‘It’s a whore house, innit?’ the man said, playing tug-of-war with the note. ‘But if it’s pussy you’re after, I wouldn’t go near that one, ’cos it’s run by some proper psychos. There’s a better one on Lloyd Street.’ He jerked his head back to indicate the direction. ‘Big white place – you can’t miss it. My bird works there. Tell her TK sent you and she’ll see you right.’

Muttering, ‘Cheers,’ Evan let go of the note and slid the window back up as soon as the man withdrew his hand.

The man scuttled away, and Evan narrowed his eyes as he turned his attention back to the house. So those girls were prostitutes, and the house was a brothel. But were those men the psycho owners the dealer had mentioned, or were they just drivers who dropped the girls off and picked them up? Either way, he doubted his dad knew about it, because the old man would never allow something like this to happen under his roof.

Determined to warn him, Evan tried to call his dad. It went straight to voicemail, but he didn’t want to leave a message in case one of the other men heard it, so he tossed the phone onto the passenger seat.

There was definitely something dodgy going on, and the weird look his dad had given him was playing on his mind. He’d thought at the time that it seemed like some kind of warning, but had his dad actually been trying to communicate that he needed help?

No . . .

Evan shook the thought out of his head as he started the engine and pulled out of the space. His dad might be gullible and too generous for his own good, but he wasn’t stupid enough to invite people into his home if he thought they posed a threat to him. So did he already know what they were doing, and was he – God forbid – involved in it?

His mobile started ringing on the seat beside him as he drove down the road, and he saw Jo’s name on the screen when he glanced at it. He’d told her he was going to visit their dad today to try and build bridges, and she’d be calling to ask how it went. She was already up in arms about their dad copping off with Irena, and if she heard that the bitch’s brother and those other men had now moved in, along with three prostitutes, she’d go off her nut and order Evan to call the police and have them removed. But he couldn’t do that until he knew what his dad’s involvement was, so he ignored the call and drove on.