‘I’m sorry about this, love, but I got a last-minute offer for a Sunday market stall in Kensal Green. Normally I do Petticoat Lane, but there’s more money to be made at Kensal Green. It’s an early start in the morning so I thought I’d just pack up the van and drive it home tonight.’
To get rid of her as fast as possible Gibbs told Hudson who was working alongside him to stack the boxes by the back door for her to load them, but not to go into the yard in case Silas saw him. Surprisingly, Hebe was quite professional, checking the sizes before piling them in a neat and orderly way into the back of the van.
Silas had by now gone upstairs to his flat and was looking out of the back-bedroom window. He could see Hebe loading her van, and thinking that John and Danny were about to start work with the electric drill, he rushed down to the cellar and told them to stay quiet and not move. John said his dad had already been on the walkie-talkie and told them there was a woman entering the shoe shop.
‘Is that bloodies Hebe woman. She owns it and thinks she’s a Yana lookalike — always singing her song “Climb Up The Wall”. She makes me go up the wall sometimes. Anyway I just check out what she doing.’
Silas peered round the shoe-shop rear gate, which Hebe had already unlocked because she’d be leaving, once she had loaded the shoes. She was bending into the van, her skirt riding up her bottom and revealing her lacy knickers. DC Hudson was about to put some more boxes by the back door when he heard Silas’s voice and ducked out of sight.
‘Hello there, Hebe darlin’, how you keepin’? I hear sound in your yard so thought it best I check it out as there been some break-ins lately.’
‘Hey, Silas love, long time no see. The shop’s OK, I’m just loading up for market day tomorrow, and then I’ve got a hot date at a club with a nice young man.’
‘You no change, Hebe. How’s business? Mine not so good.’
‘Same for me, darling — to be honest I’ll be glad to see the back end of this shithole, and some of these shoes I’m gonna be sellin’ at less than cost. Eh, you don’t need a nice pair of loafers, do you? They’re real suede and nice stitching.’
‘No ta — you need any help packing?’
Gibbs was upstairs and could hear everything. His heart was pounding as he prayed that she didn’t say she already had some help.
‘Na, I’m virtually done and these cork-soled sandals don’t weigh nothin’. Thanks for askin’, though.’
‘OK, you have good night, Hebe.’
She lit a cigarette, laughed and said she was intending to do just that as Silas returned to his café.
Gibbs watched from upstairs as Silas closed his yard gates and went inside. It had been a narrow escape. He went downstairs and told Hudson it was all clear.
‘Excuse me,’ she whispered to Gibbs as she stepped inside the shop. ‘You wanna tell me who you’re really watching out for, a gang of car thieves or the fat Greek?’
‘What makes you ask that?’
‘It’s just I noticed you got people at the front and back of the upstairs, and Silas was being nosy, not friendly. That’s why I didn’t say someone was already helping me load the van.’
Gibbs told her she was right, but he couldn’t go into details and asked her to keep it to herself. She said that she was the soul of discretion, and besides she hated the fat leery Greek.
Gibbs went upstairs. It was a further ten minutes before Hebe finished her cigarette and loaded the rest of the shoes into the van, assisted by Hudson who was still stacking them by the door.
‘I’m goin’ now,’ she said, and gave him a come-hither glance.
She winked at him. ‘Maybe we can have a drink sometime.’
‘I’m always very busy,’ Hudson said nervously.
‘What size shoes are you?’ she asked, looking down.
He gulped, unsure what she was actually looking at. ‘I got big feet.’
She ran her hand through her bleached blonde hair, gave him a sensual smile and looked down again.
‘So I see, well, you know what they say, big feet, big—’
‘Hands,’ he replied quickly, knowing what she actually meant.
‘Big hands are useful as well, sweetheart. Anyway, best I get off. You go and help yourself to a pair of shoes in the basement as a thanks for helping me load up the van.’
It was a relief when she left and he was able to go back upstairs.
‘Sounded and looked like the blonde bombshell had the hots for you,’ Gibbs said, taking the mickey.
‘She scared me, Sarge. I wouldn’t know how to handle a woman like her.’
‘She’d eat you up and spit you out, son, but you’d learn a lesson or two at the same time.’
One of the officers who had been listening in the shoe-shop cellar suddenly came running upstairs.
‘Sounds like they’ve started drilling — you can hear it through the walls, even without the listening device.’
As Gibbs reached the shop floor he could hear a dull rumbling sound, which increased in intensity and volume as he ran down the basement stairs. The drilling noise echoed around the room as bits of sand and stones on the floor bounced up and down like ping-pong balls under the heavy vibration. Gibbs felt something landing in his hair and looking up saw that loose plaster was crumbling off the ceiling. The officer with the listening device looked anxiously at DS Gibbs.
‘I hope this place doesn’t collapse on my bloody head!’
‘Course it won’t, son, but if it does be sure and let me know.’
Gibbs hot-footed it back upstairs.
Renee had given David a large dose of medicine and he was feeling a little better. His temperature had gone down, and he managed to eat a slice of toast and some chicken soup. She had left him to sleep while she watched Coronation Street then checked again to see how he was. Edging quietly into the room Renee stood by his bed and looked down at his handsome face. She felt such overwhelming love for her youngest son, and she couldn’t bear the thought of ever being parted from him. She fetched a hard-backed chair and placed it beside the bed. He had lovely soft hands with slender fingers and she wanted to reach out and hold them like she’d done when he was a little boy afraid of the dark. He opened his eyes and blinked.
‘What you doing?’ he asked quietly.
‘Checkin’ you’re OK, son. I need to talk to you about something and with your dad and brother out this is my best opportunity.’
‘What do you want to talk about?’
‘They think I’m like wallpaper, with no thoughts or feelings. But after years of what they’ve put me through they’ve wrung the life out of me — well, your dad has more than John, but he scares me as well sometimes. Cliff’s knocked me around for years, but you get sort of used to being abused, because fighting back or arguing only makes it worse. Eventually you learn to keep out the way and say nothing, especially if you want a quiet life. I used to tell myself I stayed because of you two boys, but the truth was I never had the guts to get out. The only time I ever felt really safe was when he was in prison.’
‘Why are you telling me this, Mum?’
She sighed, patted her knees and straightened her apron.
‘Oh David, I ain’t stupid, love. The years of turning a blind eye and pretending not to know what’s going on made for an easy life. But truth is I always knew...’
‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’
‘Yes you do, David, and I know you and John have been up to something illegal. And your dad’s involved too, now he’s out. I don’t know what it is, but I’m begging you to stay out of it. Don’t get involved, son, for your own good.’