Jimmy O’Hara met his contact in the Derby Digger in Wickford. Bobby Berkley was a lifelong family friend and was also the brother of Pete Berkley, who was coming towards the end of a ten stretch in Belmarsh. Pete was willing to carry out the killing of Ronny and Paulie alone for the sum of twenty grand.
At first Jimmy had ummed and aahed over the wonga Pete demanded. He knew a few travellers in Belmarsh who would probably do the job a lot cheaper, but in the end, he had decided to stump up the cash. Mitchell had given him thirty, so whatever he shelled out, he was still in credit and that thought made Jimmy smile. Mitchell paying him to kill his own brothers while giving him a good drink on top was the stuff that dreams were made of.
Bobby Berkley stood up and shook Jimmy’s hand. ‘What are you drinking, pal?’
‘I’ll have a pint of bitter,’ Jimmy said, sitting down at the table.
Bobby returned with the drinks and the men got straight down to business.
‘As agreed, there’s five up front and you’ll get the other fifteen when the job’s done,’ Jimmy said, as he handed Bobby an envelope under the table.
‘I’m visiting Pete on Wednesday and will tell him it’s all systems go. He’s on the same wing as Ronny and Paulie and he’s already been watching their movements,’ Bobby said.
‘I don’t care how he does it, I just want ’em both dead and I want it done before Christmas.’
Bobby nodded understandingly. ‘Don’t worry. Pete won’t let you down.’
Back in Rainham, Joycie Smith was starting to get very worried. She still hadn’t heard a dickie bird from Stanley, and had no idea of his whereabouts. When Stanley had had his little tantrums in the past, he’d always gone to Jock’s or their old house in Upney. He was at neither this time, as he’d fallen out with Jock and their old house had now been sold.
Joyce made herself a brew and sat on the sofa feeling desperately sorry for herself. Their house was in the middle of nowhere, down a country lane, and without Stanley and the car, Joyce felt like a prisoner in her own home. There wasn’t even a bus stop nearby. Stanley always drove her to and from the nearest one if she wanted to go into Romford or somewhere. Knowing that she would need to go food shopping in the next day or two, Joycie’s worry quickly turned to fury. She debated whether to ring Joey and Dominic and ask them to take her to Tesco tomorrow, but immediately decided against it. The poor little sods lived miles away and it wasn’t fair to keep spoiling their weekends. Getting more angry by the second, Joyce picked up the phone and dialled Jock’s number.
‘Jock, it’s me, Joycie. Have you found out where that senile old bastard is yet?’
‘I haven’t, Joycie. I ain’t heard a word from him, love.’
‘Well, I need you to do me a favour. I’ve got hardly no food here and I need to do a shop, so you’re gonna have to go to his little drinking haunts and find him for me. I need him to come home now, Jock.’
‘I don’t think Stanley’s gonna take orders from me, Joycie. The best I can do is pop up to where the pigeon club drinks and see if I can find out where he’s staying. If so, I’ll get the address for you.’
‘Thank you, and if you get no joy, let me know and I’m calling the police. The old goat could be lying dead in a ditch for all I know. Then again, I doubt I’d be that lucky.’
Jock laughed at Joycie’s warped sense of humour. ‘I’ll go and see if I can find out anything now and I’ll bell you as soon as I have any news.’
Eddie held Frankie close to his chest. Her hair had been styled, she had make-up on and, even though she was pregnant, she looked a damn sight better than she ever had when she was with Jed.
‘Wow, you look well. Been having a makeover in here, have ya?’
Frankie grinned and sat down. ‘My cellmate Babs made me up. She’s well cool, Dad. Babs is Jamaican and we get on so well. You know when you meet someone and just click? We’re gonna be friends for life, I know we are.’
Eddie frowned. Joey had told him all about this Babs bird and he wasn’t happy at all that his beautiful daughter was sharing a cell with a murderer. ‘You shouldn’t get too friendly with this girl, Frankie. Joey mentioned her to me. She’s up for murder, ain’t she?’
Frankie was instantly annoyed. She knew her dad was only concerned about her welfare, but he could be an irritating bastard at times. ‘Look, I know you’re worried about me, but give me a bit of credit, will ya? I know a wrong ’un when I meet one, living with Jed taught me that. I am currently in Holloway, Dad, so I’m hardly going to be sharing my cell with a nun or a good Samaritan, am I? Babs is truly lovely and I was gonna tell you a bit about what happened to her, but now you’re being a stroppy arsehole, I ain’t gonna bother.’
Eddie held his hands up in an ‘I surrender’ gesture. Frankie was a fiery little cow, she took after him and he hadn’t come here to argue with her. ‘I’m sorry, babe. I just worry about you, that’s all.’
‘Well, you’ve no need to worry. I am quite capable of choosing my own friends and I also know how to look after myself. You really do wind me up sometimes, Dad. When you were inside, you shared with Stuart, who was also a murderer, yet he was the greatest thing since sliced bread. And what about our family? I mean, we’re hardly the fucking Waltons, are we?’
Eddie grinned. His daughter most definitely had the Mitchell sense of humour. ‘So, how’s your pregnancy going? Is everything OK?’ he asked, cleverly changing the subject.
The mention of her unborn baby was enough to make Frankie calm down. ‘Everything’s fine. Me and Babs went to this antenatal lesson the other day. This posh woman took it and we had such a laugh. I feel a bit fat, but other than that I feel fit and healthy. I’ve had hardly no sickness with this one at all.’
Eddie nodded. He was dreading telling her that the kids had run away, but she was their mother and needed to know because of the civil court case that was being arranged. ‘I’ve got some news for ya, but I don’t want you to panic, ’cause it’s created some good as well.’
Frankie’s face turned deathly white when her father told the story of Georgie and Harry’s little escapade. ‘So they ran away to find me?’ Frankie asked, bursting into tears.
Eddie took his daughter’s hand in his. He was desperate to comfort her, but he didn’t really know how to. ‘Look, don’t cry. The kids are fine, honest, and I think they’re gonna be allowed to visit you up here now. That social worker Larry got involved is taking the case to court. She reckons it’s in their best interests to see you regularly.’
Frankie’s eyes shone with a mixture of tears and happiness. ‘Oh Dad, I’ve missed them so much. When do you think I can see them?’
‘We’ve gotta wait for a date for the court hearing first, but it should be soon. The social worker reckons they might be able to have some sort of contact with your nan, as well.’
‘Did Nan make a fuss of the kids? How are she and Grandad?’ Frankie asked.
‘The same as ever. Stanley weren’t there when I went round. Joycie and him have been rowing again, but she was over the moon to see Georgie and Harry.’
‘So how did Georgie and Harry look? Did they look clean and well fed? You know how fussy Georgie is with her food, do you think she’s been eating OK?’
The kids had turned up at Joycie’s door in an awful state, but Eddie wasn’t about to tell Frankie that, as a lot of it was down to the trek they’d endured. ‘They both looked well and they ain’t ’arf got big. Georgie’s really tall now and they’re definitely being fed OK, as Harry’s shot up and looks as sturdy as a bull.’
Frankie thought of her two beautiful children and smiled. She then bombarded her father with