Shepherd put the thumb drive in his pocket. ‘When?’

‘We’ve got to put together a legend and fix you up with a flat. Three or four days. Unless you want more time off.’

‘Next week will be fine,’ he said and sipped his coffee. ‘So what’s the ultimate aim? To put Crazy Boy behind bars? Or deport him?’

‘If we can get him on conspiracy, we’ll move for sure. A lot depends on how he’s getting the intel from the company, if he’s doing it for himself or through an intermediary. We’re watching his money, too. It’s possible we’ll get him on money laundering. Deportation is doubtful in view of his British citizenship.’

‘And how much of this is a backside-covering operation in case the Americans come to you with a terrorism angle?’

She raised her eyebrows. ‘I’m not that devious, Spider.’

‘Maybe not, but your bosses almost certainly are.’

‘I’ve been tasked with investigating Crazy Boy because British ships are at risk and there appears to be a British company involved. I mentioned the al-Shebab link just so you’d be aware of the potential political implications. If we can make a case against Crazy Boy he’ll be charged, that’s for sure. We won’t be dragging our heels, I can promise you that.’

‘And if it does kick off in Africa while he’s in prison, it stops being a UK problem.’

‘That’s fair,’ said Button. ‘Plus if we have him in prison on criminal charges and the US apply for extradition, it’ll be a lot easier to hand him over. It’s one thing for the human rights brigade to shout about the rights of a poor refugee, but they’re less likely to get hot under the collar about a Somali pirate with terrorist links.’

Shepherd finished his coffee and looked at his watch. ‘You don’t mind me heading back to Hereford?’

‘Absolutely not,’ she said. ‘I just wanted a face-to-face chat and to give you the thumb drive. I’ve got a meeting at Thames House all this afternoon.’ She grinned. ‘They’re big on meetings, unfortunately.’

‘How’s Zoe, by the way?’ asked Shepherd.

‘Sixteen going on twenty-five,’ she said. ‘Liam’s serious about boarding school, is he?’

‘Seems to be. He’s mentioned it a few times.’

‘Zoe’s at Culford School,’ said Button. ‘They’ve been brilliant. Especially after Graham died. It always made sense for her to be a boarder because Graham and I were working all the hours God sends. We had a string of au pairs but they never really worked out.’

‘That’s why I think it might be good for him. I’ve been away a lot over the past year or two and it doesn’t seem to be getting any better.’

‘He’s not just using it as a threat? Trying to get your attention?’

Shepherd shrugged. ‘He puts up a good case. I’m away a lot and there’s no sign of that changing. If he was in the right school, he might do really well. And they’re usually big on sports, which he’s keen on.’