Albie. Something terrible’s happened,’ Queenie sobbed.
Having had it hard for most of their childhood and adult lives, neither Queenie nor Vivian ever really cried. The last time they had done so was when their dear old mum had died but, bar that, Vivian couldn’t ever remember her sister shedding tears since girlhood, other than those of joy, when her children had been born. ‘Oh Queenie. Let’s get you inside. Has Albie died, love?’ Vivian asked, silently praying that he had.
‘I wish the old bastard was dead,’ Queenie spat, as Vivian sat her down on the sofa.
Pouring Queenie a large glass of brandy, Vivian listened in bewilderment when her sister explained exactly what had happened at the hospital.
‘I know it’s hard to swallow, but you’ll be far better off without him, Queenie. After the initial shock of finding out about my Bill’s affair, I’ve never been happier since I slung the old bastard out. You don’t need Albie. He’s a drunken fucking bum and I’m gobsmacked that he even managed to pull himself some young bird. I wouldn’t want him if he was the last man left on earth.’
‘I ain’t worried about fucking Albie. That dirty old goat can rot in hell as far as I’m concerned. It’s my boys lying to me that has cut me to pieces. I’ve no idea if my Michael knew as well, but Vinny and Roy most definitely did. How can they keep something like that from their dear old mum, eh? After everything I’ve done for ’em as well. Broke my fucking heart they have, Viv.’
Vivian put her arms around her distraught sister and held her close to her chest. ‘Your boys adore the ground you walk on, Queenie, and the only reason they would have kept this from you was to save you the hurt. I mean, if they went round and threatened Albie’s little whore then they were obviously dealing with things in their own way. ’Ere, something’s just occurred to me. What’s the betting that Albie never got jumped on by a gang of youths? I’d put money on it that his injuries are down to your Vinny and Roy, you know.’
For the first time since she had found out the mindblowing news, Queenie managed a smile. She had smelt something fishy about Albie getting jumped from the beginning. ‘I reckon you might be right, Viv, and if the boys did break Albie’s ribs and legs, I shall thank ’em rather than telling them off. I don’t want that tart having the baby though. No way do I want my kids to have to suffer that embarrassment.’
‘Don’t you worry. Vinny and Roy will make sure that kid goes down the khazi.’
Christopher was bowled over when he learned that Nancy’s new friend Brenda just happened to be Vinny Butler’s sister. ‘Do you think one day your brother will let us see inside his club?’ he asked, in a star-struck voice.
Thrilled that she had a new best friend and desperate to impress Nancy and her brother, Brenda nodded. ‘I’ll take you there now if you like. I pop in there all the time,’ she boasted.
‘I’d better go home for my tea now. Shall I meet you outside the café and walk to school with you in the morning?’ Tommy asked Christopher.
‘Yeah, see you tomorrow,’ Christopher said to his new pal.
The club was only a couple of minutes away and praying that her brothers were inside so she wouldn’t make herself look a fool, Brenda was relieved when Vinny answered the door.
‘You OK, sweetheart?’ he asked, noticing his sister had a grazed knee and dirty hands.
‘I fell over playing hopscotch and I want to wash my hands and knee. Can my friends come in?’
Poking his head around the door, Vinny was surprised to see Nancy and Christopher standing there. He had no idea they even knew his little sister. ‘Come on then. One glass of Coke and a bag of crisps each, then you’ll have to go. I’ve got some business to sort out in a bit,’ he said. The bent Chief Inspector was popping in to pick up his money for the alcohol licence and Vinny didn’t want him to clock the kids inside the club in case he tried to sting him for even more dosh.
‘What you doing here, trouble?’ Roy said, as Brenda ran towards him and Michael.
‘This is my new best friend, Nancy,’ Brenda said proudly.
‘Hello,’ Nancy mumbled.
‘Well, ain’t you a pretty little thing,’ Michael said, winking at her.
‘Yep, she’ll break some hearts one day, like they all do,’ Vinny said, half-joking, half-serious, as he put the Coke and crisps on a table.
‘You all right, boy?’ Roy asked Christopher. The lad looked as if he was in a trance and was gazing around the club with his mouth wide open.
‘That’s my brother,’ Nancy said, smiling at Michael. She found Roy and Vinny a bit scary, but had immediately taken to Michael because he had such a kind face.
‘I really like your club,’ Christopher said, looking at Vinny in awe.
‘Cheers, boy,’ Vinny chuckled.
‘You been home from school yet, Bren? Is Mum and Auntie Viv OK?’ Roy asked.
‘Yeah, I’ve been home, but Mum was upset and she went to sit in Auntie Viv’s house.’
Vinny was immediately alarmed. ‘What do you mean, upset? What was wrong with her?’
‘Dunno. She was sitting on Auntie Viv’s sofa drinking brandy and she looked like she’d been crying.’
‘Why didn’t you bleedin’ well tell me that when you knocked on the door?’ Vinny asked, suddenly agitated.
‘Don’t have a go at her, Vin,’ Roy urged. His brother’s mouth could run away with him at times.
‘Shall I pop round there and make sure everything’s OK?’ Michael offered. Since Vinny had had a go at him, he was trying to do his best to please.
Vinny and Roy glanced at one another. Both were thinking the same thing. Their mother was a tough old East End bird, she never cried, so she had either found out that Vinny had attacked their father, or she knew about his affair.
‘I’ve gotta wait here for Geary, so you pop round home, Roy. You, Michael, can have the night off.’
‘Do you want me to go home to Mum as well?’ Brenda didn’t understand what the hell was going on.
Vinny handed his sister a pound note. ‘No. You take that, buy your friends some sweets and split the change equally between yous. Don’t go home just yet, Bren.’
When Michael opened the door of the club, ruffled her hair and called her sweetheart, Nancy couldn’t look him in the eyes. For the first time ever she had a crush on somebody, but unfortunately for Nancy, he was five years her senior.
CHAPTER SIX
‘I’m really sorry, Mum. I was going to tell you in front of Dad at Michael’s birthday lunch, but when I found out about the baby, I decided to sort it meself. Please forgive me,’ Vinny said, staring at his expensive black leather shoes in shame. Vinny loved his mother more than anybody else in the world. If it wasn’t for her sound advice, he wouldn’t be the man he was today. ‘Vinny, you do whatever it takes to make something of your life. It’s better to be a somebody than a nobody, son, and if that means stealing and stamping out people along the way, then so be it. Don’t ever knock or ill-treat your own kind though. You look after them,’ his mum had told him on the day he’d left school.
Aware that her son looked distraught, Queenie put her arms around him and gave him a motherly hug. Vinny was genuinely sorry, she knew that, and she was also thrilled when he had admitted to her that it was him who had put his father in hospital. ‘Let’s put all this behind us now. Your father ain’t worth the salt in our tears, boy. And thanks for giving him such a good going-over. You did me proud.’
Thrilled that his beloved mother was no longer angry with him, Vinny hugged her tightly to his chest.