‘Interesting,’ said Salih. ‘Intelligence agents don’t change horse mid-career.’
‘SOCA needed staff, and the traditional police are too set in their ways,’ said Merkulov. ‘They recruited from MI5,MI6 and various private-sector agencies. Button had run undercover operatives for MI5 so they approached her to run SOCA’s undercover unit.’
‘SOCA works throughout the UK, right?’
‘Country-wide,’ said the Russian. ‘The undercover unit mounts its own investigations but also accepts assignments from individual forces.’
‘Tell me about SOCA,’ said Salih.
‘Just under four and a half thousand employees. It was set up in 2006 when the British Government merged the National Crime Squad, the National Criminal Intelligence Service, the investigative sections of Customs and Excise and the Immigration Service.’
‘Do we know where she’s working at the moment?’
‘No. The problem is that SOCA is so new I have few contacts within it. I hope to rectify that over the next few months. I can tell you that she isn’t based at SOCA headquarters. In fact, she doesn’t appear to operate out of a permanent base and seems to have no ancillary staff reporting directly to her. I’m sorry I can’t be of more help.’
Salih sipped his water and carefully placed his glass on the table. ‘And the American?’
‘I have photographs, and the contents of his SVR file, which is substantial. Unfortunately, it’s also light on personal information. His details were cleansed during his time with the CIA so there’s nothing of his early life on file. No birth certificate, no education or service record. There is a good chance that Richard Yokely isn’t his real name. We know what he has done, and we know where he has been but, like all of the men who work for black operations, we have no real idea of who he is.’
‘Do you know his present location?’
The Russian looked pained. ‘I’m afraid not, my friend. Yokely flies in and out of countries without documentation and, like Button, he has no permanent base. We see him visiting embassies around the world, and there are photographs of him on rendition flights to Egypt, the Ukraine and Pakistan. He is a frequent visitor to Guantánamo Bay, of course. And to Iraq and Afghanistan.’
‘What about locating him? How would I go about doing that?’
‘We could put the word out, but frankly, my friend, I am loath to do that. A man like Yokely will have contacts around the world and he would soon know that someone was on his trail. It would be the same if someone started asking questions about me. It would not be long before I received a phone call tipping me off.’
‘So we would know where he is, but he would know that we’re looking for him?’
‘Exactly.’
‘What about his phone?’
‘He uses disposable Sim cards or secure satellite phones,’ said the Russian.
‘Would you be able to get me a current number?’
‘At a price. Do you want to contact him?’
‘It’s a possibility. See what you can do.’
The waitress brought their food and the two men waited until she’d gone before continuing their conversation.
‘I’m sorry I haven’t been more helpful,’ said Merkulov.
Salih knew that the Russian’s professional pride had been dented. ‘If it was easy, Viktor, anyone would be able to do what we do.’ He speared a chip with his fork. ‘Obviously I want you to keep a watching brief. And there’ll be a bonus on anything you can get for me.’
Merkulov picked up his glass and clinked it against Salih’s. ‘Always a pleasure to deal with a professional,’ he said.
Shepherd drove into the city centre and parked his Audi in a multi-storey car park. He found a locksmith in a side road off Great Victoria Street and handed over the two keys he’d taken from Elaine’s kitchen. The elderly man behind the counter copied them while he waited.
When he got back to his house, Elaine’s car had gone. He parked in front of his garage and switched off his engine. It was late afternoon. He took out his mobile phone and called Elaine. When she answered she was obviously driving. ‘I hope you’re on hands-free,’ he said.
‘Hi, Jamie. Yeah, I’m fine.’
‘Just wondered if we could have a chat this afternoon about the stuff you gave me.’
‘I’d love to,’ said Elaine, ‘but I’m off to see a client now and probably won’t be back until six.’
‘Maybe tomorrow, then,’ said Shepherd. ‘Drive carefully.’ He cut the connection. It was just after four o’clock. He climbed out and walked across the grass to her front door, checking that no one was watching. He took the newly cut keys from his pocket and let himself in. The burglar alarm beeped softly. He shut the door, went down the hallway and tapped in the four-digit security code. The beeping stopped. Shepherd took a deep breath. What he was doing was totally illegal and he knew that in entering her house without a search warrant he risked blowing the whole operation, but he also knew that he wasn’t going to get anywhere by taking Elaine Carter out for an occasional drink.
He went into the kitchen and replaced the keys he’d taken. He knew he shouldn’t stay in the house for more than thirty minutes, in case she returned early. Where would she hide a gun? He kept his own weapon in a locked drawer, but Elaine would have to be more circumspect because she could never be sure that the police wouldn’t turn up with a search warrant. He smiled to himself. That, of course, assumed she was guilty and was using her husband’s service revolver to murder his killers. If she didn’t have the gun, he could search the house until kingdom come and not find anything. He looked at the key box and wondered whether he should start with the garden shed. He decided against it. Elaine had been married to a cop so she’d know how cops think. The shed was one of the first places they’d look. Garden sheds were also vulnerable to break-ins, so if she had it she’d be more likely to hide it in the house. People tended to conceal guns in the same sort of places that drug-dealers hid their wares – under floorboards, behind skirting, in toilet cisterns and water tanks, in the back of stereos and televisions. Or buried in the back garden. Shepherd realised he was wasting time. He would do it methodically and search one room at a time.
Charlotte Button’s mobile rang and she picked it up off the bedside table. It was her husband. ‘Graham, I’m sorry I didn’t call earlier,’ she said. ‘I was rushed off my feet.’
‘Where are you?’ he asked.
‘Belfast. I’m staying at the Europa but use the mobile because I’m not in the room much.’
‘It’s a good thing I trust you because you’re behaving like an unfaithful wife,’ said Pickering, but she could tell he was joking.
‘I wish I had time for a lover,’ she said. ‘It’s been non-stop the last few days.’
‘All for the greater good, I’m sure,’ said Pickering, with a touch of irony. ‘Zoë phoned yesterday. She’s lost her mobile.’
‘What? She’s only had it a couple of months.’
‘I’m just the messenger, darling,’ said Pickering. ‘She made a reversed-charge call from the school to my office, bless her, and asked if you’d call her back. I did try her mobile number but it’s not ringing.’
‘I’ll phone the school tomorrow,’ said Button. ‘Did she sound okay?’
‘Same as usual,’ said Pickering. ‘Getting information out of her is like getting blood from a stone.’ He chuckled drily. ‘Just like her mother.’
‘What about you? Everything okay?’
‘Only just got home and I’m knackered,’ said Pickering. ‘There’s a small chain in Ascot that we might be able to buy if we can get the financing lined up.’
‘Well done you,’ said Button.
‘It’s not a done deal yet, darling. I’ve got to get my ducks in a row and there’s a lot of ducks. But if I can pull it off we’ll be twenty per cent bigger in one fell swoop.’
‘Fingers crossed, and we’ll celebrate when I get back,’ said Button.
‘Which will be when, do you think?’
‘A couple of days. Maybe three. Love you.’
‘Love you too.’
She ended the call. Suddenly she missed him, and thought about calling him back to tell him that she really did love him and that she was so glad she was sharing her life with him. She realised just as quickly that if she did he’d think something was wrong. She’d make it up to him when she got home. She had some very sexy underwear in the bottom drawer of her dressing-table that she’d bought on a whim from Agent Provocateur a few months ago. It was still in its wrapper, a black and red lacy bra, sheer matching panties and black suspenders with silk roses. It was time to give it all a trial run. She was sure it would make him feel a lot better than a phone call.
The sunlight glinted on the massive golden dome atop the mosque. It was quite a sight, and distinctly out of place in Regent’s Park, thought Salih, as he strolled across the grass towards it. The hundred-and-forty-foot-high minaret was the tallest structure around and the mosque dominated the area. He had taken the Tube to Baker Street station and the mosque was just a short walk away.
The building was less impressive close up, drab, seventies-style concrete that had been pitted and darkened by the capital’s pollution. Salih walked through the courtyard, slipped off his shoes and went into the main prayer hall. It was Friday, the main Muslim day of worship, and the hall was crowded but not full. Men were standing, bowing and kneeling on the red carpet, which had been woven in a pattern of a thousand prayer mats, all facing Mecca. The favoured places were closest to the wall nearest Mecca, and it was there that the men wearing traditional Muslim dress prayed, their heads covered. Towards the back of the hall they were more casually dressed, many in jeans and sweatshirts.
Above them was the dome he had seen from outside, the inside decorated with brightly coloured mosaics. A huge chandelier hung from the centre, and around the dome’s edge there were inscriptions from the Koran.
There were no women in the prayer hall, of course. They were prohibited from praying with the men and banished to a gallery upstairs. It was the way of Islam, Salih knew, but he disagreed with the way that the sexes were segregated. He had never been married, but one day he hoped to have a wife and when he did he would not force her to cover herself from head to foot when she went outside. Salih considered himself a good Muslim and he had read the Koran many times, but he knew that most religious leaders had twisted the words of the Holy Book for their own ends.
Salih began to pray. Like all good Muslims he prayed five times a day, though more often than not he didn’t go to a mosque to communicate with God. As he prayed, he looked around and eventually spotted the man he had come to see. His name was Hakeem and, like Salih, he was Palestinian. Hakeem’s family had been killed by the Israelis and he had fled to Europe, first to France and then to Britain where he had applied for asylum. Hakeem had been less than truthful with the Bangladeshi lawyer who had handled his application and with the Home Office panels he had appeared before. While it was true that his wife and two sons had been killed when Israeli soldiers stormed his house in Gaza, it was because Hakeem was a skilled bombmaker who had sent more than a dozen suicide-bombers to kill civilians in Tel Aviv. Four years after he had arrived in London, Hakeem was granted British citizenship.
As Hakeem got to his feet and headed out, Salih caught his eye. Hakeem hurried over and the two men embraced like the old friends they were. Hakeem kissed Salih on both cheeks. ‘Finally you come to England,’ he said, squeezing Salih’s shoulders. ‘I can show you the sights.’
‘I’m here for work, not pleasure,’ said Salih.
‘You said you needed my help and, as always, I am here for you,’ said Hakeem. ‘Nothing is too much trouble for the man who saved my life. Come, let me buy you a drink and we can talk.’
Hakeem put his arm around Salih’s shoulders and they left the prayer hall. ‘Have you been here before?’ asked Hakeem.
‘London, or the mosque?’
‘The mosque.’ Salih shook his head. ‘Quite a coup,’ said Hakeem. ‘It was designed by an Englishman – can you believe that? King Faisal of Saudi Arabia put up a third of the cost. I don’t think he could believe his luck – can you imagine the Saudis agreeing to build a cathedral in one of their royal parks?’ He laughed. ‘The British, they think they are so magnanimous, but in reality they are stupid. They think so little of their heritage that they throw it away.’
‘They see being multicultural as a strength,’ said Salih.
‘It is a weakness,’ said Hakeem. He slapped his chest. ‘I have a British passport, but I am a Muslim first.’ He waved at the men filing out of the prayer hall. ‘Every single man here would say the same. That is what the British will never understand. Our religion is what defines us. It makes us what we are. What do they have? A hollow church that bends with the wind, that allows abortion, adultery and men to lie down with men. Up to fifty thousand Muslims come here to pray during the Eids, and there isn’t a church in the country that can boast that. Islam is growing stronger by the week as their religion withers and dies.’
They walked to a café close by a bookshop that specialised in Muslim publications. Hakeem ordered two glasses of fruit juice and the two men took a quiet table where they couldn’t be overheard. ‘So how can I help you?’ asked Hakeem. ‘What is it you need from me?’
Salih lowered his voice to a whisper. ‘I need two men. Two men who can be trusted.’
‘To do what?’
‘To kill.’
Hakeem sipped his juice. ‘Who is to be killed?’
‘A woman.’
‘An infidel?’
‘A Muslim. A young girl. But it has to be done, and it has to be done with violence.’
‘The men who help you, will they be at risk?’
Salih shook his head. ‘Everything will be planned to the last detail.’
‘I have two young men who are eager to prove themselves. They will need to be told a story, of course.’
‘Of course.’
‘They would have to think that what they are doing is for the
jihad
.’