by Dani Oakley
Martin had a lot of pride in his appearance. It was all part of the package and helped him feel confident. “I’ll be right down. I’m just getting changed.”
“There’s no time for that,” a deep voice that sounded vaguely familiar said.
Martin turned back to look and saw Inspector Peel climbing the stairs in front of Tony.
“Hello, Mr. Morton,” he said, walking into the living area. “I’ve found the evidence. You’re going down, my son.”
Martin sneered. He wasn’t worried about Inspector Peel. He was just a jobsworth copper, just like an irritating little fly that wouldn’t go away.
“In your dreams, mate,” Martin said, but then he was stunned as two uniformed officers appeared behind Inspector Peel.
Martin took a step back as Inspector Peel began to read his rights.
“What the bleeding hell are you lot doing? I wasn’t there. I had an alibi, remember?”
“An alibi from your long-suffering wife,” Inspector Peel said. “I didn’t believe it at the time. And now I’ve got the proof you were lying.”
Martin shook his head. His alibi had not been a lie. He had been at home with Babs. He twisted and turned, trying to wrench himself free as the uniformed officers held him, pulling his arms behind his back.
“Get your hands off me,” Martin roared.
“Calm down, bruv. I’ll get your brief. You’ll be out of there in no time,” Tony said. “Just take it easy.”
Inspector Peel smirked and looked at Tony. “Oh, I’m afraid your brother won’t be out so quickly this time. Not when we’ve got the gun that killed Keith Parker with your brother’s fingerprints all over it.”
Tony’s jaw fell open, and he stared at Martin open-mouthed.
Martin shook his head. That wasn’t possible. He hadn't shot Keith. He’d ordered his men to do it, but he’d never touched the gun himself…
Then the memory came back to him. Meeting with Dave… The gun on the table…
“The bastard. It’s Dave Carter. He’s fitted me up for this. He got me to hold the gun, but it wasn’t me. I never killed him.”
Inspector Peel chuckled, and Martin turned on him. “You’re going to regret this. I’m innocent.”
“That’s what they all say, Mr. Morton,” Inspector Peel said as he walked beside the struggling Martin Morton and escorted him out of the club.
* * *
Dave was in his office at the warehouse on Blocksy Road when Gary burst in with a grin on his face. “He’s been nicked!”
Dave looked up from his paperwork. “About time, too.”
It had taken the police longer than he’d hoped to build their case.
“I just saw the Old Bill leading Martin Morton out of his club. Rumour has it, he’s going down for a long time,” Gary said gleefully.
Just as Gary finished speaking, Brian Moore also burst into the office. “Have you heard about Morton?”
Dave smiled. He may have had to wait longer than he wanted for the police to build their case, but it was worth it. Charlie would be free within days.
Dave leaned back in his chair and looked with satisfaction at Brian and Gary. They’d waited for this day for a very long time.
“It’s been a long time coming, but we’ve done it, boys. We got revenge on that piece of scum for taking out Frank the Face and for leaving poor old Charlie to bleed to death on a pile of rubbish. But our hard work has only just started.”
Gary and Brian exchanged puzzled looks.
“The real work starts now,” Dave said. “We expand, and we annihilate anyone who might want to step into Martin Morton’s shoes.”
Gary grinned. “Right you are, bruv. We’ll be behind you one hundred percent.”
Dave chucked his pen down on the desk. Things had worked out perfectly. With Martin Morton out of the picture, nothing could stop him from taking over the whole of the East End, and that was exactly what he intended to do.
Epilogue
Five years later
Jimmy Diamond was dressed in his new school uniform for his first day of school. He looked so grown up, Bev thought with a sigh. She wished Mary could have seen him today. Bev walked Jimmy to school, and when he turned to wave at her at the school gates, she felt a lump in her throat.
When she got home, she sat down to write a letter to Mary, telling her all about it. She’d been taking care of Jimmy for five years now, and she loved him as if he was her own grandchild. She felt sad that Mary had to miss out on all these milestones.
She tried to write down every little bit of description in the letter so Mary would feel like she’d been a part of it.
Bev spent the rest of the day anxiously worrying about Jimmy, hoping he’d be all right at school. He was a good lad, and there was no reason to think he wouldn't get on well, but Bev couldn’t help fretting.
When three o’clock finally rolled around, and she was able to go and pick him up, she couldn’t race around to the school fast enough.
Although she’d made sure to get to the school by three fifteen, there was absolutely no sign of Jimmy. She waited by the school gates for a little while until all the mothers had left with their children. Then the panic really set in.
She rushed into the school and asked the first teacher she saw where she could find Jimmy Diamond.
“Oh, he left a little while ago. Someone came to pick him up.”
Bev felt as if a bucket of cold water had just been thrown over her. “Who? Who picked him up?”
Her heart was thundering in her chest as the teacher frowned. “A woman picked him up. Jimmy seemed perfectly happy to go with her. Is something wrong?”
Bev was practically in tears, and her heart was beating nineteen to the dozen as she raced back home. As she approached her bungalow, she caught sight of Jimmy sitting on the wall, waiting for her.
The rush of relief she felt was quickly replaced by anger when she saw Mary sitting on the wall beside him.
“What the bleeding hell are you playing at? I nearly had kittens when I turned up at the school and found Jimmy wasn’t there.”
Bev’s voice trailed away as she looked at Mary.
Her face was gaunt and heavily lined. She’d aged quickly after Kathleen had passed, and she now looked at least ten years older than she really was.
Bev’s heart softened. She understood that Mary missed her grandson desperately.
“Oh, well, no real harm was done, I suppose. Why don’t we go indoors and have a nice cup of tea?
Mary shook her head. “There’s no time for that, Bev. I just called in so we could say goodbye.”
“Goodbye? What do you mean?”
“I’m taking him back home, Bev. Back to where he belongs. Jimmy is coming back with me to the East End.”
“You can’t do that! It’s not safe, and he’s happy here with me.”
Mary shook her head and set her mouth in a firm line as she regarded Bev steadily. “I appreciate everything you’ve done for Jimmy and me. But it’s safe enough now. Martin Morton has been locked up a long time, and all his old henchmen are working for other people or keeping their heads down.”
Bev felt sick. Surely, Mary couldn’t be serious?
“So,” Mary said, looking down at Jimmy with a smile. “I’m taking him home, Bev. It’s time he learned the truth about his mother.”
* * *
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Also by Dani Oakley
Dani Oakley also writes under the name D.S. Butler. You can find the books here:
Deadly Obsession
Deadly Motive
Deadly Revenge
Deadly Justice
Deadly Ritual
Deadly Payback
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