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“What’re you on about?”

“Yeah.” Amit was the first to turn towards the capos. “Sort of makes a difference, doesn’t it? It’s just the two of you now. And us.”

“You better keep back, Amit.” Hutchinson lifted the pickaxe handle from his shoulder. “Unless you want your brains spread all up the wall. I dunno what’s going on here, but if something’s happened to Preacher John, then we’re taking over.”

“That’s right.” Steiner seemed to be regaining some confidence. “This kid’s talking bollocks for all we know, but we’re in charge either way, so don’t forget it. Right, you – Cornflake. Go and fetch those girls. Let’s get you all here where I can see you.”

Ray pushed past Baz, gripping his arm briefly and giving it a squeeze. As he disappeared into the corridor he muttered, “Back in a bit.”

“Hey, Steiner.” Gene spoke up. “Why don’t you just let go of Jubo and we can talk about this? There’s no point in anyone getting hurt. Not now.”

“Belt up.” Steiner wasn’t prepared to negotiate. “Nobody’s letting anybody go, so get that straight. You.” He pointed at Baz. “What’s happened to Preacher John?”

“He’s dead,” said Baz. “The boat sank.” He thought about that for a moment. Should he say how? What difference did it make now? ‘We sank it,” he said. “We sank the 
Cormorant
. All of us. We blew it up.”

“You sank it! Yeah, right.” Steiner’s voice was a massive sneer. “How could you do that? You were all here.”

“We built a bomb,” said Gene. “Put it on the boat and wired it up to the winch motor. It wasn’t that hard.”

“A 
bomb?
 You’re lying.” Steiner was still aggressive, but he seemed less sure now.

Gene just shrugged. “That’s what we did. Makes no difference whether you believe it or not. Come on, Baz. Tell us what happened out there.”

“OK.” Baz took a deep breath. “Well, we got over Skelmersley way, and there was this petrol sign sticking up. BP. Looked like there could be a store there or something. So the divers went down. I... I was in the cabin...” His voice began to falter as he relived the moment. “Preacher John was making me pray. And then Isaac came in. He had a shotgun. He was gonna kill Preacher John while the others weren’t around – shoot him – like that’s what he’d planned. So he could take over, I suppose. But Preacher John was ready for him. He’d already taken the cartridges out of the gun. Then Preacher John shot Isaac instead. Sacrificed him.”

The sort room had gone completely quiet. Everyone was hanging on his words now – even the capos.

“Yeah. And then there was this bell, like a signal from the divers to winch the salvage up? So Preacher John chucked me overboard, and he pulled at the starter handle. Tried to start the winch motor. I was... I just... tried to swim out of the way. And then Preacher John saw I was still alive, and that maybe he should have got rid of me properly. So he took a few shots at me too. But I think he ran out of bullets. Anyway, he went to have another go at starting the motor. I got round... swam round the back of the boat. And then... then it... blew up. Just like we imagined it, Gene. It was massive – fire everywhere – and a huge great hole in the side of the boat. It sank. I still can’t... I still can’t believe it happened.”

Gene shook his head and slowly let out his breath. “God... so what did you 
do?
 How did you get back here?”

“Huh? Oh. I was in the tender. That’s what they called the dinghy. I got in the dinghy... tried to cut it loose. And then the rope snapped. 
Cormorant
 went down...” Baz couldn’t say anymore. He felt very sick and shaky all of a sudden.

“So you came back in the dinghy?”

Baz nodded.

Again there was a long breathing silence, the information, and what it meant, slowly sinking in.

Steiner turned to Hutchinson and muttered, “Chuffin’ hell. I think they mean it. They’ve bloody killed ’em all. Friggin’ unbelievable...”

“Steiner... let me go, man. Please... my hand...” Jubo was swaying in agony, his face still wreathed in sweat.

“Shaddup.” Steiner flicked the backs of his fingers across Jubo’s face. “You’ve got whatever’s coming to you, arsehole. And you’ve had it coming a long time. Yeah, and if there’s no Preacher John to stop me, I can do what I like, can’t I? Eh? Think about that!” He gave the vice a quick tweak, and Jubo yelled out again.

“Eh? Right? Right.” Steiner looked around at the group of boys. “You know what this means, don’t you? You know what this makes you? Murderers. I dunno how you’ve done it, but that’s what you are – murderers, the lot of you! Well, you might have got rid of Preacher John, but now you’ve got us to deal with instead. Maybe you never thought of that. But from now on we take over. And you’ll work for us.”

“How you gonna make us do that?” said Amit. “There’s seven of us. Only two of you.”

“How’m I gonna 
make
 you? Well, I could start by kicking the crap out of you. How would that be?”

“You gotta sleep sometime, Steiner. What’re you gonna do – take it in shifts?”

Steiner looked as though he would have gone for Amit there and then, but that would have meant letting go of the vice. He pointed a shaking finger at Amit.

“Don’t you worry about me sleeping, pal. You better worry about whether you’ll ever wake up again.”

“Yeah, yeah. You’re all gob.” Amit was deliberately taunting Steiner, trying to get him to make a move.

“Whoa – hang on. Don’t fall for it.” Hutchinson put a hand on Steiner’s arm. “Just stay cool. Think about this for a minute.”

Steiner drew back. “Yeah.” He looked at the crowd of faces. “Yeah. You know what, though? He’s right. We’ve only got to take an eye off them for a second and they’ll do us like they did Preacher John. So there’s only one choice, right? We gotta get rid of them first.”

“You reckon?”

“Well, think about it. What do we need them for? What good are they now? There’s enough in t’ storeroom for you and me to be going on with. Maybe for years. No point in feeding this lot, is there? So let’s get shot of ’em.”

Hutchinson stood facing the boys with his pickaxe handle raised. “Yeah, you’re right,” he said. But then he seemed to reconsider. “What – you mean, now?”

Steiner said, “No. Not like that. I got a better idea – but we’re gonna need some guns. Couple o’ guns.”

“You wanna shoot them?”

“Not unless they make us. We’ll give them a sporting chance at any rate. Take ’em down t’ jetty, is what I’m thinking, yeah? Get ’em to jump off and start swimming for it. Count to sixty and 
then
 start shooting. Make it more fun. Here... I’ve got the keys...” He reached into the pocket of his shorts. “Go t’ storeroom and unlock the armory. Get us a couple of guns – whatever’s in there.”

“And leave you here by yourself?” said Hutchinson. “Don’t think so.”

Steiner thought about that for a few moments. “OK,” he said. “Gimme a hammer, or a crowbar or something. Make it heavy.”

Hutchinson turned towards the workbench. He looked quickly from left to right, then grabbed a claw hammer from where it hung on the wall. “Here.” He handed it to Steiner.

Steiner raised the hammer above Jubo’s head, his other hand still gripping the vice. Jubo was bent over, cowering, trying to shield himself from the hammer. But there was nowhere for him to hide.

“Right – get over in t’ corner, the lot of you! Over there, away from t’ door! Go on – move!”

Baz looked to Gene for guidance – ready to rush the capos, if that was to be the decision. And for a moment it was touch and go, the boys beginning to inch forward, weighing up their chances. But Gene muttered beneath his breath, “No. Don’t try it. That’s Jubo’s head.”

“Move away!” Steiner yelled again, and the boys shuffled back towards the corner furthest from the door.

“Right! Here’s what’s gonna happen. Hutchinson’s gonna be out of here for maybe a minute. Maybe less. And if anyone tries anything, I’m gonna smack this guy so hard his friggin’ eyeballs’ll fall out! You think I wouldn’t do it – you watch me! It’d be a chuffin’ pleasure, and one less piece of crap to worry about. Ready, Hutch?” Steiner was sweating, his face glistening in the light.

“Yeah – hang on a minute. Which key is it?” Hutchinson had his pickaxe handle tucked beneath his arm now as he sorted through the heavy bunch.

“For Chrissake. It’s the two padlock keys. Pair of—What the chuff’s this?” Steiner was staring towards the doorway.

Baz turned to look. Ray was walking into the room, followed by Nadine and Steffie. The two girls were close behind him, each carrying something as though to conceal it. Jam jars? They looked like jam jars...

No pausing, no hesitating, no stopping to weigh up the situation, the three of them marched in single file towards the workbench. As they neared the astonished capos, Ray peeled off to the left. He reached beneath the far end of the bench and grabbed what looked like the end of a broomstick – but it was one of the torches that Gene had made for lighting the altar fires. Ray took a cigarette lighter from his pocket, held it to the oily rag... and flicked it...

“What the hell...?” Hutchinson dropped his bunch of keys and fumbled for a grip on the pickaxe handle.

“Now!” said Ray.

Hutchinson staggered back against the workbench, soaked from head to foot in whatever Steffie had just thrown over him. At the same time Nadine hurled the contents of her jam jar at Steiner – a great slew of liquid that caught him straight in the face and splashed all down his clothing. His T-shirt and shorts were instantly dark-stained and dripping.

“You friggin’ little bi—’ Steiner reeled sideways, spluttering and choking, wiping his streaming eyes. He half recovered, got himself upright and swung his hammer into the air above Nadine’s head. “I’ll bloody kill you for that!”

And then he saw the blazing torch...

Ray was coming at him, waving the firebrand from side to side, the flames making a dull roaring sound. Steiner immediately dropped the hammer and backed away, his eyes wide with horror.

“Jesus!” Gene was the first to grasp what was happening. “They’ve covered ’em in petrol!” He leaped forward. “Ray! Ray! Don’t do it!”

But Ray had the two capos backed into a corner now. They tumbled over one another, crying out with terror as Ray danced in front of them, jabbing the flaming brand perilously close to their writhing bodies.

“Ray! Ray... Ray...” Baz tried to get in between Ray and the capos, moved towards him in a crouch, his arms extended. “Don’t! Just... just don’t, OK?”

He didn’t seem to be getting through. Ray’s eyes were wild – fevered – as though he were in some kind of trance. Jabbing, poking, weaving from side to side, he brought the flames time and again to within centimeters of the terrified capos.

“No! No! I haven’t said anything! I won’t tell! Urrghhh—’ Hutchinson’s pleas and squeals were cut short as Steiner elbowed him in the face, the two of them each fighting to get behind the other for protection. On bare knees they crawled, scrabbling at the wall behind them, cornered like rats in a barn. Black oily smoke surrounded them, and the air was filled with the smell of raw spirit.

“Burn ’em, Ray! Jus’ do it, man!” Jubo pushed himself into the circle, sucking at his injured hand and egging Ray on.

And then others joined in – urgent mutters through gritted teeth. 
Go on, Ray, torch those toe-rags! Do it!

“For Chrissake, Jubo!” Gene tried to make a grab at the waving brand of fire, but Ray simply switched hands and fended him off.

“Rrrr... rrrssss...” He was growling, hissing, teeth bared – a wild animal taunting his prey. Baz was frightened of getting too close, of physically intervening, knowing that if he tipped the balance the wrong way, the two capos would go straight up in flames. They’d be burned alive.

Someone wriggled past him, forcing him to one side. Steffie...

“Hey – Ray. Ray... come on, babe. It’s OK. Come on – give it to me.”

Steffie put a hand on Ray’s back, moved it up to his shoulder. Ray flinched, but didn’t pull away.

“It’s only me, Ray. Come on, that’s enough. We’ve done it, yeah? We’ve done it.”

Steffie’s arm was around Ray’s shoulder now. She pulled him sideways towards her, holding him tight for a few seconds.

And Ray responded. He lowered the torch. There was no resistance as Gene reached towards him and gently took it.

“OK?” Steffie leaned forward and looked into Ray’s face. “OK, babe?”

“Yeah.” Ray’s head hung down. “Yeah.”

Steiner and Hutchinson untangled themselves and rolled over onto their knees, but Gene stopped them from going any further.

“Stay there,” he said. “We haven’t finished with you yet.”

“Say right.” Jubo was brandishing the claw hammer in his uninjured hand. “Payback time.”

“Whoa, hang on, Jubes.” Gene held the torch upright and looked around at the circle of boys. The room was heavy with smoke, hanging in a pall below the high ceiling and giving everything a slightly blurred look.

“What are we gonna do with them?” said Gene. “I mean, seriously.”

“How about seriously doing what they were gonna do with us?” Amit had retrieved the pickaxe handle, and he jabbed it at Steiner’s shoulder. “How about we get a couple of guns and then chuck these two off the jetty? Give ’em the same sporting chance that we were gonna get?”

“No,” said Gene. “No guns. I’m not having that.”

“Well, they can’t stay here. Not alive, anyhow.” Amit gave Steiner another prod. “We either kill ’em or we make ’em swim.”

“Give ’em the dinghy.” Robbie made the first practical suggestion. “Send ’em back to the mainland.”

“The 
dinghy?”
Amit wasn’t keen on this. “That’s our only way out of here. What do we wanna give ’em that for? Make the sods swim, that’s what I say.”

“No, the dinghy’s not a bad idea,” said Gene. “We could maybe build a raft or something if we ever wanted to. Got plenty of wood and water butts and stuff. Come on. Let’s get rid of them now, while we can. Then it’s done. Yeah?”

“We do a vote,” said Jubo. “I votin’ we shove ’em on the altar and torch ’em. We take ’em to the jetty and talk about it on the way down.”

“I’m not setting light to anybody, Jubes. I’ll tell you that now.” Gene was adamant.