Lou swallowed. ‘But if I’d come home that night. If I hadn’t gone out to the pub.’

‘Yeah, and if ifs and ands were pots and pans …’ He tried to smile. ‘You were right the other day, you know. We have to find a way to get through this. I’ve had time to think about it. I shouldn’t have been such a git. We have to find a way to move on but stay strong, you know, stick together. She … she wouldn’t want us to keep fighting. She wouldn’t want us to fall apart …’ Abandoning his glass, Stephen turned from Lou. He wiped his eyes on his short sleeve. Lou took his hand, rough and calloused from hard work.

‘I’m a soppy bugger, aren’t I? Blubbing like a girl.’ Stephen sniffed and half laughed. He squeezed Lou’s hand so tight that she thought he might break a bone in her fingers.

‘Maybe, but you’re the only big brother I’ve got, so I guess you’ll have to do.’

He laughed properly this time. A laugh full of snot and spit. He turned back to her. ‘You know, you’re all right really. But don’t tell anyone I said that.’ As he spoke, his eyes fell on her neck. When he spoke again there was a familiar hard edge to his voice. ‘What are those red marks on your throat? Has someone hurt you? Is that why you were running? Tell me. I’ll kill –’

Someone began to hammer at the front door. It was so loud and such a rapid succession of beats that Lou jumped and Stephen sprang from his seat.

‘Stephen, I’m scared –’ Lou started. How could she explain George Caxton knocking at their front door?

‘Stephen Arnold!’ a voice shouted through the letterbox.

‘Fuck,’ Stephen said, his eyes wide like a cornered cat. He ran to the back door and threw it open. Before Lou could grasp what was happening, the room was full of police officers. One of them knocked Stephen to the floor, twisting his arm behind his back. Stephen let out a cry. ‘He’s in here!’ the officer called.

‘What are you doing?’ Lou yelled.

Nobody bothered to give her an answer. She felt someone take hold of her arms as an officer barged through the back door into the kitchen and out into the hall. He opened the front door, allowing even more officers into the house. Two officers manhandled Stephen to his feet. An officer who appeared to be in charge began firing questions at Stephen. Where was it? Who had he been working with? If he told them, he could make this a whole lot easier on himself.

Stephen said again and again that he didn’t know what they were talking about; they’d got the wrong man. Lou watched on, struck dumb at their peace so violently shattered.

‘Take her into the living room,’ the senior officer barked at the female police officer who had hold of Lou’s arms.