Peter smiled, knowing he’d taken the first step in regaining Glynn’s respect. He secretly thought Glynn’s choice of weapons a bit extreme but he didn’t want to lose face.

‘OK, down to business,’ he said. ‘I’m hiring two vans so we can take plenty of men. I want Jonny and Rav to drive. You in one van, me in the other, and another six men in the back of each. Jonny and Rav can stay in the vans so we can make a quick getaway.’

‘So there’ll be seven of us raiding each of the clubs?’ said Glynn. ‘You sure that’s enough?’ he asked when Peter nodded.

‘Oh, yeah,’ said Peter. ‘Don’t forget, they won’t be expecting us, and with the weapons we’ll be carrying, they’ll have no fuckin’ chance.’

‘OK, sounds good to me,’ said Glynn.

‘Right, so now we’ve just got to decide who’s going to each club with us and what time we’re gonna hit ’em,’ said Peter, putting the weapons back inside the sack, then pulling out a chair and sitting down. ‘Then we’ll get the lads round and give ’em the drill.’

In front of him was a pad and pen, which he’d placed there earlier. He picked up the pen and began tapping the nib of it nervously on the pad.

Glynn pulled up a chair, too. ‘OK, let’s go for it,’ he said, in eager anticipation.

Chapter 53

Adele was sitting at the bar in the Golden Bell chatting to the barmaid, Paula. She liked this time of the evening, just before most of the customers arrived. Adele also enjoyed watching the customers make an entry. There was always a buzz of excitement as they eagerly anticipated their night of fun. The transformation of the club from an empty cavern to a thriving party zone within the space of an hour or so always intrigued her.

She’d struck up quite a friendship with Paula since she’d been working in the upstairs office. It was amazing what you could learn about someone when you took the trouble to find out.

Paula was a single mum who put in a lot of hours at the club so that she could provide a better life for her children. Abandoned by her kids’ father, she relied on her parents to look after her children while she worked at the club. And when she wasn’t working at the club or looking after her children, she also put in a few hours during the day at a café. Adele admired her work ethic and resented the way Glynn treated her just because she wasn’t as young or glamorous as some of the other barmaids.