'I didn't know,' said Hood. 'I've heard nothing. I'm sorry, Maxi.'

Maxi let out a long, miserable groan. 'I drove up last night to surprise her,' he said, 'but they beat me to her. I was at my farewell party all afternoon; all the time youse were clapping and wishing me the best, and I was telling you all about my perfect wee cottage up the coast, someone was passing it on. Someone like Springer.'

Hood was shaking his head in disbelief. 'How do you know it was him?'

'Because he works for the Millers,' I said. 'He's their enforcer.'

'They shot her in the legs,' said Maxi. 'She couldn't move. Then they set fire to the cottage. The neighbours, they wouldn't let me near, but I could hear her, hear her screaming . . .'

'Jesus,' said Trish.

There was a knock on the door. Hood turned, raising his hand to stop whoever was coming in, but he was too late. It was Joe, a bandage on his head, the lower half of his jaw badly swollen.

'Sorry, mate . . .' Hood started.

'It's okay,' I said. Hood gave me and him a doubtful look each, but stood aside. 'Hi, Joe. How're you doing?'

'Okay.' His eyes met Maxi's.

'Hey, Joe,' said Maxi. 'Long time.'

'Sorry for your loss,' said Joe. When he spoke, his lips barely moved; and even that caused him to grimace.

Maxi nodded. He rubbed at his face as Joe came fully into the room and closed the door behind him.

'How do you two . . .?' I asked.

'I told you where I'm from,' said Joe. 'It was Sergeant McDowell who put me inside, way back when.'

'Aye,' said Maxi, 'you were a hard wee nut.'

'Best thing that ever happened to me. They said down the hall what happened. I put two and two together.'

'Was it the Millers did you too?' Maxi asked, indicating his jaw.

'Some of their boys, aye.' Joe nodded at me. 'There was nothing I could do, I'm sorry. I was out at the wholesaler's early; when I came back, they were dragging Bobby out the door, jumped me before I could do anything. I was out for the count when the bomb went off, some fireman dragged me clear. Shop destroyed, my home gone, and my apprentice stolen. They just can't do that.'

Maxi was staring at the ground, but nodding in agreement.

'There has to be someone we can call,' said Trish. 'Someone who can save him.'

'There's no one,' I said. 'No one we can trust.'

'Of course there is,' said Hood. 'My God, we get back to the station, we get warrants . . . we go after them . . .'

'You think they're going to give you your head?' Maxi spat. 'They won't move against the Millers unless it comes down from on high. By the time they manage that, if they manage that, it'll be too late for the boy. He'll be floating gutted in the Lagan with the rest of them.'

'I know for a fact the government won't do anything,' I said.

It was clear in my head now. The Pikes as a couple were both under the sway of the Millers. The Millers could do whatever the hell they liked.

'We can't just leave him,' said Trish.

'No,' said Maxi.

'No,' said Joe.

It sat in the air. Eyes met, flitted.

'You get your hands on anything?' Joe asked.

'Sure,' said Maxi. 'You?'

'Our boys who did the decommissioning kept a few to one side for emergencies. I haven't been involved for years, but I've enough mates who are.'

'Wise,' said Maxi. 'They'll lend?'

'Sure. They've no love for the Millers.'

'This is all my fault,' I said.

They all looked at me.

'There's a first,' said Trish.

'It's not your fault,' said Maxi. 'That's like blaming an X-ray for the fact that you have a tumour. You've just drawn attention to the bleeding obvious. We have to cut the tumour out.'

'Cutting is my field of expertise,' said Joe.

'I know a thing or two about it myself,' said Maxi.

'At the risk of stating the bleeding obvious,' I said, 'are we talking about what I think we're talking about?'

Joe nodded at Maxi. Maxi nodded at me.

'If you want him back alive,' said Joe, 'it's the only way.'

'I'm going that way anyway,' said Maxi.

'I have to go with you,' I said.

'No you don't,' said Trish. 'But you will.'

'You'd be better off waiting here,' said Maxi.

'No,' I said.

'You've just been blown up,' said Joe.

'I'm going,' I said. 'I have my own gun and everything.'

Maxi looked to Joe. Joe shrugged. 'Well if you have your own gun . . .'

It even coaxed a smile out of Maxi.

'I just need to go and get it,' I said.

Patricia said: 'Right. Where is it? I'll drive you.'

'It's in your car,' I said.

'My . . .?' She took a deep breath. 'Why am I not surprised?'

I threw back the blankets and moved my legs round. Patricia helped me up. I groaned. Things swam.

'I'm fine,' I said.

'You must be. When you get a sore throat, you're usually in bed for months.'

Maxi pushed himself up from his chair. Joe turned and put his hand on the doorknob, but he couldn't open it without Hood shifting. Hood had no intention of it.

'Just . . . just hold on to your horses there,' he said, looking around us. 'Youse can't be serious.'

'Move it,' said Joe. 'We're going to get the boy.'

'I can't allow it,' said Hood.

'You're not in a position to stop it,' said Joe.

Hood looked at Maxi. 'You . . . can't . . . You're one of us.'

'I was, I'm not now. And even if I was, with what's been going on, it's not a boast I'd care to make. Now get out of the way.'

'No . . . Maxi . . . Sergeant McDowell . . . listen to me. It's just . . . madness. Man, you're the cop everyone looks up to; don't throw that away. I'm sorry about your wife, it's a horrible, terrible thing, but they've gone too far now, you know we always get them when it's one of our own.'

'Well it shouldn't have to be,' said Maxi.

Hood drew himself up. He puffed his chest out, what there was of it. 'If you're knowingly going to commit an act of violence,' he said, 'then I'm going to place you under arrest for your own protection. It's nothing more than you've taught me to do.'

'Just move, son,' said Maxi.

'No.'

Hood was tall, but skinny as a rake. He had planted his feet at the optimum distance apart to give him both leverage and a base from which to resist an attack. He was armed, and could have gone for it. He chose not to.

Joe looked him up and down, and nodded admiringly. 'You've got balls, kid, I'll give you that. But you should protect them at all times.'

'Excuse me?'

By way of response, Joe punched straight down, smacking Hood full in the groin, and he went down instantly.

In my head I was thinking: this time all bets are off.

50.

I was doing a lot of groaning. I couldn't help it. Every time the car went over a speed bump, it was like getting a punch to my broken ribs. And Belfast is obsessed with speed bumps. The fresh air had cleared my head enough to be wondering how sore I would be feeling if I hadn't been shot full of morphine.

Trish drove, Joe was beside her, I was in the back. Maxi had gone off to retrieve his weapon. Hood was handcuffed to a radiator back in the hospital, with surgical tape over his mouth and, courtesy of our friendly neighbourhood nurse, an injection of something that had been intended to help me sleep in his arse. There was a hospital equivalent of a Do not disturb sign on the door.

Every time I moaned, Joe glanced back at me and rolled his eyes.

'A couple of broken ribs,' he said. 'You don't hear me complaining.'

'It's sore. I don't think they even X-rayed me. I probably have internal bleeding and ruptured kidneys.'

'You're fine,' said Joe.

'And you would know?'

'I'm a butcher. I know more about anatomy than any six trauma teams combined.'

'Yeah, cow anatomy. And dead ones at that.'

'They did X-ray you,' said Trish. She looked at Joe. 'Is this it?'

'Aye,' said Joe, 'pull up there on the left.'

We were just off the Shankill, on Crimea Street. Joe got out, then leaned back in and said he would only be a minute. He went up to a front door and knocked. It opened, and he disappeared inside. Trish glanced back at me.

'I'm scared.'

'I'll be fine.'

'For Bobby.'

She reached back and put her hand on my leg. I had the revolver resting in my hand on the other leg. I had managed to retrieve it from the glove compartment. The money and the drugs were still snug in the boot. As bargaining tools, they had proved worthless. When this was all over, I would have to find a charity to donate the money to. Or maybe charity would begin at home. I wasn't sure what to do with the coke. I could distribute it to the homeless. It wouldn't put a roof over their heads, but they probably wouldn't give a shit.

'I know you want to do this,' said Patricia, 'and I know in your head you blame yourself and you probably think you're the brains of this bunch, but if you've any sense left in you at all, you'll lead from the rear.'

'That was always my intention.'