by Dani Oakley
“Are you going to invite me in, Babs?” Tony asked.
Babs finally came to her senses and took a step backwards. “Of course, come in.”
She shut the front door behind him and took a deep breath. Her hands were sweating so she wiped them on the side of her dress as she followed him into the kitchen.
“I can make another cup of tea if you’d like one. I let that one go cold,” she said, nodding at her untouched cup of tea on the kitchen table.
Tony shook his head. His eyes bored into her, and Babs couldn’t maintain eye contact. Her gaze slipped downwards, and she focused on the floor.
She knew he was here to announce what he intended to do, and her whole future relied on the decision Tony had made.
“I’m sorry I’ve been avoiding you,” Tony said slowly. “But I had a lot to think about.”
Babs listened carefully to his tone. He didn’t sound angry. Did that mean he might be able to give her a second chance?
Her eyes flew up to his, and she stepped forward, raising a hand to touch his cheek.
But Tony took a step away from her. “Don’t.”
Babs pulled her hand back. “Don’t what?”
“Play on my feelings. You know I care about you, Babs, and it’s not fair of you to take advantage of that.”
Babs could feel her last chance slipping away.
She stared in horror at Tony, fearing what his next words would be.
“What am I supposed to do?” Tony said. “He’s my brother. If I don’t tell him what I saw you doing…” Tony hesitated as though he couldn’t bring himself to mention the word poison.
“If I don’t tell him, what guarantee do I have that you won’t try again?”
Babs sensed Tony was still undecided, and she needed to do everything in her power to convince him not to tell Martin. She moved closer to him and took both of his hands in hers and then looked up into his eyes. “I promise on my children’s lives that I will not try to poison Martin again.”
Babs kept her gaze fixed on Tony as she waited to see whether he would believe her.
When he didn’t respond, she continued, “Don’t worry, Martin is safe,” she said aloud, mentally adding the words, “for now.”
For the longest time, Tony stared down at her in silence, and Babs bit down on her lower lip. He had to believe her. He had to trust her because it was her only chance.
Tears began to roll down her cheeks, and he pulled her into his chest, his arms holding her tight. “I won’t tell him. Don’t cry. I know he is a difficult bastard. Look, maybe you should think about moving away from the East End again and getting a bit of distance between you and Martin.”
Babs nodded and then straightened up, awkwardly moving away from Tony’s arms. She patted her hair. “Yes, you’ve got a point. I’ll think it over. Thank you, Tony. I-”
But Babs never got to finish her sentence because there was a knock at the door.
Tony stepped into the kitchen doorway and looked towards the front door. Through the glass panel, they could both clearly see Freddie’s bright red hair glowing like a beacon.
Tony turned to look at Babs. “It’s Freddie. Do you want me to tell him to go?”
Babs wiped the tears away from her cheeks and straightened her dress.
“No, don’t send him away. I asked him to come because I wanted to talk to him.”
A frown passed over Tony’s face, and Babs wondered whether he would ask her why she needed to see Red-haired Freddie, but in the end, he didn’t question her motives and instead, moved forward to open the door for Freddie.
The two men shook hands and then Tony announced he would leave them to it.
* * *
Freddie was surprised to see Tony Morton with Babs, but then he supposed he shouldn’t have been. The two of them had always been close, and Freddie had long suspected there was something going on between them. He’d had his suspicions since before Martin had been sent down.
Freddie watched Tony leave and then shut the front door, walking towards Babs, who stood in the doorway of the kitchen.
She looked different, but that was probably to be expected after spending years in prison. But even though she’d only been out of prison for a matter of days, she was starting to look more like her old self. She had dyed her hair, and her makeup was carefully applied.
“How are you, Babs?” Freddie asked. “You’re looking lovely as usual.”
Babs smiled, and although her eyes were red, and Freddie could tell she had something weighing on her mind, she said, “Mustn’t grumble, Freddie. Things are definitely better than they were a couple of weeks ago.”
Freddie grinned.
“I’ll make us a pot of tea.”
As Babs busied herself filling the kettle and spooning tea leaves into the teapot, she asked Freddie how Jemima was getting on.
They filled a few minutes with small talk, and then finally Babs put the pot on the table and poured them both a cup.
She sat down and looked at Freddie over the rim of her steaming cup of tea.
Freddie smiled. Waiting. This was the point where Babs told Freddie why she had really asked him to come here.
“I’m afraid I’m in a spot of bother, Freddie. It’s not something I can take care of myself, and I realise you don’t have to do this for me. You’re one of Martin’s men, but I would consider it a personal favour and one I wouldn’t forget in a hurry.”
Freddie was intrigued. He ignored his tea, and instead, planted his elbows on the table, leaning forward, waiting to hear what Babs would say next.
Babs licked her lips nervously and then continued, “I wouldn’t ask you if I wasn’t desperate. There was an incident in prison. I was involved as well as another inmate, and one of the prison guards got injured. It was the stupid cow’s own fault, and she was a right nasty piece of work, so I’m not sorry she got hurt.” Babs sighed. “However, it does give me a problem. I was released when they blamed the other inmate present during the incident. The truth is, I was the one who hit her on the head. If she wakes up, I will be back inside quicker than you can say bacon and eggs.”
Freddie remained silent, and Babs pushed up from the table and began to pace the kitchen as she explained the incident to Freddie in detail.
She ended up by saying, “So, you can see my predicament. Currently, Maud is unconscious in hospital, and she may never wake up, but if she does, and she remembers what happened and who was responsible,” Babs pointed to her chest. “Then I’m probably spending the rest of my life inside. And I couldn’t handle that.”
She turned to look at Freddie, pausing in her pacing. “I went to the hospital. I even picked up a pillow and put it over her head, but in the end, I couldn’t do it.” She shook her head remembering how she had felt in the ward looking down at Maud’s pale cheeks.
She looked again at Freddie, who said nothing.
Babs frowned. “Well, say something.”
Freddie supposed Babs confessing to him like this said a lot about his character. Babs believed she could admit her crime and ask him to clear up her mess without worrying about his reaction.
They had known each other a long time, and Babs knew him well.
Freddie picked up his tea and took a large swallow of the hot liquid. “Consider it done, Babs.”
Babs’s eyes widened. “You’ll do it?”
“Freddie nodded. “Of course, I will. I won’t let you down.”
Babs smiled with relief and scrawled down the name of the ward on a scrap of paper along with Maud’s full name for reference. She began to chatter on, telling Freddie how awful this Maud woman was.
It was as though she was trying to convince Freddie that the woman was a bad sort, and as such, she was expendable.
But Babs needn’t have bothered. Freddie had stopped worrying about who was good and who was bad a long time ago. When it came to getting rid of someone, male or female, it was just a job to him.
Chapter 46
Less
than an hour later, Red-haired Freddie was at the Royal London Hospital. The way he saw it, there was no need to waste time. When he was given a job, he liked to do it quickly and cleanly.
Although Babs had babbled on about Maud not being a very nice person and described her actions in prison, Freddie hadn’t paid much attention to her words. He didn’t need a detailed account of a person’s background before killing them. In fact, in most cases, it was easier if he didn’t know much about them at all.
He followed Babs’s directions to the ward, keeping his hat on and his head down. He wore a plain, brown overcoat and a hat in a slightly darker shade of brown. His intention was to blend in. Freddie’s bright hair meant he didn’t often get that opportunity, and at some point, he would need to remove the hat, but he wasn’t too worried.
He planned to make it look like Maud had just died in her sleep. She was gravely ill, according to Babs, and so her death wouldn’t come as a surprise.
He wouldn’t say he was looking forward to it. Even Freddie wouldn’t go that far, but it did feel good to have a purpose again. For the past few months, he hadn’t done much, apart from act as Martin’s heavy when they collected money. But no one put up a fight these days, so Freddie’s job was routine and pretty boring.
He longed for the old days. Now, Henry the Hand was semi-retired, Tony was mainly focused on running the club, and Martin… Well, Martin wasn’t the man he used to be.
When Freddie reached the nurses’ station outside the ward, he smiled at the young nurse on duty, who wore a dark blue uniform rather than the white uniform he’d seen most of the other nurses wearing.
“Good morning,” Freddie said politely. “I’m here to visit my sister, Maud Montgomery.”
The nurse smiled back pleasantly at him. “Your sister was here the other day. She didn’t mention she and Maud had a brother.” The nurse frowned. “Your sister had a funny accent. She said she was American.”
Freddie merely smiled in response. Least said soonest mended was a saying he liked to abide by.
He waited, and eventually the nurse rose from her seat, slightly flustered. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you. I was just surprised you don’t share her accent. I’ll take you in to see Maud now.”
Freddie inclined his head regally and followed the nurse, admiring her shapely legs, which looked fantastic, even though she was wearing clunky black shoes.
Before they could enter the ward, there was a commotion just ahead of them, and the nurse turned around and said to Freddie, “Please, could you just wait here for a moment?”
Freddie agreed and stood to one side of the corridor as some nurses and doctors ran past him.
Some moments later, the nurse returned. Her smile had disappeared.
“I’m very sorry, but Maud has just passed away.”
Freddie lowered his head respectfully and then looked sombrely at the nurse.
“That is disappointing,” he said before turning around and striding off down the corridor before anyone could ask any awkward questions.
* * *
“Are you ready?” Gary Carter asked.
Trevor Carter was all dressed up in motorcycle leathers and was sweating like a bastard.
“No,” he snapped in reply to his uncle. “And I’m not sure about this. I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
Gary, who was also wearing motorcycle leathers, folded his arms across his chest and sneered at Trevor. “Your father was right about you. You don’t have what it takes.”
Trevor flinched and looked down at the ground. “I just think there has to be another way.”
Gary picked up one of the motorcycle helmets he’d left on the settee. He thrust the helmet at Trevor’s chest.
“There isn’t. Unless you want to play second fiddle to Jimmy Diamond for the rest of your life and have the whole of the East End laughing at you, this is the only way forward.”
Trevor looked miserable as he followed Uncle Gary out of the flat and down the stairs.
Outside, the motorcycle Uncle Gary had borrowed was parked up and gleaming in the sunshine.
Gary put on his own helmet and then turned to face Trevor. “You drive.”
Trevor did as he was told. He straddled the motorcycle and started the engine as his uncle climbed on behind him.
He waited as Uncle Gary carefully arranged the messenger bag in front of him, making sure it was easily accessible. When Uncle Gary was finally ready, he patted Trevor on the shoulder, and they set off.
* * *
Nearly every day of his working life, Jimmy Diamond had made the trip to the cafe around the corner from the workshop to collect bacon rolls for elevenses.
Usually, he took the opportunity to walk slowly past Morton’s club and carry out his own surveillance on Martin Morton. It was funny, but he always thought about the man as Martin Morton, never as his father.
He felt safer knowing what the evil man was up to. As Dave Carter said, knowledge was power. Jimmy found out everything he could about Martin. He liked to think one day it would come in useful.
But this morning, before he’d reached the club, he’d taken a detour and returned home because he’d wanted to pick up an item stashed under the loose floorboard in his bedroom.
And now as he walked quickly towards Morton’s, that object was inside his overalls. The cold metal felt foreign against his skin, and it was already making him nervous.
The club was quiet this morning, and it looked as though Jimmy wouldn’t gain any fresh information on his enemy today. It didn’t matter. Today, information wasn’t enough.
Jimmy needed more, and he intended to get it.
He had to end this once and for all. He was becoming obsessed, and his mother’s death was all he could think about.
He would never be able to rid himself of this feeling until he had taken revenge for what that low-life snake had done to his mother.
Taking a deep breath, he strode forward towards the entrance of the club. As he raised a hand to test the doors and see if they were open, he heard a voice behind him shout, “What do you think you’re doing?”
Jimmy turned to see Tony Morton striding towards him, looking angry. The younger Morton brother was better looking than Martin, but he apparently shared the same hatred of Jimmy.
“I want to see Martin,” Jimmy stated bluntly, meeting Tony’s angry gaze.
“Why?”
“That’s none of your business.”
Tony looked surprised at Jimmy’s response and took a moment to recover before replying. “Look, Jimmy. It’s not a good time. If you want my advice, you are better off staying well away from him.”
“I don’t want your advice. I want to speak to him, and I’m going to whether you like it or not.”
Tony frowned, and Jimmy considered what he would do if Tony tried to remove him physically from the proximity of the club.
But after a moment, Tony sighed and said, “It’s not hard to see where you get your stubbornness from.”
Jimmy didn’t respond.
“Martin isn’t here. He’ll be back later, I’m sure, but he won’t want to talk to you.”
“I don’t care what he wants,” Jimmy said. “Tell him I’ll be back here at midday, and he’d better be ready to talk to me.”
Tony raised an eyebrow. “You’re going to regret this, son.”
Jimmy’s mouth twisted into a grin. “I ain’t your son. Just pass the message on for me, Uncle Tony.”
Jimmy put a sly emphasis on the word uncle and turned and walked away before a shell-shocked Tony Morton could respond.
That hadn’t gone the way Jimmy had planned.
Now he would have to take the weapon to work. It wasn’t ideal, but he didn’t have much choice. He’d already taken too long collecting the bacon rolls, and Charlie and Brian would think he was taking the mick if he didn’t get back soon.
He had been doing as Dave requested and keeping his ear to the ground, but he hadn’t heard any whisper
s. Not a dicky bird. Despite that, he was starting to feel that Dave could be right. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but it felt like something had shifted— the calm before the storm.
Jimmy plastered a smile on his face as he nipped inside the cafe and collected the rolls. Dave took care of the bill at the end of every month, so Jimmy simply picked up the brown paper bag, called out his thanks, and walked briskly back out onto the street.
Tim was back working at the workshop now, and it hadn’t been easy for Jimmy to see him every day. It was even harder to try and reconcile the fact that the big man, who had always been there for him as he grew up, was the man who had killed his mother.
He might have only been following orders, but Tim had still murdered Kathleen Diamond. How was Jimmy supposed to forget and forgive that?
Jimmy held the rolls in the crook of one arm and raked his other hand through his hair, trying to get rid of the images that constantly invaded his mind. He didn’t want to keep picturing how Tim had killed his mother. He didn’t know how to react to Tim’s treachery. It was beyond forgiveness, but even so, Tim had been atoning for years. Had his good deeds outweighed the bad? There was no easy answer, so for now, Jimmy decided to focus on Martin Morton. He was enemy number one.
He was almost back at the workshop when he saw Dave Carter approaching from the opposite side of the road. He held up a hand to wave, and then in the distance, he heard a motorcycle engine roar into life.
They got plenty of traffic down by the workshop, but something about the sound of the revving engine caught both Jimmy and Dave’s attention.
Jimmy looked in confusion as the motorcycle steamed towards them.
There were two men on the motorbike. The one at the front had his head down low, crouched over the handlebars, and the one on the back was carrying some sort of bag. There was something familiar about the man in front… Jimmy only got a glimpse through the visor, but…
It wasn’t until the motorcycle was almost level with him that Jimmy saw the gun.
It all happened so quickly. The bike was travelling so fast. The man drew the gun, and Jimmy opened his mouth to shout a warning, but the crack of a gunshot shocked him into silence.