The Traitor

by Kimberley Chambers

  ‘Say they’ve got the music on? Jed always listens to music when he’s driving. We ain’t gonna be able to hear anything then, are we?’

  Kerry shook her head. ‘They won’t be listening to music if they’re going over to them two old tarts, will they? Oh, go on, Frankie, please say you’ll do it. I need to know if that Julie’s kid belongs to Sammy. I mean, my boys might have sisters and brothers dotted about all over the place, for all I know.’

  Frankie pondered before reluctantly agreeing. ‘You’re gonna have to find the smallest tape recorder ever invented, and don’t buy a cheap one, because we won’t hear sod-all.’

  Kerry grinned. ‘I’ll tell my mum what we’re gonna do. She’ll pay for it, I know she will. Now let’s go and ask that man what are the longest cassettes we can buy.’

  As Kerry dragged her towards the record stall, Frankie shook her head in disbelief. She must be mad to even consider Kerry’s idea. Jed would go mental if he found the tape recorder, and what Frankie had to do now was decide whether, if their plan went wrong, it was worth getting a good hiding for.

  Stuck in the salvage yard in Dagenham, Raymond was chuffed to bits to see Eddie. ‘Where you been? I thought you’d fucking emigrated,’ he said, as he gave him a bear hug.

  ‘It’s a long story. Lock up and let’s go for lunch. There’s stuff we need to discuss.’

  Raymond didn’t need telling twice. Just lately, working in the scrap game had been boring him to tears and now that Ed was out he was hoping to work alongside him once more.

  There were no decent food-based boozers in Dagenham, so Eddie drove into the lanes in Rainham and pulled up outside the White Hart.

  ‘If there’s no one we know in here, we’ll eat here. If we get recognised we’ll have a drink, fuck off and find somewhere else,’ Eddie said.

  As luck would have it, there were only a handful of people in the pub and neither Eddie nor Raymond knew any of them. Ed ordered a couple of beers and handed Raymond a menu.

  ‘Order me the scampi. I’m just going for a slash,’ he told him.

  Raymond ordered the food and sat down at a table at the far end of the pub. ‘Over ’ere, Ed,’ he shouted, as his pal reappeared.

  Eddie sat down, took a sip from his bottle of Bud and grinned. ‘It feels weird when you first come out of nick, Raymondo. It’s just so bleedin’ wonderful to be able to pop into a boozer for a bit of lunch and a couple of beers. I never used to appreciate shit like this before.’

  Raymond nodded understandingly. ‘So, what you been up to since Monday? I rang the boys and they said they hadn’t seen you yet. You’re popping over to see ’em later today, ain’t ya?’

  Eddie nodded. ‘I just wanted to get me head together, to be honest with ya. It’s strange when you first come out. It takes a while to get used to living in the real world again.’

  ‘So, who you been stopping with? I thought you’d have gone to stay with Gary and Ricky.’

  Eddie shook his head. It was now or never, and even though he dreaded telling Raymond, he knew he couldn’t avoid it any longer. ‘There’s something I need to tell you, something that you might not like. I can’t lie to you, Ray, so I’m gonna come clean with ya. Do you remember that Gina from my trial? You must remember, you dropped some dough off to her a couple of times for me.’

  ‘The private detective bird?’

  Eddie nodded. ‘Well, after my case, I wrote to her and thanked her for her help and she came up to visit me. We just sort of clicked. I was stuck in nick and lonely, and even though I still miss Jessica like mad and think about her every single day, I had to try and move on with my life.’

  Raymond felt his stomach turn over. ‘What are you trying to tell me, Ed?’

  ‘I’ve decided to give it a go with her, Ray. Gina rented a cottage out in the sticks and I’ve moved in with her.’

  Raymond stood up and pushed his chair away with force. He couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing. ‘You don’t hang about, do ya? Two days you’ve been out, two cunting days and you’ve bagged another bird already. You’re unbelievable, Ed, fucking unbelievable.’

  As Raymond bolted out of the pub, Eddie chased after him and grabbed his arm. ‘Don’t be like this, Ray. I loved Jess, you know I did, and I wouldn’t hurt you for the world. Hear me out for fuck’s sake, will ya?’

  Unable to stop himself, Raymond broke down. ‘Jess was my sister, Ed. I loved her so much. How do you expect me to feel?’ he wept.

  Eddie felt awkward as he hugged his strapping pal. ‘I’m really sorry I’ve upset you, mate. Go on, let it all out.’

  Feeling like a complete idiot, Raymond quickly pulled himself together. ‘I’m sorry as well. I don’t begrudge you being happy again, I really don’t and I feel like a right prick for making a scene, but I’m going through a shit time of it myself at the moment. Me and Polly ain’t getting on – all we do is argue. The salvage yard does me head in; I miss the excitement and the life that the old loan-sharking brought with it.’

  Eddie put an arm around Ray and led him back towards the pub. ‘That’s the other thing I wanted to talk to you about. Gary and Ricky have done wonders while I’ve been away, but there’s only so much the two of them can do. I think me and you need to get back into the fold, don’t you? Let’s eat our lunch, then we can talk about it properly, eh?’

  Frankie’s mind was all over the place as she picked Georgie up from school. She hadn’t made her mind up yet whether to go through with Kerry’s wacky idea and the indecision was making her feel ill. She had told Kerry that she’d do it, but had since had second thoughts about her ability to pull it off.

  Georgie clambered into the back of the Shogun and slapped her brother on the head to wake him up. ‘What’s for tea, Mum? I’m hungry.’

  ‘You can have hot dogs or chicken nuggets.’

  ‘I don’t want them. Can’t I have burgers?’ Georgie whinged.

  ‘Yes, there’s some in the freezer, Georgie.’

  ‘Don’t like your burgers. Can’t I have McDonald’s burgers, Mum?’

  ‘No, you can’t. Now shut up, because I’m trying to drive.’

  As Georgie began rambling on about not wanting any dinner, Frankie ignored her for once. She was far too worried about her own problems today to worry about her daughter’s fussy eating.

  Frankie sighed. She desperately needed advice and the only person she could think of to turn to in her hour of need was Joey.

  Raymond was buoyant as Eddie outlined their plans for the future. ‘So, what we’ll do is have a meeting with the boys on Sunday. I’ll arrange everything. If you can just hold the fort at the salvage yard until after the weekend, I can sort someone to come in and take over from ya from Monday onwards.’

  Raymond nodded. ‘I’ll tell Polly tonight. I’m gonna be straight with her and if she don’t like it, she knows what she can do. I do love her, Ed, but she’s doing my head in over this baby thing. The doctor told her to relax and it’ll happen naturally, but she’s like a woman possessed.’

  Eddie laughed. He hadn’t told Raymond that he’d proposed to Gina and had no intention of doing so until the time was right. ‘I need to ask you something. I’d like to meet with your parents and speak to them in person. I know I can never make things right for what I did, Ray, but I’d like to try. Can you organise a meet with them for me?’

  Raymond held his hands up. ‘I dunno about that, Ed. Me dad’s still very bitter about the whole thing. I can have a word with me mum, if you like. She asked after you only last week, funny enough.’

  ‘What did she do with all me clobber out of the house, do you know?’

  ‘Gary’s got it all. Put it in storage, he did. I thought he told you when you first went in nick.’

  ‘He probably did. I was on a different planet when I first got banged up, weren’t I?’

  Raymond smiled. ‘Me dad goes to his pigeon club tomorrow night. Shall I ring Mum while he’s out, see if I can get her to meet up with you?’

&nb
sp; Eddie nodded. ‘I will truly understand if she don’t wanna see me, but I desperately need to apologise in person. It’s what Jessica would have wanted, I know it is.’

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  On Saturday morning, Frankie dropped Georgie over at Alice and Jimmy’s house.

  ‘Ain’t you leaving Harry ’ere as well?’ Alice asked abruptly.

  ‘No. Joey and Dom want Harry to stay at theirs. They’re taking him out for the day tomorrow.’

  Alice was pleased. Jimmy had gone off to some horse fair and if Harry wasn’t stopping over, it meant she had Georgie to herself for the day.

  Frankie said goodbye to her daughter and headed towards South Woodham Ferrers. She was glad that her brother had offered to look after Harry, as she knew Joey and Dom would take proper care of him.

  Alice and Jimmy had always favoured Georgie and for that reason alone Frankie didn’t like leaving her son with them.

  Driving along the A13, Frankie heard her mobile ringing.

  ‘All right? It’s me. Are you alone?’

  Frankie smiled when she heard Kerry’s dulcet tones. ‘Yeah. I’ve just dropped Georgie off at the scumbags’ and I’m on me way over to Joey’s. Him and Dom are gonna babysit Harry for me tonight. Are you OK?’

  ‘I’m fine. I’ve got it.’

  ‘Got what?’ Frankie asked.

  ‘The tape recorder. Me mum’s mate’s boyfriend got it for us. Somone chored it for him. It’s perfect, Frankie, it’s only little, but it’s like one of them small ones what the police use when they’re undercover.’

  Frankie was still undecided whether she could go through with their plan. ‘I had a look around in the Shogun when Jed was in the shower yesterday and I don’t think there’s anywhere to put it, Kerry.’

  ‘You can’t back out now. Please, Frankie, do it for me. I need to know if Sammy’s got a kid with that slag before I let him have access to the boys. If Jed finds it, just blame it on me. Say I did it or forced you to do it or something. You’ll find somewhere to hide it. Why don’t you stick it under the driver’s seat or you can always hide it in the back of the motor somewhere.’

  Frankie had a better idea. ‘Why don’t we go back to Rush Green and hunt down that Julie? We can threaten her or something, and we’ll make her tell us if it’s Sammy’s kid.’

  ‘No. She ain’t worth getting nicked again for. Anyway what about Jed? He’s got to be at it as well. You can’t just shove your problems under the carpet, Frankie, you need to confront ’em head-on, otherwise you’ll end up living a lie like I did.’

  Frankie knew what Kerry was saying made sense, but she was keen to speak to Joey about what she should do first. ‘Look, I’m nearly at my brother’s now. I’m gonna ask his opinion and then I’ll ring you when I leave.’

  Kerry was a bit annoyed. She had gone to a lot of trouble to put their plan into action and had even borrowed fifty quid from her mum to pay the bloke who had nicked it. ‘I’ll tell you something, Frankie. If you bottle out of doing this, I shall come over to Wickford and plant the thing my bastard self. Sammy and Jed are utter scumbags and I, for one, won’t rest until I know every detail of their sordid fucking lives.’

  Unaware that his youngest son was currently living only a few miles away from him, Eddie groaned as he shot his load inside Gina. They had discussed using contraception, but had decided not to bother. What was the point when they’d both agreed to having kids?

  ‘You all right, babe?’

  Gina smiled. Eddie was an unselfish lover, an expert in the sack, and he always made sure that she was satisfied. She laid her head on his chest.

  ‘I love living here. It’s so peaceful, isn’t it?’

  Eddie twiddled with her long dark hair. ‘Funny enough, I’ve been thinking about that. Why don’t we contact the estate agent and put in an offer that the old couple can’t refuse?’

  ‘They might not want to sell. They’ve only gone to Australia for a year, I think.’

  ‘They’ll sell if I offer ’em silly money for it. I ain’t a man that ever takes no for an answer, Gina. You should know that more than anyone.’

  Gina’s eyes shone as she sat up in bed. ‘Shall I ring the estate agent on Monday to set the ball rolling? Oh, Ed, wouldn’t it be wonderful if we bought the place. We could decorate it to our own taste and we could . . .’

  Eddie put his finger over her lips. ‘There’s no ifs about it, darling. If you want us to purchase this place, then I will make sure we fucking well get it.’

  Joey listened intently while Frankie told him the story. He had guessed she’d had something important on her mind and Dom, being Dom, had thoughtfully offered to take both Harry and Madonna out for a walk, so they could have some privacy.

  ‘So, what do you think I should do, Joey? What would you do if it was Dom? Would you plant the tape recorder or would you just confront him?’

  Unable to stop himself, Joey gave a sarcastic laugh. ‘Don’t be speaking about Jed and Dominic in the same breath, Frankie. Dom’s a beautiful man inside and out. As for Jed, well you know my opinion of him. I think he’s an uncouth, pikey piece of shit. You must never forget that our mum would still be alive if it wasn’t for you meeting him.’

  Annoyed that her brother wasn’t being his usual supportive self, Frankie felt her hackles rise. ‘I came here to ask for your advice, not for a fucking lecture, Joey. I know what you’re saying about Mum but, say I hadn’t got with Jed, say I’d met another boy and Dad didn’t like him? It was Dad that nearly chopped Dominic’s cock off, remember? And you can’t blame Jed for that.’

  Realising that he’d been a bit unfeeling, Joey immediately apologised. ‘I’m sorry. You’re right: Dad is to blame for Mum’s death, nobody else. As for Jed – you’ve got to find out the truth, Frankie. I know it’s gonna be hard for you with two kids and one on the way, but if Jed is leading a double life, it’s best you find out now, rather than later.’

  ‘Do you think hiding the tape recorder in his motor and pressing “record” will work? I mean, say he finds it?’

  Joey shrugged. ‘If he finds it, he finds it. That’s the chance you’re gonna have to take. Whether you’ll find out what you wanna find out, I don’t know, but I suppose it’s worth a try. I’ve never trusted Jed from day one. He’s a con man and a liar, I’m sure he is.’

  Frankie nodded. ‘I can’t let Kerry down now, so sod it, I’m gonna go for it. Apart from Jed going ballistic if he finds it, what have I got to lose? I’m not that happy with him now, anyway. We were so in love when we first got together, but everything seems to have changed recently.’

  ‘What do you mean? He doesn’t hit you, does he?’

  ‘No, he doesn’t hit me. Jed’s really good in some ways, like with money. He’s very generous to me and the kids, but I just sense he don’t love me like he used to. We only have sex about once or twice a month now, whereas a few years back we were at it all the time. He works away a lot and when he is at home he rarely tries it on with me any more. I tried it on with him recently, but he pushed me away, and said he was tired. Do you think he don’t fancy me when I’m pregnant? Or is it because I’ve put on weight?’

  Joey hated seeing his sister upset. He moved next to her and hugged her. ‘I don’t know what Jed’s problem is, Frankie, but chances are if you and him aren’t sleeping together that often, he’s probably getting it somewhere else. There’s nothing wrong with you. You’re still so pretty and you haven’t put on that much weight.’

  Joey’s kindness was too much for Frankie and she burst into tears. ‘I’m so unhappy. What am I gonna do, Joey?’ she sobbed.

  Joey didn’t really know what to say or do. The Frankie of old had been such a fiery, strong character. He hated seeing her like this; it was as though Jed had sapped every bit of life out of her.

  Frankie dried her eyes with a tissue. She felt silly for blubbing and was keen to change the subject. ‘I’m going for a meal with the family tonight. They’ve arranged it for Dad.’
>
  Joey looked at her in horror. ‘Whaddya mean? Is he out, then?’

  Frankie felt awful. She’d had so much on her mind that she’d forgotten to tell her brother that their dad had been released. ‘I’m so sorry, Joey, I forgot to tell you. Dad got out earlier this week. Gary and Ricky rang me and invited me to the meal. They’ve booked a restaurant in Canning Town.’

  Joey was fuming. How could Frankie ask him to babysit, then go out celebrating with their dad? Their beautiful mum was dead and it was their father who had bloody well killed her. He stood up and walked over to the window. ‘Can you leave now, Frankie? I feel ill and I need to lie down before I spew my guts up. You make me sick sometimes, you really do.’

  Joyce watched Stanley walk down to the pigeon shed, then bolted into the living room. She picked up the phone and then quickly put it down again. Should she or shouldn’t she? She couldn’t make her mind up.

  Joyce poured herself a small sherry and stared at the phone. Raymond had rung her the other day and informed her that Eddie had been released.

  ‘He wants to meet up with you, Mum. I think he wants to apologise to you in person. He said it’s what Jessica would have wanted him to do.’

  Joyce’s first reaction was to say no. Stanley would be so against it and he’d have a bloody fit if she met up with Eddie behind his back and he found out. Twenty-four hours later, Joyce had changed her mind and had called Raymond back. Her son had given her Eddie’s mobile number and had urged her to call him in secret.

  ‘Don’t breathe a word to anyone, because you don’t want Dad finding out,’ he’d said.

  Joyce took the piece of paper out of her purse. Unlike Stanley, she had always been fond of Eddie and even though she could never forgive him for what he had done, she felt that she should at least hear what the man had to say. He had given her the beautiful home she now lived in, after all.

  She dialled his number. ‘Eddie, it’s Joycie,’ she said, her voice shaking.

  ‘Hello, Joycie, love. I’m so pleased that you called. How are you?’