by Martina Cole
‘Hey, Em. No smile for me today?’
As he spoke to her a large blond man came around the side of the stall and said gruffly, ‘No, there ain’t no fucking smile. She is engaged to me, you cunt, and I don’t want to see you sniffing around her again.’
Liam and Lenny were studying this bloke who they both believed must be on drugs, at the very least, to take them on. Then, glancing at Emma, Liam saw she had bruises around her eyes that make-up had not fully concealed.
‘Has he given you a fucking right-hander?’ He turned to the man and bellowed, ‘Have you fucking clumped her, you cunt?’
The baseball bat came out of nowhere, but Lenny and Liam disarmed the man in seconds, and then they set about giving him a lesson he would not forget. Emma Nuttall, the girl who had inadvertently caused all this aggravation, was still screaming when the police arrived. Her boyfriend, Andy Bedford, died on his way to the hospital.
The two Scott boys, it was being said, had finally gone too fucking far.
Chapter One Hundred and Seventy
Sharon was in pieces but the police would tell her nothing. It seemed that even the name Donovan didn’t hold much weight with the Old Bill when there were that many witnesses to a murder. A female DI took Sharon through to the canteen and got her a cup of tea as she waited for Ray to arrive and sort the mess out. She was terrified. If they went down for this it would be a serious lump, and she didn’t know if she could cope with losing both her sons to the prison system.
A deep, abiding hatred for Ray entered her mind that night, because he had brought them to this. He had given them an in to the same world that had left their father murdered in cold blood in a filthy alleyway. And now that is what they were too: murderers. She felt the sting of tears and, taking out her mobile, she started ringing around.
She wasn’t surprised when Reggie got there before anyone else. Ray could not be traced; his mobile was turned off and she guessed rightly that he would be with some girl somewhere. The one time she needed him – really needed him – and he had turned his phone off on her. That bothered her more than she could believe.
Within ten minutes of Reggie arriving, she was finally led through to the back of the police station to see her sons. Reggie had arranged a brief for them and was already working on damage limitation. Suddenly she felt like she could breathe again. What the fuck were they thinking of? But that was the trouble with her sons – they didn’t think. They thought the name Scott and the tutelage of Ray Donovan was enough to keep them out of prison. They were a law unto themselves, and now their young lives could be over for the foreseeable future. For that, she would always blame Ray. She’d had such high hopes for them once, but she had gone along with Ray, as she had always gone along with Lenny before him. She knew deep down that the person she should be blaming was herself. She should have stopped the boys becoming too involved with Ray and the Life, but they had been determined to follow in both their fathers’ footsteps. Lenny and Ray had been the reason they were now sitting here waiting to go to court and, as a best case, get bail. She hoped that they would get special concessions, but she also knew they would not get a walk.
Reggie was already talking about trying to get the charge reduced to manslaughter for self-defence and people would be paid handsomely to keep that fiction going. Her boys had wanted to do what they had done – they were both impetuous and they were both arrogant.
Her phone rang and she answered it quickly. It was Jack Johnson telling her that he had already started things moving and he would use his vast contacts to try and resolve the situation for her. She began to cry; she was so grateful to him. She knew that she could count on Jack Johnson to come up trumps for her; he had always had her best interests at heart. She rang off, feeling much better about the situation now Jack was on board. Then she looked at her sons, and her anger flared. They were not in the least bit contrite and seemed to think that this was nothing more than a formality. That is when her heart finally sank and she knew that the best thing for these sons of hers would be a short, sharp shock. If they didn’t take this seriously, what fucking hope was there for them in the future? She had lost them; she had lost them a long time ago. And the knowledge broke her already fragile heart.
Chapter One Hundred and Seventy-One
Ray arrived the next morning after a particularly heavy night of passion with a Swedish girl he had met in one of his clubs. She was tall, thin and had little tits that fascinated him. She also had the strength of a lion, and when she wrapped those long, slim legs around his waist and squeezed he honestly thought he had died and gone to heaven. She looked like the blonde one from ABBA in their heyday. She was a real looker, all right.
Now, though, he knew he was well in the doghouse and he needed to have a bit of a grovel. He was shocked at how rough Sharon looked; she seemed to have aged ten years overnight.
‘You finally got home then?’
He could hear the accusation in her voice, and he looked suitably contrite. But how could he have known those stupid fuckers would do something so fucking idiotic?
‘I’m sorry, all right? But I’m here now and I am sorting it. So don’t worry.’
Sharon pushed past him and, shaking her head slowly, she said loudly, ‘Jack and Reggie have already done what’s needed, thank you. Get back to your fucking whore. You are not welcome here.’
Kathy had heard the exchange and she was amazed to witness her mum talking like that to her dad. She could see the look of utter incredulity on her father’s face and realised that her mum had won this battle – but that did not mean she would necessarily win the war. Her respect for her mother shot through the roof and, taking Sharon’s lead, she walked into the kitchen and gave her father a filthy look.
Ray Donovan stood in his state-of-the-art kitchen and swallowed his anger. He knew that Sharon was entitled to be annoyed today – as long as she understood that he would not put up with this treatment for too long, she was quite safe.
Chapter One Hundred and Seventy-Two
Sharon was tired and she wasn’t in the mood for any mind games. She could hear Ray in the kitchen and she sighed with annoyance. This was his new habit – making a point of coming home at a reasonable time, acting like a new man. But it was too little too late. She had got used to him not being there and now his presence irritated her beyond belief. He was like some kind of fucking ghost, wandering in and out of the rooms and trying to make small talk.
The boys were on remand and they had been denied bail – something that had really got up Ray’s nose. But it seemed that Andy Bedford’s father was a magistrate and a pillar of the local community. The boys would have to toe the line on remand and that, it seemed, was that. Ray was more annoyed by the fact that she knew that he had not been able to secure their bail, and that it was killing her visiting them in Funky Brixton. But there was a big part of Sharon that felt they might learn a lesson or two by having their freedom curtailed – not that she would tell Ray that, of course. Let him fucking grovel and worry about her reaction; it was about time he had a taste of his own medicine.
Kathy had been giving him the cold shoulder too but Sharon had a feeling that it was not so much because of his latest squeeze. She knew in her heart that there was something else bothering that beautiful daughter of hers. But one thing at a time; she had enough on her plate with the boys’ situation and, given Kathy’s penchant for dramatics, she wasn’t interested in a boyfriend dispute. She knew that her daughter was spoiled, highly strung and selfish as fuck but she loved her nonetheless and she wanted the best for her. Once she had this lot off her plate she would find out what was wrong with Kathy. Until then the girl could just sort it herself as best she could. Sharon guessed she had been dumped by her mysterious boyfriend and she allowed herself a little smile at the perils of young love. If that was her only problem how happy she would be!
She sighed as Ray brought her in a glass of white wine and seated himself beside her on the sofa.
‘This
is a beautiful room, Sharon. You always had great taste.’
She shrugged. ‘You always had plenty of money.’
Her voice was flat and Annie, who could hear the conversation from the kitchen, felt a deep sadness at what had befallen this family. They didn’t speak again, and that alone told Annie all she needed to know.
Chapter One Hundred and Seventy-Three
Jack and Reggie were ensconced in Reggie’s flat drinking the usual Chivas Regal that Jack had always favoured as they caught up on recent events.
‘I’m so sorry, Jack.’
Jack knew he meant it and he sighed in resignation. ‘It’ll please Ray, anyway. Save him finding a way to take me out that looks like an accident. Even he couldn’t be blamed for my cancer!’
‘What’s the outlook?’
Jack shrugged again and Reggie was amazed at the man’s stoicism.
‘Few months. Thing is, I’m not really that bothered. I can get my affairs in order, sort a few things out. If I’m honest, I am ready to go, son.’
Reggie really didn’t know what to say to that and they drank in silence for a few moments.
Then Jack said sadly, ‘I do feel sorry for Sharon. That girl has had no luck with the men in her life, has she?’
Reggie nodded. He knew that Jack wasn’t berating him. He was just stating a fact, and a true fact at that.
‘You and Lenny were very close, weren’t you?’
Reggie nodded, not trusting himself to speak.
‘Shame you had to live a lie, the two of you. Nowadays no one bats a fucking eyelid. I don’t pretend to understand it myself, mind.’
That was the nearest Jack would ever get to saying he didn’t mind Reggie’s sexual preference and Reggie felt a real affection for the old man.
‘Got them on the telly and everything now.’
Reggie had to stifle a laugh. ‘So I hear!’
They were both laughing now and, when Reggie replenished their glasses, Jack said seriously, ‘I will miss me old drop of gold watch, I know that.’
‘I’ll slip a bottle in with you, mate. I will do you a bet, and all. A hundred-to-one outsider!’
It was an old Irish custom and they both laughed as Jack said jovially, ‘If the fucking horse comes in, I will be disinterred the next day! So, what’s the state of play with Happy Harold then?’
Reggie shrugged. ‘Ray is Ray, and he won’t change while he has a hole in his arse.’
‘He’s a fucker, that’s what he is. Now, I am going to tell you something else and you can do what you like with this information after I am dead and gone, OK?’
Reggie nodded and that’s when Jack told him the story of the Wheelans and of Ray being their hired torturer. He also told him that he was his broker as Ray still liked to keep his hand in. Once he had finished his tale, Reggie was quiet for long moment. Then he said viciously, ‘The snidey cunt. The Wheelans? Are you sure?’
Jack nodded and he looked suitably serious, even though he knew he had given potentially explosive material to a man who would not hesitate to use it.
He watched as the colour slowly drained from Reggie’s face.
Jack sat back in his chair, satisfied he had done what he had set out to do: bring down Ray Donovan. He had lit the blue touchpaper. Now all there was to look out for was the explosion. And this particular explosion would be earth-shattering for a lot of the people involved.
Chapter One Hundred and Seventy-Four
Sharon had been to see the boys and she was tired out. It had not been a good visit. She had lost her temper with them, and they had been suitably chastised. They still seemed to think that it was a big joke and that they would be out and about in no time. Nowhere in them did she see remorse for taking another man’s life and that was what had tipped her over the edge. Her shouting had bought the POs running and the other prisoners on their visits had enjoyed the cabaret. She knew her sons would be livid with her for making them a laughing stock, but at this moment she didn’t really give a flying fuck about that. They frightened her.
As she poured herself a much-needed glass of wine, Ray burst in through the front door and she heard him screaming Kathy’s name, following with heavy footsteps as he crashed up the main staircase. Putting her wine down, Sharon started to walk out of the kitchen when she heard the screaming. When she got up to her daughter’s room she could not believe her eyes. Ray – Kathy’s dad Ray, who worshipped the child – was battering her. She forced her body between them and finally managed to push Ray away. He looked like a man demented.
‘What the fuck are you doing?’
She was hugging her terrified daughter to her now, trying to make sense of what she had seen.
‘Tell her, Kathy. Go on, tell her what I found out today!’
Kathy was sobbing too much to make any sense and, looking Ray squarely in the eye, Sharon said quietly, ‘You tell me what this is about, please.’
Ray laughed then, a nasty, vicious laugh. ‘It’s a fucking whore we bred, Sharon. A whore who is shagging Barton. Fucking Barton, the cunt! The two-faced, dirty, fucking bastard of hell that he is.’
Sharon was so shocked she could not form any words. All she could think was that her lovely girl had lowered herself to sleep with a man old enough to be her father, and whose wife had always been a friend to them. Ray could see the shock and the horror on Sharon’s face and found it in himself to feel a moment’s pity for her.
She turned to her beautiful daughter and, pulling her face up to look her in the eye, she said calmly, ‘Is this true?’
Kathy was nodding, the tears were overflowing and she had strings of snot hanging from her nose. She looked twelve again, just as she had when she could not get her own way as a little girl. Her tears would always guarantee that Ray would eventually relent and give her whatever she wanted.
‘I will fucking kill him!’
Then Sharon started laughing.
‘What the fuck is so funny?’
She could see the bewilderment on Ray’s face and that just made her laugh harder. She knew there was a tinge of hysteria in her voice and she used all her willpower to try to keep from screaming out loud.
‘Like father like daughter! You know, I was always frightened that one of the boys would be gay like Lenny. But now that means nothing, does it? No one has to hide who they really are any more. Except you, of course, eh, Ray?’
He was looking at her in complete and utter amazement.
‘She obviously inherited your lying, scheming, fuck-anything-with-a-pulse gene. Because she sure as hell didn’t get it from me! You fucking hypocrite. As for Barton, she is seventeen – he could be her fucking grandfather! Another fucking whore, like you. Did it ever occur to you that he might have taken advantage of her? How many little girls have you chatted up, Ray? They were all someone’s daughter or sister. This isn’t about our Kathy, this is about you! Barton has pissed on you from a great height and you can’t fucking stand it, can you? Well, now you know how I feel.’
He stormed from the room and she shouted after him, ‘Smash him up, smash his fucking face in. Go on! That’s your answer to everything!’
When the front door was given a resounding slam, Kathy sat up and, putting her arms around her mother, she waited to be comforted.
Instead, her mother gave her a stinging blow across the face and threw her away from her. Behind her, Annie gasped.
‘Oh no you don’t, lady. You slept with the husband of one of my dearest friends, a woman who has always shown you nothing but kindness and respect. You little whore. Your father was right about that much, anyway. What have I bred? Two murderers and a fucking whore. Not much to show for a lifetime of love, is it? That was my only job, loving and caring for you all. The only thing that mattered. And how have you repaid me, eh? You have trampled on my love and thrown it back in my face. Well, do you know something? Fuck you! Fuck you all!’
She turned into an embrace with Annie, putting her head on the old woman’s chest and she cried li
ke she had not cried since the night she had found out about Lenny and Reggie. This time, though, she wasn’t crying for her sons, her children. She was crying for herself and the abortion her life had become.
Annie was a wise old bird and she held Sharon tightly until the crying subsided. Then she slowly walked her down the stairs and through to the kitchen and, pouring her a brandy, she urged her to drink it for the shock.
Kathy lay on her bed feeling desolate. For the first time in her life her mother had turned her back on her. And that hurt more than she would ever have believed possible.
Chapter One Hundred and Seventy-Five
Reggie had heard that Ray was looking all over the Smoke for Barton and that there had been some kind of altercation. Ray had been everywhere, demanding if anyone had seen that ‘cunt and ex-friend Barton’.
Reggie turned up at the house and Sharon was evidently pleased to see him. She filled him in on the latest developments and saw the genuine shock on his face when he heard that Kathy had become embroiled in something so sordid, and with Barton of all people. He understood Ray’s ire – he would feel the same; it was a double whammy. He sat at the table with Sharon and Annie and tried to calm Sharon down.
‘He was a man demented, Reggie. I have never seen him so angry before.’
Annie was quiet; she knew when silence was the best medicine. Let the girl get it out of her system.
‘When I met him he was so different to how he is now. He was the sweetest, most gentle man I had ever been with. But then, what did I know? I had only ever had Lenny and we know how that turned out, don’t we?’
She was crying again. Reggie motioned to Annie to leave them, and she gratefully went back to the gatehouse and her own front door. As for Kathy! Well, she could hang as she grew for the time being. She was disgusted with the child.
