Vaughn regarded her for a moment before turning to her colleagues. ‘And am I to understand that in future, you two will merrily break any protocol DCI Hawkins might choose to ignore?’

‘No, sir,’ Amala said after a respectful pause. ‘But in this instance, I agreed with the chief. We had to do something.’

Aaron gave a confused squeak that might have been intended as support.

‘We needed to create a diversion,’ Hawkins went on. ‘The gang members were performing some kind of ritual. They were about to sacrifice a young woman.’

Vaughn frowned. ‘Sacrifice. Did I imagine the last thousand years?’

‘My thoughts exactly,’ she said, ‘but it seems these societies are common, perhaps even growing in popularity. Mostly they consist of harmless, law-abiding worshippers, but we believe this particular group – Millennial Dawn – is belligerent, and may be involved with the recent series of murders involving victims who belonged to various spiritual organizations.’

He looked unimpressed. ‘Was the girl harmed?’

‘Fortunately not, but only because we intervened,’ Hawkins explained. ‘If we hadn’t created a distraction, she might not have survived. Everything will be in my report.’

‘Hmm.’ Vaughn seemed to unwind a little. ‘Where are the gang members now?’

‘Southall station, sir, being processed for an overnight stay. We’ll do interviews in the morning.’

‘Good. But I understand we’re missing somebody.’

‘John Mardell.’ Hawkins tried to stop the irritation from showing in her voice. ‘We have reason to believe he’s been following at least one member of a group known as the Paranormal Society, and when I tried to ask him about it, he ran.’ She pointed at her bruised jaw. ‘This was his response when I caught up. We detained him, of course, but he was released this morning. He was later traced to the factory unit where the ritual took place, but somehow he managed to escape during the raid.’

Vaughn crossed his arms. ‘That isn’t ideal. What are you doing about it?’

‘His car’s still at the factory in Brentford, so he’s probably on foot somewhere in the area. I dispatched three teams after him within minutes, and we’re watching his house. We’ll get him.’

‘And the girl?’

‘We thought it best not to put her in the same facility as the others, so she’s with Victim Support over at Feltham. Sergeant Yasir and I accompanied her there, and then came straight here as per your instructions.’

He nodded. ‘Has she said anything?’

‘Not yet. She was pretty shaken up, as you’d expect, so I didn’t push for a statement. We’ll let her get some rest, and talk to her first thing.’