‘Vinny drives a black Merc, but he wouldn’t have used that. You need to check the whereabouts of all his associates as well as him,’ Deborah insisted.
‘Myself and my colleague paid Vinny a visit this morning. He’s given us an alibi, which we’re currently checking out.’
‘Was Ava with him? How is she?’
‘Ava wasn’t there. Vinny said she was at his mother’s house.’
Picking up a framed photo of Ava, Deborah hurled it against the wall. ‘Queenie is nearly as evil as Vinny. You can’t leave Ava with her. You need to get her away. The whole family is rotten to the core.’
‘I’m so sorry, Deborah, but Vinny is Ava’s father so we have no power to take her away. If you’re seriously worried about the child’s welfare then you should have a chat with Social Services, or perhaps a solicitor who will be able to help you get custody.’
Before meeting Carl, Vinny had an hour to kill, so he popped round his mum’s to break the news. He’d already warned his mother that the Old Bill would probably be in touch asking if she was with him and where they were on Sunday, but he was careful what he said on phones, so told her just to be truthful and he’d explain all later.
‘Where’s Ava?’ Vinny asked, as he let himself in.
‘In the garden, playing. She was a bit bored, so I invited Stinky Susan’s little girl in as company for her.’
‘I don’t want her knocking about with scum, Mother. She’ll probably catch nits off that child.’
‘Beggars can’t be choosers, Vinny. There’s not many kids her age live nearby for her to play with. Anyway, they’re having a whale of a time. So what’s going on?’ Queenie asked, although she was sure she already knew the answer to her question.
‘Have the Old Bill been round?’
‘No. And I’ve been in all day.’
‘Where’s Auntie Viv?’
‘Popped indoors for a nap.’
Relieved that his aunt wasn’t about, as he knew she would give him that knowing look, Vinny told his mother about the police knocking on his door this morning and Joanna’s death.
‘What a shock for you, boy,’ Queenie said, hugging her strapping son.
‘I’ve gotta go out in a bit, so I need to break the news to Ava now. If the Old Bill turn up and I ain’t told her, they’re gonna think it weird. They seem to view me as a suspect as it is, the arseholes.’
‘How can you be a suspect? You were out with us all bloody day. I’ll send young Destiny home and tell her to come back in an hour, OK?’
‘Destiny! Is that her name?’
‘Yes, love. Strange, isn’t it?’
‘Too fucking right it is, with that sow next door but one as her mother. The only destiny that poor kid’ll get is being knocked up at fourteen or the dole queue.’
‘Ava, Daddy’s here, love. He needs to speak to you about something. Destiny, you pop home to your mum and I’ll get Ava to give you a knock in a bit. Would you like to have your tea here with Ava later? How does sausages, chips and beans sound?’
Destiny beamed from ear to ear. Her mum rarely cooked and she usually lived on either jam, Marmite or fish-paste sandwiches. ‘Yes, please!’
‘Off you go then,’ Queenie said, ushering the child out the front door. Ava would most certainly be shocked and upset after the bombshell Vinny was about to deliver, but Queenie hoped some company of her own age might help her through the grief.
‘Daddy,’ Ava squealed excitedly as she threw herself at Vinny. She loved spending time with her new family, but wished her dad wasn’t at work so much as he was her favourite person in the whole wide world at the moment.
Vinny hugged his daughter. ‘I’ve got some bad news for you, sweetheart.’
‘Can’t I have a real doggy one day?’ Ava asked innocently.
Vinny wasn’t the most compassionate man in the world, so he just came straight to the point. ‘There’s no easy way to say this, Ava, but Mummy has gone to live with Molly and the angels.’
Ava was confused. Her mum rarely spoke about Molly, but her dad and nan did and they had shown her loads of photos of her. ‘But Mummy lives in Tillingham.’
‘Help me out, Mum,’ Vinny pleaded.
Queenie kneeled down in front of her granddaughter. ‘Mummy’s dead, love. She had an accident in her car. The police told Daddy today.’
When Ava began to sob, Vinny held the child close to his chest and stroked her hair. ‘I’m sorry, Ava. But everything’s going to be OK. Daddy and Nanny Queenie will look after you now.’
‘But I want to see Mummy too,’ Ava sobbed.
Shrugging, Queenie looked at Vinny. Seeing Ava so upset was awful, but both were thinking the same thing. She was only a nipper; therefore it wouldn’t take her long to forget about her mother. The younger they were, the quicker the memories faded.
Michael Butler opened the letter and stared at the contents in horror.
Dear Unfaithful Husband,
I rue the day I ever met you and I mean that with all my heart. Not only did you and your family’s lifestyle make me feel like I was going mad at times, Daniel is now off the rails thanks to you, and my beautiful Adam is dead.
I so hope you’re proud of what you’ve achieved in life. Notoriety, money, a successful disco, a flash car, etc.
Good luck to the new lady in your life is all I can say. Because by jove she’s going to need it.
Thanks for the life of misery,
Nancy
Instead of being angry, Michael cried his heart out.
Vinny Butler met Carl Tanner at the Albion pub in Rainham. It was a big old boozer and not one they looked particularly conspicuous in. Some of the pubs around Rainham and Dagenham were very cliquey. Vinny had arranged to meet somebody in the Cross Keys once and couldn’t have been more stared at had he been an alien.
‘Have you thought any more about what we spoke about? I promise I won’t let you down,’ vowed Carl.
Vinny sipped his Scotch. Frank had assured Vinny that he’d never mentioned him to Carl until recently and even then it had only been a fleeting comment. Carl had then confided in his uncle about the set-up and Frank had urged his nephew to allow him to warn Vinny via the Mitchells. ‘I’ve decided to give you a chance, Carl. But I need you to prove yourself first. Call it initiation.’
‘I’ll do whatever it takes, Vinny.’
‘I want you to phone Tarkan Smith tomorrow. You tell him you’ve got his dosh and arrange to meet him on Saturday night at eight in the car park of the Farmhouse Tavern. You tell him what you told me in that letter: if he breathes a word to anybody or brings anybody with him, then he won’t see you. The lads will be waiting in a blue Transit van. Park as close to it as you can. You’ll be driving a white Cortina. As soon as Tarkan gets out of his car and walks towards you, the lads are gonna leap out the back of the van and bundle him in. You jump in with ’em. Both motors are hooky, but make sure you wear gloves.’
Carl nodded. ‘You gonna give me a job if all goes well?’
Vinny smirked. ‘All depends how much bottle you’ve got. Only it’ll be you killing your pal Tarkan, not me.’
Vivian wasn’t one bit surprised when Queenie told her the news about Joanna’s unfortunate accident. Why would she be with Vinny’s track record? However, she did feel sorry for poor little Ava, who seemed very confused and upset. ‘How about you help me and your nan make some fairy cakes? Have you ever made fairy cakes before?’ Vivian asked, cuddling the child.
Ava shook her head. ‘Is heaven far? Daddy said that’s where Mummy’s gone. Can we visit her there?’
Wanting to reply, ‘Daddy won’t be going to heaven when his time’s up, he’ll be going to hell,’ Vivian bit her tongue and looked despairingly at her sister.
Queenie was worried about Ava. She hadn’t wanted to play with Destiny again. Neither had she eaten the sausages, chips and beans she’d cooked her. Not knowing what else to say to cheer her granddaughter up, Queenie mumbled the words, ‘How about Daddy
buys you that real dog you’ve always wanted?’
For the first time since the news of her mother’s death had been broken, Ava smiled.
Ahmed’s directions were a bit sketchy, to say the least, so knowing the area like the back of his hand, Eddie Mitchell had offered to accompany Vinny. Eddie had been pleased when Vinny contacted him and asked for help in disposing of the bodies. That spelled no hard feeling between the families, which had reassured his father too. Vinny had also agreed to give Carl a chance to prove himself and Eddie saw such a gesture as a mark of respect towards the Mitchells.
‘Nice gaff you’ve got there, mate,’ Vinny said, as Eddie got in the car. He hadn’t even known Eddie’s address until he’d rung him earlier to ask for help with Ahmed’s badly drawn map.
‘Yeah. Me and Jess like it round ’ere. It’s quiet down these lanes. Only them pikey cunts the O’Haras lower the tone of the area.’
‘Didn’t your family have agg with that mob years ago?’ Vinny enquired. He’d not had many dealings with gypsies himself, but the Mitchells’ feud with the O’Haras was the stuff of legends.
Eddie Mitchell pointed to a house they happened to be passing, then the deep scar on his face. ‘Jimmy O’Hara lives there. He’s the cunt who gave me this, back in the day. I’ll tell you all about it another time. Let’s have a look at that map.’
Fifteen minutes later, thanks to Eddie’s expert navigation skills, Vinny and Eddie stepped out of the car.
‘Well, well, well. Your so-called Turkish pal certainly did his homework,’ Eddie Mitchell said. Ahmed had chosen such a remote spot that even Eddie hadn’t known this disused building existed until he’d worked it out via the map.
‘Fucking desolate, ain’t it?’ Vinny said, taking a good look around.
‘Definitely the perfect setting for a murder.’
Vinny grinned at Eddie. ‘And a bit of torture.’
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Adrenalin pumping through his veins at the thought of wiping out Ahmed later that evening, Vinny Butler was up with the larks on the Saturday morning.
‘Frightened the bleedin’ life out of me, hearing that door creak open. What you doing here at this unearthly hour?’ Queenie asked her son.
‘I thought I’d take Ava out and get her that dog this morning. You sure you’re OK with it?’
Queenie was far too house-proud to want to share her lovely home with a mutt. But Ava was missing her mum and if a dog cheered the child up, Queenie was willing to suffer it. ‘Just make sure it’s a little dog, Vin. I couldn’t handle one of them big slobbering Alsatians like Fat Beryl’s got. The smaller the better, and it’s barred from the lounge. That’s human domain only.’
Vinny nodded. ‘I’ll tell Ava. Proper put a smile back on her face, this will. Thanks, Mum, for everything.’
Daniel Butler scowled when his dad knotted his tie. ‘I don’t even wanna go, let alone wear this stupid thing,’ he complained.
Michael sighed. Mary had rung him the other day and coldly announced that a local church was holding a special service in honour of Nancy. She’d made it clear that he wasn’t welcome, but said the boys were. ‘It’s one day out your life, Dan, and you’re going out for a meal after the service.’
‘Would rather eat beans on toast,’ Daniel mumbled.
Michael put his hands on his son’s shoulders. ‘You’re not a little kid no more, Dan. You’ll go there today and do me and your mum proud. OK?’
‘But I don’t want to go, and neither does Lee. Mum’s been eaten by the sharks and that was her choice. End of.’
Michael pointed a finger near to Daniel’s face. ‘You better learn some respect soon, boy, else me and you are gonna fall out big time. Your mother was a good person who loved you very much and today is about her, not you. Now do you fucking understand?’
Face like thunder, Daniel had little option other than to nod.
Jay Boy Gerrard was worried as he pulled up outside Elliot’s nightclub. Gnasher had asked to meet him. If he was planning on starting a war with Vinny, Jay Boy already knew where his allegiances lay.
Gnasher was chomping on a sandwich and thankfully smiled as Jay Boy clambered inside his car. ‘Thanks for coming. I didn’t want to talk on the phone, nor leave things as they were. I’ve heard through the grapevine that boy’s going to be OK. Bound to be left with mental scars, but there’s sod-all we can do about that now. Tell Vinny I do believe his side of the story that the kid was picked up on the way. That would certainly explain the delay. The truck’s been dealt with. Burnt out, then crushed. Are the bizzies still sniffing around your end?’
‘Vinny’s not heard from them since they checked his alibi out.’
‘Good. We’re probably best to keep our distance from one another for a while. Better to be safe than sorry. Only contact me if it’s urgent, and do so from a call-box. I can always meet you here if necessary.’
Jay Boy shook Gnasher’s hand. He was relieved his old pal had calmed down. The reason being, he’d have sided with Vinny if push came to shove. Jay Boy wasn’t daft. He knew where his bread was buttered.
After visiting two pet shops where the dogs were all unsuitable, Vinny Butler drove his disappointed daughter to Aveley. When he’d been out with Eddie Mitchell the other day, he’d spotted a sign with an arrow saying ‘Jack Russell/Shih Tzu pups for sale’. Vinny was no expert on dogs, but he knew a Jack Russell was only small. He had no idea what a Shih Tzu looked like, but it could hardly be big if it had been mated with a Jack.
‘Why couldn’t I have that spotty dog, Daddy?’ Ava whinged.
‘Because it was a Dalmatian and they grow to the size of a horse, darling. We’ll get you a doggy here instead,’ Vinny promised, before mumbling the words ‘For Christ’s sake.’ The sign advertising the dogs led to a gypsy site.
‘Daddy, why aren’t you stopping the car?’
‘We can’t buy a dog from here, sweetheart. I’ll take you somewhere else.’
Already upset because of falling in love with the puppy in the pet shop, Ava pleaded with her father and cried.
Vinny put his handbrake on. ‘OK. Seeing as we’re here, we might as well take a look at the doggies.’
The first thing Johnny Preston did when he came through customs at Gatwick was ring his mother. ‘Everything OK? I’ll be home in a couple of hours.’
Shirley Preston couldn’t bear to break the awful news to her son. ‘Johnny, you need to go straight home to Deborah. She needs you and so does Johnny Junior.’
‘What the hell’s happened? And why is Johnny Junior home?’
‘I can’t talk right now. Deborah will explain all.’
Forced to sit in the front pew with his grandparents and Uncle Christopher, Daniel Butler felt his lip start to tremble. His mum committing suicide had happened so soon after Adam’s death that he’d not really allowed himself to think about her.
When the vicar remarked how Nancy had cherished her sons, Daniel couldn’t hold the tears back any longer. It had finally dawned on him that he would never see his mother again and he was so bloody angry with her.
Mary took a tissue out of her clutch bag and handed it to her grandson. She’d initially been fuming with him when the details of Adam’s death had come to light, but had softened a bit now. Daniel was only a kid himself and unfortunately kids did stupid things such as running across train tracks. He was also the closest thing to Nancy she had left.
Lee squeezed his brother’s arm. ‘You OK, Dan?’ he whispered.
Seething he’d been made to feel this way and show himself up by crying, Daniel interrupted the service by shouting out ‘No, Lee. I ain’t fucking OK. My mother chose to be eaten by the sharks rather than be our mum any more, so why are we sat ’ere mourning her? She’s nothing but a selfish cunt.’
Appalled and humiliated, it was Donald who apologized to the shell-shocked vicar and marched his unruly grandson from the church.
Queenie and Vivian were perving over Dirty Den on EastEnde
rs when Vinny arrived home with Ava and the puppy.
‘Urgh, get it away from me,’ Vivian insisted, as the new member of the family made a beeline for her.
‘Vin, I said it ain’t allowed in the lounge. What breed is it?’ Queenie asked. The puppy was tiny. It had tan-and-white colouring and a strange comical face.
‘It looks like a cross between a rat and a piglet,’ Vivian squealed, as the puppy sank its needle teeth into her little finger.
Vinny picked the mutt up and placed it in his daughter’s arms. ‘It could be anything. Came off a pikey site. How weird is this, Mum? Do you remember Molly wanting a dog and saying she wanted to call it Fred?’
‘Yes. How could I ever forget anything Molly said? I think she came up with that name because me and Viv kept talking about Freddie Starr when he appeared at Kings.’
‘Well, we gets back in the car and I say to Ava, what you gonna call him? Her reply: Fred.’
Queenie smiled. ‘That truly is fate, son.’
Vivian was less impressed by the strange-looking creature. ‘Should’ve called it Ratpig,’ she mumbled.
Young Shane Grant had been so traumatized by his ordeal, he hadn’t spoken for days after the accident. The hospital staff had deemed him as unfit for questioning up until now, which was why DS Birch was currently pacing up and down the corridor.
Inside the small ward, Shane’s mother stroked her son’s hair. She and Darren hadn’t seen eye to eye on most things, but she’d been as upset as anyone to learn the father of her child was dead. Shane had been through an awful experience and she just hoped her son wouldn’t end up scarred for life. The thought of him alone and crying in the back of that car while Darren and Joanna were dead in the front was too awful to even think about.
DC Larcham studied Shane playing with the cars she’d given him. He seemed relaxed enough now, which was a good sign.
DS Birch put her ear to the door. Her team had now received six calls about a red truck that had been spotted close to the spot where Joanna and Darren had died, and Birch was certain this wasn’t the type of vehicle that would have been racing along the Dengie Strait. She sensed some kind of foul play was involved, but unfortunately, the truck had not been traced, neither had anybody come up with a description of its driver.
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