The Feud. Kimberley Chambers

money and I’ll leave,’ Raymond urged him.

      Laughing hysterically, Mad Dave walked towards Raymond and lifted him by his new shirt and tie. ‘Go away, you silly little boy,’ he said, as he dragged him towards the Portakabin door.

      As fast as a greyhound chasing a hare, Raymond pulled the knife out and shoved it straight through Mad Dave’s guts.

      As he hit the floor, Mad Dave’s eyes rolled straight into the back of his head. Raymond bent down to check on him; he had seen enough dead animals to know when someone was brown bread. Desperate not to get the man’s blood on his new suit, Raymond knelt to one side as he searched through Mad Dave’s pockets. He’d spotted the safe when he first came in and it was one of them cheapies that wasn’t coded by numbers. Finding a massive bunch of keys, Raymond walked towards the safe and tried numerous ways to unlock it. ‘Come on,’ he said, as he turned key after key.

      Finally, Ray felt the lock turn. He quickly grabbed all the money from inside, pocketed it, and washed the blood off his hands in the sink. Spotting a tea towel, he wiped the safe, the desk and the door. He hadn’t touched anywhere else, he was sure he hadn’t. Washing the blood off the knife, he put it back inside his jacket. His new suit was ruined. He’d caught his pocket with the knife and ripped it, and not only that, it was also sprayed with blood.

      With the tea towel firmly attached to his hand, Raymond opened the cabin door. He then ran for his bloody life.

      Waiting for Raymond to return was the longest wait of Eddie’s life. Ronny hadn’t helped with his stupid comments and jokes. Willing the kid to come through for him, Eddie smiled as he saw him running towards the van.

      ‘Drive, quick, go,’ Raymond said, as he leaped into the back.

      Paulie and Ronny were stunned to see splashes of blood on Ray’s suit. He didn’t have a mark on him, so it couldn’t be his.

      ‘Are you OK? What happened?’ Eddie asked nervously.

      Raymond was aware of his arms shaking as he put his hand in his pocket and pulled out bundles of £20 notes wrapped up in elastic bands. ‘There’s ten bundles there. I should imagine there’s a grand in each,’ he managed to stutter.

      Ronny couldn’t believe his eyes. ‘What the fuck? What did you do? Whose blood is it?’

      Raymond put his head in his hands. ‘I had to kill him, I had no choice.’

      Uncle Reg nearly took the van straight up the kerb. He’d seen some newcomers over the years, but none like this kid. ‘Don’t worry, son. We’ll get rid of the knife and your clothes and clean you up round mine.’

      Seeing the shocked expression on the faces of his brothers, Eddie burst out laughing. ‘I think Raymond’s passed his little task, don’t you boys?’ he asked sarcastically.

      Paulie immediately held his hand out to Raymond. ‘Well done, mate. Welcome to the family.’

      Ronny had no choice other than to do the same. ‘I can’t believe you killed the cunt. How did it happen?’ he asked in awe.

      Having by now composed himself a bit, Raymond repeated what had happened in full. ‘I knew he was dead immediately. Remember, I know by the eyes, I used to chop up dead animals, didn’t I?’

      Thrilled by the way Raymond had come through for him, Eddie grabbed him in a playful headlock. ‘Well you certainly chopped up a big animal back there, didn’t you, eh?’

      Uncle Reg lived in Bow, and within the hour, Raymond was as good as new. A bath had scrubbed the blood away, the knife was long gone and all his clothes, including his socks, pants and shoes, had been burnt to cinders. As he sat on the armchair wearing Uncle Reg’s clothes, Raymond was enjoying being the centre of attention.