‘About a year ago, I sold two beauties to a dealer from Wales, a woman and a man. Funny pair. The dogs were over a grand each, so they had a few bob. Well, I like to keep an eye on my animals even after they’ve been sold so I took a dander down to their place one day.

‘Ach, those poor dogs! The bitch was tied in a small pen, her puppies around her, her own shite stuck to her fur. Two of the most beautiful Rottweilers you’ve ever seen, and great little personalities they had. To see them in that squalor broke my heart. I razed the place to the ground before I left - the outbuildings, that is. I didn’t touch the house because they had children. But my temper was up, I can tell you. The kids were no better treated than the animals. I brought them home. Puppies, the lot.’

‘That’s terrible, how are they now?’

‘I’ll take you out to them later. I must say Georgio did himself proud with you. I never gave him the nous to have a brain where women were concerned . . .’

Alan hastily interrupted him. ‘Devoted he is to her, Jamesie, absolutely devoted.’

Jamesie carried on making the hot toddies, his face closed now. Donna sat on the edge of a chintz sofa watching the four Jack Russells settling at her feet.

Jamesie gave them both a glass and held his up in a toast. ‘To Georgio, the fucker!’

Alan and he laughed and took long draughts of their drinks. Donna sipped hers and placed it on a small onyx-topped table. Jamesie sat down and looked at Alan.

‘So what exactly do you want from me?’

Alan sipped his drink before answering. ‘We want to spring Georgio, Jamesie, and we want to do it soon.’

Jamesie nodded his head sagely. ‘I had a feeling it was going to be something like that.’

Sadie sat in the cell with Timmy, her heart racing. Since the attack earlier in the day the whole Wing had been on tenterhooks. No one had admitted to seeing anything. All had been washing their hair and had had shampoo in their eyes. The two wardens had been looking the other way. To all intents and purposes, Lewis had stabbed himself in the kidney.

Georgio came in with three teas.

‘It’s like a nightmare out there, Timmy. Rumours are flying round. One is that he’s dead, another is that he’s being operated on, another - and this is from Benjamin - that he’s been taken away by a load of birds from the Sunday Sport to do his time in the punishment block.’

Even Sadie smiled at that. ‘I hope he is dead, Georgio, for Timmy’s sake.’