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  He followed her toward her flat. He felt physically sick. He would never get his head around what junkies would do to get a fix, or how his own father had done the exact same thing as Tracey did, when he was a young boy.

  * * *

  Moray was nervous. He hadn’t been out on a date in a long time. He stood waiting in the hospital foyer, frequently checking the time on his watch. Maybe he should have bought flowers. Did people still do that?

  He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around. Sophie was stood in front of him. With her red hair tumbling around her shoulders, and dressed in a black dress falling just above her knees, she looked stunning.

  “Wow, you look beautiful with clothes on.” Immediately, he realised what he’d said. “I meant out of your uniform,” he blushed.

  Sophie laughed and slipped her hand through his arm. “I knew what you meant. So, where are you taking me?”

  Moray smiled. “Somewhere up West. It’s a surprise. You’ll have to wait and see,” he said, as they made their way across the car park.

  * * *

  Hayley was also getting herself dolled up for a date up West. She added the finishing touches to her makeup, then adjusted her false eyelashes, before squirting more than a generous amount of perfume over her arms and shoulders. As a finishing touch, she sprayed an ever larger amount of the sickly sweet perfume up and down the length of her short dress.

  She checked the time. She had just over thirty minutes, before Adam was due to come and collect her. Opening up a bottle of wine, she poured out a large glass. Before she knew it, she had downed half of the bottle.

  “Oops,” she giggled, already feeling a little tipsy. The alcohol was making her feel braver than usual, and she decided, tonight she would tell her Adam that she loved him. She knew he would return the words. How could he not love her? She was stunning.

  * * *

  Moray pulled open the door to a little French restaurant, in Notting Hill. Always the gentleman, he allowed Sophie to walk through the door first. He could see she was impressed, as they were shown to a table. He knew the owner personally, and as a result, was guaranteed the very best table in the restaurant.

  “Wow, this is impressive,” Sophie smiled.

  Moray looked around him, before answering. “I’m glad you like it.”

  They took the menus handed to them and began looking through the vast selection of dishes.

  “I don’t know what to choose,” Sophie stated as she studied the menu. She could see the dishes were expensive, and way out of her price range.

  Leaning forward across the table, Moray’s voice was gentle. “Choose whatever you want, and don’t worry about the price. Everything is on me tonight. Would you like some wine, or would you prefer something else?”

  Sophie smiled. “Wine would be perfect, thank you.”

  * * *

  Adam couldn’t believe it. Talk about bad luck. Out of all the restaurants he could have chosen to take Hayley, he happened to choose the same one as Moray Garner.

  He’d recognised the man as soon as he’d walked through the door. He’d spent more than enough time following him and Danny McKay around of late, to immediately know who he was. There was absolutely no mistaking him.

  He looked across at Hayley. She was as pissed as a fart, and had begun slurring her words. “We need to leave,” he said, signalling for a waiter to come over, so he could pay the wine bill.

  “What do you mean, we have to leave? We haven’t even ordered any food yet.” Her voice was loud, causing other diners to look toward them.

  “Don’t make a fuss,” Adam hissed. “We’re leaving.”

  Hayley was angry. She’d got all dressed up for nothing. “No,” she said, sitting back in her seat with her arms folded across her chest. “You brought me here, and we’re staying here.”

  Adam leant across the table. “I said we’re leaving, so drink up.”

  Unsteadily, Hayley got to her feet. “Fuck you, Adam,” she screamed. “Don’t you know who I am? Who my husband is?”

  Adam groaned. This was all he needed. “Sit down,” he growled.

  Slumping down in her seat, Hayley pursed her lips together, sulking. “I’m not leaving,” she stated.

  * * *

  Moray turned to watch the commotion. He’d noticed from the corner of his eye, the young man had been watching him, yet he didn’t recognise him at all. He raised his eyebrows toward Sophie.

  “You can’t buy class,” he grinned.

  “What did you just fucking say?” Hayley turned in her seat. Her voice was once again loud. “Do you know who my husband is?” she slurred, pointing her finger toward Moray.

  Moray shook his head. “No. Why, should I?”

  “My husband is Terry Stevens. He works for Freddie Smith and Danny McKay, and if they were here now, and heard you disrespecting me like this, they would wipe the floor with you.”

  Moray nodded his head. “Excuse me for a moment,” he said to Sophie. He bumped back his chair, stood up, and walked over to Adam and Hayley’s table. He placed his hands on the starched white tablecloth, the muscles in his forearms taking his weight.

  He then brought his face close to Hayley’s ear. His voice was low as he spoke. “I think you’ll find, lady, that your husband works for me now. And as for Danny McKay, if he ever heard you using his name in this manner, he would wipe the floor with you. Let me give you some advice. Do yourself a favour and keep your mouth shut and let the good people in here get back to enjoying their food, without having to listen to that big fucking trap of yours.”

  Hayley’s mouth fell open. Moray’s words had instantly sobered up. She swallowed deeply, as realisation set in. This man actually knew her husband. She could feel an ice cold shiver run down her spine. She was more than terrified that she’d been caught out red-handed with her lover. How would she explain this away to Terry? Gathering up her handbag, she looked across to Adam.

  “I want to leave now.”

  Adam immediately waved his hand in the air to gain the waiter’s attention. As far as he was concerned, it was the best thing she’d said all night.

  Moray returned to his seat. “I’m so sorry about that.”

  Sophie smiled. “No need to apologise at all.”

  Moray turned to watch the couple leave. Something didn’t seem right about this. Who was the man with Terry Stevens’s wife? He took in his dark hair and olive skin. He would put money on it that he was Greek. He fingered his scar and slumped backwards in his seat. With a sudden clarity, he realised that they had a spy in their camp. He would need to speak to Danny, as soon as he possibly could.

  * * *

  Danny finally had the go ahead to go home. Other than the pain he could feel from his stitched wound, he felt well in himself and strong. He was waiting for Moray to bring him some clothes to change into, then he was all set to leave. Only it wasn’t home he was going to, at least not the home he’d shared with Maxine for the past five years. From now on, home would be the two bedroom flat he was renting in Romford. It was a depressing thought.

  As Moray walked toward him, Danny smiled and clambered off of the bed. He was eager to dress and get out of the hospital. He took the bag of clothes from Moray. “How did your date go?”

  Moray smiled. “Good, but something happened, which is concerning me.”

  Danny burst out laughing and held up his hand, cutting off Moray’s words. “Whoa steady on, mate. I don’t think I want to know. What you get up to in the bedroom, isn’t something I need to know about.”

  Moray rolled his eyes. “It’s nothing like that. Get dressed, and on the way home, I’ll explain everything.”

  * * *

  Hayley was worried. She was scared someone would tell her husband about Adam. She’d been careless and had taken too many risks of late, where her lover was concerned. Now, she wanted to curse herself for drinking so much. Alcohol had always been her downfall. She didn’t know when to stop, that was her problem.

 
She could feel her cheeks blush from the shame of it all. Why did she have to shout her mouth off about Terry? The truth was, she had always used her husband and his connections to get her own way, and now, this was her comeuppance.

  She supposed it would serve her right. If Terry did find out about her affair, she knew it would break his heart, and as a result, he would throw her out of the house she loved so much. She briefly imagined how her life would be, if she had to go back to her mum’s house to live.

  Quickly, she pushed the depressing thought from her mind. She felt sickened at the mere mention of having to live on the Dagenham Council Estate once again. No, she would fight tooth and nail, she decided. No way was she going to let anyone take her house and her lavish lifestyle away from her.

  * * *

  “Are you joking?” There was more than a hint of shock in Danny’s voice.

  “Straight up. She said her old man was Terry Stevens, and that he worked for you. Oh, and apparently, you’re going to wipe the floor with me,” Moray laughed.

  Danny’s eyes were wide. He couldn’t help but laugh along. “What the actual fuck? I’ve never even seen this bird before.”

  “Trust me, I was just as shocked, and believe me, she definitely knew who you were. What’s the odds on going out for the evening and that happening?”

  Danny shook his head. “I can’t believe it, mate.”

  “The thing is,” Moray said, “it was who she was with, that’s bothering me.”

  “Well, who was she with then?”

  Moray took his eyes off the road, as he quickly glanced sideways. “I could swear it was one of the Greeks. Well, he looked Greek anyway. Same thing, as far as I’m concerned.”

  “Are you fucking kidding me?” Danny’s mind raced. “One of the Greeks … are you sure?”

  Moray shrugged his shoulders and paused, before answering. “All I’m saying is that he looked Greek, and if he is one of them, then we have a spy in our camp, mate.”

  “Dirty fucking slag. I can’t believe this. What the fuck has she told him about all of us?”

  “Your guess is as good as mine. But like I said, I’m not one-hundred percent certain he was Greek, only that he looked as though he was. He had the Christos look about him, if you know what I mean.”

  Danny knew exactly what he meant. They had had more than one dealing with the Christos family over the years. “I always wondered how they seemed to know so much. Now we know how they’ve been getting their information. That fucking Terry Stevens. If I find out he’s involved in any of this, I’ll kill him.” Danny shook his head. “I knew I should have lamped him one, when I had the chance,” he added as an afterthought.

  “Let’s dig around a bit first … get our facts straight, before we dive in head long. As for Terry Stevens, well, from the look of it, he’s got his own problems. His missus is definitely doing the dirty on him.”

  They pulled up outside Danny’s new home. Looking up at the grey apartment building, he cleared his throat. “I never asked you if Maxine knew I’d been in the hospital, or if she knew I’d been shot?”

  Moray paused. He’d been dreading this question. He had a feeling, deep down, Danny already knew the answer. Why else had he taken so long to ask? “I told her straight away, mate.”

  He watched Danny swallow deeply. He could see his friend was hurting.

  “Fuck her,” Danny finally replied, putting on a brave face.

  Moray smiled gently. “Come on, mate, let’s get you settled into your new place. I had the lads bring all of your stuff over yesterday. You just have to unpack when you’re feeling strong enough.”

  * * *

  “Well done.” George ruffled Adam’s hair, then hugged his nephew toward him.

  The information he’d been receiving over the past week, had left him feeling puzzled. Now, everything made sense. Danny McKay and Moray Garner had obviously formed a partnership and taken over Freddie’s doors.

  Well, those doors would soon belong to him. He was determined to take them over, and he wasn’t prepared to let anyone or anything get in his way. Taking the doors was to be his family’s ultimate revenge. Only then, would George be able to rest easy.

  The fact that Danny McKay was still alive niggled at him. He’d hoped the reports he’d heard about him being killed in the shooting were true. Obviously, this hadn’t been the case. He wondered, briefly, if any of his nephews would be capable of finishing off what someone else had obviously started. He would speak to Alexandros, he decided, and together they would decide if the boys were up to the job.

  “Can I cut all ties with Hayley now?”

  George could see Adam was unhappy with the situation he’d put him in, yet he believed there was still more information to come. “Just a few more weeks.”

  Inwardly, Adam groaned. He couldn’t hide his disappointment. “You said though …”

  “That was before this new information came to light,” George interrupted. “We need to know their every move, and we can only do that, if you keep seeing this woman,” his voice broke no arguments. “Where is your loyalty, Adam? Think of your father, my brother, slaughtered like a pig by those bastards. You were too young to remember your father’s murder, but I remember, your uncles remember. And for your father and your cousin, Nico, we will get our justice, our revenge.”

  Adam didn’t dare answer back. For as long as he could remember, his uncle had used his father’s murder to keep him in line. The truth was, he had no recollection of the man. All he had to remember his father, were a handful of tattered photographs and the stories his family told of him, and then the ultimate story of his murder, by one of Freddie Smith’s henchmen.

  The man responsible had recently been released from prison, after serving eighteen years inside for the murder. As of yet, his whereabouts were still unknown, but they would find him. According to the story he’d been told, his father had been gutted like a pig. The image inside his head, of his father’s lifeless body hanging on a meat hook, left to rot, had haunted him for months when he’d been a young boy.

  “I’m sorry, uncle,” he said.

  George patted his nephew’s arm. “Make your father proud, Adam.”

  Smiling sadly, he knew he had no other choice, but to do as he was told, to follow through his uncle’s orders, and to keep on seeing Hayley.

  * * *

  Danny was bored. He couldn’t settle into his new flat. He stood, looking aimlessly out of the window, just staring. He missed his boy, that was half of the problem, and it didn’t help that he was used to being busy. Other than now, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d had a day off from work.

  It was something that used to drive Maxine up the wall. She used to say he was a workaholic. Perhaps he should have taken note of her complaining. If he had, maybe he would still have a marriage. He pushed the thought away from his mind. There was no use beating himself up over it. It was done and dusted, and there was nothing he could say or do to change the situation.

  He grabbed up his jacket. Whether Moray liked it or not, he was going into work. He couldn’t just sit around doing nothing. He searched around the flat for his car keys. Where the fuck were they?

  “Shit,” he muttered to himself. He remembered now. He didn’t even have his car, because the windscreen still hadn’t been fixed.

  He may as well kill two birds with one stone, he decided. He would cab it to the club, then phone around to get his windscreen fixed. He would deal with Moray once he got there. Besides, he still hadn’t told him what the proposition was, not to mention, they still needed to deal with his shooting. There were plenty of ample excuses for him to go to the club.

  An hour later, he was given a warm welcome, as he walked through the doors to Ritzy’s Nightclub.

  “It’s good to have you back,” Callum Riley said, shaking Danny’s hand. “You had us all worried for a while there, boss.”

  “Cheers, mate. It’s good to be back.”

  Deliberately avoiding eye
contact with Moray, Danny knew his friend would be more than pissed off with him.

  “What are you doing here? You’re meant to be resting.”

  Danny flopped down onto a chair. They were sat in Moray’s office. “I was bored,” he grinned, sheepishly. “And I’ve still got a few things to sort out.”

  Moray raised his eyebrows. “Such as?”

  “I need to sort out my car, for starters. Plus, you still haven’t told me about this proposition of yours.”

  “You’re one sly dog, McKay. You’ll use any excuse to get back to work, just admit it.”

  Danny grinned. “Yeah, you’re right. So, come on then, what is it? You’ve left me hanging long enough.”

  “Well,” Moray said, as he spread out his arms. “This place … I think we should buy it.”

  Danny laughed hard. “Me buy a club? Are you out of your mind? What would I know about running a club?”

  Moray wasn’t about to be put off. “You’ve spent half your life working in clubs, and I’ve spent years in this place, watching how it’s run. In fact, I could do it with my eyes closed, that’s how confident I am that we could make a success of it.”

  Danny narrowed his eyes. “Are you being serious? You actually want us to buy this place?”

  “Yes, why not?”

  He thought it through. “I wouldn’t be able to afford it.”

  It was Moray’s turn to laugh. “You’re not short of a bob or two. You can’t tell me that Freddie didn’t pay you some wedge over the years? And I can guarantee you bought your house with cash, didn’t you? Come on out with it, admit it, I’m right, ain’t I?”