‘Kerry’s coming up next week. I haven’t seen her since that day I was last in court.’

Remembering that he’d promised himself what he would tell Frankie, Eddie began to fidget in his seat. Telling his daughter the news of his impending fatherhood was not something he relished, but it had to come from him. ‘There’s something else I need to tell you. It’s about me and I know you ain’t gonna like it.’

‘I’ll have a guess, shall I? You’re getting married,’ Frankie said sarcastically.

‘Well, yeah, but not yet. Gina’s pregnant,’ Ed said bluntly.

With images of her poor mother flashing through her mind, Frankie stood up, walked towards a screw and asked to be taken back to her cell.

‘Frankie, what you doin’? Don’t be like this, babe,’ she heard her dad shout.

Turning around, Frankie glared at him. ‘You make me fucking sick!’ she screamed.

Over in Orsett, Stanley and Pat the Pigeon had had a lovely day. Firstly, they’d had lunch in the Halfway House and then, on Pat’s insistence, they’d popped into the Orsett Cock pub, where the pigeon club congregated.

‘Don’t you worry about bumping into that bloody turncoat, Jock. He’s the one in the wrong, not you,’ Pat had maintained.

Although still fuming over Jock’s betrayal, Stanley wasn’t one for confrontation and had been relieved that Jock wasn’t in the pub when they’d arrived.

About to take a sip of his pint, Stanley nearly choked as Pat muttered the words he’d been dreading hearing. ‘Here he is, just walked in, the bloody Judas. I feel like giving him a piece of my mind, Stanley, I really do.’

Stanley looked up, locked eyes with his once best friend, scowled and looked away. ‘Don’t bother saying ought to him, Pat. He ain’t bleedin’ worth it, love.’

Under no illusion that Stanley was anything other than still mad at him, Jock walked over to the bar where Brian and Derek were standing.

‘What’s happened between you and Stanley? I asked him where you were earlier and he nearly bit my head off,’ Derek asked.

‘It’s a long story, but I’ve had Joycie on the phone, worried sick about him. Stanley’s left her and she was going to call the police and report him missing.’

Brian started to laugh. ‘He’s all right, is our Stanley. He’s moved in with Pat, she was telling me earlier. I bet they’ve been at it like rabbits.’

Jock glanced at Stanley and Pat in horror. How was he meant to tell Joyce this piece of news? She would blow a fuse.

Unlike Frankie, who was currently sailing through her latest pregnancy, Sally Baldwin was indoors, crippled up with stomach pains. The stress of splitting up with Jed was taking its toll and the constant threats he kept making weren’t helping matters either. He’d been ringing her all day and at first he’d been quite pleasant.

‘Please come back. I didn’t mean to talk to you like I did. I’m such a dinlo and I really miss you,’ he’d begged.