Part 18 (1/2)

He closed the door, went into the c.o.c.kpit and took off fast a moment later. Dermot led the way to the Transit, holding out his hand.

”So you came yourself, Danny.” He turned to Fahy and Regan. ”Danny Malone. Runs the best pub in Kilburn, the Green Man, and a good friend from the great days.”

”Sure, and I thought I'd come myself, Dermot.” They got in and he climbed behind the wheel. ”And I've spoken to your aunt Molly about China Wharf, only she isn't there, Dermot. She's spending time at Brighton with an old friend.”

”Well, that's a d.a.m.n shame,” Tod put in.

”No trouble. She told me where a key was hidden and I checked and it was there. I've been to the supermarket, stocked you up with provisions. You'll be as right as rain. The job? Is it big?”

”When the time's right,” Kelly said. ”Dillon's involved. That's all you need to know. Maybe we'll get him this time.”

At the Ministry of Defence, Hannah knocked on the door of Ferguson's office and went in, followed by Dillon. Ferguson, at his desk, looked up and sat back.

”So you're both part of Omega now. We should form a club.”

”A very exclusive one, sir,” Hannah said.

”Did you see Susan Haden-Taylor?” She nodded. ”And what did she think?”

”What did you expect her to think?” Dillon said. ”That difficult decisions are the privilege of rank whereas we, the poor b.l.o.o.d.y foot soldiers, just pull the trigger?”

”Oh, shut up for once, Dillon,” Ferguson told him. ”Have you made any decision yet, Superintendent?”

”If I could think it over for a week or so, sir, I'll soldier on.”

The phone rang, he picked it up. ”Ferguson.” Suddenly he smiled. ”Excellent. I'll be with you shortly.” He put the phone down. ”It looks like you'll have to, Superintendent. That was Dalton. Selim wants to see me. You'd both better come along.”

China Wharf was a relic of the old tea clipper days, but times had changed and most of the warehouses were developed or boarded up and awaiting their turn. Danny Malone unlocked the door and led the way in, followed by the others. There was a large sitting room, all the furniture old-fas.h.i.+oned, a kitchen on the same scale. He put the key on the table.

”Two bedrooms and a bathroom down the hall, five bedrooms and two bathrooms upstairs from when it was a lodging house.”

”It'll be fine,” Kelly said, and turned to Tod. ”I'll phone As.h.i.+mov and let him know we made it. Then we'll get together with him and Novikova, see what she's got.” He rubbed his hands together. ”Now bacon and eggs, a good old fry-up, sounds good to me. But who's going to cook it, that's the thing.”

”Well, not me,” Danny Malone said. ”I'll be off now. You let me know if there's anything else I can do,” and he went out.

At Holland Park, they stood with Miller and looked through the false mirror. Selim sat at the table drinking tea, while Dalton sat on the other side and they chatted.

”You are a very reasonable man, Mr. Dalton,” Selim was saying.

Miller said, ”Fred's done a really good job on him, General. I actually think he's about ready to see reason.”

”Then in we go,” and Ferguson led the way.

Selim and Dalton stopped talking and Dalton stood up, but Selim remained seated. ”You wanted to see me,” Ferguson said. ”Do I a.s.sume you're going to be sensible?”

”General, I know you are not the Gestapo. You won't wire up my extremities, or inject me with succinylcholine or put me in a bath of water until I nearly drown. It isn't the British way. But I do know that you will sentence me to death if, as you have threatened, you return me to Iraq or anywhere else in the Middle East.”

”So what is your decision?”

”I'm a contemptible coward who believed in my mission but is quite simply afraid to die. As you rightly point out, it would be slow and painful. So, yes, I will co-operate.”

”Fine.” Ferguson stayed calm. ”But you must tell me everything, and I do mean everything. Not only the names of the wretched young men drawn into your world of violence, but the ident.i.ties of your sponsors, the moneymen, the Belovs.”

Selim was just as calm. ”You can never touch Belov. He's much too powerful.”

”That may be true, but we can d.a.m.n well try.”

”Good luck to you. However, I do have terms.”

”Terms?” Ferguson frowned.

”Certainly. I will deal only with you. I will talk only with you. Mr. Dillon may have saved my life in Iraq, but he killed friends of mine while doing it. I respect Superintendent Bernstein, but she is Jewish and it would not be seemly. The sergeants have treated me decently, so I have no objection to them. However, I don't like this place.” He shook his head. ”I really don't like it at all. We are in the middle of London. There are too many of my brothers around here, too many people who would surely try to kill me if they knew I was here, no matter how good the security is. Is there somewhere else we could go?”

”Jesus, son, you don't want much,” Dillon said.

Hannah turned to Ferguson. ”Huntley Hall, sir. It's away from here, and the security's just as good.”

”That's true. Roper could come down and handle the technical stuff.”

”No,” Selim said. ”I said only you, and I meant it.”

”I shouldn't think that would be a problem, sir,” Hannah said. ”Roper could handle it by remote. He's done it before.”

Selim said, ”Huntley Hall?”

”It's a lovely old house in St. Leonard's Forest near Horsham, about an hour and a half from London. It used to be Lord Faversham's place. When he died, he left it to the nation. There's lots of woodland. Excellent pheasant shooting.”

”And now you've turned it into the kind of place where the only things that get shot are intruders?”

Dillon laughed. ”You'll love it.”

Ferguson stood up and said to Dalton and Miller, ”Get him ready. I'll go home and pack. When I return, we'll drive down to Huntley. Be prepared to stay for as long as it takes. Dr. Selim, I'll see you later.”

They took him out and Ferguson turned to Dillon and Hannah. ”It's something of a surprise, but I'll take it as far as I can. You're in charge here, Superintendent.”

”Very well, sir. You can rely on me.”

”And you,” Ferguson said. ”Try to behave yourself.”

”Don't I always?” Dillon said.

”That'll be the day,” Ferguson said and led the way out.

It was approximately an hour and a half later that he returned, this time in a cab, bag in hand. Fifteen minutes later, the Land Rover emerged, Miller and Dalton in the front, Ferguson and Selim in the rear.

A few yards down the road a Telecom van was parked, a manhole cover was up and a man in helmet and yellow jacket was working. He had a clear look as the Land Rover went by and spoke into a small mike in Russian.

”Land Rover just coming your way now. Two in the front. Ferguson and Selim in the rear. Stick to them like glue. I'll notify Major Novikova.”