The Drop

fear-filled eyes, ‘I’m just about to take care of it.’
    ‘Jesus Christ,’ hissed Terry as he suddenly rediscovered his religion.
    ‘What?’ I asked the disconnected phone in disbelief, ‘are you sure about that Bobby?’ then I paused to let the ghost of Bobby Mahoney issue me some instructions, ‘well, if you say so. You’re the boss.’
    I hung up and was greeted by Terry’s expectant gaze.
    ‘Want me to do him now?’ asked Palmer and he pressed the gun right up against the bloke’s temple. Terry moaned something indecipherable and shut his eyes tightly.
    ‘Look at me Terry,’ I told him but he was too scared to open his eyes, ‘you’d better look at me Terry or I’ll get irritated and he will shoot you anyway.’ Terry slowly opened his eyes like it was a supreme effort, he was trying not to blink with the gun pressed up against his head like that.
    I smiled at him, ‘looks like it’s your lucky day old son,’ and he stared at me as if he didn’t dare believe it was true, ‘Bobby wants you to go home,’ I said, ‘with a message.’
    It suited me for the Gladwells to think Bobby was still alive, the victor in this latest war. It added to the myth of the invincible Bobby Mahoney, always one step ahead of his rivals, always coming out on top - and it took the heat away from me. Bobby was high profile. He was like one of those generals in the American Civil War, riding through the massed ranks of his troops on a bright white charger with a feather plume in his hat, so they could all see him and cheer, which is fine until one day when someone from the other side notices and takes a pot shot at you. I needed a figurehead to hide behind, someone who could take all of the hatred and retribution that would be heaped on him by the Gladwell brothers and Tommy’s father. Who better than a dead man?
    I told Terry to go and see Gladwell senior personally to let him know that Bobby had killed his son and regained control of his city, and would take a very dim view if there was any further interference in his business. It was unlikely Tommy Gladwell would have had the inclination to tell anyone that Bobby was dead. It would have been too dangerous until he had full control of the city.
    We made it clear that Bobby would no longer be based in Newcastle so there was no point trying to find him there. Bobby had gone abroad, somewhere nice and hot, but we didn’t narrow it down. From there, he would continue to pull all of the strings, issuing instructions through a network of trusted associates.
    When it was all finally over we went to see Amrein. I drove down to Shepperton early with Palmer and Kinane. We stayed over the night before our appointment.
    It was a convivial meeting, relaxed almost, under the circumstances. We sat down together around Amrein’s table. It was a sunny day and the birds were chirruping away outside, oblivious to our recent troubles. We had a light lunch with a bit of small talk; the economy, the trials and tribulations facing the entrepreneurial businessman in these days of a chastened global financial system. Then we came down to business.
    Using the bare facts of what had occurred, I went through the whole tale; how Tommy Gladwell had tried and failed to step out of his old man’s shadow, how he had almost been lucky enough to get to Bobby Mahoney, had even managed to kill the legendary Finney. How we had been forced into putting together a new crew and how, finally, we had taken back our city and restored order, leaving Bobby in charge just as before, only stronger.
    ‘I’m impressed,’ Amrein said quietly and he looked it. ‘And the Gladwell boy, his friends?’ he asked, sounding like a headmaster asking after a former pupil.
    ‘Gone.’
    ‘Mmm,’ he pondered this for a moment, ‘is that likely to cause you further problems, an escalation of hostilities perhaps?’
    ‘Nothing we can’t handle,’ I told him.
    ‘I’m sure,’ he smiled benignly.
    I put the bag on the table in front of him and said, ‘I’ve brought the Drop down early since you were good enough to see us at short notice and we’ve upped it, by ten per cent,’ that surprised him. ‘We like to think we will be doing business together for a very long time,’ I explained, ‘if things go well between us then it will be the same amount each time from now on.’ He tried hard but failed to hide the fact that he was pleased. I was relaxed about it because I knew Kinane’s sons would have