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she paid for grappas?”
    “No, fool, because she did it without asking. Without seeking my approval. Without being so desperate for it she’d make a show of it. Of all the people she’s started fights with she hasn’t started any with me because she knows that we are bredrins.”
    “Don’t use that word.”
    “What, I’m from Streatham, of course I’ll use that word. But she understands. So yeah, if you and her say moved in together and had a litter of puppies, the first three to be called Giuseppe, I’d be all right with that.”
    And just as Rocco was looking at houses, rings and thinking about how well Anna and his sisters would get on, disaster struck. Massimo Da Canaveze called him. “I will be brief, Rocco, but your father has been extremely careless. He passed on some information to a loose-lipped girl who has been in contact with a detective constable. This detective has been after your father for a long time.”
    “What’s happened?”
    “Get rid of everything that connects him to her and us. I have told your father to behave as normal, which means the clean-up will rely on you. You know what to look for. If not, speak to Nicholas and Anthony. You will not have very much time to rectify his mistakes. Do your best not to get yourself caught.”
    “Yes sir. Thank you.”
    Rocco called Nick and Tony to meet up with him, angry that his father was again intruding in his personal life. “What can we get rid of?”
    Nick shrugged. “Formulate new attendance notes, change the dates, not just on the files he’s got but on his accounts. Has he been skimming money from dividends as well?”
    “Probably.”
    Tony winced. “It’ll take some time. How far back am I going?”
    “I don’t even know. Your dad said we can’t get caught.”
    Nick lowered his lashes and thought. “Tony, can you access the server for his firm?”
    “Easy, but there’ll be stuff on his computer as well. Hardware history.”
    “We have to do this,” Rocco said. “This will kill my mother.”
    “To be honest, mate, it’ll fuck up your career as well.”
    Tony caught his eye. “Do yourself a favour. Don’t tell Anna. If this detective is after your dad, he’s probably got an eye on you and her too.”
    Rocco looked to Nick for help. “Seriously, don’t get her involved. If she doesn’t know anything, she can’t resent you for giving anything away.”
    “Fine.”
    So he withdrew from Anna, trying to keep her integrity intact, while the three of them did their best to erase the tracks of fraud in Rocco’s father’s work. The last job was to go to the office direct and remove the same information from his PC and replace it with well-documented client meetings and letters of advice. They got caught. He got caught. The security guard, who had been well paid to run the feed as directed by Tony, let one camera slip, and Rocco was caught on camera in the corridor of the firm. The police pounced and Rocco, for the first time, found himself in the wrong seat of a police station in front of an officer who seemed unnaturally excited about it all. He’d introduced himself as a DS Norcross and landed himself at the top of Rocco’s shit list.
    “Where were you last night?”
    “Can’t say.”
    “You’re not protecting your father, and you’re only going to ruin your career. You won’t be a solicitor if you have a criminal record, Mr. Mamione.” His eyes turned malicious. “That won’t impress your mother.”
    Rocco cleared his throat, to prevent himself from ripping out Norcross’. “No comment.”
    Two hours into the interview, Rocco’s father manned up and claimed the video was of him, tidying up some work after a client dinner meeting. “Doesn’t answer the question, junior,” the officer spat, four hours into the investigation. “Where were you?”
    “No comment.”
    Norcross pressed him. “Maybe I should ask your mother. She’d do anything to protect you and your useless father.” He leered. “Anything