He cut himself a line on the dirty worktop and, as he snorted the powder deeply, he felt the rush as it hit his brain. He sniffed it up higher, tasting the bitter flavour sliding down his throat, mingled as it was with his snot. He heaved involuntarily, and swallowed the mucus down, taking a deep swig from his bottle of beer to help it on its way.

The only light he could see at the end of a rather long and dark tunnel was his brother’s innate loyalty. Billy would not say a word, no matter what was done to him. Billy was a cunt like that – he lived and breathed being the quintessential hard man. As thick as shit, of course, but still a man of certain old-style principles and beliefs.

That wasn’t to say, though, that the Baileys wouldn’t find a way to break him. Daniel Bailey was known to be a man who could happily torture a subject while eating his lunch. Whatever people’s past issues with his style, now anything he did would be applauded by the same people who had formerly whispered that he was a fucking head case. His actions – taken to avenge his wife’s death – would only enhance his reputation.

He looked around the flat, and shook his head at the filthy state it was in, but it was a safe house, and that was what he needed now more than creature comforts. He had beer, Scotch, fags and drugs – the main requirements of a man on the run, and he was on the run. The flat was in Barking, and it was due for demolition, so he was the only tenant. He opened the curtains slightly, and looked out into the darkness; all he saw was rain and rubbish. The only light he had was from a few candles – and they were not exactly illuminating the place – and he was freezing into the bargain.

A Calor Gas heater was on low, but it would not last much longer; he wished he had made proper provision in case something like this happened. But there was literally nowhere else to go – the Baileys knew everything about them, and he didn’t know who in his circle he could really trust now. After all, he had fucked up big time; Lena Bailey’s death was not something that would earn him brownie points. Unless something drastic happened to the Baileys, he was persona non grata for the foreseeable future.

He tried Petey Bailey’s mobile once more, but it was either turned off, or the battery was dead, so he left yet another message, and hoped against hope for the best.