Mary shook her head sadly; if only that was the case. But she had seen Cynthia looking at her grandchild, and she recognised that look. She had felt it herself many years ago. Cynthia saw an opportunity to make up for her mistakes; all the wrongs she had committed counted for nothing now that child was there. She thought of that baby as a new page to be written on, a new canvas to paint in her own image. Cynthia would not let this baby go, not now. Not when she had an in on its life.

Mary had felt the same when Cynthia had produced Gabby and James Junior. It was like a second chance at motherhood. When you became a grandparent, it was like God handing you a child without the pain of bearing it. And you were given something that was even more precious than your own kids, because it was your kids who had produced it in the first place.

It hurt a great deal to see Gabby forgetting what her mother was capable of and welcoming her with open arms. But what could she do?

Cynthia was on full charm offensive, and that was not an easy thing to ignore. She was playing on the fact that Gabby needed her mother, but Mary knew that Cynthia would soon lose interest. She always did, leaving a trail of death and destruction wherever she went.

Life was hard for a lot of people, Mary knew, but it seemed at times her family had it much harder than most. Cynthia saw to that; she had always been responsible for their problems.

‘She will eat her up and spit her out, Jack. Cynthia wants that child, but she doesn’t want its mother.’

Jack nodded in agreement. ‘’Course she does. Think about it – she’s kicking forty, she has nothing in her life – never had anything in her life if she’s honest with herself. A baby will be something new to her; after all, it won’t know her, will it? Not like everyone else does. A baby loves whoever feeds it.’

‘That’s what worries me, Jack. Not the baby so much, but our Gabby – she has always wanted her mother to love her, admire her, care for her.’

‘That’s human nature, Mary. But Gabby ain’t a mug – she will see that this is all a fucking act, and she’ll aim her out of it.’

‘But I’m not so sure she will, Jack. She needs Vincent, needs him by her side. She’s missing him, she’s all hormones and wanting. She wants to be loved, and she wants to be loved by the people who matter. But I hope you are right, mate. I really hope you are right.’

Chapter Ninety-Six

‘Look at her go! She is as clever as a bag of fucking monkeys.’