As Ben stood in the dark, empty house, the bitterness of the realisation was sharp. Knowing that the tentative, faint trail he’d been hoping might lead him to Nazim al-Kassar had just been wiped away. Knowing that he was out of alternatives. There was no Plan B. The mystery was like a fog so dense that he couldn’t make out a trace of the reality behind it.

He should just give this up and go home to Le Val.

But how could he do that, knowing that Nazim al-Kassar was alive and still out there somewhere? He couldn’t let go. Not with Romy Juneau’s lifeless blue eyes still gazing at him in his memory. Not with Françoise Schell in the morgue.

That was when Ben’s phone burred in his pocket, jolting him out of his thoughts. He was startled for an instant, unsure whether to answer. Then he fished out the phone and saw Ken Keegan’s caller ID on his screen.

‘You took your bloody time,’ he said to Keegan.

‘Prickly sod,’ Keegan’s voice rasped in his ear. He sounded as though he’d just finished a large dinner and washed it down with several pints of lager before moving on to the whisky. ‘So what about that Ethiopia job? Made your mind up, or what?’

‘To hell with the Ethiopia job,’ Ben said. ‘Do you recall our conversation earlier? You’d better be calling with good news.’

‘And you’d better start sounding a bit more appreciative, old son. I’ve been busting my bollocks all day for your sake, and it sounds like I’m going to get bugger all for my trouble. Jesus H. Christ, why do I even bother?’

‘You made contact with Tyler Roth?’

‘Let’s say I spoke to someone who spoke to someone who’s in touch with him. Pulled a lot of fuckin’ strings to get that far, pal.’

‘I do appreciate it,’ Ben said, trying to sound more agreeable. ‘So do you have a number for Roth?’

There was a pause on the line, accompanied by the sound of tinkling ice and a loud slurp. Keegan smacked his lips and said, ‘Forget it. He won’t talk to you.’

‘Why not?’

‘Don’t take it personally. I told you he was a funny geezer, didn’t I? He won’t talk to anyone. Doesn’t use phones any more. He’s got this crazy idea in his head that there are people listening who shouldn’t be.’

‘I need to talk to him,’ Ben said impatiently. ‘It’s important.’