He and Tony set into a rhythmic motion as they dug, one offloading the soil while the other dug their shovel into the earth to lift a fresh load.

‘I’m sorry,’ Kelly whimpered.

‘Strip him,’ Duggan said to Karen. ‘Everything off. Then burn it.’

‘What?’

Karen stood, aghast.

‘Take off his clothes. Everything. Even his jacks, in case he’s got a wire or something on him.’

Karen looked to Tony who shrugged. She moved across and began to slowly unlace one of Kelly’s shoes but he kicked out at her, striking her on the side of the head and knocking her to the ground. Duggan was up out of the shallow hollow in the earth and on him, striking Kelly’s body with the shovel.

‘Be a man,’ he snapped. ‘I’ll fucking shoot you in the stomach and leave you to bleed, otherwise.’

Karen sat up, her face smeared with tears.

‘He’ll not do it again,’ Duggan said, misunderstanding the cause of her crying. ‘He’ll behave himself.’

As Karen peeled off his shoes and socks, then started to work at his belt to remove his trousers, Tony tried not to look, focusing instead on the deepening grave. He knew he should confess, tell them what had happened. But he was afraid. He didn’t want to die, didn’t think it fair that he should end up in an unmarked grave for doing the right thing. As he reflected on it, he convinced himself that he was doing the right thing. He had saved a life, maybe two at least. Kelly had already claimed one, that he knew of, with Shauna Laird, never mind how many countless others who’d suffered taking the drugs he peddled. Kelly deserved this more than he did, Tony decided. And he almost convinced himself that that was true.

‘It wasn’t me,’ Kelly started again, his breath back after Duggan’s kick. ‘I swear on my mother’s life, it wasn’t me, Hugh.’

‘You were seen,’ Duggan hissed. ‘You were seen going into that cop’s house.’

‘That a lie,’ Kelly said. ‘Please, Hugh, you’ve got to believe me. That’s a lie. You know me. Who said they saw me?’

Duggan did not look up, digging into the ground, the air fresh and sharp with the dampness of the earth as they deepened the hole. ‘I trusted you,’ he spat angrily.

‘I didn’t do it, Hugh,’ Kelly said, looking around wildly for support, his gaze lighting on Tony. ‘Was it him? He hates me, you know that, Hugh. He blames me for that girl who OD’d. You know that, Hugh. You know. Please.’

‘It had nothing to do with him,’ Duggan said. ‘Don’t embarrass yourself any more, son. You know what you did.’