Alan shook his head. ‘No. We arrange a boat to take him along the coast. Then we change him to a vehicle of some kind. We make our way to Scotland, and from there he’ll go to Ireland. They’ll be looking for a boat, won’t they? If we sink the boat they’ll still be looking for it. No one will guess he’s in Jockland for a good while. When someone escapes they keep a look out on a fifty-mile radius. It’s very rare for someone to be on the trot for any length of time. It’s normally luck that stops them getting caught at once, but the luck usually runs out after a couple of days.

‘What we need is to be well-prepared for any emergency. Have a back-up plan in case anything goes wrong, and to keep level heads. Georgio is depending on us now. He knows the ball’s been set in motion and is trusting us to deliver the goods for him. What I need to know is, after hearing all this, are you sure you can handle it?’

Donna smiled, a tight, deliberate smile.

‘Don’t worry, Alan, I can handle anything you throw at me.’

She regretted her words immediately as she heard his answer.

‘Well, I’m glad to hear that, love, because you’ll have more than a bit of mud thrown at you before this lot’s over, starting on Friday in Scotland.’

Picking up his wine glass he toasted her silently and Donna was hard-pressed not to slap his smug smiling face.

‘Scotland?’ Dolly’s voice was high. ‘What on earth are you going there for?’

Donna tensed irritably. After listening to Alan Cox telling her in no uncertain terms that he thought she wasn’t up to helping him, she now had to get the third degree from Dolly.

‘I’m going for a weekend break, what’s wrong with that?’

Dolly caught the nervousness in Donna’s voice and kept her peace.

‘Christ, Dolly, surely I can go away for the weekend if I want, can’t I?’

‘Of course you can, darlin’, it was just unexpected.’

Donna wiped her hand across her face in agitation. ‘Has Paddy rung in at all today?’

‘No, love. I expect he’ll phone about seven-thirty as usual.’

Donna nodded curtly and walked from the kitchen into the small office. Closing the door, she curled up in the deep easy chair in the foetal position.