by Dani Oakley
Freddie and Henry got to their feet and slowly began to drag the glass coffee table out of the way. Last time the brothers had had a bust-up, a similar table had been shattered and neither Freddie nor Henry thought having shards of glass around Martin Morton was a good idea. But moving furniture was as far as they went. They knew better than to intervene in a fight between the Morton brothers. Interfering was akin to suicide.
Chapter 8
When Ruby arrived at the club, the music was blaring, and the place was packed. She smiled at the sight of so many people enjoying themselves, pleased that the club was doing well.
She’d nodded to the men on the door, who were dressed in the suits that her father insisted on, and slipped in quietly. She was hoping her father wasn’t in the club or in his flat upstairs.
He hated her coming to the club and didn’t think it was an appropriate place for his daughter. It was ridiculous he considered her too young. Ruby shook her head as she looked around the club. It didn’t escape her attention that most of the people here were the same age as her. It seemed her father didn’t mind them coming to the club to spend their money. Ruby knew that her father was a man with whom you had to pick your battles. Life was already difficult, and she didn’t want to make it more so, but she planned to needle away at her father until he eventually gave in.
She didn’t want to get married. She wanted a career so she could do something interesting every day and earn her own money. She didn’t want to be holed up somewhere, keeping home for a man and his boring babies.
Usually, Ruby would only dare come to the club when she knew Martin was otherwise occupied. Her father had a temper, and although he’d never raised his hand against Ruby, his wrath wasn’t a pleasant thing to witness. But today, Ruby had decided to take the risk because she knew they were understaffed and had a new barmaid starting. She had been at home, worrying about all the things that could be going wrong at the club, and in the end, she’d decided to come and see for herself.
She walked up to the bar, edging past two girls gossiping, and dodged the hands of an inebriated young man with slicked-back hair.
Reaching the bar, she leant over and shouted to attract the attention of Nicola, the barmaid she’d only hired yesterday.
The poor girl’s eyes were wide, and her cheeks were flushed. There were two more women behind the bar, as well as two others collecting glasses. Unfortunately, there was a huge crowd of people around the bar, waiting to be served and trying to attract Nicola’s attention.
But Nicola made a beeline for Ruby. She wasn’t a stupid girl and knew she had to appease the boss, even if she secretly wished she could just be allowed to get on with the job.
“How’s it going?” Ruby asked.
Nicola shrugged and gestured around her. “Busy, as you can see. Have you come to help out?”
Ruby hesitated for a few seconds. She wanted to. The club was buzzing, and she loved being around the live music and happy faces. She wished she could stay right in the thick of it, but she knew if word got back to her father, he would make her life hell.
She shook her head. “No time, I’m afraid.” She wasn’t about to let Nicola know her father forbade her from coming to the club. She was well aware that would sound ridiculous. She was the one who ran everything behind-the-scenes.
Ruby nodded and pulled back from the bar. “I’ll let you get on with it.”
She pushed away, ready to walk home, dragging her feet, reluctant to leave a place that was so full of fun and go back to her small terraced house. All she had to look forward to tonight was a cup of cocoa with her grandmother.
Before she got to the door, she heard loud voices. Loud enough that she could hear them even over the blaring music.
Ruby turned and saw the door behind the bar that led to the flat burst open. She froze, terrified it might be her father.
But it wasn’t. It was Uncle Tony.
Ruby looked on, frowning. If her uncle was here, that probably meant her father was upstairs. She needed to leave, sharpish before he saw her. But something made her pause.
When her uncle turned, she saw a red mark on the side of his face. It would turn into a nasty bruise.
She felt her stomach clench. They’d been fighting again.
Tony pushed his way through the crowds towards the exit, not even noticing Ruby until she grabbed onto his arm.
“Wait!”
She had to shout to be heard, and at first, he turned with a snarl on his lips and tried to shake off her hold on his arm until he noticed who it was.
A look of confusion passed over his face and then he grabbed her by the elbow and escorted her outside the club.
The night was cold, and Ruby clutched her coat around her.
“What happened?” she asked, looking up at her uncle.
Tony shook his head. “It’s nothing.”
Ruby huffed out an impatient breath. Her father always treated her like a ten-year-old child and told her nothing. She could hardly confide in her mother when she was in prison, so the only people Ruby felt she could really talk to were Uncle Tony and Grandma Violet.
Violet had surprised Ruby by being a lot more open-minded than she’d ever given her grandmother credit for. For one thing, she approved of Ruby’s career choice and encouraged her to rebel against her father by demanding a more active role in the business.
Uncle Tony had always played an important role in Ruby’s life. He’d been around when her father wasn’t, and he’d been the one constant in her life.
He’d often told Ruby he was proud of her, and Ruby felt she could trust him to talk to her like an adult, which was why the way he was blanking her now and refusing to discuss whatever had happened between him and her father annoyed her.
“I don’t believe you,” she said bluntly. “You’ve been arguing more and more lately. He’s becoming...difficult. Is it because my mother is getting out of prison next week?”
As soon as the words left Ruby’s mouth, she realised she was stating the obvious.
As much as she would have liked a stable home life, she was well aware her parents couldn’t stand the sight of each other.
For a moment, she felt like a small child again, wishing her mother and father could be more like her friends’ parents.
Tony took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair. “I can’t talk about it now, Ruby. I’m still angry. It’s not fair for you to be caught in the middle.”
Ruby looked at the bruise on the side of his face and winced. The arguments and fights were bad enough, but she had a horrible feeling things were going to get even worse.
“What are you doing at the club tonight anyway?” Tony asked, frowning as though it had only just occurred to him that Ruby was somewhere she shouldn’t be. “If your father sees you there, he’ll lose his rag.”
Ruby nodded. “I know. The club is short-staffed, and we had a new barmaid starting tonight. I just wanted to make sure everything was running smoothly. It seems fine, so I’m going home now.”
She knew her words had a sulky tone, but she couldn’t help it. She felt frustrated that nobody trusted her enough to let her do anything of any real value.
Tony sighed and put his arm around her shoulder, squeezing her. “Sorry, Ruby. You’re doing a good job with the club. But I think it’s just as well your father didn’t see you there tonight. I’ve done a good enough job of annoying him on my own.”
He smiled at her, and despite her best efforts to stay angry, she couldn’t help smiling back.
She wanted to ask Tony a million questions about her mother. She especially wanted to know what would happen when she got out of prison. Her father had been drinking more and more, and he always stayed at the flat over the club rather than coming home. Her mother was getting out in less than a week, and Ruby didn’t even know if that meant she would be moving back to the family home. Grandma Violet had been sleeping in Derek’s old bedroom, and Ruby couldn’t even imagine what it would be like to have her
mother and grandmother living in the same house.
She couldn’t mention that to Uncle Tony because he liked to think everyone got on well, and he adored his mother.
When they were growing up, Ruby had been terrified of her grandmother. She was a short woman but was very domineering. Over the past few years, things had changed. After Ruby’s mother had been sent down, Grandma Violet had taken on the responsibility of looking after the family home. She’d made sure Ruby had a home-cooked meal every night and kept the house spotless.
Ruby had been horrified when Grandma Violet first moved in, but it hadn’t taken her long to grow closer to her grandmother, and she realised many of the things her grandmother argued about with her father were just common sense.
Just because she was closer to her grandmother now didn’t mean Ruby was oblivious to the woman’s faults, and she could still remember the fierce rows between her mother and her grandmother.
If the two women lived under the same roof, rows were inevitable. That was the last thing Ruby wanted. But how could she suggest Grandma Violet move out without hurting her feelings? She couldn’t even confide in Uncle Tony about it because he thought the world of his mother.
“What’s bothering you?” Tony asked. “You’re looking very serious tonight.”
Ruby looked up at him and opened her mouth to try and explain some of the things she was worried about, but in the end, she shook her head and shrugged. “Nothing. I just don’t like it when you and Dad don’t get on.”
Tony squeezed her shoulder. “That’s just what brothers are like,” he said. “I remember you and Derek going at it like cats and dogs when you were younger. It doesn’t mean anything.”
Ruby smiled and nodded but deep down she knew he was wrong. There was a serious rift between her uncle and her father, and things were only going to get worse.
Chapter 9
After escorting Ruby safely home, Tony walked back to his flat in Underhill House. He’d decided to walk because it gave him time to think. The streets were quiet, the peace was only broken by the noise from the pub on the corner. They were having a right old singsong in the Duke of Cambridge tonight.
On any another evening, Tony may have joined them, but tonight, he had more important things on his mind.
He was glad Babs was getting out of prison, of course, but that didn’t make the situation easy to handle.
He had no idea how she was going to fit back into their lives. He knew for certain that was what had been bothering Ruby earlier, even though she wouldn’t confide in him.
And he couldn’t blame the girl. Her life was about to get turned upside down again, and nobody had made any preparations, at all. His mother was still living in the family house to look after Ruby because a teenage girl shouldn’t be living on her own. Of course, in most families, the father would be responsible for taking care of the children, but Martin Morton was not a typical father by a long shot.
Derek hardly ever returned to the East End. He’d stayed at boarding school, and now he had moved on to university.
Martin palmed off Ruby’s care onto his mother so he could continue much as before. He lived over the club, sleeping with whichever woman was the flavour of the month. He got pissed every night and then blew his top when he realised things weren’t going his way in business.
There was no big mystery to it. Dave Carter had not made things easy for them, but it was Martin who really made things tough for everyone. He saw every action as a slight and refused to think like a businessman.
He hadn’t always been this way. There was a time years ago, when Martin had been sharp as a tack, and Tony had looked up to him, amazed at his talent for running his business.
Some people said he’d only achieved his power through threats and fear. There was no doubt that Martin liked to utilise his own particular talents in that regard, but he’d been switched on. There was a deep ambition driving him that Tony had never shared. Unfortunately, that ambition now seemed to be eating away at him.
The admiration Tony had for his brother was growing less day by day.
The most sensible plan would be to arrange for their mother to go back to her own house and have Babs move back into the family home in Poplar, but Tony wasn’t sure whether Martin would stand for it. Even though he didn’t really want to bother with the day-to-day care of Ruby, he didn’t want Babs to be involved either.
Tony could invite Babs to stay with him for a while until she got on her feet, but that would really set tongues wagging around the East End, and despite what Martin had inferred tonight, Tony knew it would be the kiss of death for any relationship he had with his brother.
Last year, Tony had considered moving away and setting up in business on his own. Why not let Martin continue his death spiral alone? But when it came down to it, he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t leave Ruby and his mother to the whims of Martin. While she was inside, Babs was safe, although Tony doubted she saw it that way.
Martin had grown unpredictable over the years, and if Babs pushed her luck when she came out, Tony wasn’t sure how far Martin would go.
As his block of flats came into view, Tony hunched his shoulders and walked a little faster as the first soft drops of rain began to fall.
For the past few years, it had been Tony bringing in the steady money while Martin chased hare-brained scheme after hare-brained scheme. He wouldn’t settle on a definite plan of action. He continually second-guessed himself and everybody else around him.
It would be nice if just for a few moments he could switch off and stop worrying about his brother.
Tony had never been a worrier before. He’d accepted life as it came, and it was a good life, too. He’d had plenty of money, more women than most other blokes in the East End, and a family he loved, but now he couldn’t help feeling uneasy.
There was danger in the air. A sense of foreboding that even easy-going Tony Morton couldn’t ignore.
He pushed open the door to the flats then walked up to the third floor. On the landing, he saw a pretty brunette trying to appear seductive, leaning against the wall. Unfortunately, her shivering, and the fact her teeth were chattering, didn’t add to the effect.
Tony frowned. He wasn’t in any mood for company tonight.
The girl’s name was Tanya, and he’d been seeing her on and off for a couple of months, but this was the first time she’d turned up at his flat uninvited, and Tony wasn’t happy.
“Hello, darling,” she said turning on a huge smile and pushing back her jacket so Tony could get an eyeful of the form-fitting dress she wore beneath.
Tony didn’t return the smile. “I don’t think we arranged to meet tonight,” he said curtly.
The smile left the girl’s face. She could only have been five or so years older than Ruby, and that thought made him feel depressed.
“I thought I’d surprise you,” she said, licking her lips and pouting.
“Well, you did that all right. But it’s not a good time. Next time, you should call first.”
Tanya looked like she might burst into tears, and Tony sighed.
“Come in,” he said, but before she could get too carried away, he added, “I’ll call you a cab.”
Tanya meekly followed him into the flat and waited for him to telephone the local cab office.
Her skirt was short, and her bare legs were mottled pink and white from the cold.
He would call her a cab because he wasn’t a complete bastard, but everybody knew that Tony Morton didn’t do relationships, and he’d been upfront about that with Tanya. She knew the lay of the land, but for some reason, like most of the other women Tony had taken to bed, she thought she was different and that she was going to be the one to change him and convince him to settle down.
Tanya was in for a rude awakening. Tony was not the type to settle down, and even if he were, it wouldn’t be with a woman like Tanya.
He walked across the sitting room and stared out of the window so he could see the cab appr
oaching. He stood there for a moment, Tanya was forgotten and ignored behind him. There was only one woman he was thinking about tonight, and that was Babs.
Chapter 10
In his flat over the club, Martin Morton sent the bottle of Scotch and the glass he’d been drinking from to the floor with a swipe of his hand.
He was trembling with rage. He had sent Henry the Hand and Red-haired Freddie packing because he could feel himself losing control, and he didn’t want anyone to be around to witness it.
More and more these days he could feel himself losing his grip. He’d always had a problem with his temper, even when he’d been a youngster. But usually, these flashes of rage were temporary and could even be useful if they occurred at certain times during his work. His chosen career had allowed him to blow off steam safely. He’d only lost his rag when it was needed and had always been able to rein himself in, but recently, he’d felt his self-control slipping.
He knew it was because his wife would soon be getting out of prison. She would judge him and find him wanting when she realised that the Morton Empire wasn’t what it once was.
When he closed his eyes, he could see her face, laughing, mocking him.
Martin stared down at the smashed whisky bottle and then kicked it hard, sending shards of glass flying against the wall.
He was going to have to do something about Babs when she was released, but there wasn’t much he could do without the police knowing exactly who was responsible. Babs wasn’t the type to take him up on his offer of pocketing a few quid and agreeing to move out of London. Martin knew that would never happen.
It irritated him no end to know that his brother had continued to see Babs while she’d been locked up, and then his mother sticking up for Babs had really taken the biscuit. They couldn’t stand the sight of each other, so he had no idea what his mother was playing at.
He would have thought out of everyone, his mother would be on his side. But she’d probably side with Tony as usual. She thought the sun shone out of his backside.