Free The Traitor by Kimberley Chambers Page A

which had pleased Ed no end.
    Reggie’s letter had been pleasant, but long-winded. He’d spoken in detail about Auntie Joan, Auntie Vi, Uncle Albert, but had said very little else of interest.
    It had been Paulie’s letter that had been the real eye-opener. A, Ed hadn’t expected to ever hear from him again after the fall-out they’d had earlier this year, and B, no other fucker had told him that Jed and Jimmy O’Hara had turned up and ruined Jessica’s funeral.
    To say Ed was livid was the understatement of the century. It wasn’t just the fact that the bastards had had the front to turn up, it was also because no one had felt fit or brave enough to tell him about it. Eddie was especially annoyed with Gary and Ricky. He could understand people not wanting to tell him what had happened by letter, but his sons had been to visit him week in, week out.
    Folding up Paulie’s letter, Ed shoved it under his pillow. Even his own flesh and blood obviously believed he’d lost the plot that fucking much he couldn’t handle any more bad news.
    Turning on his side, Eddie stared at his vulgar cellmate. Big Bald Baz was in his usual position, lying flat on his stomach, snoring and farting like an unadulterated pig. Ed didn’t smile much lately, but tonight he couldn’t help but grin. All them arseholes that thought he was a sunken ship would think differently after tomorrow. He had mourned as much as he could mourn, cried as many tears as he could cry, and now he couldn’t wait to prove his doubters wrong. From tomorrow onwards, Eddie Mitchell was back with a bang.

CHAPTER SEVEN
    At 6 a.m. the following day, Frankie got out of bed. Jed still wasn’t home and she had barely slept a wink all night.
    She debated whether to go and wake his parents, but decided against it. She was worried that he’d got drunk and had an accident in his truck, but his mum and dad would probably accuse her of overreacting. She tried Jed’s mobile again, but the phone was still switched off. About to ring her brother for advice, she heard an engine nearing and ran over to the window.
    When the headlights turned into the drive, Frankie was relieved, but also angry as she spotted Jed’s truck. Hearing loud voices, Frankie peeped through a gap in the curtains. Recognising Jed’s cousin Sammy, she ran back into the bedroom.
    Eddie Mitchell took a slow walk towards the shower room. He knew Big Bald Baz and his cronies were already in there, as his pal, Johnny the screw, had given him the nod.
    Johnny was a good lad and Ed had noticed, within weeks of arriving at the prison, that he had little respect for the many scumbags residing there. Today Johnny was on duty with another screw called Fred. Fred hated Big Bald Baz, because on many occasions the fat bastard had tried to terrorise him. Baz could sense weakness in people and Fred wasn’t like most of the other screws. He was meek and a bit of a loner and people like Baz tended to cause him no end of aggravation.
    Nearing his destination, Eddie smiled as he heard Big Bald Baz laughing. He bent down, took the file out of his sock and slipped it up his sleeve. The dirty stinking animal wouldn’t be laughing for much longer, that was for sure.
    Frankie darted into the bedroom, curled back up under the quilt cover and turned off the light.
    Jed and Sammy were obviously slaughtered and she was fuming that Jed had driven home in such a state. She knew they were still drinking, because she could hear the cans being opened. She could also smell cannabis wafting through the crack in the door. She listened intently. They were giggling about some girls they’d met. She heard Jed mention the name Sally, but he then lowered his voice and she heard footsteps heading her way.
    As the bedroom door opened, Frankie shut her eyes and pretended to be asleep. She couldn’t wait to give Jed a piece of her mind, but she wasn’t going to show herself up in front of his cousin, Sammy.
    Jed sat on the edge of the bed and