they were from being major players, they couldn’t resist the allure of the money Leo was offering. The only worry for Leo was that they’d take the money and then inform Tommy of the plot. But they knew Leo well enough to understand that he’d hunt them down if they did that.
Ruby was a little nervous. She’d been working with Leo over the past three years, and they’d done jobs to order, even a couple of hits – one in Jersey and one in London – to bring in steady money that she could squirrel away. She’d been as cool as ever when doing the task, and this hadn’t surprised her, because the men she’d been sent to get rid of were wastes of space the world would be better off without. One of them was a coke dealer who’d risen through the ranks and had his own turf, but was now bringing in underage girls from Thailand, filling them with drugs, and disposing of the ones who didn’t make the cut. He deserved all he got. Another was a low-rent thug who had shot dead a hardworking, respected family man who ran newsagents in the East End of London. He’d shot him in cold blood during a robbery and was jailed for twelve years. But months later his conviction was quashed because of some uncovered technicality with the trial evidence. As the thug walked free from court, punching the air with defiance, he was gunned down on the steps of the court. He didn’t know the newsagent had friends in all sorts of places, and Ruby was glad to have carried out the ordered hit.
Tonight was different. Tonight was about hitting Tommy where it hurt.
Ruby had known Tommy only dealt with a handful of major dealers – big shots who had worked their way up in the gangs they were part of in Glasgow, Manchester, London and Dublin. He supplied to them and they got the money to him in various ways for payment. It was these guys he trusted enough to organise the payment for him, where it would be kept until he was ready to launder it by using the hard cash for property deals in Dubai or Spain, or if he needed a huge lump sum. He had stashes of cash in various places from Dublin to Manchester and Glasgow, and this was what tonight was about. Leo had found out where in Glasgow Tommy’s team on the ground kept his bulk cash. And tonight they were moving it to the broker to be sent to the dealer somewhere in Amsterdam, who would supply Tommy’s mob with their next big haul of cocaine.
‘How will we know they’ve actually got a load of cash in the car?’ Ruby asked.
‘Well,’ Leo said, ‘there’s only one reason to go where they’re going. And it’s not for a Turkish kebab.’ He paused. ‘We’ll find out in a few minutes if my information is correct. You ready to roll?’
‘I’m ready.’
Ruby was driving and kept a discreet distance from the Range Rover in front of them. Leo had watched through binoculars earlier as three men left the house – one of them carrying a large holdall – and climbed into the car. They followed them away from the south side of the city and on to Charing Cross, then into one of the side streets. The Range Rover then pulled up to the kerb, close to a Turkish takeaway.
‘Game on.’ Leo took out his revolver and fixed the silencer to it.
Ruby pulled her ski mask down, cocked her gun and pulled on a pair of thin black gloves, then she crept out of the car and hid behind the back wheel. She was dressed fully in black and melted into the dimly lit street. Leo had already gone out and had crossed the road, and was waiting in a doorway. Ruby heard the voice in her earpiece.
‘They’re getting ready to get out of the car,’ Leo said.
‘Okay. I’m watching,’ Ruby replied.
In the dark, Ruby couldn’t see inside the car, but the rear door opened slightly, and a big, bald guy came out and stood by the car, glancing around. The street was quiet. Ruby crept from the back of the car she’d been driving, and she could see Leo across the street moving softly, crouching behind other cars to stay hidden. Then two more men got out of the Range Rover, one carrying the bulky holdall. As they did that, Ruby was a few feet away from the minder with his back to her.
‘Nobody move,’ she said, ‘and nobody gets killed.’
There were stunned expressions from the men, as Leo appeared like a ghost from behind a car with his gun pointed at them. The big minder moved to go into his jacket and Leo fired at his feet, the silencer on the handgun making a thunking noise as it hit the ground. All three of them knew they couldn’t run. Leo went across to them and put his hand out for the bag.
To Ruby’s surprise, the guy handed it over meekly. Leo unzipped it and looked inside.
One of the guys spoke.
‘You might as well just fucking shoot us. We’re dead men now. Do you know whose money this is?’
Leo looked at him. ‘Yep. Whose money it was, you mean. It’s ours now.’ He paused. ‘Give me your car keys.’
The guy handed them over. Leo stuffed them into his pocket.
‘Now your phones.’
They handed them over too. One of them spat on the ground.
‘You’ll never get away with this,’ he said, glaring.
Leo shrugged. ‘No, I suspect we won’t. But go and get yourselves a kebab, lads. Get something to eat before you see your boss, because it might be your last supper.’
Ruby walked away, mask still on, and climbed into the car. Leo got into the driver’s seat and they raced off, the tyres screeching on the road. They drove all the way out of the city towards the suburb of Bearsden, then took the slow route back. Once they’d travelled far enough away, Ruby opened the holdall. Her eyes widened as she found bundles of one-hundred-pound notes, wrapped in elastic bands and with cellophane around each large bundle.
‘Christ, there’s a fortune in here.’
‘How much do you think?’
‘Easily a hundred grand. I’d love to be a fly on the wall when Tommy gets the call about this.’ She zipped it back up and sank into her seat as she looked out of the windscreen. ‘That’ll break his fucking heart,’ she said.
‘And it’s only the beginning,’ Leo said.
They drove towards the West End of Glasgow, and Ruby allowed herself a moment to think of tomorrow. Because tomorrow she was driving south, as it was the day Bella and Cissy were getting out of jail after serving almost three years.
Tommy was listening, but he couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing.
‘Hijacked? Are you having a fucking laugh?!’
There was a two-beat silence before Billy replied.
‘No, Tommy. I wish to fuck I was. But this is the word I’ve got from big Finbar, up in Glasgow.’
Tommy knew Billy was trying his best to keep calm, and he also knew his gut would be telling him to get to Glasgow and just start shooting everyone. That was how Billy did business.
‘When did he phone you?’ Tommy asked.
‘This morning, first thing. It happened last night.’
‘Tell me everything,’ Tommy said, pacing the terrace of his villa, pushing the phone hard to his ear.
‘Well, Finbar said three of his boys got out of the car, ready to go into the Turkish kebab place with the holdall. All the money was there – same as always. Then from nowhere some cunt had a gun on them from behind and told them not to move. Then another one was on them in a flash. Made them hand it over.’
‘Fuck me!’ Tommy said. ‘So they just buckled and handed the money over? Were there no bodies around looking out for them?’
‘Don’t know,’ he said. ‘Mustn’t have been. But Finbar said this drop was routine, no different from any others.’
‘Except we’re a hundred fucking grand down, Billy. We need to find out who the fuck did this. I need to talk to Finbar. Get him to call me.’
‘Maybe someone on the inside of Finbar’s mob got big in the mouth,’ Billy said.
‘Maybe,’ Tommy said. ‘But I want to find out. We need to squeeze every bastard along the line who might have talked.’
He hung up and stood gazing out across the horizon where the sun was already beginning to warm the morning air. Nobody just randomly comes upon a couple of lads dropping money off to a contact. That money was Tommy’s share of the four-hundred-grand payment for a shipment of coke that had already been arranged. Three others put up the same amount. So the pot was a hundred grand light and it was down to him. Nobody in London, Manchester or Amsterdam would want to hear a hard luck story about getting robbed. That just didn’t happen. The fact that he’d dropped this money was bad enough – as he would have to move fast to make it up or the shipment wouldn’t arrive on time as planned and agreed by everyone. But how could it have happened? Somebody was watching their every move, and he had to find out who.
