The Betrayer

by Kimberley Chambers

  Ethel shook her head. ‘I bet you any money you like, he changes out of them clothes as soon as he leaves the house. My mate Lil saw him last week, said he looked a million dollars in a dark grey suit. Glad saw him as well, standing in the betting shop done up to the nines.’

  Hearing the names Lil and Glad put Maureen’s mind at rest. Both were going senile and were blind as bats. ‘I know you’re usually right, Mum, but you’re wrong this time. He’s my flesh and blood and I can sense when he’s lying.’

  Shrugging her shoulders, Ethel said no more. She knew full well that the little bastard was up to no good, but like all mothers, herself included, Maureen was destined to learn the hard way.

  Thinking of her mother-in-law, Maureen smiled. She was too proud to admit it, but for once Ethel had been proved wrong. Last Friday, Tommy had been made foreman at his new job and he’d even given her half of his £200 bonus.

  ‘I’m not taking it, son. It’s your bonus, you’ve worked hard for that. You keep it.’

  ‘Mum, I don’t want it. Look, you stuck by me through thick and thin when I was in nick. Now I’m doing well at work, I wanna show yer how grateful I am. If yer don’t take it I’ll be really annoyed, so please don’t insult me.’

  With tears in her eyes, Maureen put it in her purse. ‘Well? Ain’t it time you admitted you were wrong, Mum?’ she gloated to Ethel.

  Ethel kept schtum. She was too busy trying to fathom out what robbery the lying little bastard had been involved in.

  With James and Tommy both sorted with work, Maureen was determined to help Susan find something. Since leaving school seven years ago, her daughter had grafted for the grand total of two weeks. Packing sardines into tins was her only career move to date and she’d been living off the state ever since. But recently Maureen had been flabbergasted by the change in her daughter’s behaviour. Gone was the stroppy, nasty little cow and in her place was a nice, polite young lady.

  ‘Have you got a new boyfriend?’ she’d asked her a few weeks back.

  ‘Actually, Mum, I wanted to talk to you about that.’

  Sitting opposite her, Susan held her hand for the first time since infancy.

  ‘It’s Kevin, Mum. We’re trying for a baby and we’re gonna move in together. He’s a changed man, honest.’

  Maureen shrugged her shoulders. What was the point of reminding her that he’d knocked her senseless? She wouldn’t listen, she never did.

  Surprised that her mum hadn’t gone into one, Susan carried on talking. ‘I swear, Mum, he really has changed. He’s gonna get a job to provide for me and the baby, and he’ll be a brilliant dad.’

  Maureen felt like laughing as she heard the words ‘Kevin’, ‘job’ and ‘provide’ in the same sentence. Her daughter’s boyfriend was the laziest bastard ever to walk this planet. Looking at Susan’s happy face, she decided not to broach the job conversation. If Susan had decided to try for kids, getting a job was totally pointless anyway. Maureen smiled at her sympathetically. She was a lost cause, bless her, it ran in the family. All the women, including her and Ethel, had ended up with bastards.

  ‘If you’re happy, Susan and it’s what you want, then I really hope it works out for yer. I’ll always worry about him knocking yer about, though.’

  ‘Honestly, he ain’t laid a finger on me for ages. I swear on my life, he really has changed. Give him another chance, Mum. If he’s gonna be the father of your first grandchild, you’ve gotta bury the hatchet at some point. Please, Mum, let him back in the house. Even if you can’t forgive him, just do it for my sake.’

  Not wanting to burst her daughter’s bubble, Maureen reluctantly agreed. Unable to forget the six hours she’d sat up in casualty after he’d knocked the shit out of Susan, Maureen barely spoke to Kevin at first. She’d only mellowed the last week or so. He’d tried so hard to be polite and Susan was so bloody happy with him that Maureen eventually called a truce.

  ‘I’ll give yer one final chance to prove yourself, Kev, but if you ever lay a finger on my daughter again, I will personally fuckin’ kill you.’

  Kevin was delighted to finally be forgiven. ‘I love Susan and I swear I’ll never hurt her again. We’re happy now and when she has my kids, I’m gonna be the best dad and boyfriend in the world.’

  Enjoying her daydream, Maureen was jolted back to reality by the sound of the front door opening.

  ‘We’re early and we’re starving, Mum.’

  Handing her sons a plate of bread and dripping, she shooed them out from under her feet.

  ‘You’ll have to wait for yer dinner, boys. Glad’s gone missing again, Nanny’s out looking for her and Susan and Kevin ain’t arrived yet.’

  Tommy smiled. ‘As we’ve missed out on valuable drinking time for no reason, I’m gonna pop up the offie. Do yer fancy a Guinness, Mum?’

  ‘Yes please, love, and James, can you knock next door and speak to Maria while dinner’s cooking? Twice today and once yesterday that poor girl’s knocked here for yer. I know yer like spending all your time with Tommy now, but you’ve been mates with her for years and yer can’t just dump her like a bag of old rags.’

  Feeling incredibly guilty about the way he’d been treating Maria, James took a slow walk up the path. He’d apologised weeks ago for the argument they’d had, but had avoided her like the plague ever since.

  When Maria opened the door, his stomach did its usual somersault. ‘All right, mate? I’ve just got in and Mum said you knocked earlier.’

  Elated to see him, Maria’s face lit up.

  ‘I wondered if you fancied coming to the pictures with me tonight? I’ve checked out the films and there’s a good horror on. Please say yes, James. We haven’t been out together for ages and I know you always enjoy making me jump.’

  Wanting to say yes more than anything in the world, James shook his head. ‘I can’t tonight Maria, I’ve already made arrangements,’ he lied.

  Determined not to melt at the sight of her beautiful face, he stared at the ground. It had been two months now since he’d first admitted his true feelings for her to Tommy, and ever since then his brother had forced him on a mission.

  ‘You want her, James, just do as I say and you’ll get her. Stage one, stay away from her. Obviously you’re gonna see her, ’cause she lives next door, but don’t be alone with her at all.’

  James nodded. ‘What am I gonna say when she knocks and wants to do stuff?’

  ‘You say you’re busy, you div.’

  Tommy smiled at his brother’s naivety. Ten years he’d been locked up, and he could still teach James a thing or two about women. ‘Stage two, you start coming down the gym with me, you get that bastard hair cut and you let me take you shopping to sort your wardrobe out. The shell suits need binning, James, you look a knob in ’em.’

  Not one to take offence, James laughed. ‘What’s stage three?’

  ‘Stage three’s the happy ending. She can’t fail to notice how good you look and she’ll be missing you dreadfully. Within weeks, she’ll be begging to see yer. Obviously you say no, yer need her to realise she was in love with you all along and actually admit it to yer before you give in.’

  James had never believed that the plan would work, but when Maria grabbed his hand, he began to think that he would make it to stage three after all.

  ‘Please tell me what’s the matter, James. I know you’ve been spending time with your brother, but I know it’s not just that. Have I done something to upset you? Tell me if I have, because I don’t know what I’ve done wrong.’

  Eyes glued to the ground, James shook his head. ‘You ain’t done nothing to upset me, Maria.’

  ‘Please come to the pictures with me. We need to talk, sort things out. There must be something wrong.’

  Pulling his hand away, James spoke abruptly. ‘I can’t, Maria, I’ve already told yer I’m busy.’

  As he went to walk away, he was aware that she was crying. Praying for her to declare her undying love, his heart was in his mouth when she ca
lled him back. ‘What do you want, Maria?’ he asked hopefully.

  ‘I just want you to know that I hate your guts, James Hutton, and I never, ever want to see you again.’

  Furious, Maria slammed the door in his face. Shocked by her words, James trudged away, heartbroken.

  SIXTEEN

  ‘What’s the time?’ Freddie asked impatiently.

  Ignoring the butterflies leaping about in his stomach, Tommy glanced at his watch.

  ‘Half bloody two. I told yer we should have waited a bit.’

  Freddie didn’t answer. Tommy always got like this before a job; his nerves got the better of him and he’d do nothing but moan in the lead-up to it.

  Glancing towards the betting shop, Tommy could feel the sweat running down the back of his neck. So far, him and Freddie had been thoroughly successful in their promising new career. They always worked alone, were careful not to show off any wealth and studied thoroughly any job they chose to do. In reality, today’s little number should be a doddle.

  An independent bookmakers owned by a simple old boy. They’d been watching the gaff for weeks and, apart from the owner and some drippy bird behind the counter, there were no other staff. The place itself was a goldmine. The old boy prided himself on giving good odds and, seeing it was situated in the heart of Whitechapel, it was always packed with piss-heads and losers who had nothing better to do than spunk their money up the wall. Tommy and Freddie had been in there the last couple of Fridays. All suited and booted, they’d quietly placed a couple of bets while watching the old boy’s movements. Three o’clock on the dot the owner would count the takings, place the dough in an old blue sports bag and take a nice slow walk towards the bank.

  ‘I can’t believe the lack of security. I mean, Whitechapel’s full of tramps, junkies and winos. How the fuck don’t he get done every week?’ Freddie said.

  Tommy agreed. They didn’t want to hurt the old boy, just planned to teach him a lesson. At three o’clock exactly, the door opened and the man appeared with his blue sports bag.

  As cool as a cucumber, Freddie jumped off the back of the bike, threatened the old boy with a replica gun and made a grab for the bag. The old boy clung to his takings for dear life. A war veteran, he wasn’t going to be frightened by a bit of a kid and a fake shooter.

  ‘Help, thief!’ he screamed as he fell to the ground.

  Aware of passers-by, and a have-a-go hero heading his way, Freddie had no alternative but to leg it empty-handed. Leaping on the back of the stolen motorbike, he grabbed hold of Tommy.

  ‘Go, go, go.’

  Blissfully ignorant of her son’s activities, Maureen was busy preparing dinner. ‘Do yer want me to give yer a hand, Mum? I can peel the potatoes or chop the carrots up if yer want.’

  Maureen shook her head. ‘You sit there and rest, love, I’ve got everything under control.’

  As she listened to Susan gabble on endlessly about baby names, Maureen couldn’t help but smile. Truth be known, she was just as excited as her daughter by the news that she was expecting her first baby. Susan had only found out a fortnight earlier that she was pregnant and since then they’d spoken about little else. She was already eating Maureen out of house and home.

  ‘You sure you’re not having twins?’ Maureen asked jokingly.

  ‘Shut up, Mum. Kevin’ll be too frightened to come to me first scan if yer tell him that.’

  James and Tommy were both excited by the prospect of becoming uncles. Even Ethel was overjoyed by the thought of being a great-gran.

  ‘Be nice to have a nipper in the family again, won’t it, Maur? Shame it’s Kevin’s, though.’

  ‘Don’t say that in front of Susan. She’s ever so happy with him now and you’ll only upset her if yer open your big mouth,’ Maureen said.

  Trust Ethel. She always had to say bloody something.

  Kevin seemed a changed man since he’d learned he was to become a father. He’d even got a job painting and decorating for a local company. Maureen now allowed him to stay most nights; she even referred to him as her ‘son-in-law to be’.

  ‘So whaddya think, Mum? I like Krystal for a girl.’

  Putting the lamb stew in the oven, Maureen sat down and smiled. ‘What about poor Kevin? Doesn’t he get a say?’

  Susan giggled. ‘We couldn’t agree on anything, so what we’ve decided is that if we have a girl, I choose the name and if we have a boy, Kev picks it.’

  ‘What does he wanna call a boy then?’

  ‘He likes all the old-fashioned names. he wants to call it Sid or Harry.’

  Maureen laughed. ‘Let’s hope it’s a boy then, so the poor little mite ain’t called Krystal. You know what your gran’s like, she’ll have a heart attack if yer name it that.’

  Hearing the bell go, Maureen went to answer the door.

  ‘Where’s Susan?’ Kevin screamed excitedly. Waving a letter in his hand, he ran into the kitchen. ‘Guess what this is?’

  Susan shook her head.

  ‘We’ve been offered a flat, Suze. Mum opened it and brought it to me at work. They let me have the rest of the afternoon off, so I shot up the council and got the keys.’

  Susan leaped off her seat. ‘Where is it, Kev? Where is it?’

  Handing her the letter, Kevin waited for her reaction. It wasn’t perfect because it was in a tower block, but it was only ten minutes from her mum’s.

  ‘I know it’s in a tower block, Suze, but it’s one of the low numbers, so it can only be on the third or fourth floor. I think it’s in the same block where Robert King lives. I’ve been inside his flat and it’s well big. He’s only got a one bed and they’ve offered us a two.’

  Susan’s eyes shone, ‘Let’s go and look at it now and if it’s not falling to pieces, we’ll take it.’

  James breathed a sigh of relief when Mr Jones called time and collected the papers. Social Studies was his final exam and he was thrilled that his school days had finally come to an end. His mother had been well and truly on his case for the last few weeks. Lectures, revision, early nights – she’d driven him mad. Now it was time for him to enjoy himself, spend some quality time with his brother before he started full-time work with Harold next month. Laughing and joking with his pals, he felt incredibly happy as he left the building for the very last time.

  Outside the school gates, he saw Maria climb into the blue cabriolet. Since they’d fallen out, she’d regularly been picked up from school by different blokes. His brother insisted she was doing it on purpose because she always seemed to hang about until she spotted him. They hadn’t spoken since the day she’d slammed the door on him. At first he’d been really upset, but he’d since got his head around it. At least now he was leaving school she couldn’t rub her conquests in his face any more. Living next door to her wasn’t a problem either, because whenever he heard her door slam, he now refused to look out of the window. His brother had come up with that idea, insisting that what James didn’t know couldn’t hurt him. It had sort of worked and now he felt he had a grip on the whole Maria situation.

  ‘So, James, we’re gonna meet in Kate Odder’s at seven. We’ll have a couple there and, once everyone’s arrived, we’ll go on a pub crawl.’

  James nodded, said goodbye to his pals and headed off home.

  Tommy and Freddie sat in a pub they weren’t familiar with in Bromley by Bow. They needed to be alone, anonymous, and discuss what the fuck had gone so very wrong.

  ‘I’m telling yer, Tom, the old cunt knew it was a replica gun. That’s where we came unstuck.’

  ‘You sure? He looked a simple old fucker to me.’

  Freddie knocked back his lager. ‘I’m positive. I bet he’s some gun expert or something. I swear I saw him clocking the shooter and he knew it wasn’t real.’

  Tommy lit a fag for both of them. ‘I dunno about you, mate, but we were so close to getting caught, it gave me the willies. Maybe we should have a rethink about what we’re doing. I’m enjoying me freedom and I really don’t wanna
go back inside.’

  Freddie shook his head. ‘Don’t fuckin’ back out on me now, Tom. We had a deal, remember? Look, we ballsed up today, ’cause we didn’t have a proper gun. Do you honestly think if I’d have fired a shot in the air, Mr Have-A-Go Hero would have chased me?’

  Tommy shrugged. ‘Probably not, but what happens if we get caught with a firearm? Do we really wanna take that chance?’

  Freddie smiled. ‘Life’s all about taking chances, Tommy. Think positive, we’re not gonna get caught. All right, I admit today was a close shave, but that was due to our own naivety. A, we never had the right tools for the job and B, we never thought in a million years that the old boy would put up a fight. We’ve gotta learn by this and in future be properly prepared.’

  Tommy spoke nervously. ‘Where we gonna get a gun from? We’ve gotta be careful, it can only be off someone we trust.’

  Freddie moved closer to him. ‘Me uncle Bobby’s the man for that. I’ll set up a meet, we’ll go and see him together.’

  Tommy was worried. ‘I dunno, Fred. It sounds a bit heavy to me.’

  Annoyed, Freddie looked him straight in the eye. ‘Look, Tom, yer can’t let me down, mate. If yer don’t work with me, what else yer gonna do? Serve silly cunts in Tesco? Or knock your plums out on a shitty building site?’

  Tommy knew his mate was talking sense. He’d loved larging it lately with plenty of money in his pocket and there was sod all else he could do. Desperate to redeem himself, he stood up, full of confidence.

  ‘I’m no quitter Fred. Give yer uncle a bell to arrange the meet. Now, whaddya want to drink?’

  Susan couldn’t believe her luck as she ran from room to room. The third-floor flat they’d been offered was not only big, but also immaculate. Her mum and nan had accompanied her and Kevin to view the place and even they were impressed.

  ‘I can get yer a bit of material from the market and run you up some curtains,’ said Maureen.

  ‘And you can have my old table and chairs, I don’t bleedin’ entertain any more,’ Ethel chipped in.