Craig ran his tongue around the inside of his cheek. ‘Yes, you were, Ted, because you shouldn’t have done it in the first place.’ He shot a glance in the other passenger’s direction to make sure he wasn’t eavesdropping before continuing in hushed tones, ‘She’s fourteen! You do know that’s illegal?’

Ted looked down sullenly. ‘I’m only fifteen …’

‘You think that would matter in a court of law?’ hissed Craig, desperately trying to keep his temper under control. ‘Bloody hell, Ted, no wonder her father was desperate to get shot of us!’

Ted stared out of the window before turning back to his father. ‘If she was …’ he too glanced at the other passenger before continuing, ‘… you know, then don’t you think Campbell would’ve had my guts for garters? He’d not let us leave without consequences – to him that’d be letting us get away with murder!’

Craig mulled this over. He sincerely hoped his son to be right, and the more he thought about it the more he believed he probably was. After all, William Campbell had been relatively composed when he had entered their dwelling on Fisher Street. The man was not renowned for being able to keep a hold of his temper, quite the opposite, so had she been pregnant … Nodding slowly, he looked at Ted. ‘I don’t think she’s …’ Keeping his eyes on the other passenger, he gave Ted a furtive nod, before continuing, ‘I reckon Campbell found out what was going on and wanted to put a stop to it before the inevitable happened.’

‘But how did he find out?’ Ted asked.

‘Does it really matter?’ said Craig, gazing out at the platform, which was disappearing from view as the train pulled out of the station. He couldn’t shake the niggling thought that if Olivia was expecting, the last thing his boss would want would be for word to get round that his daughter had fallen pregnant to one of his workers, therefore the easiest way to deal with it would be to get rid of the worker quietly, whilst sorting his daughter out behind closed doors. He daren’t tell Ted his suspicions, because if he did, he felt certain that his son would pull the emergency lever and run to his belle. His stomach gave a guilty lurch. Was he wrong not to voice his thoughts? Ted and Olivia reminded him very much of his relationship with Ted’s mother when they had first got together. How would he have felt if someone had kept something like that from him? On the other hand, their situation was entirely different. Phyllis was working for the Chinese laundry on the Scottie Road, and Craig was working in the factory. They had the same upbringing, same values, same prospects. He nibbled the tip of his thumb. Even if he did tell Ted, what then? If Ted demanded to see Olivia, William would undoubtedly have him arrested and slung in jail for a crime he hadn’t committed, whilst getting the unborn child aborted, so it would all be for naught.