Darren turned to see everyone in the pub staring at him. The men and women sitting down, the guy behind the bar, the doorman who had slipped inside.

‘Shiii…’ He jumped out of his seat and raced towards the door. But before he’d managed to get two yards, half a dozen plain-clothed police rushed at him from every direction. Darren lashed out and an officer went down. Lolly leapt across her table to land on his back, yanking his arm behind him and slamming his face into the diamond-patterned carpet.

‘Get off me!’ he screamed.

‘Stay still, mate,’ she warned him.

‘Darren Gary Walters,’ said DC Craig Power, hauling him to his feet. ‘I’m arresting you on suspicion of aggravated theft and assault with intent to rob. Robbery, burglary and attempted murder. You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention, when questioned, something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.’

‘You’re a difficult man to find, Darren,’ Detective Inspector Sasha Dawson said as he was pulled upright. ‘We thought we’d never catch up with you.’

Darren had been on the run since taking part in a series of Post Office robberies. With a network of known associates across the county to hide him, he’d gone underground. But he had a weakness for the ladies: he couldn’t resist turning on the charm at clubs and pubs, and the regular speed-dating event at The Crown was a favourite hunting ground.

‘Your long-suffering wife suggested we’d find you here, Daz, she’s a bit fed up with your roving eye,’ she said. ‘Take him away.’

‘You were terrific, Sasha,’ said DC Lolly Chambers as they walked towards the car park.

‘I enjoyed that.’ Sasha marvelled again at the young woman in a figure-hugging sparkly dress who had floored a man twice her size. ‘Remind me never to mess with you, Lolly.’

Behind that winsome Essex Girl exterior, all glittery lipstick, false lashes and bronzer, was a tenacious and capable officer.

‘I’m out tonight,’ the detective constable said in her cheerful sing-song. ‘Might as well since I’m all glammed up. You have a nice evening.’

‘Good work,’ Sasha called to Ajay, who was talking to the officer who had stood outside the pub pretending to be a doorman.

‘Sorry.’ He blushed. ‘I kind of froze in there.’

‘You did magnificently,’ she lied. ‘Got anything planned?’

‘Picking up Scott from his Caribbean Fusion cookery course, and then we’ll probably grab a Pilates class.’

Sasha was fishing for her keys when she saw DC Craig Power finishing a call on his mobile. He walked over with his usual rolling swagger.

‘Nice work, Craig,’ she told him.