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to get you to safety.’
    ‘ The Rasta?’
    Clara nodded.
    ‘ What could be so important?’ Matt asked.
    Gerry, the driver, rose from his chair and picked up the coffeepot. He strode over to the sink and swilled the grinds out. ‘More coffee?’ he said as he filled it with water. He put the pot on the stove and came back to his chair.
    Clara was fingering the packet of cigarettes. ‘That’s an even longer story,’ she said at last.
    ‘ I’ve got all night,’ Matt answered.
    ‘ We don’t have all night, I’m afraid.’ She took a glance at her watch. ‘We have to leave soon. We’ve been here too long already. I’ll explain everything to you when we’re safely out of England.’
    Matt looked at his own watch. It was eleven fifteen, Friday evening. Only six hours ago, he’d been sitting in his office, gearing up for the weekend. He should be drunk by now, not staring across a table at a group of murderers. But drunk was just how he felt. A slow dribble of adrenaline was leaking into the pit of his stomach. His head was still swimming, unable to deal with the crazy situation. He looked at the three people in the room. Lunatics , he thought.
    ‘ Even if what you’ve told me is true,’ he said, ‘you’re asking me to trust you without explaining your motives. You say you’re trying to expose a government conspiracy. Let’s say you are. Governments have to have secrets. You could be trying to reveal something that shouldn’t be revealed. You could have your own agenda. Why should I co-operate?’
    Clara smiled an attractive smile and glanced at the two men. ‘Okay, good point,’ she said. ‘Firstly, when you learn what this is all about, you’ll see why it’s so important. Secondly, and more importantly, you’ve no other choice. If you leave here on your own, you’ll be dead within twelve hours. I guarantee it. And finally, whether you co-operate or not, you’re coming with us. This thing is big, Matt, and we’ll stop at nothing to achieve our aims. We would rather kill you ourselves than let our enemies get the information you have.’
    It was hardly a subtle threat and Matt saw the seriousness in Clara’s eyes as she spoke the words. The reassurance in them seemed to vanish for a moment, but then returned with a smile.
    ‘ I have a life,’ Matt said to himself.
    Clara shrugged her shoulders, not in dismissal but in pity. ‘Yes, I know. You’ll have to leave it behind for a while. Family, friends, work, everything.’
    ‘ Can I make a phone call?’
    ‘ No. If you contact anyone you know you’ll be putting them in danger too. When this is all over, I promise you, you’ll be able to go back to that life.’
    Drawing a deep breath, Matt reached for the packet of cigarettes. He’d given up two years ago but he’d never felt the need for a smoke like he did right now. Clara and the two men watched him as he lit up and took a relaxing draw.
    ‘ Okay,’ he said, ‘as you say, it doesn’t look like I’ve got much choice. But as soon as we’re out of here I want to know what the fuck this is all about.’
    Clara smiled. ‘You and me too,’ she said.

 
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 4
     
     
    David Castro swallowed a mouthful of whisky, placed the glass on the small bedside table and filled it from the half-empty bottle. He took another swig and spun onto the bed, face upwards.
    The motel room was dimly lit, the orange glow from the parking lot casting a trellis of shadows across the bare ceiling. A faintly musty smell filled the room, a smell condensed from the countless one-night stands and drunken travellers that formed the room’s sad history. Castro hated motels – the worn fibrous carpets, the useless plastic-encased toiletries and the disturbing odour. But he was becoming accustomed to their necessity.
    He reached over to the table, opened its single drawer and pulled out a book. It was a large, old book with a heavy card cover. He held it above his head with outstretched arms and