The sarcasm wasn’t lost on Donna. Taking a deep draw on her cigarette, she said gently, ‘I need to know what’s going on, Mr Cox.’

Alan lifted an eyebrow. ‘Sorry?’

Donna could feel herself getting annoyed and forced herself to calm down. She tried another tack.

‘Look, Mr Cox, I was hoping we could forget about what happened and start fresh. Georgio is depending on us, and I don’t think it’s a good idea if he knows that we aren’t getting on very well. I think we should at least give it a try, and if it doesn’t work out in say a month, we’ll both have a rethink. What do you say?’

Alan tut-tutted gently.

‘In case it’s escaped your notice, I have invited you into my office, I have poured you a brandy, and I have lit your cigarette for you. Now, lady, according to my lights, that is an act of forgiveness. I will give you two weeks - and if you don’t show enough savvy, me and you are parting company whether Georgio likes it or not. Fair enough?’

‘Fair enough.’

Donna was shrewd enough to realise that this was as close as Alan Cox would ever come to any kind of apology.

‘May I ask you something, Mr Cox?’

She observed the exaggerated shrug and felt once more the prickle of annoyance he always provoked in her. ‘Do you know anything about Stephen Brunos at all? Either before Georgio was put away or since?’

She watched his pupils dilate and felt a stab of satisfaction. ‘What I’m asking you, Mr Cox, is do you know anything about Talkto Enterprises?’

Nonplussed for a second, Alan felt his own temper rising inside him.

‘What the fucking hell are you on about now?’

Donna sighed and started to talk calmly and reasonably. ‘All I am asking is this. Talkto is supposedly a telephone business - you know the kind of thing: how to cope with arthritis etc. It’s got a good turnover and it’s making a handsome profit . . . except I found another set of books tonight, and these books have only a list of names and amounts of money written beside them. For example, one entry said, “Gilly, fifty-five minutes, sixtyfive pounds”. Then beside that in a separate column, “ten pounds”. I take it those were Gilly’s earnings. Then in another book I find shifts written down, once more with girls’ names, times, et cetera. There was a young lady at the offices who worked in a peepshow. I think the second set of books are about that. I wondered if you could shed any light on all this?’

Alan downed his brandy and said testily, ‘Are you trying to accuse me of pimping?’

Donna’s eyes widened in shock. ‘Of course not . . .’

‘Well, why would you think I’d know anything about that then?’

Donna was frightened by his reaction.