Reversing out of the dead end, Eddie rang his dad. Reg, Ronny and Paulie were all in the Flag with him and Ed was pleased, as it meant he could kill four birds with one stone.

Turning on the radio, Eddie smirked as he heard the song being played. ‘Little Lies’ by Fleetwood Mac was very appropriate for poor Michael. Eddie smiled as he thought of what he’d just done to him. Years ago when he was a little boy, his dad used to take him to the fishmonger’s. Eddie was obsessed with the live eels wriggling about in the big bowls of water and he loved watching the man chop them up alive. Eddie grinned. That’s what Michael Jenkins’ thumb had reminded him of today, a live fucking eel. Laughing out loud, Eddie put his foot on the accelerator and sped off.

‘Joey, Frankie, your nan and grandad are here,’ Jessica shouted up the stairs.

Thrilled that their mother had agreed to them going out later, the twins bounded down stairs with smiles on their faces. Staying in every night doing tons of homework had been soul-destroying for them, so much so that they’d climbed out of the window last week and gone out for the evening. It had nearly all ended in tears, as Joey had struggled to climb back up, lost his balance and fallen backwards onto the drive. Frankie had had to creep downstairs and let him in at the front door. It was a miracle he was just bruised and not badly injured. It was also a miracle that their parents hadn’t heard the commotion.

Joyce and Stanley made a real fuss of the twins. ‘What you done to your face? You’ve got a big bruise. You ain’t been fighting, have you?’ Joyce asked Joey.

‘No, I fell out of bed, Nan.’ Joey told her sincerely. He’d got the bruise when he’d fallen off the roof.

Frankie backed him up. ‘It’s true, Nan. He went to bed one night and woke up like that the next morning. I can vouch for him, honest I can.’

Frankie glanced at her brother and he winked at her.

‘How’s school? You must have your exams soon.’ Stanley asked both of them.

Jessica shot the twins a look. She’d warned them not to tell their nan and grandad about the fiasco at the school.

‘We’ve been working really hard, Grandad. We take our exams very seriously,’ Frankie said cheekily.

Jessica felt her lip curl. She could swing for that girl sometimes, she really could.

Eddie tutted as Paulie brought over another drink. He already had three lined up on the table and was struggling to get through them. ‘What you trying to do – get me pissed? I’ve already had about six. I can’t drink all of them, I’ve got the motor outside,’ he joked.