Kimberley Chambers 3-Book Butler Collection

by Kimberley Chambers

  ‘You look fabulous. When’s Vinny setting the disco system up in the front garden, Queen?’

  ‘He’s sorting it now. Right, shall we start taking the food out? I wonder what Stinky Susan has made?’

  Vivian chuckled. Stinky Susan had moved into the house next door while she was in hospital. An unkempt-looking woman with permanently greasy hair, she had knocked on Viv’s door this morning and Viv had been greeted with a distinct whiff of unadulterated piss. ‘Christ knows, but I’m not eating anything she or anybody else brings. None of their homes are that wholesome, so we’ll just stick with our own grub.’

  Queenie agreed, then linked arms with Viv. Usually, they avoided the neighbours like the plague, but there had been rumours flying about that Viv had been carted off to the nuthouse, and Queenie was determined to restore family pride. ‘Come on, let’s go and knock the nosy bastards dead.’

  Having never driven to the East End before, Nancy panicked when she found many of the roads, including Queenie’s, were blocked off for street parties. Instead she headed for Michael’s club and was fortunate to find a parking space nearby.

  ‘Look, there’s Daddy! Dad, wait for us,’ Daniel screamed, as he and Lee chased after their father.

  Picking Adam up, Nancy walked towards Michael. He had obviously stayed at the club as he was wearing different clothes to the ones he’d left home in the previous day. Nancy was relieved about that, as when she had rung the club late last night and again this morning she had been informed that her husband was not there.

  ‘I’ll take the boys from here, so you can go to your mum’s party,’ Michael said, avoiding direct eye contact with his wife. He could tell she had been crying and he knew if he looked at her, he would feel guilty.

  ‘I’m not going to my mum’s party. I want us to spend the day together as a family. Michael, I’m so sorry Lee heard what I said. He is a good kid and I swear, from now on I shall treat him the same as my own. Please forgive me. I love you and we owe it to our sons to make our marriage work, don’t we? Can you imagine how upset they would be if we split up? It would break their little hearts. Daniel and Adam would miss Lee so much if he went to live with you, and I could never give our boys up, Michael.’

  ‘And neither could I,’ Michael spat.

  When Nancy broke down in tears, Michael held her close to his chest. His heart felt torn in two. He still loved her, but was that just because she had given him two wonderful sons? Bella made his pulse race every time he thought about her. But was it lust that he felt for her or true love?

  The one thing Michael did know was that he thought too much of both women and his kids to lead a double life. He would have to make a decision, and he would have to make it fast.

  Queenie and Vivian’s food outclassed everybody else’s. Two cooked chickens, ham knuckles, ribs of beef, a pot of dripping, pork pies, pasties, sausage rolls, and a massive bowl of salad, pickles, crusty French sticks and a block of thick butter had the rest of the neighbours drooling, and they hadn’t even brought their cakes and desserts out yet. ‘If that obese fucker tries to take one more thing off this table, I’m gonna chop her big fat hand off with this knife,’ Vivian informed her sister.

  Guessing that Viv was referring to Big Stan’s greedy wife, Queenie laughed.

  ‘Urgh, this is disgusting. Did you make this, Nan?’ Little Vinny asked, handing Queenie a half-eaten sandwich.

  ‘No, I bloody well didn’t! It’s fish paste. Put it down or you’ll get poisoned. Stinky Susan made it,’ Queenie whispered.

  ‘What did you bring to the party, Nancy? Didn’t see you turn up with bags of food,’ Brenda asked, smirking.

  Queenie kicked her daughter under the table. Brenda had been knocking back the booze like it was going out of style. ‘Shut it, you. Michael and Vinny have gone to pick up the seafood, so that’s Nancy and Jo’s contribution sorted. Besides, you cooked sod all yourself, Bren. Me and Viv did extra for you.’

  ‘Well, perhaps that’s because I’m a single mother with two kids. Not my fault my husband turned out to be a wanker, is it? You heard from him, Nancy? He always lusted after you,’ Brenda said, glaring at her sister-in-law.

  Wishing Michael would reappear, Nancy stared at her plate of food. ‘No, I haven’t heard a word,’ she lied. Dean had only mentioned Brenda once on the phone, said he didn’t miss her at all. He sounded tearful when he spoke about Tara though, and he had asked after Tommy.

  ‘You’re lying. That’s why you won’t look me in the eye,’ Brenda spat.

  Seeing Nosy Hilda looking their way, Queenie grabbed her daughter by the arm and yanked her off the chair. ‘Time to put some Mrs Mills on. Come and help me choose a record, Bren,’ she said, pasting on a false smile.

  Having hauled Brenda up the garden path, Queenie waited until they were inside the house before giving her what for. ‘Look in that mirror, Bren, go on, then tell me what you see.’

  ‘Well, me of course. What you going on about?’

  ‘Now, I’ll tell you what I see, shall I? I see a fat, drunken lush who looks like she needs a decent haircut and a good scrub in the bath.’

  Brenda burst into tears. ‘How can you be so nasty, Mum? You know I’m not feeling good about myself since Dean left.’

  Queenie pointed at the mirror. ‘And that’s the reason why he left, love, not because of Nancy. You’ve let yourself go so much so, I’m embarrassed to call you my daughter. You don’t see me and your Auntie Viv walking about like tramps, do you? Now, I know you think I’m being unkind, but you’ll thank me for it one day. If I can’t tell you, who can, eh? Come on, dry them eyes and we’ll put some records on and enjoy the rest of the party. Then tomorrow, I’ll take you out shopping and we’ll get that bastard hair cut and you’ll start a diet, OK?’

  Not knowing how else to react to her mother’s stern words, Brenda merely nodded miserably.

  Because of the Jubilee celebrations, the East End was buzzing. Everybody had massive smiles on their faces and the area was flooded with street traders selling their wares. Plastic Union Jacks and hats, tea towels, china mugs and plates, key rings and even plastic crowns were being sold by the dozen. Unfortunately for Vinny, he had too much on his mind to get into the festive spirit. As did Michael, which was why both brothers were now strolling along in silence. ‘You OK, bruv? You seem preoccupied,’ Vinny said.

  ‘I could say the same about you, Vin.’

  In an effort to lift their spirits, Vinny gave Michael a light punch in the arm and grinned. ‘Do you know what I think of every time we go to Tubby’s stall?’

  ‘No. Enlighten me.’

  ‘You, as a kid. Whenever Mum used to take us to the eel stalls in Brick Lane or Roman Road, you used to cry your eyes out when they took the eels out of the tank and chopped them up. I remember you begging Mum to let you take them home and keep them as pets.’

  Michael laughed. ‘And I remember you getting great pleasure out of watching the poor little fuckers being chopped up alive. Once a sadistic bastard, always a sadistic bastard – that’s you all over.’

  Vinny grabbed his brother in a playful headlock. ‘Moooooo,’ he shouted in his ear.

  Still laughing, Michael pushed Vinny away. His brother had kept to his promise and not mentioned Trevor’s death any more, but Vinny had never let him forget that the cows had scared the living daylights out of him that evening in East Hanningfield.

  ‘Shall we have a beer in the Beggar before we head back to Mum’s?’ Vinny suggested.

  ‘Yeah, why not.’

  There was a real party atmosphere inside the pub. Men had left their women at home to prepare for the street parties and the pub was packed. Laughter filled the air and Vinny only wished he felt as happy as every other bastard.

  As usual, whenever Vinny and Michael set foot inside a local pub they were treated like royalty. Men fell over themselves to chat to them and buy them drinks, but Vinny knew that it wasn’t because he and Michael were overly popular. It was because they
were feared.

  Vinny handed Big Stan a wad of notes. ‘The drinks are on me. Shout one up for yourself and whoever else wants one. Get me and Michael a pint of lager and a whisky chaser each. We’re gonna sit at that table in the corner ’cause we’ve got some business to discuss.’

  ‘What’s up?’ Michael asked as they sat down at the only free table in the pub.

  Vinny was about to reply when a group of men at the next table broke into an out-of-tune rendition of ‘Land of Hope and Glory’.

  ‘Oh, for Christ’s sake! Tell ’em to shut the fuck up, Michael,’ Vinny ordered.

  Michael turned around and smiled at the war veteran, Mr Arthur. He was singing at the top of his voice and had his medals pinned proudly on his suit jacket. Nobody knew the old boy’s first name; rumour had it that he’d been christened Arthur Arthur, which would explain why he kept quiet about it.

  Turning back to Vinny, Michael said, ‘Look, I know you’ve got a lot on your plate at the moment. Believe me, so have I. I am in no fucking frame of mind to celebrate and party today, but we can’t stop other people enjoying themselves. In fact, we should make an effort to forget our troubles just for today for the sake of our family. Mum and Auntie Viv won’t be happy if we turn up at the party with faces like smacked arses.’

  ‘Yeah, you’re right. So, what’s bugging you?’

  ‘You go first.’

  Vinny admitted to Michael how worried he was about the safety of his children. ‘If someone has got it in for me that badly they could be capable of anything, bruv. Jo said her mum hadn’t long left when that brick was chucked through the window, and it’s made me wonder if someone was watching the house. At first I thought it might be Bobby Jackson, but he’s banged up now so it can’t be. And surely Preston wouldn’t organize for somebody to frighten and potentially hurt his daughter and grandkid just because he hates me?’

  ‘Well, apart from those flowers being sent in the shape of a gun, everything else that has happened is the sort of stuff kids would do. The graffiti, your car being done and the window being smashed – that isn’t the work of some big boy. I told you I saw two little herberts sat opposite the club the other day. Perhaps it was them? You ain’t upset any kids lately, have you?’

  ‘No, only me own son.’

  Michael raised his eyebrows. ‘Well, perhaps you should look a bit closer to home then. I mean, if Little Vinny is jealous of Molly, who knows what strokes he might pull.’

  Vinny felt sick. Surely he wasn’t being terrorized by his own flesh and blood? Desperate for a change of subject, he enquired about his brother’s problems.

  Michael admitted he had spent the previous night with Bella and told him the sex was the best he had ever had. ‘I don’t know what I’m gonna do. I think I’m falling head over heels for her. If it weren’t for the boys, I’d walk away from Nancy tomorrow, but I can’t care for them on my own and do my job, and I know Nance would fight me tooth and nail for them.’

  ‘Nancy’s a registered nutjob, Michael. Get yourself a good brief. If you move in with Bella, she can look after the boys while you work.’

  Michael shook his head. ‘Bella’s not like that, Vin. She’s a model, a good-time girl. Her gaff is like a palace and I just know she wouldn’t be very child friendly. Anyway, she’s often away for a week or two at a time. She’s off to Italy next week to do a shoot and visit her parents.’

  ‘Get a live-in nanny then,’ Vinny suggested.

  ‘It’s not that easy, Vin. Nancy said something to me earlier that made me think. She said how heartbroken Daniel and Adam would be if we split up and they couldn’t live with Lee any more. Nancy is right. The boys would all be devastated.

  Vinny tutted. ‘The crafty bitch is playing mind games with you. Ignore the fucking psycho.’

  Michael sighed. ‘I know Nancy isn’t the best mother in the world, but she does love them boys. I couldn’t take them away from her, even if the court gave me custody – which they wouldn’t. Her mother would go apeshit too, and I’m very fond of Mary.’

  ‘So, what you gonna do then?’

  ‘I suppose I’ll have to finish with Bella before I get in any deeper. I can’t see that I’ve got much choice.’

  Back at the party, Queenie and Vivian were having a whale of a time. There had been a few tears this morning when they had spoken about their sons who were no longer with them, but they had then made a pact not to mention them during the party so they could enjoy themselves.

  Mrs Mills had certainly livened up the day. ‘My Old Man’s a Dustman’, ‘Any Old Iron’, ‘Underneath the Arches’ and ‘Maybe It’s Because I’m a Londoner’ had already been sung loud and proud, but when ‘I’ve Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts’ blasted out of the speakers, Queenie and Viv both stood up to do their little party piece.

  ‘Is Nan and Auntie Viv drunk, Mum? They’re dancing funny,’ Tara asked her mother.

  ‘Yes, and she has the cheek to talk about me,’ Brenda hissed.

  Nancy and Joanna were getting along as if they had known one another for years. Neither had properly met before and both girls were so pleased that the other was at the party as their men seemed to have done a disappearing act. They had mainly chatted about their kids, but Joanna had just told Nancy about the brick flying through her window.

  ‘Oh my God! That must have been awful. Thank goodness it missed Molly and you. I can’t believe how gorgeous she is, Jo. She’s made me want a little girl.’

  ‘You’ll have to get Michael into a baby-making mood.’

  ‘Chance would be a fine thing. We rarely get any us time now. It’s all about the boys.’

  ‘I know that feeling and I’ve only got the one child.’

  Brenda glared at Nancy and Joanna. Both were pretty and slim and neither would ever have to worry about money, having got their claws into her brothers. ‘You want to think yourself lucky, yous two, instead of moaning. You should be in my shoes, bringing up two nippers with no man and no money. You’d have every right to whinge then.’

  ‘We was only joking, Brenda,’ Joanna said apologetically.

  ‘Don’t be worrying about her. She’s had a face like it’s been smacked with a wet fish all day,’ Vivian said as she sat back down at the table.

  Spotting Michael and Vinny walking along with the seafood, Queenie shouted, ‘Where you two been? Get them eels in the fridge. All the bloody jelly will be melted, the time you took, and you know how I love me jelly.’

  ‘Dad, can me and Ben have a lager shandy? Billy Malcolm’s dad said he can have one, but Nan said I had to ask you first.’

  Vinny stared his son in the eyes. He so hoped what Michael had said wasn’t true, but the more he thought about it, the more he reckoned it was a strong possibility. There was no way the flowers were anything to do with the boy, but the other three incidents could well be his and Ben Bloggs’ handiwork. And Little Vinny certainly had a motive. He was as jealous as hell of Jo and the baby, that much was obvious to a blind man.

  ‘Well, can I, Dad?’

  ‘No,’ snapped Vinny. ‘You fucking well can’t.’

  After the party ended, Queenie and Vivian both sat glued to the telly, watching the highlights of the Jubilee. ‘Dead smart in that turquoise, the Queen, ain’t she, Viv?’

  ‘Looks lovely. Weren’t it a good day? Shame we don’t have street parties more often. I even quite liked the neighbours today. Reminded me of the war. It was that type of British bulldog spirit, wasn’t it?’

  ‘I loved the singalong. Took me back to the old days, when every pub had a piano in it. Not that me and you ever got taken out that often, mind. Our fault for marrying arseholes, I suppose.’

  ‘Speaking of the singalong, I ain’t ’arf missed me Wheeltappers and Shunters. Has it been as good? I never saw it when I was in hospital. The miserable bastards wouldn’t let me watch it.’

  ‘It’s the last in the series this week. Mouthy Maureen said they ain’t making no more. How the hell she knows is anyone’s gues
s. Perhaps Bernard Manning rang her up personally? Good job she went to her daughter’s today, eh? Party wouldn’t have been the same with her sticking her oar in. I’m sure she was the one who spread the rumour that you were in a nuthouse. I pulled her on it, but she denied all knowledge. Did anyone say anything to you?’

  Vivian giggled. ‘Nosy Hilda and Big Stan asked me. I told them that I went to stay with our distant cousin in the Cotswolds and I spent months there because I met a rich man.’

  Queenie was open-mouthed. ‘Viv, you didn’t say that.’

  ‘Yeah, I did, but the best part was when Nosy Hilda pulled me aside just after we all sang “Daisy Daisy”. She wanted to know if my fancy man would be visiting me in Whitechapel.’

  ‘What did you say to her?’

  ‘I told her I split up with him because his dingle-dangle didn’t work properly. Oh, Queen, it was hysterical. I don’t know how I didn’t laugh. Her face was an absolute picture.’

  Queenie burst out laughing. Any worries she might have had about Viv sinking back into depression had now well and truly vanished. ‘That story will be round the whole of Whitechapel by tomorrow.’

  Such was her laughter, Vivian had a stitch and was holding her sides. ‘Good! At least while the nosy bastards are talking about me, they’re leaving some other poor unsuspecting sod alone.’

  Vinny Butler pulled up outside the restaurant in Stratford he part owned with Ahmed and Nick and got out of the car. He had an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach and he wasn’t sure if it was down to his son or his distrust of most Turks.

  Ahmed was inside the restaurant already. Probably because of the Jubilee, the place was nigh-on empty. ‘Vinny, my friend. It is a pleasure for me to introduce Hakan and Bora to you.’

  The first thing that struck Vinny was how well dressed both men were. Hakan was in a black pin-striped suit, Bora in a plain charcoal-grey one, but Vinny knew his suits and could tell the expensive from the cheap.