The Victim (37 page)

The word cheat immediately wiped the self-satisfied smile off Georgie’s face. The thought of Ryan kissing or touching another girl made her feel physically sick and for once she knew he had her over a barrel. ‘OK,’ she said nervously. She had never seen a willy in the flesh before and instead of feeling mature and sexually confident, as she usually did, she suddenly felt like the little girl she actually was.

Feeling so aroused that he thought his penis was about to explode, Ryan stood up and lowered his tracksuit bottoms and pants to his knees.

Georgie felt anxious as she stared at his erect willy. Instead of dangling downwards as she’d expected, it was sort of poking upwards.

‘Just put your hand on it and I’ll show you what you’ve got to do,’ Ryan urged her.

About to do as her boyfriend had asked, Georgie let out a terrifying scream as four strange men burst into the barn. ‘Leave him alone! He’s my boyfriend,’ she shrieked as one of the men ran towards Ryan and hit him over the head with a baseball bat.

‘You shitcunts. My dad’s gonna kill you,’ Georgie yelled as she fought to stop two of the men from tying her hands and feet up with rope.

Ryan stood up clutching his head. He was very dazed and didn’t even realise that his penis was still hanging out for all to see.

‘Put the tape on her mouth and carry her outside,’ Eddie ordered, as his granddaughter began screaming blue murder and swearing like a navvy.

While Gary, Ricky and Raymond carried Georgie out of the barn, Eddie swung the bat again and struck Ryan straight across his now extremely flaccid penis.

‘You dirty, perverted little cunt,’ Ed seethed, as he tied Ryan up with the rope.

Ryan was in such excruciating pain that he could barely speak. ‘Who the fuck are you?’ he managed to mumble.

Ed picked up the duct tape and cut a strip off with his Stanley knife.

‘Hurry up, Ed,’ Raymond urged him.

Debating whether to cut the boy’s cock off and stuff it down his perverted little throat, Eddie decided against it. He had Gina, Aaron and Rosie to think of now and he couldn’t risk another long stretch in prison. He put his knife away, bent down and put the tape across the boy’s mouth. ‘You ever go near my granddaughter again and I will fucking well kill you. She’s thirteen, you nonce case. Oh, and when you see Jimmy and Jed O’Hara, you tell ’em from me, Eddie Mitchell said hello.’

Checking that the rope was tied tight enough around the boy’s arms and legs, Eddie spat in his petrified face, stood up and sauntered casually out of the barn.

Less than a mile down the road, poor Stuart was having trouble keeping tabs on Harry O’Hara. When he’d first appeared out of the site he’d driven up and down the main road on his quad bike with his mate hanging off the back. Twice he’d nearly caused an accident, and the second time, when a driver had stopped and got out of his car, both boys had given the motorist wanker signs. When the driver got out and chased them, Harry had driven the quad bike onto a nearby field. Stuart put the binoculars to his eyes once again. Harry was pretty far away now, but if he wasn’t mistaken, it looked like both he and his mate were chasing chickens around a pen. Stuart’s phone rang and, thankfully, it was Eddie.

‘I’m still with him, Ed, but I can’t get the van any closer. He’s chasing chickens around some farm, by the looks of it. The good news is, he’s left the quad bike halfway across the field, so he’s gotta come back this way.’

‘Where exactly are ya?’ Ed asked.

‘The direction the vans were parked in, I’m straight along that road, probably about half a mile down. Shit, I think he’s running back towards the quad bike now. What do you want me to do?’

‘Get out the van, run towards the bike and pretend you’re trying to nick it, buy it or whatever. I don’t care what you do, but keep him there. If he kicks off, clump him, but try not to hurt him. I’m on me way now.’

Stuart jumped out of the van and sprinted towards the quad bike. Harry and his pal were a lot nearer to it than he was, but he knew he’d get there first. At fifteen, he’d been the 100-metre champion for his school and the district. He reached the bike and, not knowing what else to do, sat on it.

A minute later, Harry ran towards him with a dead chicken under his arm. His mate was a short distance behind. ‘Get off my bike, you cunt,’ Harry ordered.

‘I only wanna buy it off ya. How much do ya want for it?’ Stuart asked in a friendly manner.

‘It ain’t for sale, is it, Sonny?’ Harry said, as his friend caught up with him.

‘Nah, get off it you wanker,’ Sonny yelled.

Stuart glanced from boy to boy. Both looked angry, their eyes full of hatred and their skin looked extremely weather-beaten for their years. Harry was only eleven, Stuart knew that, and the other boy couldn’t be that much older. Not knowing what else to do, Stuart tried the same tactic again. ‘Go on, please let me buy it, I want it for me son. I’ve got plenty of dosh on me, look,’ he gestured, pulling a wad out of his back pocket.

Harry dropped the dead chicken and smirked at his pal. Seconds later both boys lunged at Stuart with their penknives.

Eddie pulled up behind the Renault van. ‘Stay in the back with Georgie,’ he shouted at Terry.

Ricky, Gary and Raymond sprinted across the field. At sixty-one, Eddie could still run, but not quite as fast as he once could. Gary was the first to reach Stuart. He had both kids in a headlock, but was struggling to hold them. ‘Well done, mate,’ Gary said, as he grabbed hold of Harry.

‘Get off me, you shitcunts,’ Harry screamed, as he felt rope being tied around his arms.

Eddie was out of breath as he arrived at the scene. Harry’s pal tried to do a runner, but Ed grabbed him by the neck. ‘Keys to the quad bike,’ he demanded, holding his hands out.

‘Go fuck your grandmother,’ the boy replied brazenly.

Eddie kneed the boy as hard as he could in the nuts. ‘I said keys to the quad bike,’ he repeated.

‘Harry’s got ’em,’ the boy squealed, as he fell to the ground in pain.

‘Check he’s got the keys, Ray, otherwise that little cunt might be back at the site before we have a proper chance to get away,’ Ed ordered.

Ricky found a key in Harry’s jacket pocket. ‘You little bastard,’ he shouted as Harry spat a mouthful of phlegm in his face.

‘What’s that doing there?’ Eddie asked, clocking the dead chicken. It had been squashed in the scuffle.

‘Don’t ask, you really don’t wanna know,’ Stuart said, as he stood up and brushed his clothes down.

Gary put some tape across Harry’s mouth and lifted the boy over his shoulder. ‘Should we tie him up an’ all?’ he asked, pointing to the other lad, who was still writhing on the floor in pain.

‘Nah, he’s going nowhere for a while,’ Eddie replied confidently.

‘I’ll ring Terry, make sure the coast’s clear,’ Raymond said.

Five minutes later, both Georgie and Harry were safely trussed up in the back of the van.

‘Well done, lads,’ Eddie grinned, shaking both Stuart and Terry’s hands.

‘Your fucking grandson stabbed me in the side, look,’ Stuart complained, lifting up his shirt.

‘It’s only a nick, you’ll live. Right, I settled up with that nosy old fucker at the B&B. You and Tel got all your stuff out, didn’t ya?’

Stuart nodded. ‘Everything’s in the van, including our sleeping bags.’

‘Do yourself a favour, go find a supermarket and stock up on food and water. Once you get back to the site, don’t budge. I guarantee you, by tonight or tomorrow lunchtime, Jed and Jimmy will have either done a runner or they’ll be gunning for us.’

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

Alice saw Jed’s truck pull up outside and breathed a sigh of relief. From the moment she had opened her eyes that morning she’d had one of her feelings of doom and when she’d tried to ring Jed earlier and got no answer, she’d been worried he’d had an accident or something.

‘How’s my Shelby girl?’ Alice said, as she lifted her granddaughter off Lola’s lap.

‘Why did ya keep ringing me, Mum?’ Jed asked.

‘I just wanted to make sure you were all right. Why didn’t you bloody well answer?’

‘’Cause I had me father on the blower. He’s just found us a new horse-box and he wanted to run it past me before he bid the old mush for it. I’m a bit old for you to be checking up on me, ain’t I?’ Jed said, kissing her on the cheek.

‘Had one of me bad feelings today, boy. I ain’t had one of them for a long while. Makes me feel horrible, it do,’ Alice explained.

About to take the piss out of her the way he used to as a boy, Jed opened his mouth and quickly shut it again. His mum had had one of her bad feelings on the day his son Luke had been murdered, and also when Sammy had died, so mocking her was out of the question.

‘Where’s Georgie and Harry?’ he asked, feeling a bit anxious himself.

‘Georgie’s with that Ryan Maloney and Harry went out on the quad bike with that little toerag.’ Alice didn’t like Sonny Adams. He was two years older than Harry, and, in her opinion, was a bad influence on her grandson. It was only since Sonny had moved onto the site that Harry had started thieving, being insolent and bringing home dead bloody chickens.

‘Do you fancy a bite to eat, Alice? I bought a crusty loaf, ham off the bone and some of them Spanish tomatoes,’ Lola asked.

About to reply, Sonny Adams’ frantic yelling stopped Alice from doing so. ‘Some men have took Harry away. I tried to stop them, but they beat me,’ Sonny panted. He’d forgotten about the pain in his groin and had sprinted back to the site as fast as his legs would carry him.

‘Dordi! I knew it. I feel ill,’ Alice screamed.

Jed’s face turned as white as a sheet. ‘What did these men look like? Are you sure it weren’t the gavvers?’ he asked, his voice trembling with fear.

‘No. They were big, bad men and there were five of ’em. I heard one call another one Ray, then they tied Harry boy up and put him in the back of a white van.’

When his mother became completely hysterical, Jed ordered Lola to take her and the baby inside the trailer. He turned back to Sonny. ‘Where did this happen? How long ago was it?’

‘About twenty minutes ago. We was on that old mush’s farm. The quad bike’s still there. The bad men took the keys and they drove off that way,’ Sonny said, pointing to the left.

‘Run over to the barn, see if Georgie’s in there with Ryan,’ Jed ordered him.

Sonny ran off and Jed’s hands were quivering as he took his phone out of his pocket. ‘Dad, come home now. Eddie Mitchell’s snatched Harry.’

As Jimmy launched into a torrent of abuse, Jed’s brother Billy drove onto the site in his Land Cruiser.

‘What’s going on? Mum just rang me sobbing her fucking heart out,’ Billy said.

‘Mitchell’s found us; he’s got Harry. Dad’s on his way now, but I can’t wait that long. I need your motor, but go get the guns first. Grab both of ’em, Bill, and you come with me.’

While Billy ran across the field, Jed relayed to his father what Sonny had told him.

‘I’ll be forty minutes or so behind you, boy. You go on ahead of me and I’ll pick my shooter up on the way back. Leave it in the trailer under the sofa. What motor’s Mitchell in, do you know?’

‘It’s a white Merc Sprinter with red writing down the side. I clocked it when I left the site earlier and the number plate starts with BJJ. There was another van behind it, a blue Renault Trafic with white writing on it, so keep your eyes peeled for that an’ all,’ Jed said. He might not be able to spell or read, but he knew which letters were which.

Alice ran out of the trailer. ‘I can’t get no answer on Georgie’s phone,’ she screamed in panic.

Seconds later, an out-of-breath Sonny reappeared. ‘Georgie’s gone. Ryan’s tied up in the barn. The bad men beat him an’ all.’

Jed kicked the tyre of his pick-up truck repeatedly. ‘They’ve got Georgie an’ all. Me and Bill are leaving now, Dad, and I swear on my Shelby’s life, when I catch up with Mitchell, I’m gonna blast the cunt to pieces.’

Georgie O’Hara’s eyes were wide open with terror as she stared at the four men in the back of the van. The one that was driving was called Raymond, but she didn’t know the names of the other three and she now wondered if they were nonces. Her dad had always wanted her to be on her guard against those types of men.

Since the tape had been removed from their mouths, Harry had done nothing but shout and curse, but his brazen attitude had now wilted a bit and he’d just started to cry. Being snatched by the men had been a terrible shock, but seeing his sister already in the back of the van was an even bigger one. He was glad Georgie was there, though, as he wouldn’t want to go through this frightening experience alone.

Eddie studied his grandchildren carefully. With Georgie, he’d felt a slight tug on his heartstrings because of her likeness to Frankie, but Harry hadn’t had any effect on him yet. Both children looked, sounded, and behaved like gypsy kids, which he’d fully expected. What he hadn’t reckoned on was their reluctance to calm down so that he could explain what was going on. Seeing tears appear in Georgie’s eyes as well, Ed decided this was as good a time as any to have a little chat with them.

‘Please don’t be frightened because nobody here is gonna hurt you. I’m sorry if we scared you back there, but we didn’t have a lot of choice but to grab you the way we did.’

‘Why did you grab us, then? Are you nonces?’ Georgie asked, glaring at Eddie defiantly.

‘No. I’m your grandad.’

Georgie and Harry glanced at one another. Both had stopped crying now, but neither knew if this man was telling the truth or not. Harry decided to test him. ‘You ain’t our grandad. Jimmy’s our grandad,’ he snarled.

‘You’ve got two grandads. Jimmy’s your dad’s father and I’m your mother’s,’ Eddie explained. He was relieved he finally had their attention at last.

‘I’m your Uncle Gary, that’s your Uncle Ricky and the man driving is your Uncle Raymond. You’ll see your mum soon,’ Gary added, smiling at Georgie.

‘So where is our mum, then?’ Georgie asked distrustfully.

‘Waiting for you at home. That’s where we’re taking ya,’ Ed replied.

‘I don’t wanna go there,’ Harry shouted.

‘I can’t leave my boyfriend. I love him and we’re getting married when I’m sixteen,’ Georgie said, bursting into tears.

‘Don’t you think we should untie their arms now, Dad? There’s some cans of drink and crisps in the front, they might be hungry,’ Ricky suggested.

‘Go on, then,’ Ed replied.

‘Ain’t you gonna ring Frankie and Larry?’ Raymond shouted out.

‘I’m not gonna ring Larry till the morning now. It’s gonna be nearly midnight by the time we get home and I couldn’t stand a houseful of Old Bill and social workers tonight. Let Frankie spend a bit of time with ’em first, and I’ll call Larry first thing tomorrow.’

‘You’d best tell Frankie we’ve got ’em,’ Gary urged.

About to give his daughter the good news, Eddie dropped his phone as both his grandchildren made a lunge for the handle of the back door.

Ricky managed to grab Georgie and Eddie grabbed Harry, who then did his utmost to manoeuvre his way out of his grandfather’s arms.

‘Leave my brother alone,’ Georgie screamed, kicking her grandad in the leg.

‘Right, tie their hands back up and they can stay that way until they’ve learned how to behave themselves.’

‘I hate you!’ Harry yelled in protest.

Eddie put his phone back in his pocket. He’d ring Frankie in a while when the kids had quietened down a bit. He stared at his grandchildren and shook his head in disbelief. He’d fully expected them to be rough around the edges, but he hadn’t expected them to behave like wild fucking animals.

Alice O’Hara was absolutely beside herself. She couldn’t stop screaming, was in floods of tears and her whole body was shaking from head to toe.

‘I’ve got some brandy in mine. I’ll go get it, it’s good for shock,’ Linda Maloney said. She felt anxious as well. Her Mickey had gone off with Jimmy and she knew they’d taken a gun with them. As for poor Ryan, he was in bits, bless him.

‘Bring your Ryan over ’ere. I wanna know exactly what happened,’ Alice wept.

‘I dunno if he’ll come, Alice. He’s frit to death, the poor little sod. His brothers are looking after him; he wouldn’t even talk to me about it. Loves your Georgie, that boy does.’

When Linda went off to get the brandy, Sarah, Alice’s best friend on the site, held Alice in her arms. ‘Everything will be OK. Jed and Jimmy will get your grandchildren back for ya, I know they will, angel.’

Alice looked at her friend with a psychotic expression plastered across her face. ‘They ain’t my grandchildren, they’re my babies. I brought them up. I was the only mother they had. Georgie and Harry belong to me.’

Stuart and Terry headed back to the site and parked nearby. It had taken them ages to find a supermarket, but eventually they’d come across one and had stocked up with enough food and drink to last them a week.

‘Jed’s truck’s there, but Jimmy’s still out. Do you reckon that poor little cunt’s still tied up in the barn?’ Stuart said to his sidekick.

Terry laughed. ‘Yeah, he ain’t gonna be found till tonight, I reckon. Someone’s bound to go and look for the kids at some point and they’ll probably find him then.’

‘What is the time?’ Stuart asked Terry. He’d left his watch back home in Brentwood and felt lost without it on his wrist.

‘Half-past four. We’ve got a long night ahead of us, but I ain’t that tired, are you?’

‘Nah, I’m hungry again, though. I’m gonna have another sandwich, want one?’

Terry chuckled. ‘Go on then, you greedy fucker.’

As Stuart and Terry jovially stuffed their faces with BLT sandwiches, neither man had a clue that both Jed and Jimmy were in separate motors on the M74. Worse still, they were getting closer to the Mercedes Sprinter by the minute.

Still unaware that Georgie and Harry were now with her father, Frankie was becoming more deranged by the second. Hearing no news was doing her head in, but having to deal with a houseful of people as well was literally driving her insane.

‘Bleedin’ starving, me and your grandfather are. When we gonna eat?’ Joyce asked in her hard-done-by voice.

‘Can we have McDonald’s, Mummy, please?’ Brett asked, jumping up and down.

‘No, we bloody well can’t,’ Frankie yelled, at the end of her tether. She stormed out to the kitchen and was followed by a very worried Joey.

‘Look, I know this is an awful time for you, but for fuck’s sake chill out and have a glass of wine or something. You’ve been shouting at Brett all day and you can’t take your frustration out on him. He doesn’t understand what’s going on, does he? He’s only bloody seven.’

Knowing her brother was entirely right, Frankie felt guilty, then started to cry. Joey put his arms around her and hugged her to his chest. He couldn’t begin to imagine the anguish Frankie was going through, but sometimes he had to be cruel to be kind.

‘It’s Nan that’s doing my head in. She’s been knocking back the brandy and Baileys all day as though she’s at a fucking party. Can’t you get Dom to take her and Grandad over yours for the night? There’s too many people here and I’m just not in the mood to socialise.’

‘I know Nan’s brain damage, Frankie, but her and Grandad are getting ever so old. They’re in their seventies now, and they mean well deep down. Why don’t I order us all a takeaway? I’m sure once Nan’s eaten that and had a few more drinks, she’ll be ready for bed anyway. We’ll give her some wine, that should knock her out,’ Joey joked.

Frankie nodded. Her brother always calmed her down, that’s why she loved him so much. ‘Pour me a glass of wine, then,’ she said.

‘Are you OK, Frankie?’ Babs asked, poking her head around the door.

‘I’m fine, mate. Go in there with Dom and entertain the kids and Nan and Grandad for me while I have a little chat with Joey,’ she replied.

Joey handed Frankie her wine and poured himself one as well. He held his glass up and clinked it with hers. ‘Here’s to Dad working his magic and bringing the kids home safely.’

When the phone rang it was Dom who answered it. ‘It’s your dad, Frankie,’ he said, running into the kitchen.

Frankie snatched the phone out of his hand and, as she heard what her dad had to say, dropped her glass of wine in shock.

‘What’s happened? Talk to me, Frankie,’ Joey pleaded, fearing the worst.

Bursting into tears of pure joy, Frankie began jumping up and down like a loony. ‘He’s got ’em! My babies are on their way home.’

Forever the pessimist, Eddie ended the call to his daughter and rang Stuart again. ‘Well?’ he asked. He was trying not to say too much in front of the kids.

‘Nothing to report, boss. Jed’s truck still ain’t moved, and we ain’t seen hair nor hide of Jimmy,’ Stuart confirmed.