The Traitor (38 page)

Seeing his niece was about to chase Madonna once more, Joey picked up the dog, put her out in the garden and locked the back door. He turned to Dominic. They had planned to go to a friend’s house for lunch, but there was no way they could take the kids with them.

‘You’ll have to ring Rob and tell him we can’t make it today,’ Joey said.

‘Can’t you ring Jed, see if he can pick the kids up?’ Dominic replied.

Joey shook his head. ‘Frankie said he’s working away this weekend and she made me promise not to call him. Let’s just find a pub with a kids’ play area or something. I don’t know exactly what trouble Frankie’s in, but they have to release her soon, surely?’

Dominic picked up Harry. ‘Do you want to go out to play?’

As Harry giggled and hugged Dominic, Joey went into the kitchen and knelt down to speak to Georgie.

‘If I take you out to play, will you promise me you’ll eat some lunch at the pub?’

Georgie was bored with being stuck indoors. ‘I promise I’ll eat all my lunch, Uncle Joey,’ she lied.

Frankie thanked the waitress as she brought over her jumbo sausage in a roll and two mugs of steaming coffee. Unlike Kerry, Frankie was ravenous.

‘So what exactly did they charge you with?’ Frankie asked her friend.

‘ABH. They said Sammy had needed twelve stitches in his head or something.’

‘What did you tell them? Did you admit to it?’

‘I said it was a shame the bastard didn’t need twelve-hundred stitches. To be honest, Frankie, that woman who nicked us was quite nice to me once she heard the full story. She said she’s gonna speak to Sammy and if he agrees not to prosecute, the charges will probably be dropped.’

Frankie nodded. ‘They just gave me a caution for affray. I think them men that grabbed hold of you told the Old Bill I was kicking and punching ’em. I ain’t gotta go back or nothing.’

As Frankie munched on her roll, Kerry drank her coffee in silence.

‘So, what you gonna do now? I ain’t gonna be able to handle living in Wickford without ya. Where you gonna go?’ said Frankie.

‘Somewhere where Sammy can’t find me. My sister’s just moved to Pitsea. I’ve only been to her new house once and Sammy ain’t got the address, so I might stop there for a bit. There’s no point me going to me mum’s, as he knows where she lives and I don’t wanna cause her no grief. If I give you my key, I need you to grab my clothes, the kids’ clothes and some of their toys for me. I can meet you somewhere or you can bring ’em to my sister’s house if you want, but be careful you ain’t followed.’

Frankie nodded as Kerry handed her the key to her trailer. Living on that remote piece of land without Kerry was going to be lonely and boring, especially when Jed was at work, but she couldn’t burden Joey and Dom, and apart from her grandparents, she had nowhere else to go.

‘I wonder if Jed was round at Sally’s and if that bird Sammy was with is one of her friends. I mean, Jed had to be involved somehow, it’s too much of a coincidence that both old slappers live on the same estate.’

Kerry nodded. ‘I’d like to know where they parked the motor. Surely Jed never dropped Sammy off then went to work on his own. After what’s happened lately, I hate both of ’em, Frankie. My family warned me not to get involved with a travelling boy, they said they were bad news, and they were so bloody right.’

‘My family said the same and I wished I’d have listened to them now. What am I gonna say to Jed? Sammy’s bound to have told him what happened. I wish I had proof that Jed was at it as well – I could leave him then. This is such a mess, Kerry, and I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I really wish I wasn’t pregnant again.’

Kerry squeezed Frankie’s hand. ‘Can I borrow your phone to ring my sister?’

‘I haven’t got it on me. It’s under the seat in the car and the battery’ll be well dead by now. Let’s walk down to that cab firm in the high street. We can get a taxi, go pick the car up, find a phone box, and then I’ll drop you at your sister’s.’

Kerry gave a weak smile. ‘Thanks, Frankie, and I want you to know, whatever happens in the future, you are and always will be the best friend I’ve ever had.’

Unaware of the heartache his sister was currently going through, Joey sipped his beer and smiled as Dominic pushed an excited Harry on the swing. Georgie was on the roundabout with three other little kids and seemed very hyper, considering she hadn’t yet eaten or slept.

‘Come and sit down at the table now, Georgie. I’ve ordered you and Harry burger and chips,’ he shouted.

The sun was blazing and, enjoying the heat, Joey tilted his head so his face was facing its rays. He shut his eyes and as Madonna, who was perched on his lap, adoringly kissed his chin, he smiled.

‘Where’s Georgie?’ he heard Dominic shout, a minute or so later.

Joey opened his eyes and looked at the roundabout. His niece was nowhere to be seen. ‘She was on there,’ he said, pointing to the apparatus. He immediately stood up and ran over to the other kids still sitting on there.

‘The little girl that was on here with you, where did she go?’

‘Don’t know,’ one kid mumbled. The other two looked at him blankly.

As Dominic ran towards him with Harry in his arms, Joey felt a sense a panic. Surely no one could have snatched her. He’d only looked away for a minute or two, at the most.

‘You check inside the pub while I search out here. Check the toilets in case she’s gone in there, Dom.’

The pub that they’d chosen to take the kids to had woodland nearby, so Joey ran towards it. ‘Georgie, Georgie!’ he shouted at the top of his voice. After a fruitless five minutes of peering behind trees, he ran back towards the pub.

‘Any joy?’ he asked Dominic hopefully.

Dominic shook his head. ‘I’ve just been talking to the guvnor. He and the barmaids have looked everywhere. She’s not inside the pub, Joey.’

Ashen-faced, Joey started to cry. ‘What are we gonna do? What am I gonna tell Frankie?’

Dominic was also scared. Only last week there was an awful story in the paper about a young girl being snatched by a paedophile. ‘There’s only one thing we can do, Joey. We have to call the police.’

Over in Rush Green, Frankie had just picked up her car and stopped at a phone box so Kerry could ring her sister.

‘Aren’t you going to ring Joey?’ Kerry asked her.

‘No. I’m gonna pop home first, see if Jed’s there.’

Kerry and Frankie were both quiet on the journey to Pitsea. Kerry felt as if the bottom had fallen out of her world and Frankie was dreading going home, as she guessed that Jed would be there waiting for her.

As Frankie pulled up outside Kerry’s sister’s house, she leaned over and hugged her best friend. ‘Keep your chin up and I’ll get your stuff and ring you as soon as possible. I’ve put your sister’s phone number in my purse.’

Kerry opened the car door. ‘Thanks for everything, Frankie, and good luck with Jed. I’ve a feeling you’re gonna need it, mate.’

Frankie felt sick as she approached Wickford. Sammy was bound to have contacted Jed and she wasn’t in the mood to listen to him or his bullshit.

As she pulled up on the land, the first thing she saw was Jed’s Shogun. Seconds later he came out of Sammy’s trailer and walked towards her. ‘You all right, babe? I’ve been so worried about you, been ringing your phone all day, I have.’

Picking up her bag and phone, Frankie pushed him away as he tried to hug her. ‘Me battery’s dead. I need to charge it.’

Jed followed her inside the trailer. ‘Sammy told me what happened. Where are Georgie and Harry?’

Frankie plugged her phone into the charger. ‘They’re with Joey.’

Seconds later, Sammy burst into the trailer. ‘Where’s Kerry?’ he yelled.

Frankie glared at him. ‘Get out of my trailer.’

‘Tell me where she is, Frankie. I’ve every right to know where my boys are.’

Frankie stood with her hands on her hips. ‘You lost all your rights last night, you dirty, cheating scumbag. I’ve no idea where Kerry has gone and even if I did know, I wouldn’t tell you.’

‘I’m sorry. It ain’t what you think, Frankie. If I can see Kerry, talk to her, I can explain. I’ve been to the gavvers and got her charges dropped. I told ’em it was all my fault.’

‘Well, that’s fucking big of you! Both of yous are born liars. All these weekends you’ve supposedly been working away and I bet the pair of you have been out whoring.’

Frankie pointed at her unusually quiet boyfriend. ‘Him with that slag Sally and you with that old dog you was with last night. And I bet the kid that was with you is your fucking kid. Animals you are, the pair of ya.’

Realising that Sammy’s presence was riling Frankie to the point of no return, Jed ushered him outside. ‘Let me speak to her, smooth things over. I’ll find out where Kerry is for ya, don’t worry,’ he whispered.

Jed walked back inside with his hands in a surrender pose above his head. ‘Whatever Sammy has done has nothing to do with me, Frankie. I was working last night. Ring me dad if you don’t believe me, he was working alongside me.’

‘You’ve probably already spoken to your dad and clued him up as to what to say. Don’t treat me like I’m some fucking idiot, Jed, ’cause I ain’t. You were with that Sally last night, I know you was, so just be a man and admit it.’

Jed sank to his knees in front of her. ‘I swear I weren’t, Frankie. On my life, I wasn’t and I can prove it. Me and me old man had a drink in a little boozer in Norfolk last night. We were in there a good couple of hours and we were chatting to the old mush that runs it. Get in the motor now and I’ll drive you up there. You can ask the man for yourself if I was in there.’

Frankie shook her head. Norfolk was miles away and she couldn’t be arsed. Deciding Jed could, for once, be telling the truth, she flopped onto the sofa. ‘You must have dropped Sammy round that bird’s before you went to work. Don’t insult my intelligence by pretending you know nothing about what he’s been up to, Jed.’

Jed ran his fingers through his hair. Frankie believed he had been to Norfolk, so he decided not to push his luck. ‘Yeah, I did know about the bird and yeah, I did drop him round there. He met her in a boozer one night, her name’s Julie. I’ve told him he’s fucking mad and I’ve begged him to end it. “You’ve got too much to lose, Sammy. You’ll never find a girl as decent as Kerry,” I’ve told him.’

‘How long’s he been seeing her? Is the kid she’s got his?’

Jed shook his head. ‘Nah, it ain’t his kid. I think he’s been seeing her about six months – well, that’s what he told me. I wasn’t there when he met her, he was out with his brothers. To be honest, Frankie, he don’t tell me much ’cause he knows I don’t agree with what he’s doing. I know I had a fling with Sally that time, but I could never have carried on seeing her behind your back. I couldn’t live with the guilt. Sammy’s a dinlo, I’ve told him that.’

Frankie looked Jed in the eyes. His face was a picture of innocence and if he was lying, the bastard was a world-beater at it.

‘Where is Kerry? Is she OK?’ Jed asked in a concerned voice.

‘She’s fine. She’s gone to visit her cousin up north,’ Frankie lied.

‘Up north! Whereabouts does her cousin live, then?’

‘I dunno. She did say, but it was a place I’d never heard of.’

‘Where you going?’ Jed asked as Frankie stood up.

‘I’m gonna ring Joey and go and pick the kids up.’

Frankie switched on her phone and punched in Joey’s number. Her brother answered immediately, his voice full of panic. ‘What? I can’t understand what you’re saying, Joey. Talk slower, will you?’

‘What’s up?’ Jed asked, concerned.

Frankie let out a piercing scream. ‘Georgie’s gone missing,’ she sobbed.

Unaware of the chaos she had created, Georgie O’Hara had managed to climb up a big tree. It was the mention of burger and chips that had made her run away. Some days she felt incredibly hungry and would eat all day long, but there were other times when the mention of food made her feel tearful and agitated. Today was one of those days, hence her little adventure into the woods.

About to climb further up the tree, Georgie stopped in her tracks as she heard the distinct tone of her father’s voice.

‘Georgie! Georgie girl!’ he shouted. His voice sounded upset and frantic.

Georgie scrambled down and ran out of the woods as fast as her little legs would carry her. ‘Daddy! I’m here, Daddy,’ she screamed.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Eddie Mitchell opened his eyes, remembered what day it was and smiled. Five years he’d done, five long, poxy years and today was the day that he was finally set free.

Ed stared at the ceiling as he reminisced over the time he’d spent in Wandsworth. He’d been a broken man on his arrival, his fatal mistake had cost him not only his freedom, but also his mind. Picturing Jessica’s pretty face, Eddie wondered if she could see him from heaven and, if that was the case, he hoped that she approved of Gina and was pleased that he’d found happiness again.

Wiping a solitary tear from his eye, Eddie sat up. It was time to start concentrating on his future instead of dwelling on the past. Gina was coming to pick him up today and he couldn’t wait to spend some time alone with her.

It was only last week that Eddie had admitted the romance to his two oldest sons.

‘We’ll be waiting outside the gates for you, Dad. We’ve decorated the spare room and we want you to move in with us until you buy your own place,’ Gary said.

Ed hesitated, then told them the truth. ‘Look, there’s something you need to know, lads, but you can’t tell a soul – not yet, anyway. You know that private detective, the one that stood up for me in court?’

‘What, that Gina bird?’ Ricky asked.

‘Yeah, Gina. Well me and her have become really close. She’s the one that’s been visiting me and stuff and we’ve decided to move in together.’

Gary looked at his father as though he had lost his marbles. ‘You’re having us on, right? You can’t be serious – you barely know the fucking woman.’