‘Where you off to? You never use cabs. What’s goin’ on?’ Ethel quizzed her.

Usually, Maureen told her mother-in-law everything, but not this time. With James’s happiness at stake, the fewer people who knew, the better.

‘I’ve got an appointment at the hospital to have some tests done,’ Maureen fibbed.

The fact that she actually had an appointment booked for a few weeks’ time made her feel much better than usual about lying.

‘Why don’t you let me come with you? We can get a black cab for nothing if I come: they can swipe me card,’ Ethel offered.

Maureen shook her head. ‘Thanks, Mum, but I really need to do this alone.’

The journey to Tommy’s seemed to take for ever and gave Maureen plenty of time to think about what she was going to say. She just hoped he was in; phoning him may have pre-warned him and she couldn’t take that chance.

As the cab pulled into his turning, she asked if the driver would wait a minute. ‘I’ll pay you now, but will you just wait while I see if my son’s at home. If not, you’ll have to take me back.’

The driver grunted. Miserable bastard, Maureen thought, as she slammed the door.

Never an early riser, Tommy was still fast asleep in bed. ‘Who the fuck’s this?’ he muttered, as the constant pressing of the bell woke him up.

Seeing it was only 9 a.m., he cautiously looked out of the window. Alfie was at his mate’s and no one ever came to the house at this sorry hour.

Maureen looked up as she heard a noise. ‘It’s me, Tommy. Open the bloody door.’

One glance at her face told Tommy all he needed to know. She’d found out; she knew what he’d done. He chucked on a pair of shorts, ran down the stairs and let her in.

‘All right, Mum? Wanna cup of tea?’

Maureen looked at him with hatred. With all her might, she pushed him towards the lounge.

‘Fuck the tea. Me and you need to have a little chat, son.’

‘I’m sorry, mate, I never heard the alarm go off. Do you mind if we take a day off? I had a row with Maria yesterday and I got really pissed last night.’

Freddie didn’t mind at all. ‘That’s fine by me. It’ll be nice to spend a bit of time with Sarah; she barely sees me these days.’

James ended the call and put the quilt back over his head. He and Maria used to be happy – where had it all gone so wrong?

After dropping the girls off at school, Maria decided to skip the gym in favour of her husband. James hadn’t gone to work and she had some serious grovelling to do. Talking to Maureen last night had made her feel much better already. It was a relief to share her burden with someone and be told that everything would be OK.

Stopping at Tesco Express, she bought a crusty loaf, bacon and eggs. Poor James, she loved him so much. Breakfast in bed was no apology for the way she’d been treating him, but it was a start. They could spend a nice day together, get things back on track. As Maureen said, the baby more than likely belonged to James and she had to think positive from now on.

‘Maria’s an old slag, she was well up for it, Mum.’

That particular comment tipped Maureen over the edge, and she walloped him fiercely around his smarmy face. ‘Don’t you dare tell lies like that, you nasty no-good bastard. And so what if you slept with her years ago, it doesn’t give you the right to rape her twenty years on, does it? How could you do it, Tommy, eh? How could you attack your brother’s wife, of all people? What you did is the ultimate fucking betrayal.’

Tommy averted his eyes and stared at the carpet. He felt like a naughty schoolboy all over again.

‘Look, Mum, I am sorry for what I’ve done, but you don’t know the half of it. Ever since I first shagged her, she’s been a right cunt to me. The gyp she’s given me over the years, you wouldn’t believe. She’s –’

‘Shut the fuck up, Tommy. I’ve listened to enough of your drivel to last me a lifetime and now I want you to listen to me. You have to move away from here, the sooner the better. In fact, I’ll give you a deadline: next Monday. By then I expect you to be hundreds of miles away and if you’re not, then I will personally make sure that the shit hits the fan.’

Tommy looked at her in amazement. She was having a giggle, right? Realising that she wasn’t, he sort of fell onto the armchair, laughing.

‘You’re a comedian, Mum. What’s got into you? Where the fuck am I meant to go?’

Maureen stared defiantly into his piss-taking eyes. ‘I don’t know and I don’t fuckin’ care. That’s your problem, and you should of thought of that before you attacked that poor girl. You’re a betrayer, Tommy, and I want you as far away from James and Maria as possible.’

Tommy suddenly felt angry; she always stuck up for James. Well, fuck Mummy’s blue-eyed boy and fuck her. He, Tommy Hutton, being run out of town by his own mother. Who did she think she was? Violet fucking Kray?’

He stood up and flashed her his best sneer. ‘Get out of my house, Mum, and don’t you ever come back. As for your stupid idea, forget it. I’m goin’ nowhere.’

As he none too gently pushed her towards the door, Maureen pleaded with him to change his mind.

‘Tommy, I beg you to do this for me. You have to, else you’re gonna get hurt.’

As Tommy gave her a final shove, she caught her foot and landed arse up on the pavement.

‘Get hurt! Yeah, right, by you and who’s army? Goodbye, Mum, I’ll see you in another life.’

As the front door slammed, Maureen lay still on the ground. Why would he never listen to her? The stupid, stupid boy. Now she had to make a decision. Did she go ahead with plan B? Or forget the whole thing? As she pictured James’s innocent face, her mind was instantly made up. She would do anything, absolutely anything, to protect her baby.

‘What’s all this?’ he asked suspiciously.

Maria handed him the tray and sat down beside him. ‘I just wanted to say that I’m sorry, James. I’ve been a right misery-guts lately and you really don’t deserve it.’

James put the breakfast to one side and took her in his arms. Ever since they’d been kids, she’d had a way of making him melt.

‘I love you, James, and I’m so sorry,’ Maria said repeatedly.

James stroked her hair. ‘Ssh, come on now. You ain’t gotta keep apologising, it’s not as though you’re miserable all the time, is it? If anyone’s to blame, it’s me for getting’ you up the duff in the first place,’ he joked.

As Maria clung to him, she prayed that the baby was his. Please God, make James be the father.

‘Are you OK? What’s the matter, Maureen?’

She was that upset, he could barely understand her. ‘Look, we can’t talk on the phone. Give us an hour and I’ll come to you,’ he told her.

‘No,’ she said immediately. ‘The pub at the top of the road – you know the one I mean, don’t yer? I’ll meet you there. And Freddie, whatever yer do, yer mustn’t tell James.’

Freddie was bemused as he ended the call. Whatever she had to say was obviously too important to name The Bancroft or involve her son.

‘We’re gonna have to make a move, something’s come up,’ he told Sarah.

‘Oh Fred, we never get the chance to spend the day together,’ she whinged.

Freddie ignored her and grabbed his coat. Over the years Maureen had been like another mum to him and if anyone had upset her, he’d kill ’em.

‘What you doing?’ James joked.

It had been so long since they’d been intimate, he’d been thinking of becoming a monk. ‘Are you sure you want to?’ he asked her gently.

Feeling nervous, Maria nodded. Truth be known, she wasn’t sure if she ever wanted to do it again, but she had to. It reminded her of falling off her bike as a kid; the quicker you got back on, the better.

She winced as he entered her. ‘Are you OK?’ James whispered.

Maria smiled. ‘I’m absolutely fine.’

‘Get back in,’ she told him. ‘Drive to a pub in an area where nobody knows us.’

Maureen was silent while Freddie headed towards Limehouse. Johnny was at home with Ethel, so there was no rush to get back.

‘You look ill, Maur. Whatever’s the matter?’ Freddie asked. She looked terrible and he was extremely concerned about her.

Maureen shook her head. ‘I need a couple of drinks before I can explain. We’ll talk in the pub, eh?’

Freddie nodded. Not knowing what else to say, he rambled on about Sarah and the kids. Driving in silence always gave him the willies.

Pulling into a sidestreet, he stopped outside a smart-looking pub. ‘This OK, Maur? It’s full of City boys and far too upper class for us to know anyone,’ he joked as he opened her door.

He ordered the drinks and found them a quiet table. As he sat opposite Maureen, his concern turned to shock. Not only did she look ill, but she’d also aged overnight. Gone was the plump, bubbly woman with the classic laugh; she’d now been replaced by a thin, serious lady, with pale skin and haunted eyes.

‘What’s goin’ on, Maur?’ he asked kindly.

Maureen left no stone unturned as she explained the story. She paused a couple of times, once to cough, once to wipe her eyes, but finally she got to the end.

Freddie sat in a stunned silence. Not once did he interrupt her, he couldn’t have spoken if he tried. As she finished and the tears began to flow, he squeezed her hand.

‘Do you want me to get Tommy sorted for you? Is that what you’re trying to say?’ he asked gently.

Maureen nodded. She couldn’t actually say the words, because it made it all sound too real. She wondered if deep down, she was an evil woman. I mean, what type of mother asks for her son to be sorted?

‘Are yer gonna do it yourself?’ she whispered.

Freddie shook his head. ‘He’s such a cunt, I can’t believe what he’s done. I’ve known for years about his fling with Maria – I was there the night it happened – but this is different gravy, he’s gone way over the top this time. Having said that, I couldn’t hurt him meself, we go back way too far.’

‘Who else can you trust?’ Maureen asked awkwardly.

‘You leave that to me. I know exactly the right person for the job,’ Freddie assured her.

His uncle Bobby had wanted to teach Tommy a lesson years ago and he was sure he’d jump at the chance of doing it now. As luck would have it, he was in England at the moment. ‘He’s scum: I don’t trust him and he knows too much about my business,’ he’d said only the other day.

Freddie smiled. ‘I dunno about you, but I’m thirsty. Do yer want another pint of Guinness?’

Maureen nodded. The way she felt right now, she could easily polish off the barrel. She sat nervously while she waited for Freddie to return. There was one question that she hadn’t yet asked and she didn’t quite know how to.

Freddie handed her the drink and sat back down. ‘As soon as I leave you, Maur, I’ll set the ball rolling. You don’t want these things dragging on, do yer?’

Maureen chewed on her already bitten nails. ‘Will they – yer know? Will they just hurt him, or will they do him in?’

Freddie held her bony hand. ‘That’s entirely up to you, Maur. If you just want him roughed up and sent away, that’s simple. But what you’ve gotta consider is, will he find out about the baby and come back? Me and Tommy were like brothers for years and I certainly don’t wanna see him brown bread. But this is your call, it’s entirely up to you.’

Maureen stared out of the window and looked at the clear blue sky. What a lovely day, she stupidly thought. She turned back to Freddie.

‘Look, he’s my son and I can’t make that decision. I need you to be brave and decide what to do for me, Freddie. Please don’t tell me what happens, because I don’t wanna know, but whatever happens, I need to know that he will never come back to this area or interfere with the happiness of my sweet baby James. People like me and you, Fred, we call a spade a spade, so let’s be honest: both Tommy and Susan turned out to be rotten to the core. James is different, he’s always been my angel. Heart of gold the boy has, the complete opposite of the other two. His happiness means everything to me and I would kill for him if I had to.’ She paused before carrying on. ‘Between me and you, I don’t think I’m long for this world. Don’t say a word to James or anyone, but I think me cancer’s back. I need to sort this now, ’cause if I don’t, I will never rest in peace.’

Freddie felt a tear roll down his cheek as he looked into the eyes of such a wonderful woman. Genuine, kind, funny, strong – she’d been given such a rough deal in life and really didn’t deserve it.

‘You’ve always been like a second mum to me, Maureen. I want you to know that I think the world of you and I fully understand what you’re doin’ and why you’re doin’ it.’

Maureen wiped her tears away. ‘You’re a good boy, Freddie Adams, and I know I can trust you to make the most important decision of my life for me.’

Freddie gave her a sad smile. ‘I’ll sort it. I won’t let you down, Maureen, I promise.’