His words were lost as he sank on to his knees, lather from his hair rushing into his eyes, the blood seeping from his torn back running into the drains along with the water, turning it pink.

Maddened with anger, Timmy pushed Chopper off easily.

‘You won’t do nothing to me, Lewis, hear me? Nothing, mate. I’ve taken all I fucking well can from the lot of you.’ He held the home-made knife out menacingly. ‘Anyone else fancy their chances, eh? Come on then! Come on take me.’

Two screws stood silently at the door of the shower room. Neither attempted to get help or raise the alarm. This was between Lewis, Timmy and Lewis’s henchmen. If Timmy was going to get his lights put out, then they had best let it happen at the same time as Lewis’s accident. Both men’s faces were straight, no trace of fear or favour. Let the best man win.

Chopper stood back, watching the two men Lewis had assigned to look after him. Neither seemed as if they wanted any truck with Timmy, who looked demented.

‘Here, Sade. Get back to me cell and wait there for me.’

Sadie shook her head in distress.

‘Oh Timmy, you bloody fool.’

‘Move it!’ His voice was loud and easily drowned out the hissing of the water from the shower heads.

Sadie practically ran from the room.

Lewis was kneeling down. Groaning now, he tried to rise. Georgio saw Timmy go in to finish him off, and he stood in front of the bigger man.

‘Give me the knife, Timmy. You don’t want to add another five years to your sentence, do you? He ain’t worth it.’

‘Out of me way, Georgio. I’ve took all I fucking can in this shithole, I’m telling you. I’m sick of this perverted little ponce telling me what I can and can’t do. Who I can have. He took my Sadie away from me. You know that.’

Georgio saw that Timmy was near to tears. He also saw the unnatural light in his eyes. He was high as a kite. Lewis’s drug-running had finally backfired on him. Whatever Timmy had dropped, it had given him the courage to go after the top man.

‘Give me the knife, Timmy.’

He watched as Lewis slumped on to the floor of the shower room. Chopper made a move towards Timmy, who jabbed the knife to within an inch of his face.

‘You want some, you scouse bastard, do you? Come on then.’

‘Give Georgio the knife, man. You’re in enough stook as it is.’ Chopper’s voice was low. ‘Do yourself a favour, eh? You’ve done what you set out to do. He looks dead enough to me.’

Timmy looked down on Lewis and smiled gently. ‘He fucking better be, because if he ain’t I’m a dead man myself.’