‘Isn’t like you have a choice,’ McCracken said. ‘Stay here, they’ll pop you. Go to the nick, they’ll pop you. Even drive away in your own car, they’ll pop you … it’ll just take a bit longer. So why don’t you get in mine?’

Her gaze switched to the Bentley and then back.

‘For real?’ she said. ‘You seriously think I’m going to disappear into the shadows with a bunch of hoods like you lot? How guilty would that make me look?’

Her father glanced exasperatedly at his watch. ‘I’m going to make two final appeals to you, Lucy. Firstly, to your head … you don’t know anything about the opposition, either its strength or its disposition. You go back to your nick now, and you’ll be walking blind among people who may hate you. In addition, if you think you’re just gonna dob Mick Shallicker in for this shooting, you’re in for a shock. It will be denied at our end across the board. The gun that fired the fatal shots will disappear, and they’ll only have your word for it that he was ever here.’

Lucy couldn’t reply. She ought to have realised that the mobsters would look after their own.

‘You know my form, darling,’ McCracken said. ‘I’ll have unshakeable alibis constructed for both of us by midnight. On top of that, I’ll be mightily pissed off if you turn this fella in after he saved your life. You hear what I’m saying? We’ll leave you twisting in the wind, completely alone to face whatever nastiness comes your way. It might also occur to you that you’ll find it very difficult revealing who pulled the trigger on that cop without revealing mine and your special relationship.’

‘We don’t have a special—’

‘We do. Whether you like it or not.’ He studied her with his cold, grey eyes. ‘Nothing’s changed since last time, love. You’re my daughter … and as soon as word of that gets out, I’m finished as a gangster, and you’re finished as one of Manchester’s finest. So, you need to engage that cute little head of yours. Secondly … I’m going to appeal to your heart … or I’m going to try. Because you really ought to consider that Mick here has just gone out on a limb for you.’

Lucy glanced at the towering figure waiting by the car. He regarded her, blank-faced.

‘But he took another life in the process …’

‘In an effort to save you,’ McCracken said. ‘At which he was successful. And your plan now is to hand him over? In our code – and to a certain extent in yours, I think – you owe this fella. Will you be able to rest easily if he goes down for life?’