He gathered up his drink, ashtray and guitar and led Ben through one of the big sliding windows into the house as the rain started hammering down with sudden violence. The furnishings were modern and comfortable. A large L-shaped sofa took up the best part of two walls, with a giant TV screen opposite. The pictures were all of wavy palm trees and ocean sunsets. Nothing anywhere to hint at Roth’s military past.

‘Make yourself comfortable, man,’ Roth said, propping the guitar in a corner. He flopped down on the sofa, and Ben sat across from him. The incoming squall slapped the windows like crackling fire and the wind shook the house.

‘Those things come out of nowhere,’ Roth said.

‘A bit like certain ghosts from the past, just when you’d started to forget about them.’

‘You don’t believe in ghosts.’

‘Do you?’ Ben asked him.

Roth chuckled. ‘You spend enough time out here alone, you could start to believe in just about anything. But Nazim al-Kassar coming back from the dead? That’s a big deal, my friend. Especially to guys like you and me, who saw with our own eyes what that motherfucker was capable of.’

‘What’s the current official line?’

‘How should I know? I’m just a retired army veteran. I don’t have those kinds of contacts.’

‘Come on, Tyler. You and I both know that once you get in that deep, you’re a member for life. And you were in the game even longer than I was.’

Roth smiled. ‘The official line remains what it was back in 2016, namely that a 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit Harrier squadron deployed from the USS Boxer in the Persian Gulf on August 21 as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, and iced al-Kassar’s piece of shit ass six miles northwest of Ramadi, along with nine other ISIL commanders with whom he was meeting. Delta had boots on the ground just minutes later and confirmed that al-Kassar was among the dead.’

Ben shook his head. ‘If they made a positive ID, then he’s got an identical twin.’

‘Actually, the ID was made from a piece of his right ear. That was the only bit of the fucker they could find still intact among the ruins of the house.’

‘Nice job,’ Ben said. ‘Nothing like reliable intelligence.’

‘You said it, amigo. But why should I believe yours?’

Ben took out Romy Juneau’s phone, scrolled up the video file, and tossed the phone to Roth. ‘Because it’s not a piece of his right ear that’s walking around killing people.’

Roth fell silent as he watched the video clip. ‘There ain’t much to see here, man.’

‘There will be. Keep watching. I’ll give you a clue. The man on the left.’

Roth’s face tightened into a hard frown as he did. A muscle twitched in his jaw.

‘Still think I’m seeing ghosts?’ Ben asked.