“Don’t be naïve, Eddie. We have a whole department dedicated to studying every move your family makes. Reports have been coming in from all over the world of Drood field agents suddenly abandoning their posts and running for home by the fastest routes possible. We know something drastic has happened inside the family, Eddie. You can’t hope to keep it secret for long. We’ll find out.”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” I said.

MacAlpine shrugged, started to turn away, and then looked back. “Is it true? About James?”

“Yes,” I said. “He’s dead.”

MacAlpine nodded slowly. “The old Gray Fox is gone. I thought he’d outlive us all. How did it happen?”

“Sorry,” I said. “Family business. Now tell the prime minister to back off. Tell him what happened here. Tell him about the silver armour. And tell him the family isn’t weak. Just . . . reorganising.”

“No doubt he can expect a call from the Matriarch?” said MacAlpine.

“Eventually,” I said. “Molly and I are leaving now. You and your people can stay, and clean all this mess up before you go. We’re supposed to fight secret wars, not endanger innocent civilians! What were you thinking of?”

“I told you,” said MacAlpine. “It’s a different world now. All the old rules have changed. Thanks to you.”

Molly and I headed back to the Hall in the Bentley. Molly sang happily along to her Ramones compilation, while I did some thinking. No one in the wrecked street would talk about what they’d seen happen, right in front of them. The usual mixture of bribes, threats, and the magic words terrorists and national security would see to that. All camcorders and camera phones would be confiscated, and if anybody did get stubborn and try to talk to the media, the government would slap on as many D notices as necessary to muzzle them. Any real troublemakers . . . would be made to forget. It’s a secret war, in an invisible world, and people have to stay ignorant if we’re to protect them.

I still had a lot of unanswered questions. How had MacAlpine known exactly when to stake out my flat? That much armour and manpower takes a lot of advance organising. Somebody must have talked, and the only people who knew . . . were family. I’d known there were still members of the Zero Tolerance faction who hoped to sabotage and undermine me, so they could seize back control of the family . . . but to talk to outsiders? To politicians? That was crossing the line.

Enemies without, enemies within. As if I didn’t have enough problems.

CHAPTER TWO - Families: Can’t Live with Them, Can’t Take Them Down to the River ...

CHAPTER TWO

Families: Can’t Live with Them, Can’t Take Them Down to the River and Drown Them All in Sacks