‘It was less than forty-eight hours ago. And Joe isn’t going to advertise that he’s lost his enforcer when he’s worried about a gang war breaking out.’

‘Never mind that shit!’ Deano, struggling to hold the volume down. ‘What the fuck did you think you were doing? I told you, here, at this table, that whoever was doing it was going to get their ticket punched! And you sat there and nodded! Knowing that you were putting all our lives at risk?’

‘Yeah. I did it for Katie.’

‘I reckon you did it for yourself.’ Den and Deano turned to look at Steve. ‘I reckon you’ve always wanted to match yourself against a real target. You saw this as your chance to find out for yourself, didn’t you?’

‘Yeah. There’s that too, to be fair.’

‘And where did it get you?’

‘I don’t think it’s where I want to be either. But now I have no choice.’

‘And now you want our help. And it’s something to do with him, right?’ Steve pointed at Shaw.

‘Yeah. I need your help.’

‘And why would we do that?’ Deano and Steve silent, as Den cut to the heart of the matter. ‘When Castagna finds out we were involved, won’t he come after us?’

Mickey conceded the point. ‘There is that risk. Unless we kill him first.’

‘So what do you want from us?’

Shaw stepped in. Looking at Steve. ‘You’re ex-army. Ever fired the old Bren gun?’

‘Yes. We had a few, vehicle-mounted. We called them LMGs, but it was the same gun. I know my way round it.’

‘Good. And all we need is a distraction. A few minutes without interference. I can’t tell you any more unless you’re up for it.’

‘One question.’ Deano, hungry-eyed.

‘Go on then.’

‘Do I get a go with the Bren gun?’

51

Two in the morning. Eddie was doing his rounds. Unable to sleep. Joe, by contrast, was happily sparko in a camp bed in his office. Eddie’s guys were joking about it behind his back. Telling each other that the boss was giving off his “it’s quiet – too quiet” vibe. Like some geezer out of the war movies their granddads used to watch, innit? The more perceptive shook their heads with a mix of bemusement and pity. But they waited until Eddie was well outside earshot before sharing their thoughts.

Which were that Eddie being unable to sleep fitted a bit of a pattern. Because, they reckoned, he wasn’t looking forward to the next day. Everyone who worked for the man respected his intelligence. No flies on Eddie when it came to thinking. Everyone knew that. But when it came to good old-fashioned gang leader brutality, he just wasn’t at the races.