by Caz Finlay
‘Fuck!’ Alastair snapped.
‘Nothing to worry about just yet. I could explain one meeting away easily enough. A chance encounter. Grace wouldn’t even think not to trust me. But I think we need to meet somewhere a bit more discreet in future.’
Alastair nodded. ‘Fine.’
‘Great. So, two weeks then? The details could change up to a day or two before so we could talk a few days before to finalise plans?’ John offered.
‘Jock and I will head back here the day before. Another chance to stay in this fine establishment,’ Alastair replied with a grin and Jock knew that he was really thinking about another chance to bang the blonde behind the bar, who had finally succumbed to his charms.
‘We’ll wait to hear from you,’ Alastair added.
‘Great doing business with you both,’ John said as he glanced at his watch. ‘I’d better get going. I’ve got to drive to Wales now. Another fucking errand to run. But not for much longer, eh?’ He smiled as he picked up another piece of toast.
Chapter Forty-Two
John walked down Old Hall Street to the waiting car and climbed inside.
‘All right, Murf,’ he said as he closed the passenger door. ‘You haven’t been waiting long, have you?’
‘Only five minutes. What were you doing in there anyway?’ Murf asked.
‘If I told you, I’d have to kill you,’ John replied with a grin.
‘Oh, top secret mission, was it?’
‘Something like that. Now come on, let’s get going. I want to be back handy, I’ve got shit to sort out today.’
‘Do you know where this place is?’ Murf asked.
‘I’ve got an idea. Head for Bangor and I’ll direct you from there.’
‘Will do,’ Murf said as he pulled the car away from the kerb.
An hour later, Murf pulled his old Land Rover into Perryman’s caravan park near Bangor in Wales. He parked outside the club house and he and John got out of the car.
‘Any idea where his van is?’ Murf said as he looked around the site.
‘Nope, but I know a man who will,’ John said as he pushed open the door to the small sales office next to the club house.
Five minutes later and John was down fifty quid, but he had the location of Bradley’s caravan. He and Murf jumped back into the car and drove to the remote spot on the site where the Johnson family caravan had sat for over thirty years.
‘Jesus, what a dump,’ Murf said, his nose wrinkling in disgust as he and John exited the car and walked up the door.
‘What do you expect, it’s almost as old as I am,’ he said with a laugh.
‘Shall we knock?’ Murf asked.
‘Okay,’ John replied as he raised his foot and kicked the door with all of his considerable strength. It caved in easily and they both went inside to see Bradley Johnson’s fat arse trying to squeeze out of the kitchen window.
John grabbed him and pulled him back inside. ‘Hello, Bradley,’ he said with a grin. ‘There’s a few people who’d like a word with you.’
Bradley’s face turned the colour of boiled shite. Beads of perspiration started to appear on his forehead.
‘Please,’ he started to say as he held his hands up in defence. ‘I can get the money back—’
Before he could say any more, John punched him in the face, causing him to stumble backwards and onto the sticky caravan floor.
‘We’ll need to knock him out if we’re going to get him back to Liverpool without any hassle. Go and get the chloroform,’ John said to Murf.
‘What? I didn’t bring it,’ Murf said.
‘For fuck’s sake!’ John snapped. ‘I told you we needed to knock him out.’
‘I know. But I didn’t know you meant with that. I didn’t want to drive all the way to Wales with it in case we got pulled. Can’t one of us just knock him out?’
‘Well, yeah. But it’s not an exact science, is it? And he needs to be returned in one piece.’
‘Sorry,’ Murf said. ‘I didn’t think.’
John shook his head in annoyance and looked down at Bradley, who was watching the whole exchange in horror.
‘You at least brought the gaffer tape and the cable ties?’ John asked.
‘Yeah, I’m not an amateur!’.
‘Good. Go and get them then.’
Murf walked out of the caravan, leaving John and Bradley alone.
‘What’s this about? You don’t work for Alastair McGrath?’ Bradley asked as he shuffled away from John.
‘I do now,’ John replied with a grin. Bradley must have realised who he was. Well, of course he would, everyone in Liverpool knew that he worked for Grace.
Murf returned, holding the tape and ties in his hands. ‘Who wants the pleasure of chinning this piece of shit then?’ he asked.
John shook his head. ‘What did I just say about getting him back in one piece?’ Ignoring Bradley’s protestations, he bent down and grabbed him, easily manoeuvred him into positon so that he had him in a choke hold and applied the appropriate amount of pressure. A few seconds later Bradley was unconscious and slumped to the floor.
‘Right, let’s get him tied up and into the boot before anyone notices,’ John ordered.
The two men worked quickly and expertly, neither of them strangers to such a task, and before long Bradley Johnson was safely bound and gagged and in the back of Murf’s Land Rover.
‘Is your place ready?’ John asked as they drove back up the A51 towards Liverpool.
Murf nodded. ‘Yeah. I’ll park in the garage so no one will see us getting him out the car. Then the cellar is all geared up. Looks like something from a bad porno down there.’ He laughed. ‘Marie was not happy with me when I told her, but it’s only a couple of weeks, right?’
John nodded. ‘Yep. All you need to is keep him alive for a few weeks and then he’ll be out of your hair.’
‘Do you know what Grace has planned for him?’
John nodded.
‘Anything I should know about?’
‘If I told you, Murf—’
‘You’d have to kill me.’ Murf finished his sentence for him and started to laugh. ‘Who am I to question the boss?’
‘You’ll find out all you need to know when you need to know it. It’s always the way,’ John reminded him.
Murf nodded. ‘Fancy grabbing something to eat when we’ve dropped this fucker off? I’m starving.’
John looked at his watch. ‘Yeah, all right. If you put your foot down we can get to Antonelli’s before Steph clocks off.’
‘You’ve got a bit of a soft spot for Steph, have you?’ Murf grinned. ‘You’d better hope Sean doesn’t find out.
‘Got a soft spot for her puttanesca, that’s all,’ John said.
Stephanie Carter was Sean Carter’s daughter. At thirty years old, she was seventeen years younger than John, but he had a lot in common with her. Over the years, he’d watched her date a string of obnoxious and immature idiots whom she discarded after a few months, and wondered when she would wake up and realise that she needed someone with a bit more about them to keep her interest. Steph was intelligent, funny and beautiful. She had a fiery Italian temper like her mother, Sophia, but she also had a very sweet, soft side. John had known her for years and they got on well together. But he had never looked at her that way. Not until very recently anyway.
‘Yeah, okay?’ Murf laughed again. ‘Is that what you call it?’
‘Just get us to your house before this cretin wakes up, Murf.’
Murf nodded and obviously saw the good sense not to push any further.
Chapter Forty-Three
John and Murf had polished off their late lunch and Murf had left to check on his charge before his wife Marie got home. John was chatting to Steph at the bar when Grace walked into the restaurant.
‘Afternoon, you two,’ she said as she took a seat at the bar next to John.
‘Hi, Grace,’ Steph said as she leaned over the bar and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
‘I didn’t know you were coming in today, Boss?’ John said.
‘I wasn’t planning to but Steph mentioned you were in and as I had to drop some invoices off to her, and I wanted to catch up with you about this morning, I thought I’d kill two birds with one stone.’
John nodded and smiled but there was something about his demeanour that was off. As though he wasn’t entirely happy to see her.
‘I’m not staying long. I’ve got another meeting shortly,’ she said with a smile.
‘Can I get you a bite to eat?’ Steph asked.
‘No thanks. I’ll have a quick coffee though?’ Grace replied.
‘Coming right up,’ Steph answered as she walked over to the espresso machine.
‘So, how was this morning?’ Grace asked.
‘Perfect. Everything went according to plan,’ he said with a smile, his manner returning to normal.
‘Good. And Bradley is safely tucked away?’
‘Yep. Murf is looking after him until you need him. I’m sure he won’t be a problem.’
‘Well, let’s hope so,’ Grace said as Steph returned with her coffee.
‘Hot and steamy – just how you like it,’ Steph said with a wink.
‘Perfect,’ she said as she pulled a folder out of her handbag. ‘Here’s those invoices you needed.’
Steph took the folder from her. ‘Thanks. I’ll sort them out later. What are you two conspiring about anyway?’ she asked.
‘Nothing important,’ Grace replied before John had a chance to.
‘Actually, I could do with a word, Boss,’ John said. ‘About Craig and Ged Johnson and what you want me to do next?’
Grace was aware that Steph was listening intently and while she trusted her niece implicitly, she didn’t like to talk about certain aspects of their business in front of her.
‘Leave them to me for now. I think I need to have a word with them myself, now that we have Bradley,’ she said.
‘But what about—’
‘You know the game plan, John. How you execute it is up to you. I don’t need to know the finer details. Unless there’s anything in particular you wanted to talk about, I’ll leave it in your very capable hands?’
John shook his head. ‘Not really. I’ll sort it.’
‘Good,’ Grace said with a smile as she picked up her cup of coffee. ‘Now Steph, tell me about this new fella you’ve got your eye on.’
Steph blushed, which was unusual for her and Grace suddenly realised why John had seemed so awkward when she’d first come in. She had obviously interrupted something. Taking that as her cue to leave, she checked her watch. ‘Do you know what? I should really run or I’ll be late for the kids,’ she said, taking a quick mouthful of the hot coffee. ‘I’ll leave you both to it.’
Steph and John hugged her goodbye and Grace walked out of the restaurant smiling to herself. John and Steph would make a great couple and it was about time they both met someone special.
Chapter Forty-Four
Michael felt his phone vibrating in his pocket and cursed under his breath. He was struggling to put Oscar, who was teething and cranky, into his car seat. Picking his son back up with one arm, he took his phone out of his pocket and glanced at the screen to see it was Grace calling him.
‘Hiya, babe. Is everything okay?’ he answered.
‘Yes, but I could do with your help. Is your dad still at our house?’
‘Yeah, we were just going to take Oscar to the park for a bit. What do you need me for?’
‘I need to pay a visit to Craig and Ged Johnson today. I think it’s about time we test their loyalty and see if they’re willing to convince Scott to withdraw his co-operation. It’s been a week since we picked Bradley up and I think it’s about time we let them know we have him. I’m not sure how they’ll react to that news. I could really do with you with me.’
‘Of course. I’ll ask my dad to take Oscar and pick Belle up from school. Where are you?’
‘I’m at Sophia’s Kitchen. I’ve got my car, so, shall l pick you up in forty-five minutes?’
‘Yeah. I’ll be ready,’ Michael answered.
Pat was walking out of their house as Michael ended the call. ‘Change of plan, Dad. Grace needs me—’
Before he could finish his sentence, Pat interrupted. ‘No problem. I’ll take the little fella and me and Sue can pick Belle up from school.’
‘Thanks, Dad.’
‘Not a problem, son,’ he said as he took Oscar from his arms. ‘Be careful, won’t you?’
‘Always am,’ Michael said with a smile. ‘Bye, sunshine,’ he said with a kiss on Oscar’s head.
‘Bye, Dada,’ he said in response.
‘You sure these two pricks are in here?’ Michael asked as he and Grace walked into The Grapes. ‘It’s a shithole.’
‘I know, but it’s their local. And they came in here about an hour ago.’
Grace and Michael walked through the doors and saw Craig and Ged sitting at a table in the corner of the almost empty pub. The two of them were laughing and looked very happy with themselves. Their good humour probably wouldn’t last once Grace had a word with them, but it was necessary. It would be like ripping off a plaster – painful, but needed to move forward. Despite all of the aggro he’d caused, Grace thought that there was a slim chance that they could work with Craig. It would all depend on how he conducted himself in the next seven days.
As Grace and Michael approached the table, both Craig and Ged looked up in surprise.
‘Happy to see us?’ Michael said as he took a seat.
‘What do you two want?’ Ged snapped.
‘What I want is a word with you two,’ Grace replied as she sat down next to her husband.
‘About what?’ Craig snapped.
‘About you owing me,’ Grace said with a smile.
‘We owe you fuck all,’ Craig spat.
Michael glared at him and Craig sat further back in his seat.
‘I think you’ll find you owe me more than you think, Craig. Shall I tell you why?’
The two brothers stared at her with their mouths hanging open, so she went on. ‘For a start, I didn’t bury the lot of you last year when you were stupid enough to try and muscle in on our family business. I let that slide because I thought you weren’t worth the bother. Then, I gave you two and your idiot little brother another pass when he fingered my son and stepson for a murder that he couldn’t possibly have witnessed. And finally, I had a word with Alastair McGrath and he hasn’t put your head on his trophy wall yet, has he?’
Craig glared at her, but it was Ged who spoke. ‘You might have met with Alastair McGrath, but stopping him from killing us is a bit of a stretch. That was nothing to do with you, you arrogant fucking bitch.’
Before he could finish talking Michael had jumped up and punched Ged in the face, causing blood to pour from his nose. Ged wiped it on the back of his sleeve as Michael sat back down.
‘What my brother is trying to say,’ Craig said as he shot Ged a sideways look, ‘is that we dealt with the mix-up with Mr McGrath ourselves.’
‘Oh, really? And how did you manage that?’ Grace asked.
Craig shifted in his seat. ‘We found a backer. Someone who wants to go into business with us.’ He looked directly at her then and could hardly hide the smirk on his face.
Grace frowned at him. ‘Oh? And who might that be?’
‘None of your fucking business,’ Ged snapped.
‘Oh, come on. Who in their right mind would back you two idiots?’ Grace said.
Grace had been aware of Ged’s face getting redder and redder throughout the whole exchange, but she was still shocked when he launched himself across the table at her, screaming about what an evil bitch she was. Fortunately for her, he collided with Michael’s fist instead and fell onto the floor.
Michael kindly picked him up by the neck of his T-shirt and sat him back down in his chair before delivering a swift kick to his groin for good measure. ‘Yo
u ever try and touch my wife again, and I’ll cut that off and shove it down your throat, you little cunt,’ he spat before sitting back down.
‘Are you going to tell us who this mysterious backer is then?’ Grace asked with a smile.
Craig looked between the two of them. ‘Not a chance. So, why don’t you tell us why you’re really here?’
‘I want your little brother to retract his lies about Jake and Connor.’
Craig shook his head. ‘Even if I wanted to do that, I don’t know where he is.’
‘He’s in hiding, or so I’m told. We thought he was in witness protection but my sources tell me otherwise. I hear he’s a bit of a delicate flower, and it won’t be long before he contacts you or Ged here for some reassurance. When he does, you can bring him back into the fold.’
Craig laughed. ‘You say that like it’s easy. My little brother may be a bit of a quilt, but Billy was his favourite brother…’
‘I get that. He wants revenge. You all do. But that’s where I can help you out. I have a deal for you.’
Craig stared at her, while Ged sat back in his seat clutching his bleeding nose with one hand and his groin with the other. ‘Go on,’ Craig said.
‘A few friends of ours have recently spent some time at a dodgy camp site called Perryman’s. Ring any bells?’
Craig nodded. ‘We used to go there when we were kids. My dad had an old van there.’
‘Well, it seems that old van is still in the Johnson family.’
Craig’s eyes widened and he sat forward in his seat. ‘What?’ he said quietly.
‘Yep. Your beloved big brother Bradley was holed up there for the past few months. He’s not there any longer, you understand? But don’t worry, he’s somewhere safe. Now, I can either hand him over to Alastair McGrath – or to you. You get your baby brother to fall into line, and Bradley is all yours.’
‘And what then? Billy’s murderers just walk free?’
