Mike stepped eagerly up to Pat. Then, once he was sure he had made eye contact, he launched his fist into the pit of his stomach. Pat gasped and let out a guttural moan. His instinct was to clutch his aching gut and he tried to wrench his arms from Glynn’s grip. But Glynn held him tight while Mike quickly followed up with another punch to the stomach, then another. Pat winced and gasped as Mike’s ferocious blows winded him.

After several sharp punches, Peter ordered Mike to stop. ‘Right, Pat. What’s it gonna be?’ he asked.

Pat stood panting for a few seconds, bending forward from the waist, his arms still pinned back by Glynn.

‘Well?’ demanded Peter when Pat didn’t reply.

‘No,’ muttered Pat, and Mike immediately started thumping him again, this time aiming his fists at Pat’s face.

Pat’s head pivoted from side to side with the force of each vicious blow. Then Peter heard a woman’s voice coming from the other side of the door.

‘Pat, Pat. What’s going on? Are you alright?’ she shouted.

The door handle turned and Peter could feel someone pushing at the door, trying to get in. He put his weight behind it to keep it shut tight. Then he had an idea.

‘Stop a minute!’ he ordered Mike.

While Mike paused, Peter quickly opened the door, clamped his hand over the woman’s mouth and dragged her into the room. She gasped when she caught sight of her husband’s bloodied face. His shirt was torn and his hair was matted with blood.

‘Right,’ said Peter. ‘It seems that we’re having trouble getting you to pay up,’ he continued. ‘So maybe your wife can be persuaded.’

The woman let out a small scream, which was suppressed by the might of his hand. He looked across at Pat.

‘No, not Mary!’ Pat pleaded as he stared back at Peter through terror-filled eyes. ‘I’ll pay it!’ he gushed. ‘But please don’t hurt Mary.’

Peter could feel a reluctant sense of achievement envelop him. ‘OK, but you’ve put us to a lot of trouble today, Pat,’ he said. ‘I don’t enjoy having to put my men on to you but you didn’t give me any fuckin’ choice. You’ve wasted a lot of our time and effort so I’m putting the price up by a hundred quid.’

‘No!’ said Pat, his eyes wide open in alarm.

‘OK, do I have to set my men on Mary then?’

Again she let out a suppressed scream. Peter had no intentions of setting his men on Mary but he wasn’t going to let Pat know that. He knew that the threat of it alone would be enough.

‘No! No, don’t do that,’ yelled Pat. Then he hung his head, resigned in defeat. ‘I’ll pay it,’ he muttered.