It served a supermarket that stayed open twenty-four hours a day, but now it was almost empty. I parked a discreet distance from the purple Ford Escort. On the far side of the street was a bar called Dabs, the only sign of life and light in a bleak row of shuttered shops. It was impossible to tell if the shops were closed for the night or until hell froze over. A distant bass line rumbled from somewhere deep inside Dabs. There were youth on the street, most of them black, chatting with a bouncer. I wondered if the bouncer might be a problem.

‘That’s Trey’s ride,’ I said, indicating the purple Ford Escort.

‘Are we going in or waiting outside?’

‘We’re waiting.’

‘All right,’ he said, and closed his eyes. He had the soldier’s ability to sleep when he was presented with the opportunity. But we didn’t have to wait long. Trey N’Dou came out of the club in the company of a skinny girl in a short skirt. I lightly touched Jackson’s arm and he was immediately awake. We watched Trey and the girl walking towards the car park.

‘What happens if he’s not alone?’ Jackson said.

‘Then we leave it,’ I said.

But Trey and the girl veered off towards a dark corner of the car park. They found a patch of scrubby grass and she sank to her knees. Trey stood above her, checking his phone.

No, he was not checking it.

He was taking her picture.

When she had finished, she got up and Trey zipped up and they walked back towards Dabs. As the girl disappeared inside, Trey turned and started towards the purple Ford Escort, its light flashing twice as he unlocked it. We waited for him to get close enough that he had missed the chance to run away.

Then I nodded to Jackson and we got out of the car.

‘Hey,’ I said, and as Trey N’Dou turned towards me I shoved him backwards into his car. He hit it hard and as he bounced off it, I turned him around, throwing his hands on the roof and kicking his legs apart. I began to pat him down.

Trey chuckled to himself.

‘I smell bacon,’ he said. ‘Delicious bacon. Yum yum – smell that pig.’

‘That’s right,’ I said. ‘That’s exactly what you smell. You in a gang, tough guy? Me too. I’m in the biggest gang in town.’

I patted him down, struggling to get my breathing under control, feeling myself trembling. I looked back at Jackson but he was calmly staring across the street, watching the entrance to Dabs.