Either way, it was now in Spider's domain and he was happy to let him sort it out. If Spider naused it up, he would step in without a second's thought. He saw Cain was still feeling the heat and he decided to put a block on him once and for all.

'You think this is out of order, don't you?'

Patrick and Spider could see that Cain was still annoyed and that he didn't see what the problem was. Like most youngsters, he had started a chain of events that could bring them all down and he couldn't see that fact. He was still too stupid to even ask why he was being singled out as he was. He was so fucking arrogant that he didn't even have the savvy to question his betters and learn something for the future.

Cain didn't answer him. His pride was hurt and his sensible head was finally telling him to keep his trap shut. The way Jimmy Brick was watching him was disconcerting, to say the least, and he decided he would be better off retreating on this occasion.

'You borrowed money to people who would see any kind of payment as anathema, especially to the likes of you. Tommy Williams ended up killing Colin Parker over a fucking grand. A grand. A fucking pittance and you were the cause of that death, boy. Parker's death could easily have led to us lot getting our fucking collars felt and for what, eh? A poxy grand? You lairy little cunt. We don't need anyone causing us that kind of aggro and the sooner you get your thick head around that, the better.'

Patrick looked at the handsome young man before him and wished he could have dealt with him in an easier manner, but he couldn't. Cain had to learn the hard way about their world and he had been cushioned by Spider for too long. Now they were all on tenterhooks over a fucking ice-cream like Parker. Parker was, after all was said and done, a fucking civilian and when they died people tended to ask questions.

Spider shook his head in desperation. Cain was going to get the rollicking of a lifetime and he was going to enjoy distributing it; the boy needed to understand about the boundaries and guidelines that made up their world. Now was as good a time as any for a lesson in reality.

Jimmy Brick was sorry he was not going to be called on to distribute his special brand of justice. He didn't like Cain, he never had, but Spider had been a personal hero of his since childhood. A diamond geezer, a legend in his own lunch-time. The man who had given him his first real job.

Now he saw Spider as nothing more than a man, someone who was frightened for his younger brother. Family was a fucking bind in their game, it was something to be used as a weapon. If a man stood alone, he was safe and he could be brave and honourable. As long as there was no one you cared for more than you cared for yourself, you had an edge. But families were a danger, families and children were the downfall of many a great man. Once you cared for someone, you had a chink in your armour; you had a fucking gaping big hole in your defences that would be used against you without a second's thought. Jimmy knew that because he would do the same tiling himself if it gained him what he wanted.

Spider was a touch, a fucking dynamo in Jimmy's eyes, but he would never be the same man again now that he had swallowed for his little brother. Mainly because his little brother was not worth his loyalty, was not worth Spider's deliberate disregard for the friendship that he and Brodie had enjoyed for so long. Cain was not going to let this go, he was too worried about how he was perceived by the people in his world.

That alone was always a cause for concern but Jimmy would sit it out, watch the main players and, when the time was right, he would decide what side he was on.

Until then, he would keep his own counsel.

But he knew one thing. This was not over, not by a long chalk.

'Is she still here?' Patrick's voice was loud and Lil, despite her anger at her husband's usual greeting to her mother, desperately wanted to laugh. Her mother had decided to take it in good spirit even though no one would believe he meant anything other than malice.

Annie sighed theatrically, her eyes rolling upwards and her bosom heaving, but she was masking a smile that was evident to anyone watching her.

The boys were amazed, as was their father. 'You feeling all the ticket, girl?'

Annie giggled like a schoolgirl and Patrick didn't know whether to laugh at the old bird's antics or be afraid. She had changed so dramatically over the last few months that he wondered if his old granny's tales of changelings did actually have some credence.

Pushing Lil into the kitchen, he whispered, 'She on fucking drugs, or what? I had just got used to her as an aggro merchant and now it's like she's a born-again Doris Day.'

Lil was laughing out loud now and Patrick was glad. It had been a while since she had been this happy, this carefree, and he sometimes felt guilty because he knew she worried about him.

'How you feeling, girl?'

She shrugged. 'Like shit. I tell you now, mate, I will be glad when I deliver this one. It's the hardest yet, and I ain't the type of person to make a drama out of nothing, as you know.'

Patrick hugged her to him, acknowledging the truth of her words.

She did look ill. She looked so pale and wan that he was worried about her. He would rather have her than another child, not that he would voice that opinion out loud. But his Lil looked rough and she knew it. 'Sit down and take the weight off, I'll get you something to eat.'

Annie did not come out to the kitchen and he was grateful for that. Normally, she would have been bustling about like a demented cow and making him feel like a spare part in his own home. He was well able for her and they both knew that, but she still enjoyed giving him a hard time.

The new, improved Annie was like a thorn in his side; he'd actually preferred her when she was a vindictive old bitch, but he had a feeling this was not the time to mention that.

Instead, he helped his wife make a few sandwiches and a pot of tea. That it was after midnight didn't really register. Patrick was a man who expected his woman to do his bidding whenever it suited him and wherever he wanted it. He had arrived home as if it was the norm for her to be making him a snack and listening to his day's events when everyone else was tucked up in bed. But that suited Lil. As tired and as heavy as she felt, Patrick was still her priority and this was what her life was all about; this selfish man and the children they had created between them. Lil was grateful to him every day of her life for making her feel wanted, valued and needed. He had given her a life she could only have dreamt of and she would repay him for her happiness in any way she could.

Lil loved these times, when they were together and the world was asleep and she could have her husband to herself for a few moments. She felt the love coming from him, and knew that, no matter what, she was his real priority, as were the children.

As she buttered bread and washed the salad, Lil felt the child kick. It was a strong kick and it made her double over. Patrick grabbed her and laughed loudly.

As he held her in his arms, she looked up into his handsome face and he said happily, 'Whoa, Lil. I felt that one meself, girl. Another Brodie for the pile, another one cooking and waiting to arrive into the world and take it by storm. We make good babies, Lil, the best. All our kids will be someone and will do something. We are truly blessed.'

Patrick looked into her eyes and saw the dark circles beneath them, the hollowness of her cheeks and realised that she really was ill this time. That this child was taking it out of her and making her ill and he had not even noticed until now. She waited for him to arrive back most nights and he accepted her getting up and cooking, talking or scheming with him and suddenly he felt the guilt of a man who had no real understanding of the pressure he put on the people around him. As he held Lil, he was ashamed that he had only just noticed how thin she was, she was all baby this time. His life outside the house was more real to him at times than the petty dramas his wife was left to deal with on a daily basis. He finally appreciated just how much she actually did for him, making sure that any worries he encountered were in no way the result of anything that might have happened in his home. As he heard the front door close, he knew his mother-in-law had left quietly and he knew even that was down to his Lil. She knew how much the woman aggravated him just by breathing the same air as he did. He also understood that the woman he hated and vilified made his wife's life much easier by her presence and by the little things she did. Even though there was always a price to be paid.