by Martina Cole
It was her Jenny who had really surprised her. Her lovely kind Jenny had been harder than she’d ever thought possible, shrugging off Freddie’s death and putting her energy into winning back Cain Moran’s love. It really was an eye-opener. She had thought her daughter would have run a mile from Cain Moran after what he’d done, but instead she seemed more in love with him than ever.
Jenny was visiting today for the first time since the incident and, in a strange way, Eileen hoped Cain Moran wouldn’t want to have her daughter back. She was even willing to accept that their lifestyle would change drastically if this was the case. She didn’t like the idea that her lovely Jenny – the kindest girl she knew – could so easily dismiss the death of a man who had loved her. Maybe that was why Jenny and Cain made such a good couple. Perhaps Jenny was more like him than either of them realised. It was certainly food for thought.
Chapter One Hundred and Sixteen
Jenny Riley lay on her sofa with a hot whisky and honey and a cigarette, going back over her time with Cain today. She had been terrified when she’d arrived – not of him hurting her, but of him abandoning her. She wished she could feel differently but she loved him and that was that. Even knowing that they had been to blame for Freddie Marks’s demise didn’t make her feel resentment towards the man she loved. It bothered her in some ways that she could never judge him and his actions in normal terms, but hers was a complicated love for a man who, as well as being a violent criminal, was to her also the kindest and most loving person she had ever known.
She had believed deep in her heart that he wouldn’t hurt her – though he might have felt like it – nor would he have got someone else to do it for him. He loved her with every ounce of his being, and this latest episode just proved that to Jenny.
She questioned why she was able to remain unaffected by his actions against Freddie Marks, who was in reality an innocent in this. She felt truly sorry for him – it had been a brutal, vicious end to someone who had only wanted to be with her. But that still didn’t result in her feeling any animosity towards Cain. She had always been aware of just how much he was capable of and so had Freddie Marks.
Her Cain had found it in his heart to forgive her, and that was all that really mattered. Coming so close to losing him had made her realise just how much she needed him. Without him she couldn’t survive, she understood that now. She would never do anything again to make him question her, and vowed to channel her energies into keeping them together. At the end of her visit today he’d asked her to renew their wedding preparations. She was over the moon, and of course she had agreed to make a start as soon as possible. She wanted to belong to him more than ever. And if that meant spending the next fifteen years alone, it was a small price to pay in order to prove her loyalty to him. She wanted to be clean for him again, to be the Jenny he knew and loved.
She regretted her liaison with Freddie Marks so much, not just for the heartache it had caused but because it had given Cain reason to doubt her – something she would never forgive herself for. Well, she had had her moment of madness, and it had come at a terrible price. Now she would work tirelessly to give Cain the life she owed him, the life that she wanted.
He had promised her the Good Life together. It was still a way off, but it was there nonetheless. She would do everything in her power to make sure she was waiting for him to make good on his promise when he got out.
Chapter One Hundred and Seventeen
Cain Moran was lying on his bed thinking of Jenny and everything she had said to him in the visiting room. One thing he was sure of with her was that she wouldn’t lie. When she had told him she’d been thinking of him while she was with Freddie Marks he had known immediately it was the truth – that she had been craving his affection all the while and not that cunt Marks’s. Every time he thought of him he just wanted to murder him all over again.
Not that his feelings for Jenny were all sweetness and light either at the moment; he still felt hurt and humiliated by her actions. But, as the men on his wing had pointed out, she wasn’t the first to go AWOL during a long stretch and she certainly wouldn’t be the last. She had stood true for ten years and that in itself was a feat. After all, with her looks she wasn’t exactly short of attention.
Cain had to control his emotions. He still loved his Jenny with a vengeance; he would always love her, just as she would always love him. They were meant to be, and he wanted no one else. Once the pain of her betrayal had subsided they would get things back on track. She had learned her lesson, and that was a good thing in itself.
He had asked her to marry him again as a way of proving he was willing to put the past behind them. They had survived so much – Caroline’s bitterness, her vicious attack on Jenny, his long incarceration. They would survive this too, and they would come out stronger than ever. Theirs was an unbreakable bond.
Now Cain had re-established himself and his reputation in the Life, Jenny could be an invaluable asset, helping to relay messages and overseeing certain aspects of the monies collected. She wasn’t a fool, his Jenny. It was just a case of putting her indiscretion to the back of his mind, which he was determined to do. She was still a young woman who needed to love and to feel loved, and it was up to him to ensure that she never felt neglected or lonely again. Marrying her would prove his love, and getting her involved in the new operations would be a way of making her feel part of that side of his life.
He would speak to the Osman brothers about it – and they could keep an eye on her at the same time. He might have decided to forgive her, but that didn’t mean he automatically trusted her again. It was something that would take time, but he was willing to try, and that was the main thing.
Sleep was eluding him once more, and he lay listening to the sounds of the prison as he planned the next stage of his life. This was what most of the men did on a regular basis. It was late at night that you needed to tell yourself this couldn’t go on for ever – that one day you would be on the out and living the Good Life again. It was what kept them going.
Book Four
Please remember, I still want you
And in case you wonder why
Well, just wake up
Kiss the good life, goodbye
‘The Good Life’
Music by Sacha Distel and lyrics by Jack Reardon
Chapter One Hundred and Eighteen
2008
Cain Moran was on his mobile phone in the exercise yard while the other inmates played five-a-side football. He was talking to Hasan Osman and the conversation was getting very heated indeed. In fact, they were practically arguing and that was never a good thing. Over the last few months they had been party to their first big disagreement, and it was slowly festering into a full-blown row. It concerned a northern Face by the name of Jason Biggs – a built, loud-mouthed funny-man with a temper that was legendary if he was thwarted. He had three brothers who worked side by side with him, and they were not to be taken for mugs either.
Jason had made a name for himself over the last few years and now ran much of the drug and prostitution trades in the north of England. There was a lot of money to be made from sex, and there were plenty of girls from Eastern Europe and China needing an earn. In addition, there were many men willing to supply said girls; it was a ruthless and wicked industry, and one that was flourishing thanks to considerable supply and demand. Jason was dealing with the Russians for the girls, and up to now had been getting his drugs from the Osman brothers.
Recently, though, he’d been offered what he thought was a better deal by the Russians, and Ali and Hasan Osman didn’t like it. Now, they were all for taking Jason Biggs out of the game.
Cain Moran, on the other hand, didn’t think that was a good idea. He knew Jason of old and if he was murdered there would be too many people wanting retribution. It would get too personal, and that was the last thing anyone wanted at this juncture. They needed to be reasonable – to try and come to some kind of arrangement. It would avert all manner
of trouble.
Cain had known from the off that the Osmans didn’t like Jason very much. He was a man with a big sense of humour, often at the expense of other people. He could imagine that the Osmans would not like his brand of joke-making – especially young Ali who often took umbrage over any imagined slights. Still, this was a situation that could not be allowed to get out of control.
‘Look, Hasan, I’m categorically saying no. You cannot take Jason down without causing fucking murders. His brothers will go all out for revenge and I don’t think the fucking Russians will be too pleased either. Try to work with me on this. Let me talk to Jason and see what I can come up with.’
Hasan was being his usual cautious self. ‘Let me talk to Ali, Cain, then I will call you back.’
Cain clicked off his mobile phone and pushed it into the pocket of his tracksuit bottoms before joining the kick-about. He had every reason to be worried. Things had been going well for a long time and this was something that, if ignored, could result in all-out fucking war. The Biggses were not a family to cross, unless you were willing to accept the untold aggravation they would be sure to give you. It was at times like this that being banged up brought home the limitations on the power you wielded in your particular world.
Chapter One Hundred and Nineteen
Cain Moran Junior was in his twenties, and was now the double of his father at the same age. He was also a very self-assured young man who had worked hard at school, gone on to college and carefully inveigled himself into his dad’s business. It seemed that criminality was in his genes. He liked to think it anyway.
He had become a collector and general factotum for the Osmans and, on rare occasions, his own mother. It seemed Jenny Moran had a nose for the businesses she oversaw, which were booming just within the law. She needed a minder for certain meetings and, as her son was a big strapping lad, she often took him with her. The Osmans were pleased with him – he reminded people of his father, and that was no bad thing.
Cain himself was proud as punch that his son wanted to follow in his footsteps – he’d always dreamed of bringing him into the business. And, from the reports he had heard, his boy was good at what he did. He didn’t balk at violence and never opened his mouth unless he had something useful to say. These were good attributes in their line of work. Cain Junior was a liked and respected young man. Cain Senior had high hopes for the team the Moran family would make when he got out. They would be unstoppable.
Cain Junior was about to meet up with a girl called Linda Lloyd – a petite redhead with deep blue eyes and a figure to kill for. They had met while he was collecting the take for one of his betting shops and he had been bowled over by her looks and fiery personality. Linda was nineteen, loud and funny, and she also very small-boned – only a size two shoe – and she had the smallest hands he had ever seen, perfectly manicured. Her red hair was a thick mass of curls as hard to tame as she was. This was only their third date but he was falling for her big time. As they sat together in the restaurant and she chattered on about her job, her life and her family, he felt happy as the proverbial Larry. She really was a special girl – always so upbeat and cheery. It was infectious.
To cap it all, Linda already understood the Life so there was no fear of her worrying about his late hours or what he was doing for a living. That was the problem with the straight girls – they really didn’t get the economics of the criminal world. He wanted to settle down with someone he could relate to and who could relate to him, not someone he’d have to lie to about what he was really doing. Linda would have the brains not to ask too many questions; what she didn’t know couldn’t hurt her. He had really fallen on his feet with this girl – she was what his mother would call a ‘keeper’. He wanted to keep her all right, for the rest of his life. Cain Moran Junior had fallen in love and it felt good.
Linda Lloyd, for her part, felt exactly the same. She’d had her eye on Cain for longer than she cared to admit, and he was her perfect man in every sense. She came from a local family, so she knew exactly who he was, who his parents were and what he did for a living. But this did not put her off – if anything it added to his allure.
She liked his dark hair and his fierce blue eyes, she liked his five o’clock shadow and the fact that when he looked at her it was as if he couldn’t quite believe his luck. They were a match made in heaven and, as they ate their lunch together, each knew they had found their soul mate.
Chapter One Hundred and Twenty
Jenny Moran was tired out and happy to have reached the end of a busy run of meetings. As she walked around her flat turning on lights and putting on a pot of coffee, she sighed happily. This had been a really good day; she was looking forward to a light supper, a long bath and an early night. It was a bonus when she had a day like this, as it left her feeling genuinely weary and ready for bed.
She often had trouble sleeping; her brain seemed to turn itself on as soon as she switched off the light and then the oblivion she craved eluded her. It was natural she supposed. But she would never change her life. She made the best of her days, and enjoyed them for the most part.
Sometimes, though, she missed her husband so much it was like a physical pain. It seemed amazing to her that he had been away for twenty years. Occasionally time flew by, other times it crawled, but it always passed eventually. That was the thing she had to tell herself in the darkness of night, when everything seemed hopeless and she wondered if she was wasting her life waiting for a man she loved to distraction. When she had waited this long, what difference was another few years? That was the conclusion she always came to, usually as dawn was breaking, and she felt exhausted from another restless night.
Cain Junior had called to let her know he was going to be in for his supper. If she was proud of anything in her life it was her handsome son. Even though she had been reluctant to see him becoming embroiled in the Life, she had come to accept that it was what he wanted to do. She had little other choice; he was his own man and his father’s son in more ways than one. He looked so like her Cain that it broke her heart to look at him sometimes.
Cain Junior had taken well to the Life and he was respected. He had a natural ability for his work and she suspected that was down to his father. They had become a lot closer in recent years – once he entered the business it was as if Cain Junior had recognised that he needed his dad – and that had pleased Jenny and Cain no end. She constantly reminded herself that she had a lot to be grateful for: they lived like kings, and rarely had to go without.
Even that nut-job Caroline had slowly started to leave them alone. Though there were still the late-night drunken phone calls to contend with, it was harder for her to get hold of their mobile numbers when Jenny changed them so often. It was a pain in the arse but what could she do? Caroline was not a woman to let things lie.
She sighed as she started to prepare a Caesar salad for her and Cain Junior. She just wasn’t in the mood for cooking tonight. She’d much rather a glass of wine and a long bath, in that order. It would be nice to eat with her son though – it was rare to have him home at a decent time these days. She wondered if he had a bird in the offing; he had certainly been taking more time over his personal appearance lately and he was forever on his phone texting someone. Good luck to him. He was at the age where he needed to start thinking of settling down with a decent girl.
Cain Junior had started looking at flats to buy. He wanted to branch out on his own, and she could understand that. In some ways she couldn’t believe he had stayed living with her for so long, but she knew it was mainly because he worried that she would be lonely. He was good in that way, and she appreciated that he looked out for her. They had spent so much of their lives together, just the two of them, and were so close. It would seem strange when he finally flew the nest, though she knew it was inevitable. Kids grew up and moved away – that was the way of the world. She just hoped he didn’t go too far; he was all she had in many respects. He would go his own way, that was certain. He was h
is father’s son, after all.
Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-One
Hasan Osman was coming round to Cain Moran’s way of thinking, but his brother Ali wasn’t so sure.
‘Why the fuck do we need to step back, Hasan? Who the fuck does this Biggs think he fucking is? Are we expected to roll over while he treats us like cunts? Not happening.’ Ali’s voice was loud, aggressive and determined.
Hasan listened with growing unease to his little brother. Ali had a temper that defied logic. Once he believed something, nothing could dissuade him from his course of action. But this was a time when Hasan really didn’t think his brother was looking at the big picture. He had a bad feeling and, even though he had no reasoning other than Cain Moran’s opinion, he felt that this could all get completely out of hand and he didn’t want that any more than Cain did.
Ali and Biggs felt a natural animosity for one another; it happened sometimes with people. From the second they met, there had been an element of dislike and, more to the point, distrust between the two of them.
Jason Biggs had made it evident that he didn’t like dealing with the Turks – he felt they were always trying to have him over, even though it had never once happened in the years he had dealt with them. It was only Cain Moran’s involvement that had kept the peace for so long. Now it was all falling out of bed and, once the talks broke down, it would be open warfare.
In Hasan’s view, Cain was talking sense when he said there were too many Biggses on the scene for them to take out Jason without fear of retribution. They couldn’t police the entire north of England in any case. That would be an impossible task, especially from London.
‘Sorry, Ali, but I’m with Cain on this. You need to let things go on this occasion and see if we can come to some kind of understanding. Whether you like it or not, Jason Biggs is too much for us to handle at the present time. Our strength comes from being able to supply fucking good gear. That is what keeps us at the top of our game. I don’t think the Russians will be too pleased if we go in guns fucking blazing and take out their new best mates. This is a compromise situation.’
