Backstabber, p.24
Backstabber, page 24
Michael sighed. He was too old for dirty deeds such as this, and no matter what she might have done, he could not kill a woman. It wasn’t in his nature. ‘Can’t Eddie help you?’
‘Eddie’s gone all saintly on me, so I’m gonna ask the Kelly brothers for help. The sooner she’s out the fucking equation, the better.’
‘What has Eddie said?’
‘That I should just end things with her, and send her on her merry way.’
‘The Old Bill are bound to start sniffing around, Vin. People must know you’re a couple,’ Michael warned.
‘So what! I’ll just say we split up and she left. I’ve never met her family or any of her friends. The Old Bill’ll have a job on their hands to prove otherwise, won’t they? The slag’ll be nothing more than a pile of ashes by the time I’ve finished with her.’
Michael winced. Vinny had always had the capability of turning his feelings off, like he was turning off a tap. He was a cold, brutal bastard at times, he really was.
Little Vinny tossed and turned, his soul tortured by the visions in his head. She was smiling at him again.
‘Where we going, Vinny?’ she asked, so trusting. Pink tracksuit and white trainers she was wearing. She had a cute voice, everybody said so.
Vinny grinned back at her. ‘On an adventure.’
‘Is Daddy coming too?’ she giggled excitedly.
‘No. Daddy’s busy mopping up the flood in the cellar,’ Little Vinny replied.
‘Molly, Molly,’ Little Vinny mumbled in his sleep. He turned over, then found himself at the police station being interviewed by that bastard, DS Terry.
‘I know you killed your sister, so why don’t you just be a man and admit it? Ben Bloggs helped you, didn’t he? That’s why Ben killed himself.’
‘I didn’t do it. I loved Molly,’ Little Vinny muttered. Then he saw her. He knew he’d seen her somewhere before. Felicity Carter-Price was at the police station. She was in uniform talking to Terry.
Sweat pouring off him, Little Vinny woke and sat bolt upright. He swung his legs over the edge of the bed, put his head in his hands and cried. ‘I’m so fucking sorry, Molly, but you got to stop torturing me like this. Don’t visit me when I’m sleeping any more. You’re driving me insane.’
Joey Mitchell was determined to get to the bottom of what was going on. He knew his twin better than anybody and, from the stilted phone conversations they’d had recently, knew something was amiss. That’s why he’d insisted on taking her out for lunch today.
‘How’s it going at The Casino, Joey? Dad been driving you up the wall, has he?’
‘I’ve been working from home quite a lot. I’ve set up a website to advertise the business. Considering it’s January and everybody should be skint, The Casino’s been relatively busy. Not so much the Piano Bar, but I’ve come up with some ideas for that and we’ll give them a whirl in spring. So how’s things your end? Is Little Vinny on the mend?’
‘Yeah, sort of. Everything’s good.’
Topping his sister’s glass up, Joey said, ‘OK, now tell me the truth.’ He was close to his father, clashed far less with him these days than Frankie did, but if he ever had a problem he would rather discuss it with his sister, and vice versa. They’d been the same growing up, would always confide in one another. It was what twins did.
Tears immediately sprung to Frankie’s eyes. ‘I do think the world of him, Joey, but he isn’t the same man as before he was attacked. I’m just praying he will get better soon. He keeps talking about moving miles away, and I don’t want to move again. Do you think I should consider it, for his sake?’
‘No, I bloody well don’t. Are you sleeping with him?’
‘Not really. We’ve had sex a couple of times. It happened when we were drunk and the kids were in bed. I couldn’t stop thinking about Stuart though. It didn’t feel right and I felt guilty the next day. Whereas Little Vinny seems to have forgotten all about Sammi-Lou since he was attacked. He tells me he loves me at least ten times a day now.’
Joey raised his eyebrows. This sounded like a case of too much too soon, like Jed O’Hara all over again. ‘What do you mean, he isn’t the same man? I know he got badly beaten up but, aside from that, what else has changed?’
‘Everything. He was so bubbly before he was attacked, but all I see now is this forgetful, forlorn image of his former self. I think he might have taken a bad blow to the head, but he refuses to go for a scan. And he used to take such pride in himself, but now it’s an effort to get him to take a shower. He never dresses up any more; it’s as though he’s given up on himself. He manages to act normally in front of the kids or any visitors, but I see a different side to him when we’re alone. He keeps having nightmares about his little sister’s death. I heard him shouting Molly’s name the other night and had to calm him down. He was drenched in sweat and thrashing his arms about, didn’t know where he was.’
‘Has his dad not been helping you out?’
‘Big Vinny’s popping round today, but we haven’t seen that much of him, to be honest. He’s been ill himself, hasn’t he? Finn’s always asking if he can help. But for some strange reason, Little Vinny doesn’t want him round the house. I think he’s embarrassed because his head was shaved and he’s lost a tooth, I know how much pride he used to take in his appearance. But oh, Joey, he’s wet the bed a few times in the night too, and once while he was sat on the sofa.’
Joey held his sister’s hands. ‘I don’t want to sound unfeeling, Frankie, but you have to put this relationship on hold, at least until he gets better. Little Vinny isn’t your problem. Dad would go mad if he knew all this. Have you spoken to him about what’s been going on?’
‘No. And I don’t intend to. What I have told you is between the two of us. You’re not going to say anything, are you? If I can’t trust you, who can I trust?’
‘I would never betray you, Frankie, but you’re making a rod for your own back, yet again. You have your own house that Dad is paying good money for. You’re not a bloody nurse; neither do you owe Little Vinny anything. You’re grieving and, even though you’ve been through a lot together, you’ve only known him five minutes. I can’t force you to do anything, but my advice would be to run for the fucking hills – seriously.’
‘How you doing?’ Vinny Butler asked, giving his son an awkward hug. Little Vinny had never been a touchy-feely lad. Not even as a small child.
‘Not bad. Getting there slowly but surely.’ Little Vinny told his family very little about how he was really feeling as he didn’t want them visiting. It was an effort for him to try to act normal let alone jovial, when he knew one day soon those bastards who’d terrorized him would be back.
‘Where’s Frankie and the kids?’
‘Frankie’s having lunch with Joey. Brett’s at Eddie’s gaff, and the other four are in Romford. They hang around down there a lot since that new shopping centre’s opened – the Brewery.’
‘Frankie being a good nursemaid, is she?’
‘Yeah. We’re a proper couple now. Can’t live in the past, can you? Getting a good hiding made me realize some important things. Life’s too short and Sammi-Lou and Oliver are gone for good.’
Vinny Butler was surprised, to say the least. He knew his son and Frankie were close, but last time he’d hinted at them being more than friends, Little Vinny had been furious and insisted it would be years before he could consider moving on from Sammi-Lou. ‘So when you say a proper couple, you mean—’
Interrupting his father, Little Vinny blurted out, ‘We’re shagging. I take it that’s what you were gonna ask?’
Under normal circumstances, Vinny would have been overjoyed that his son and Eddie Mitchell’s daughter were an item. But if anything, he was a bit startled. His son’s hair had begun to grow back, but there was a vacant expression in his eyes and an oddness about the lad’s choice of words. Unlike himself, his son respected women and had never bragged about shagging any bird in the past.
‘What you looking at me like that for? I thought you’d be pleased me and Frankie have got it on.’
‘’Course I’m pleased. Frankie’s a lovely girl. Listen, tomorrow I’m gonna pick you up about half nine. We’ll go and get your scans done, then I’ll take you to the dentist to sort those gnashers out. Gotta look your best for your new woman, eh?’
Little Vinny put his hands on top of his head, then shook it vehemently. ‘I don’t need no scans, I’m fine. And sod my teeth. Frankie ain’t bothered about ’em, so why should you be?’
‘I’m not. But I am worried about you and so is your nan. You took a hell of a battering, lad, and unlike me, you never got checked out properly. It’s time you did. You’re still limping badly. Nothing to be scared of, I’ll be with ya.’
‘Who said I was scared? You a fucking doctor now, are ya?’ Little Vinny chucked his glass of Coke at the wall. ‘Leave me alone. I’m not a kid, I’m a man, and I make my own decisions. Sick of people interfering in my life, I am, which is why I’m moving away. Bollocks to the lot of ya.’
When his son stomped out of the room, Vinny began clearing the glass up off the floor. He’d thought Little Vinny had been doing OK, until today. But now he knew different, and he hadn’t a clue how to help him, unless the lad was willing to help himself. Could hardly put a gun to his head and force him to get his brain X-rayed, could he?
Harry O’Hara had the hump. He wasn’t daft; he’d been observing the smouldering glances between his tart of a sister and Regan for a while now, but today they’d been flirting even more than usual. Not only was Harry worried about losing his best mate to his sister, he was concerned Georgie would change her mind about leaving Essex. She once used to look at Ryan in the same way she now did Regan.
‘Let’s go see if Emily and Mary are there,’ Harry said, grabbing his sister’s arm. He was bored with wasting time walking around the shops when they could be looking for the lucky-heather sellers they’d met back in December. The travellers had promised to get word to their family and he was anxious for news.
‘We’ve already looked twice today, Harry. They ain’t gonna turn up now, are they? And we’ve looked for ’em at least twenty times since Christmas. Perhaps one of ’em’s died, or something.’
Harry leaned towards his sister’s ear. ‘If you don’t come with me, I’m gonna tell Calum you’re getting hold of his brother’s cory,’ he hissed.
Georgie leapt up. ‘Harry wants to look for someone. We won’t be long.’
‘Don’t you wanna look for ’em as well? I wonder whyever not,’ Harry taunted, as they walked briskly from the Brewery to the spot in South Street where they’d first seen the women.
‘There ain’t nothing going on with me and Regan, you dinlo. You don’t like it because me and him are friends. Want him all to yourself, don’t ya? I swear you’re gonna turn out gay like Joey. Nanny Alice will disown you, I’m telling ya,’ Georgie mocked. She’d learned off her father that attack was the best form of defence.
Furious over what Harry considered to be a terrible insult, he was still arguing with his sister as they turned the corner. ‘They’re there, Harry. Look!’ Georgie exclaimed.
Harry ran excitedly towards the two women. ‘Do you remember us? You said you could get a message to our family. We’re Jed O’Hara’s chavvies.’
Mary and Emily shared a triumphant glance. Neither they nor their husbands were now in good health and when word had got back to the O’Haras, they’d been promised a thousand pounds for reuniting those children with their family. In a lot of travellers’ eyes, a thousand pounds was peanuts, but to Mary and Emily it was a small fortune.
It was Mary who did the talking. ‘We got the message to your family. Can you meet us here tomorrow?’
‘Why?’ Georgie asked suspiciously.
‘What did my dad say? Did you talk to him?’ Harry asked. Georgie had said a couple of times that their father might be dead, but he didn’t believe that. His dad was his hero and heroes didn’t die.
‘Just say a time and we’ll meet you here tomorrow. Come alone though,’ Mary urged. She’d spoken personally on the phone to Mickey Maloney the other day, and he’d warned her: ‘If and when they do turn up, do not tell them we’re in the area in case word gets back to the Mitchells. All you got to do is arrange a time for the following day and tell ’em you have some news. Don’t mess this up, Mary. My Ryan has not been the same since Georgie went away. Wants to marry her on her sixteenth birthday, he do.’
‘What’s the big secret? Is my dad and granddad dead? Is that why you won’t tell us nothing?’ Georgie spat.
Harry punched his sister on the arm. ‘’Course they’re not dead, and stop being nasty. These ladies are helping us. Show some respect.’
Desperate for the thousand pounds, Emily trod on Mary’s toes to shut her up. ‘We have messages from your family, but we didn’t know if you would be here, so left them hidden in the trailer. We got phone numbers for you to call them. Can you meet us here at nine in the morning tomorrow?’
‘Yeah,’ Harry said. He was absolutely elated.
‘No,’ Georgie replied. ‘Our mum, she got us this tutor to teach us to read and write. If we run off before he arrives, Mum’ll know we’re up to something. But if we do our lesson first, then meet you ladies here at, say, three, our mum won’t suspect anything.’
Mary and Emily nodded at one another before smiling at the children. ‘OK,’ Emily said. ‘Three o’clock it is.’
After being spoken to as if she were no more than some idiotic loved-up teenager, it was no wonder Frankie Mitchell arrived home in a temper.
Having missed the only rock he felt he now had, Little Vinny held Frankie close to his chest. ‘What’s wrong?’
‘Just Joey being Joey. Sick of my family poking their noses in my life. It’s been the same for as long as I can remember. I never seem to do anything right.’
‘Same ’ere. I told my old man where to go earlier. Please let’s move, Frankie. We can buy a nice gaff in the country, start afresh.’
‘It’s not as easy as that, Vin. What about your job?’
‘I’ve given it up.’
‘What!’
‘I rang Finn earlier. After everything that’s happened recently, I need a new beginning. I’ve got plenty of dosh and we can set up a business together when we move. It’ll be a laugh and the kids’ll love the fresh air of the countryside. We can even buy ’em a dog and keep chickens. Nothing tastes better than a newly laid egg.’
Frankie was cautious. ‘I don’t know, Vin. It’s a big decision, but I will think about it.’
‘Best you think about it quickly then. Only I rang an estate agent earlier and put a bid in for a property in Lincolnshire.’
‘You did what!’
‘Can I stay here with Aaron and Rosie tonight please, Granddad? I’ll be a really good boy, I promise,’ said Brett Mitchell.
‘No. You got to go to school tomorrow. Get your stuff together and I’ll drop you off home on the way to The Casino.’
Eddie hated cry-babies and when Brett started to blub, he tore him off a strip.
Gina sent Rosie and Aaron into the lounge before she hugged the distraught child. ‘Tell your granddad what you told me earlier, darling. He won’t be angry with you, once you tell him why you want to stay here.’
Brett stared at his shoes. ‘No. Don’t want to.’
‘Tell me what?’ Eddie hissed. He hated being kept in the dark about anything.
‘Tell him, Brett. Explain to Granddad why you’re upset, love.’
Brett’s lip wobbled. ‘Mummy was making funny noises when I came downstairs to get some orange juice the other night, so I looked in the lounge to see if she was OK. She had no clothes on and Little Vinny was on top of her. I think he was doing something bad to her. I don’t like him no more, Granddad. I miss Stuart.’
‘Go in the front room with Rosie and Aaron, boy. You can have the day off school tomorrow.’
Red-faced with temper, Eddie waited until his grandson was out of sight, then booted the kitchen door shut. ‘Didn’t take her long to move on, did it? She’s got a bed in her bedroom, hasn’t she? Why didn’t she use that? I’ll fucking swing for her and Little Vinny. Are they retarded, or what? Oh hang on; I think he might be doollally since he got his head caved in. Another great choice my daughter has made. I’m going round there to tell the pair of ’em exactly what I think.’
Gina put her arms around Eddie’s neck. ‘No, you’re not. You’re overreacting, it was obvious with Frankie and Little Vinny spending so much time together, something like this was bound to happen. He seems a nice enough lad and he’s been great with Georgie and Harry, hasn’t he? Frankie’s had it tough, Eddie. She deserves to be happy.’
‘Well, she ain’t going to be happy with him, is she? He’s Vinny Butler’s son, and even I’ve come to the conclusion that the Butlers are more agg than they’re worth.’
Harry O’Hara’s lip curled. He hated seeing his mother constantly topping her wine glass up. It made him despise her even more than he already did. ‘You’re disgusting, Frankie. You make me want to vomit.’
‘What have I done now?’ Frankie asked, perplexed.
‘Shut up, Harry,’ Georgie ordered.
‘Nah. Why should I? Women ain’t meant to get drunk. That’s what the men do.’ In the travelling community, the men regularly rolled home inebriated from pubs or horse fairs, but it was very much frowned upon for their women to drink. On a special occasion, a travelling woman might be allowed one or two, like at Christmas or at a wedding. But getting drunk like his mother did on a regular basis was unheard of for a woman.
Georgie glared at her brother. ‘Go upstairs, Harry. You’re getting on my nerves.’
‘Nanny Alice says only old gorger slags get drunk,’ Harry spat, before stomping out the kitchen. Calum and Regan had gone out for a meal with Sammi-Lou’s mum and sister, and he was peeved that he hadn’t been invited. He had wanted to spend as much time as possible with his mates before he left Essex.
