Roy glanced at Vinny, who didn’t glance back. ‘It must be very worrying for the family, Mr Ricketts, but sometimes kids do run away, then come home again. I’m sure Peter’s OK. Roy and me are gonna join up with the search the neighbours have organized tomorrow to try and find the lad.’

Roy looked at Vinny in horror. This was the first he’d heard of this. How could Vinny even contemplate joining up with the search?

‘That’s very good of you, lads, giving your time up like that. I know how busy you two are these days,’ smiled Mr Ricketts.

‘My boys are never too busy to help a family in need. That’s the way I raised them,’ Queenie replied.

Roy glanced at his watch. ‘I really do have to dash now.’ He glared at Vinny. ‘I’ll speak to you later.’

When Roy and Mr Ricketts left, Queenie started chatting to Vinny about her trip to the school to see the headmaster. Brenda was turning into a proper little tomboy. She’d had a fight with a boy who’d stolen Lenny’s school bag and had broken the bully’s nose.

‘Serves the lad right, Mum. Brenda did good. A chip off the old block,’ grinned Vinny.

Queenie smiled. She had no idea what her sons had done to or with young Peter, and she had no wish to know. As long as the perverted teenager wouldn’t be attacking any other young girls, that’s all that mattered.

An hour later, Queenie said an awkward goodbye to the vicar and her mother’s church friends. She could sense they saw her as Molly’s awful foul-mouthed daughter, but they were polite nevertheless.

‘Sing Molly’s favourite song, Albie. She would love that, and you sing it so beautifully,’ shouted Lily Turner.

When Albie began belting out ‘You Are My Sunshine’, Vinny rolled his eyes at his mother. ‘That’s me outta here. I can’t be listening to him for the next fucking hour or so.’

‘Me neither. Once he starts singing, he never knows when to bleedin’ stop. Let’s just listen to this one song, mind. It’ll look bad if we walk out, seeing as the old goat is singing it for your nan.’

Albie got a rapturous round of applause at the end of the song, so sang ‘Daisy Daisy’ next.

Queenie walked over to her sister. ‘I’m gonna make a move, Viv. Brenda’s tired and me feet are bleedin’ killing me. Vinny’s gonna drop me home. You want a lift too? Been a long old day, hasn’t it?’

Vivian looked at her sister in amazement. ‘We can’t just leave. There’s several people still ’ere. And how can you say it’s been a long day? This is our mother’s wake.’

‘I didn’t mean it like that, Viv.’

‘Oh yes you did. From the moment Mrs O’Leary moved across the road and you became friendly with her, she became a mum to you and you stopped loving your own. You make me sick at times, Queenie. You’re so bloody selfish. Go on, sod off home. I don’t want you ’ere and neither would Mum.’