Tommy grinned at her and she pursed her lips in annoyance. Pointing at the door she shouted in her deep voice, 'Well go on, fuck off before the filth arrive. And don't fucking come back until you have the money to replace my carpet. Look at it, the fucking thing's ruined…'

She was still ranting and raving at him as he left the hushed bar with his brother in tow, laughing and joking. Tommy walked to his car without a thought for how he must have looked; he was soaked with blood. The adrenaline was pumping now and, alongside the speed, he was rocking, he was up for anything.

'Did you see that bloke's fucking face when I had finished with him?'

Dave grinned and Bernie answered him with mock sarcasm.

'No, I was standing there with me eyes closed. 'Course I fucking saw it. Now get the fucking motor going so we can fuck off out of it. We have a lot to do today and Ricky will be wondering where we are. The last thing we need is a fucking tug by Lily Law.'

'Not one of them skanks will put us in the frame, they ain't got the fucking bottle.'

Wheelspinning on to the Whitechapel Road they drove off at speed to meet with Ricky so they could all sort out the bit of business he had arranged, and be home in time for dinner.

'What's the time, babe?'

Lil had just finished getting herself ready when she heard her husband's voice.

She laughed loudly. 'Time you bought a watch.'

It was just on five and she was finally ready to go. The kids were wound up like watch springs. Usually, it took so long to get them all ready, especially the twins, that she never had enough time to sort herself out. Today though, she was determined to look her best and, even with her lump, her reflection told her that she did.

As she walked down the stairs, she saw Patrick's face and, smiling at him, she saw as always the longing for her in his warm blue eyes. Whatever people said about her husband, he had made her so happy.

Lil laughed once more when he wolf-whistled at her and Annie saw the deep love they had between them. As always, it made her feel like an outsider. Even Pat Junior and the twins were quiet as they watched their parents embrace each other.

The depth of her daughter's devotion to the man she had married and his utter and complete love for his wife never ceased to amaze Annie. That her Lil, her daughter, could command that much love from a fine piece of manhood like Patrick Brodie made her feel a jealousy that she hid well, but which ate at her at times like this.

Her own marriage had been devoid of anything remotely resembling love. She had got caught out and she had married the first man who had wanted her. She had spent her whole life without ever having a man hug her, make love to her with passion, or even just chat to her about her day.

That her Lil, the bastard child conceived during a one-night stand where Annie had lost not only her virginity but her pride as well, was capable of having a life that most women could only dream about, was almost impossible for her to believe. It was so unfair, life was so bloody unfair. Her feelings for her daughter swung between pride and hate and she wished that it wasn't so. She prayed for her yearnings to subside and for peace of mind. But the knowledge that her life had been so barren ate away at her. Annie still felt the urge inside her that only a man could satisfy. She still dreamt of being in love and of someone loving her back and she knew it was never going to happen. The nearest she had ever got to true love was with the birth of Lance and, even though she had strong feelings for the others, he was the boy she had always needed, he wanted her.

'Get the camera, Annie, and take a photo of me and my best girls and my number one son. Then we'd best get our arses in gear and deliver me boy to his party.'

As Patrick spoke, Annie hurried to get the camera from the kitchen. When she came back with it she saw Lance standing at the top of the stairs in his pyjamas and he called out to his brother softly, 'Have a good party, Pat. Happy birthday.'

Patrick walked up the stairs to his brother and the twins followed behind him as they always did. Lil was tempted for just a few seconds to let him go to the party; he looked so young and so vulnerable it was hard to believe he was capable of harming a fly, let alone another human being. But she reminded herself that he was an accomplished actor and liar and if they allowed even one chink to appear in their armour he would walk all over them for the rest of his days.

The two boys hugged and even Patrick felt moved by their closeness. They were close those two; Pat Junior was the only person other than the twins that Lance genuinely seemed to care about. It was obvious the boys had a bond of sorts, whatever may have happened in the past. Annie thought he adored her, but she would learn the hard way that Lance, his own son, was a mutant, a quirk of nature. He had too much Brodie in him; it grieved him to admit that but the truth was the truth.

Annie stood quietly in her finery and let her eyes drink in the first sight of her grandson in what seemed like months, though it was only a matter of days. She wished they would allow him to go tonight, wished he could join in with the rest of his family and friends. Although she would not say this out loud, she felt this was a cruel and unusual punishment for the child, and he was, when all was said and done, just a child. They seemed to forget that and she resented the fact she had no status in the family to argue his case for him, dispute his punishment.

There was a knock on the front door and Annie opened it wide. Must be the driver Pat had arranged. He could take the picture of them and she would be in it as well.

Jimmy Brick was getting anxious; the hall was filling with people and presents, the DJ kept playing Slade for two fifteen-year-olds dressed as twenty-year-olds, and the buffet was being eyed-up by a bunch of teenage degenerates with cropped hair and painfully new trousers. The tables were nearly all taken now and people were busy with drinks and snacks and were settling down for the night's entertainment. The parish priest was wandering around like a junkie with a giro and the bar staff, like the priest, were already half-pissed.

Most of the real guests had arrived and these were seated near Patrick and Lil's table, as arranged. He had a few blokes moving through the place, watching out for the first hint of trouble and under strict instructions not to harm anyone physically until they had been removed from the premises. Once they hit the car park, however, it was open season but, until then, it was arm up the back and smiling faces if that was at all possible.

The Palmers were there, their kids all getting ready to slide across the wooden dance floor in their brand-new white socks and the degenerates Jimmy had been keeping his beady eyes on had already whipped a plate of sandwiches and a bowl of trifle from the buffet table. He hoped they were not thinking of coming back for seconds in the not too distant future because he was not in the mood for polite conversation.

Things like this could be treacherous if it was not policed properly, and he was making sure that this party went off with the minimum of fuss and the maximum of enjoyment.

The lights were dimmed; Spider and his girlfriend were chatting with the Brewsters, a large family from south London who were into pornography: books and videos of course. Lenny Brewster, an old mate of Patrick's from childhood, was telling filthy jokes at the top of his voice and, like Spider, he was watching the door. Jimmy glanced at his watch and realised that it was nearly six o'clock. Patrick was cutting it fine, but that was his prerogative of course. They were only down the road and they were probably being waylaid by well-wishers.