Then Jackie arrived with his brother’s girlfriend. Tall and slim, with blonde waves tumbling down her back and shrouded in assurance, she swanned over to him and gave him a birthday kiss. He remembered the sweet smell of some expensive perfume, and how he’d decided to engage in conversation. Little did he know that all the bull she plied him with that night was just to get that fucking great diamond on her finger. She was a wild spirit and had no intention of sticking to one man. Her subtle make-up and sweet expression were deliberately aimed at getting what she wanted. She wasn’t sweet at all, but by the time he realized what she was all about, he was up the aisle saying ‘I do’ and little Ricky was on his way.

He should have listened to his head when he saw the subtle changes; after all, no one can hide their real persona for very long. Perhaps it was the age gap, for she never settled down, always wanting to party and get pissed. But he was firm and put a stop to her antics with frustrating consequences. So she turned to drinking indoors during the day.

She got to her feet and shot him an acid glare. ‘You, Mike, will wish you’d never done that.’ She wobbled away, back to their bedroom, leaving him wound up and needing another stiff drink.

As he made his way down the stairs, his phone vibrated in his trouser pocket. He checked his watch; it was 2.30 a.m.

It was Eric, his brother. ‘What’s up? It’s fucking early doors, mate.’

‘You best get back over to the lock-up. We’ve discovered something you might wanna see.’

Mike ran his big thick hands through his loose waves and then scratched his bristles.

‘Okay, mate. Give me half an hour.’

He didn’t ask what. He didn’t like to talk too much on the phone, just in case. He dashed back up the stairs two at a time and retrieved his shirt from the back of the chair in the spare room. Jackie was quiet, her mumbling and cursing having died off, so he assumed she’d gone back to sleep. Outside was deathly quiet. There wasn’t even a sign of a breeze. So, when he clicked the key fob to his Porsche, the sound of the locks releasing, although expected, still made him jump. He was tired, the lack of sleep taking its toll on his nerves. As he drove towards the entrance, the gates automatically opened. Deciding to have one last look in the rear-view mirror, he gave a sigh of relief. Apart from the outside lights, the house was in total darkness.

Good, she was still asleep.

His lock-up was in the middle of West Kingsdown in Kent, cleverly hidden in a place called Knatts Valley.