"I swear, I have no idea where she is. She was meant to meet me six hours ago but she never turned up. I assumed she was at home"

Rhys pushes past him into the house and pushes open each door in turn, taking a brief look for his daughter inside each room. Kane watches him, not wanting to stand in his way as he storms through the house. There weren't many places Kirsty could hide in such a small place. It had only two bedrooms. Kane had had the house to himself since Scott was sent down. His aunt came over occasionally but apart from that visitors were rare. She was the only person he was willing to class under the title 'family'. He hated referring to his Dad or brother as 'family'. They had done nothing for him. His aunt at least cared. She had no children of her own and he, his father and Scott were her only living relatives. She was almost seventy now, and already of ill health. She had fallen to pieces when Ricky, Kane's father, her brother, was sent to prison. Ricky was the youngest sibling and in many ways the most dangerous. There had been another brother, Dennis, but he was murdered several years ago. His killer was never found.

Kane's mind was in overdrive now. Where could Kirsty be? Was this all a misunderstanding? He switched on his mobile. Seven missed calls. Not a single one from Kirsty. All number withheld. It was worrying. Chilling. Like a scene out of a movie. Mystery phonecalls. Kidnapping. Only now it was happening to him.

"If you've done anything to my daughter..."

Rhys was fuming

"I swear I don't know where she is"

Rhys glared at him through narrowed eyes. Kane's expression was one of genuine concern. He could be telling the truth. Kane's phone rings

"Is that her?"

Kane glances at the display. Number withheld.

"No."

He glances up at Shelley and Rhys before reluctantly taking the call.

"Hello?"

He expects no reply. As usual. The line to go dead.

"Hello."

A muffled voice from the other end. Kane turns away from Shelley and Rhys and walks down the hall, concealing a worried expression as he listens to the voice on the other end of the line. He didn't recognise it. But it could have been anyone. He could barely hear what was being said.

"Underneath the wharf... ten minutes..."

The caller cut off. He was terrified for Kirsty. It was too big a coincidence for it not to be related somehow. Rhys and Shelley were stood metres behind him in the doorway, making him nervous. If he said anything he knew that they would blame him. Besides, it might not even be about Kirsty.

"Problem?"

Rhys spoke bitterly.

"No... wrong number"

He struggled to keep his breathing steady. He glanced at the clock. 11:20. It would take him ten minutes to drive to the wharf.

"I've got to go"

He grabbed his jacket off the back of the couch and made for the door. Rhys stepped into his way, towering above Kane threateningly.

"Where are you going?"

Kane didn't reply. He had never been a good liar. He avoided making eye contact with Rhys. Rhys grabbed his chin and forced Kane to look him in the eye.

"Where are you going?"

Kane shook Rhys off him and looked around timidly.

"I've been getting these anonymous phone calls recently... it's probably got nothing to do with Kirsty but I've got a meeting with the guy... I've just got to make sure"

Kane spoke quietly. He could tell that Rhys was getting madder.

"I'm coming with you"

"I don't think that's such a good - "

Rhys interrupted

"She's my daughter and I'm going to get her out of your mess"

Rhys face was inches away from his now, breathing heavily, his eyes giving Kane a chilling glare. Kane nods. What else could he do? Rhys was a powerful man. Kirsty's father. They had had their differences but Kane had some respect for the guy. He could see how much he cared about his family. Kane had never had a responsible father figure. Rhys stepped aside and allowed him past. The three stepped outside the house and Kane hurridely locked the door. Kane's car was sat in the driveway. The Sutherland's was in the road. Rhys made for his car but Kane unlocked his. Rhys glared at him.

"We're taking mine."

"You don't know where we're going."

Kane climbs into his car, already fed up with Rhys' presence. He wanted to do this his way. Rhys' would most likely call the police and make the situation ten times worse. An infuriated Rhys throws his set of keys to Shelley and climbs into the passenger seat. The two men sit side by side, tense. Kane starts the engine and pulls out of the driveway.

Shelley watches them dismally. She was worried about Rhys' frame of mind already. Time spent with Kane Phillips could only make him worse. And where was Kirsty? Was she in trouble? Shelley knew that they had had their differences, especially in the last week, but Kirsty was still her daughter. She still wanted to wrap her in cotton wool. Still wanted to protect her. If anything happened to her it would be Kane's fault. Kirsty should never have got involved with him in the first place. He was trouble.

..............................

WHARF

Kane's car pulls into the car park. he glances nervously across at Rhys.

"Wait here"

"Why the hell should I listen to you?"

"Because I know what I'm doing"

Rhys would never admit it but Kane was probably right. Kane was probably used to this sort of thing. Creeping around the quayside in the middle of the night. He would much rather be at home in front of the television, all of his daughters safe in their beds.

Kane opened his door and stepped out onto the concrete. He had been here so many times. But never this late at night. An eery silence surrounded him. Darkness. There were only a couple of cars around. He walked towards the wharf cautiously, regularly looking around him. He felt like someone was watching him and it put him on edge. He walked down the steps onto the beach and walked along until he reached the bottom of the wharf. There was no one there, at least no one that he could see. Maybe it was just a joke. A hoax. He felt out of his depth. Scared. It had been so long since he had been involved in anything remotely dangerous. And he had always been with someone back then, usually Scott. He had no need to worry when Scott was about. People were scared of Scott and didn't dare cross him. Whereas he, Kane, was weak and vulnerable underneath his tough exterior. He had always been in his brothers' shadow.

Last time he was here he had been waiting for Kirsty. That day when they took the boat out. It had been one of the best days of his life. Out on the water with Kirsty. It had felt so right. For once he had felt like he belonged. Nothing else had mattered. Until they had seen Alf Stewart. He smiled to himself as he remembered Kirsty's reaction. Straight overboard within seconds.

"Evening."

Kane spun around. A man lurked in the shadows. It was too dark to make out his face but he didn't recognise the voice. Kane took a step towards him.

"Don't come any closer or I'll shoot you"

He spoke calmly. Intimidating. Kane couldn't see a gun. But it was too dark to risk anything. He stopped immediately.

"Where's Kirsty?"

"Ah, the girl?"

Kane's heart sank. Kirsty was in danger. He wanted to lunge forward at this man. To defend Kirsty. But it was too risky. He would be no good to her if he ended up dead.

"What do you want from me?"

"Who says I want anything?"

Kane was becoming increasingly frustrated. He strained his eyes to get a glimpse of this man.

"Do you recognise the name Rosemary Johnson?"

Kane thought for a moment. The name rang a bell. Someone from the past. It struck him.

"Rose was engaged to my uncle Dennis when he died."

The man corrected him

"When he was murdered."

"What's this got to do with me?"

"Let me see..."

The man stepped out of the shadows. Kane saw him twist a revolver around in his hans. He swallowed back fear. His Dad had owned a gun once. He had never thought anything of it at the time. He had been too young. This time it was different.

"...15th February 1998... your father, Scott and yourself. The harbour in Dewsbury."

Kane strained to remember. He would have been 15 then. It was a few months before his Dad had been sent to prison. They had been on holiday in Dewsbury. The harbour? Yes, he remembered faintly. They had gone down to the harbour one evening for a look around. His uncle Dennis had worked there but they never saw him that day. It had puzzled Kane at the time. It had seemed like a meaningless trip. But his Dad and Scott had wandered off to do something and had left him looking around his uncle's boat on his own for ten minutes. He didn't know why they went but he didn't want to ask in case his Dad turned nasty. He thought it was probably best he didn't know anyway. He didn't understand why this of this was relevant now though.

The man looks at him scornfully through the dark.

"You know what I mean. I found the security tape from the harbour. Scott thought he had got rid of it. Dennis went into the main entrance of the harbour at eight o'clock. Half an hour later you three arrived. You left after about twenty minutes. Dennis never left. His body was found at the bottom of the harbour a few days later. He'd been stabbed to death."

A chill shot through Kane's spine. Did this man really think that he had something to do with it? Did his Dad and Scott have anything to do with it? It would have made sense. His Dad was never on the best of terms with his brother. Dennis hadn't followed the 'family way'. He had tried his best to go straight.

"Rose hung herself a year later. She got depressed. Never got over his murder. And his killers were never found"

"Why didn't you just go to the police with the tape?"

Kane was jumpy now. The man was within a few feet of him, the gun rotating in his hand threateningly.

"The police? I want proper justice for my sister. Revenge. Prisons are far too soft on murderers"

"Your sister?"

"How rude of me. I never introduced myself. I'm Troy - Troy Johnson. Rose's brother"

"I had nothing to do with it. I had no idea"

The man gazed at him, disbelievingly.

"Don't lie to me. You, your Dad, your brother. You were a team"

"I was fifteen. I didn't kill anyone"

"It's taken me three years to track your family down. And two out of three of you are in prison already."

"What has any of this got to do with Kirsty?"

"An eye for an eye. Now you know what it feels like to lose someone you love. The one person you were closest to in the world. I was close to Rose. Things were never the same after Dennis died."

Kane didn't care about Rose. He cared about Kirsty. He panicked for her. He couldn't have lost her. He'd only just found her. She was the love of his life. He knew it was crazy. They'd only known each other a couple of months but he couldn't stand being away from her. The thought of her being in danger destroyed him.

"What have you done to her?"

Kane's mind was spinning. He was beginning to see red. If this man had laid a finger on her he'd pay.

"Nothing... yet... and nothing will happen to her if you play your cards right"

Kane was backed into a corner. He had to do the right thing by Kirsty, even if it was the wrong thing by the law.

"What do you want me to do?"

"Like I said, I want justice. For Dennis' murderers. The people also responsible for the death of my sister. Rumour has it that Scott's up for day release soon. I'm sure he'd be grateful to spend some time with his brother. We need to arrange a little surprise rendezvous. Bring him to see me. Oh, and you'll need to find out the name of your fathers prison for me. I'll have to arrange a little surprise for him as well. I gather he won't be out quite so soon. He was sent down for another murder wasn't he? It's a shame I won't get to watch him pay for what he has done."

Kane looked at his deadly serious face. It was insane. This man was asking him to line two of his family up to be murdered.

"No way."

Kane knew that his family had done him no favours but this was taking it too far. He couldn't kill his own family. Whatever they had done. And if Troy killed him as well his aunt would have no one. She'd never recover. Troy believed that he had something to do with it and there was no way to convince him otherwise.

"Then the girl dies."

Kane was in a no-win situation. He loved Kirsty more than anything but it would be wrong to kill his own family. He'd be as bad as them. His throat was dry. He nodded numbly. Kirsty was the most important person right now. In many ways he valued her life above his own. If anything was to happen to her then it would destroy so many people.

"That's more like it. I'll meet you back here - same time tomorrow?"

Kane nodded a second time, reluctantly, and started to walk away. He told himself that he was doing it for Kirsty but he still felt sick. He couldn't accept what he had just heard. What he was doing.

"I don't think I need to tell you that getting the police involved wouldn't be a good idea."