Langdon gave her a sharp look. ‘I’m explaining it again to emphasise the array of people who could be responsible for this … outrageous demand.’ He tapped the ransom note. ‘If your parents made it to one of the parks, they could have been captured by poachers linked to criminals here in Kinshasa. Or your mother’s insistence on visiting cowboy mining operations unlike mine could have put them in the way of any number of mercenary crooks. In addition they could quite simply have been targeted by opportunists on the lookout for Westerners to kidnap for the cash. Lastly, there’s an outside chance that the whole thing is a hoax; someone who has never even met Nicholas or Janine could have got wind that they might have gone missing and be trying to make a quick buck out of the situation before they show up again. One thing’s certain: whoever is demanding the ransom can’t have worked out exactly what your parents are worth, since the sum they’re asking for is comparatively modest.’

I was pleased he thought $75,000 was a small price to pay for Mum and Dad’s release, but something in his stony expression worried me. ‘I don’t suppose it matters that much exactly who has them, in a way,’ I said. ‘All the groups you’ve mentioned have one thing in common. They want money. Once we’ve paid them and they’ve freed Mum and Dad, we can track them down and bring them to justice with the help of the police.’

Langdon snorted dismissively through flared nostrils. ‘If only it were that simple,’ he said.

36.

‘What’s not simple about it?’ I said, trying to keep the heat out of my voice.

‘First up, it’s a matter of principle: as a businessman here, and more importantly as a member of the Courtney family, I simply cannot give in to demands of this type. If we pay once, we send a message that we’re prepared to pay again.’

‘That’s a sound train of thought in the abstract,’ said Amelia loudly. Her voice rose further still: ‘But hello – these are Jack’s parents we’re talking about, one of whom happens to be your own brother.’

Langdon replied in a steely whisper, ‘Precisely. And he’d never forgive me for bowing down before such a threat. What he – and your mother – would want is for us to track down these crooks and make them rue the day they heard the Courtney name.’