by Roger Hurn
‘So what is this breakthrough he’s trying to flog?’
Crispian held up his hands. ‘That’s highly classified information which I’m not at liberty to divulge, but suffice it to say that we really would rather it didn’t fall into the hands of certain parties far less scrupulous than ourselves.’
‘And they are …?’ Carly sounded wary.
Crispian grinned, ‘Oh the usual suspects, Miss Bloom.’
She stared at him. ‘Porton Down is where they do germ warfare and test bad stuff on animals, isn’t it? So has this guy developed some sort of super virus or something that terrorists wanna get their hands on?’
Crispian treated her to his most patronising smile. He’s never forgiven her for the time she nearly took his eye out with her elbow in a fight in which he came off a very poor second best.
‘You may think that, Miss Bloom, but I’m afraid I couldn’t possibly comment. Though suffice it is to say, he’s expunged all trace of his work from the research database and taken it with him - and that is a matter of great concern.’
I tapped my teeth with my finger nails. I do that a lot when I’m on edge.
‘Okay, so it is something nasty that all manner of bad guys will be queuing up to get their grubby paws on. That makes this one hell of a dangerous assignment. I just hope what you’re paying is going to make it worth the risk.’
Crispian rubbed his hands together briskly. ‘You’ll be doing this for your country, Ryan. That should be reward enough, but obviously I’ll be paying you both your daily rate plus all expenses - and there may well be a bonus at the end if you do the job successfully and with the minimum of fuss.’
‘What does doing the job successfully actually mean?’
‘You track down our man before any of the competition reach him and then persuade him to come home without selling his discovery to anyone.’
I raised my eyebrows. ‘And how do we do that?’
Crispian smiled. ‘Well, you two are the detectives not me, but I’m sure Miss Bloom’s charms will act like a magnet to attract his attention. Apparently, he is very fond of a certain type of female company.’
Carly’s voice cut through the air like the business end of an icicle. ‘And what type of female company is that?’
Crispian looked her up and down like an auctioneer at a Roman slave market. ‘Young, blonde, beautiful but edgy, and I think you fit the bill perfectly, Miss Bloom.’
Carly frowned. She hadn’t expected Crispian to be so complimentary and it put her on the back foot. I don’t know why; Even though I suspected Crispian played for the away team, Carly has a quality that attracts men like bears to a honey pot. I just wish I didn’t have such a sweet tooth.
Crispian switched his attention back to me. ‘Look, Ryan, all you two have to do is act as intermediaries for HMG. Find out what his price is and then offer him anything he wants. You can even hint that a gong isn’t out of the question. The key thing is to bring him home ASAP. But he’s got a head start on you so you can’t afford to dilly dally.’
I let out a long breath. ‘Okay, we’ll do it but we’ll need money upfront and a proper briefing before we even think about packing our buckets and spades.’
Crispian grunted and stood up. ‘Money from an untraceable account has already been transferred to your bank. It will cover your costs and charges for two weeks. A bonus will be paid on the successful completion of the task in hand.’
I started to interrupt but he held up his hand. ‘Obviously you won’t report directly to me. Your handler, who glories in the name of “Greenstick”, will meet you in St Paul’s Church in thirty minutes.’
I did a double take. ‘Why are we meeting him in a church?’
Crispian smiled a smile so thin it could have been anorexic. ‘Because it will be good for your soul, Ryan.’
