LITMIR.BIZ

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about tomorrow? Shame to waste this nice weather, and we have nothing planned.’

      ‘Brilliant. OK, tomorrow it is.’

      Having been raised by travellers, Georgie O’Hara was far more savvy than most children her age. ‘Go and nick some more booze and we’ll meet you round the side of the house. Hide it behind those plant pots again,’ Georgie ordered Calum, before dragging her brother away.

      ‘You fancy him, don’t ya? I saw the way you were looking at him,’ Harry said accusingly.

      Had she not promised to marry Ryan one day, Georgie might have fancied Calum. He was a bit wild, a bad boy, which was her type, but she had other plans for him. ‘Of course I don’t fancy Calum, you dinlo. I’m just playing him to get us out of the house. He could be our perfect opportunity to escape.’

      ‘How? Frankie don’t let us out of her sight, the slag.’

      ‘She will if she thinks we can be trusted, Harry.’

      Vinny Butler handed Eddie a cigar. Neither smoked cigarettes any more, but liked the odd cigar on special occasions.

      ‘I wonder if we’ve got any more nasty surprises in the post today? Got a feeling I know who sent the last one,’ Eddie announced, before telling Vinny the story about the rats, Jimmy O’Hara and what Harry had told him.

      ‘But Jimmy ain’t about no more, is he?’ Vinny enquired. Eddie had ended up with a broken arm, leg, and ribs after his confrontation with the O’Haras. Ed had told Vinny the feud had been sorted at the time, and Vinny hadn’t wanted to pry too much.

      ‘Jimmy’s out the picture and so is Jed, but they have other relations. Breed like flies, those bastards, don’t they?’

      ‘Yeah, but we can handle ourselves, mate. We’ll have plenty of back-up at the casino an’ all. I’ve hired new doormen at my club, so Pete and Paul can run the door, and you’re bringing muscle in an’ all. The pikeys are no threat to us.’

      ‘You’re right. We’ll have enough brawn to deal with any chancer. Ray, Tel, Gary and Stuart are no mugs either,’ Eddie replied, referring to his own firm. ‘Is Carl gonna still be working at the Holborn club?’

      Vinny nodded. ‘Carl and Ava will run Holborn for me. Not long now, me old mucker, and we’ll be greeting our first punters. The Butlers and Mitchells unite, eh?’

      Eddie dotted out his cigar. ‘That’s if Joycie and your mother ain’t murdered one another. Come on, let’s go see the damage.’

      After initially hating one another on sight, Joyce and Queenie bonded over Jock nearly drowning, and now decided they did rather like one another after all. Both were strong characters, with similar views on family and life in general.

      ‘So, was your son Raymond here today?’ Queenie asked Joyce.

      ‘Nope. He’s abroad. Married a posh tart, Raymond did, and you can bet your bottom dollar that it was she who booked the holiday so they wouldn’t have to come to my party. As for their daughter, that’s an absolute replica of its mother. Want, want, want, it is. Spoilt as arseholes.’

      Queenie smiled. ‘I’ve got a grandchild like that an’ all. My Michael’s youngest, Ellie. I can’t take to her. Don’t like her mother either. Trapped my Michael, did Katy. Gold-digging whore.’

      With all the guests now gone, Vinny poked his head around the door. ‘You OK, Mum? Let me know when you want to make a move.’

      ‘I’m OK, love. You can top mine and Joycie’s drinks up, though, if you want to make yourself useful.’

      ‘Bring us in a bottle of Baileys. Do you like Baileys, Queenie?’ Joyce asked.

      ‘My favourite. Where’s your husband? Has he gone to bed?’ Queenie enquired.

      ‘Stanley’ll be out in the shed, playing with his cock,’ Joyce chuckled.

      ‘I beg your pardon.’

      ‘The old goat keeps pigeons. Spends hours in that shed, he does. Suits me. I don’t have to look at him. Left me once for another woman, he did. Right old trollop she was. I mean, who’d look at Stanley twice? Bald-headed, short old bastard.’

      Queenie laughed out loud. Today was the first time she’d properly laughed since Vivian had died. Joycie sounded just like her and Viv. She was certainly a ‘Say it as it is’ type.

      Vinny did the honours by pouring the Baileys, then walked into the kitchen shaking his head. ‘Women, eh? Getting on like they’ve known one another all their lives. I’ll never understand the female species.’

      Eddie raised his eyebrows. ‘Me neither. I’m thankful there won’t be any bloodshed though.’

      As Vinny and Eddie carried on chatting, neither had a clue that plenty of blood would soon be shed. In the most atrocious way imaginable.

       CHAPTER FOUR

      Michael and Vinny Butler met in a café near their mother’s bungalow. The Old Bill had got in touch this morning and were now ready to release their darling aunt’s body.

      ‘Where you been staying?’ Vinny asked his brother. Like himself, Michael was looked up to and respected. He was also classed as a big underworld figure, although it was common knowledge Vinny ruled the roost. The name Butler tended to put the fear of God into people with bloody good reason. Many a man had his life ended prematurely after falling foul of Vinny especially.

      ‘I stayed at Bella’s again last night, but your son has some serious issues and I can’t be doing with ’em,’ Michael snapped.

      In 1980, Vinny had indulged in a one-night stand with a woman he had met in a nightclub up town. It only came to light many years later that the woman in question was Bella, who was now Michael’s girlfriend. Vinny then learned he’d fathered her son. This had caused ructions between the brothers, and he and Michael had only been on speaking terms again since the brutal attack on their aunt. ‘Antonio needs to man up and fend for himself. Leave it with me. He’s nineteen, not fucking nine. It’s about time he got a job and moved out.’

      ‘He hates me being on the scene again. Just acts like a spoilt brat, banging and crashing about, spewing insults. Makes me wonder if I’m doing the right thing. If Katy finds out, there’ll be murders,’ Michael said miserably. He had a son and daughter with Katy and spent a couple of days a week with them in Tunbridge Wells. In Katy’s eyes, they were still a couple, but Michael only visited to see his kids. Occasionally he’d still sleep with her out of duty, and to stop her moaning. Anything for a quiet life.

      ‘Don’t let Antonio rule your life. You and Bella are made for one another. Have you told Mum you’re giving it another go with her?’

      ‘Not yet. Mum’s got enough to deal with at the moment. I’ll tell her after the funeral. Better coming from me than she hears it through the grapevine. I also need to tell her Daniel and Lee are living abroad. I popped round to see Lee’s old woman yesterday. In bloody bits, she is. Says she can’t afford the mortgage. I bunged her a couple of grand, but I ain’t offering to pay no mortgage. Not like her and Lee have kids, is it?’

      ‘Beth ain’t your problem, bruv. I’d stay well out of it, if I were you. Any more news on Roxanne’s whereabouts?’

      ‘Nope. Probably still up the spout with her own brother’s child. Jesus wept! What a fucked-up family we are. That Jeremy Springer geezer would have a field day with us.’

      Little Vinny put the meat in the fridge, then turned to his wife. ‘Ollie wants to go round his mate’s. He wasn’t overly keen on Georgie and Harry, reckons he’ll be bored.’

      Sammi-Lou called her eldest son. Oliver had recently left school and was now at college. Calum and Regan were ringers for their father, but Oliver was like

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