SIXTEEN

The next week passed quietly without incident until Michelle woke up on the following Saturday with a sore head and only patchy memories of the night before. A mate of hers, Cindy, who she trained with down the gym, had held a big fortieth birthday bash in a hall on the outskirts of Romford, which she'd gone to with Nathan.

It had started off as a really good evening. The hall was lovely, the drink was free and flowing, the food exquisite and everything had been going so well, until Chelle had spotted Davey Mullins. Sauntering into the hall with some new dolly bird on his arm, Dave had strolled up to the bar as if he owned the gaff. Chelle hadn't had any dealings with or spoken to Dave since the day of Terry's funeral. The sight of him larging it had made her blood boil.

She'd been hearing lots of rumours about old Davey Boy through the grapevine. Apparently he'd come into a lot of money and was flashing it about like there was no tomorrow. By all accounts, he'd bought a brand-new four-wheel drive of some kind, been on a cruise and moved out of his shithole flat into some new property, although no one seemed sure exactly where he was living.

Now Chelle might be a lot of things, but stupid wasn't one of them. There was no way the piece of shit had started a thriving business or won the fucking lottery. Chelle was one hundred per cent certain that the money the no-good robbing bastard was chucking about was her dead husband's and by rights should have been hers. It was just too convenient that Dave had become rich immediately after Terry's funeral for there to be any other explanation. Although she had been left financially laughing all the way to the bank, it had been down to Terry's life insurance policy, a couple of houses he'd owned and the car lot. She'd thought it really strange at the time that he'd had hardly any cash in the bank, and although she'd had a result with the safe, she knew there was far more stashed away than that.

When the truth had unfolded about her dead husband's relationship with Jade, things had clicked into place for Michelle. With a new baby on the way, she'd guessed that he'd been planning on leaving her and had hidden his money elsewhere. A week later, Davey Mullins had started his spending spree, leaving Chelle in no doubt where the rest of Terry's money had gone. It hardly took a genius to work it out, did it now?

Watching Mullins at the party was like a red rag to a bull for Michelle. The more he stood up at the bar giving it large with the slag on his arm, who looked like a twenty-year-old porn star, the more she wanted to go over there and rip his head off. His ex-bird, Lisa, was sitting at Chelle's table, egging her on to go and confront him and Chelle found herself knocking the wine back like there was no tomorrow to try and calm herself down. Nathan was getting on her nerves, he never backed her up and sat there with no opinion whatsoever. To look at Nathan, you'd think he was a right handful. He was built like a brick shithouse thanks to his obsession with steroids and weight training, but deep down he was a very weak person and hated confrontation of any kind.

'Come on, Michelle, let's just go home, shall we? We don't want no trouble, do we?' he'd said to her.

'Fuck off, Nathan, you go home if you want to, but I'm staying here.' He might be young and good-looking, but one thing Chelle couldn't stand was cowardly men and she decided there and then that unless he pulled his socks up, she would be dumping him very shortly. Men were a waste of space in Chelle's eyes. Hurt and bitter, she had had a gutful of them. She'd already gone from womaniser to wanker. What the fuck would she pick next? Probably a tranny, knowing her luck.

By the time the clock ticked ten-thirty, Michelle was pissed and stewing. The scales were finally tipped when Hazel and Suzie returned from the toilets and informed Chelle that Dave's new bird had been out there repairing her make-up, whilst telling some girl that she'd just had a boob job in Harley Street costing thousands, and that Dave had paid for it. Chelle could almost feel smoke coming out of her nostrils with the unfairness of it all.

'You mean to tell me that I've paid for that old slapper's tits? Right, that's it, I'm going over there to have my say. You coming with me, Nathan?'

'Look, Chelle, I don't want no grief. You go over there, I'm going home. I'll ring you tomorrow.'

Although Chelle was pissed, she managed to walk in a straight line as she headed over to the bar. Davey Mullins' face fell when he saw her. The party had been so packed, he hadn't even realised that Chelle was there and now here she was, pissed, with her Rottweiler expression, heading his way. Ignoring him, Chelle spoke directly to his bird.

'All right, love? Nice tits. Best you give me the receipt, eh, seeing as I fucking paid for them.'

Dave nudged his startled girlfriend. 'Go to the ladies, babe. I'll deal with this.'

Obeying his orders and desperate to get away from the mad drunken woman, Honey tried to weave her way through the packed crowd at the bar. Chelle dragged her back by the arm.

'Don't go. I've paid for your fucking knockers, so the least you can do is stay here and talk to me. You can learn a few things from me, love, like what a robbing-no-good-fucking-shit-cunt your new boyfriend is.'

Dave stood there wishing the ground would open up and Chelle would fall into it. He wouldn't have given a toss about her creating if he'd been there on his own, but for the first time in ages, Dave had found the woman he wanted to grow old with and he really didn't need Chelle fucking up his new-found happiness.

He'd met Honey a few months ago in a club up the West End. She'd been a lap dancer at the time and Dave had spent the evening mesmerised by her. He'd given her a fortune that evening, but it had been worth it when, at the end of the night, she'd agreed to give him her mobile number. The rest was history and she moved in with him a fortnight later, quitting her job at the same time.

When Terry died, Dave had been devastated. Right up until his funeral he hadn't given a second thought to the money that he was stashing for him. It was after the funeral, when Michelle had once again shown her true colours, that he'd started dipping into it and, in all honesty, he didn't really feel that bad about keeping it and spending it. What the hell was he meant to do with the cash now that Terry didn't need it? Give it to Chelle to piss up the wall! Dave knew without a doubt that Terry wouldn't have wanted Michelle to get her hands on his money. He reasoned to himself that as long as he kept some stashed away in case Jade or Billie Jo needed financial help, then he wasn't doing anything wrong. He and Terry had been like brothers at the end of the day, so why should he feel guilty?

'Go away, Chelle. You're drunk and making a show of yourself. Give it a rest, eh, girl.'

Chelle stood her ground, hands on hips. 'I'll go away when you give me the money back that's rightfully mine, you thieving bastard.'

Dave took a sip of his drink and smirked. 'What money? I don't know what you're on about.'

People started looking as Chelle raised her voice. 'You know exactly what money I'm talking about, Dave. Just like you knew about Jade, the baby and my husband's secret fucking life. You are one lying bastard and I want the money back that you've got of Terry's.'

Dave took a step forward, his face now so close to Michelle's that their noses were almost touching. 'I'll say this once, Chelle, and once only. I haven't got any money of yours or Terry's, so leave me be. To be honest, even if I did have his dough, you'd be the last person he'd want to have it. He hated you with a passion and he couldn't wait to get away from you, so why don't you go away and crawl back under the stone you came from and leave me alone?'

Chelle snatched a full pint off the bar. Her face was twitching with anger as she poured the contents all over Davey Mullins' head. Who the fuck did he think he was talking to? He was no more than a gofer, Terry's lackey boy.

Dave was seething. He was itching to punch the fat cunt straight in the teeth, but seeing Honey returning from the ladies made him decide against it. Giving Michelle a gentle shove was enough to send her flying. Embarrassed at the fiasco, Dave grabbed Honey by the arm and led her towards the exit.

'Come on, babe, we don't need this shit,' he said, as he stormed out of the building. That was the last bit of the evening Chelle could remember. She'd passed out shortly after and was carried out of the hall by her friends.

Today, Chelle felt like shit. Deciding to have a shower to liven herself up, she got dressed, put her slap on and rang Hazel. An hour later she was perched on a bar stool in a pub in Romford, with her friend sitting alongside. After discussing dumping Nathan and how she was going to get her own back on Davey Mullins, Chelle realised she was starving. Placing an order for two pasta dishes, garlic bread and another bottle of wine, Chelle and Hazel moved to a table next to the window so they could eat in comfort. Chelle's weekend took an almighty turn for the worse about an hour later.

Hazel had gone to the toilet and Chelle was quite happily sipping her wine, looking out of the window watching the world go by, when she happened to catch sight of Billie Jo amongst the crowd of shoppers. Craning her neck to get a clearer look, Chelle was surprised to see Billie pushing a buggy. Hazel returned and sat down at the table.

'What's up, Chelle? What are you looking at?'

'I'm looking at Billie Jo. She's standing outside a shop opposite, with a buggy. I was wondering who she was with. I didn't know she knew anyone who had kids.'

Chelle didn't have to wait long for the answer and could hardly believe her eyes as she saw Jade approach her daughter, link arms like they were the best of friends and walk off down the road, laughing and joking. Chelle leapt up from her seat as though someone had stuck a firework up her arse and, with Hazel in close pursuit, ran out of the pub and across the road to confront her daughter.

Billie stood rooted to the spot as soon as she heard her mother's voice calling her. She was done for now, that was for sure. Her life wouldn't be worth living at home, her mother would give her a dog's life. Jade shook with fear as Michelle approached them. She hadn't seen her since the day she'd been beaten up by her outside her flat and she was petrified, especially as she had Terry Junior with her.

Chelle looked at Billie with hatred. 'This is very cosy, Bill. Having a nice shopping trip, are we?'

Billie could feel herself reddening as she faced her mother. 'I'm sorry, Mum. I was going to tell you, but I knew you'd kick off. It wasn't planned, all this. I bumped into Jade and when I saw my little brother, I fell in love with him. I need to have contact with him, Mum. At the end of the day, he's all I have left of my dad.'

Chelle stared at the baby in the buggy. The thing was the spitting image of Terry and the sight of it made her feel sick. Turning her attention back to Billie, Chelle gave her a hard, cold stare. 'Bill, I want you out of my life from today. I'll pack your clothes and stuff into bin bags and you can come and pick them up whenever.' Nodding towards Jade and the buggy, Chelle continued, 'You're obviously happy spending your time with the whore and the brat, so do yourself a favour, Bill, move in with them. As from today, I don't want to see your face or have anything to do with you ever again. Have you got your front-door key on you?'

Billie could feel the tears forming in her eyes as she fished through her handbag for her keys. She expected her mother to shout and scream, but not this. She knew that Chelle had never had any time for her, but now she realised it was more than that. She actually hated her. Handing Chelle the key, Billie broke down.

'Please, Mum, don't chuck me out. We can sort things out, I know we can. Please, Mum, let me come home and talk to you. I'll explain everything to you, I promise. Please, Mum, please.'

Chelle snatched the key. 'I'll leave all your stuff in the garage. It'll be unlocked so you can pick it up. That's all I've got to say to you, Bill. You're just like your father, an untrustworthy, lying, two-faced piece of shit and I want you out of my life. Without you, I can sort myself out. Goodbye and good riddance, Billie Jo.'

Billie stood on the pavement sobbing her little heart out as she watched her mother head back to the pub. 'What am I going to do, Jade, where will I go?'

Jade hugged her tightly. Taking a tissue out of her handbag she wiped her tears away. 'Come on, Bill, let's go back to mine. You can come and stay with me for a while. You'll be OK. I'll look after you.'

Billie was distraught. 'How can my own mother not want me, Jade?'

Reaching the car park, Jade paid for the ticket, put Terry Junior in the baby seat and helped a devastated Billie into the car. 'Look, Bill, I'm sorry to have to say this but in my eyes your mother's a monster. When your dad used to tell me what a terrible mother she was, I didn't know whether to believe him or not. Now I know he was telling the truth. Listen, love, you've got me, you've got your friends and you have Danny. We're all here for you. Things will sort themselves out and everything will be fine, I promise you.'

Billie looked at her with pleading eyes. 'Will you take me to pick my stuff up tomorrow?'

Jade smiled. 'Of course I will, darling. Now do yourself a favour, ring Danny and cancel your date for tonight. Tell him what's happened and me and you will have a bottle of wine and a takeaway. We'll sort things out, honest we will.'

Billie gave a half-smile. 'OK, Jade, and thanks for helping me. I don't know what I'd do without you.'

Jade winced at the compliment. Billie would very shortly have to do without her, and telling her wasn't going to be easy.