‘You’ll keep calm, stay quiet and they’ll send you home. You’ll be a hero. Your leaders will be impressed by your loyalty.’ She could see that the young man was thinking about it. ‘I know George gave you an order, but he’s not thinking straight. I gave him a sedative, a strong anaesthetic; do you know what that is?’

The foot soldier looked enraged but nodded.

‘I did that to survive. We all want to survive. Jake and Sophie want to see their parents again, Karene wants to see her boyfriend again.’ Her throat hurt from the shouting but she persevered. ‘We are not bad people. We’ve done nothing to you. Killing us will achieve nothing, except …’ She left her point hanging in the air.

‘Except what?’ he said after a moment.

‘If you fire on us now, while George is passed out, they’ll blame you for everything.’

95

‘I think we’re done here, Harry.’

Seraphine opened the door to the outbuilding and stepped into the sunshine. ‘Help,’ she shouted. ‘Help. Someone help. Please!’ The distress in her voice sounded genuine.

A metre or two away Abdul finished his call and rushed over. ‘What happened?’

Bello’s men came running from the house.

She lowered her voice. ‘We need to get Captain Peterson out of here before your men discover what he’s done.’

‘What I’ve done?’

‘You were just defending yourself. It’s understandable. And his uncle will appreciate that.’ She looked at Abdul. ‘Won’t he?’

Abdul nodded and handed his car keys to Seraphine. ‘I’ll make sure he understands the situation.’ He beckoned to the running men. ‘There’s been an accident. Quick! Get a doctor.’

Seraphine placed her hand on Harry’s bicep. The bruising stung and he winced. ‘Can you run?’

‘I expect so.’ He didn’t want to hang around for Bello’s followers to clock him as the killer.

‘Good,’ she said. ‘Walk for a moment until they’re all inside. Follow me. Abdul will keep them distracted for as long as possible.’

‘How can you be sure? You just murdered his boss.’

‘Bello is not Abdul’s boss. Now, run.’

Seraphine was fast and Harry did his best to keep up. He could hear one of the men wailing behind them. Would Abdul really be able to stop these men seeking vengeance? Harry could feel his face swelling and the bruising spreading on his arms. It was obvious he’d been in a fight. And they’d all seen him standing outside the outhouse. Even if he and Seraphine made it to the car, Bello’s men could chase them down. There’d been plenty of pick-ups parked out front.

They reached Abdul’s Toyota and Seraphine climbed into the driver’s seat. Harry sat beside her. This vehicle was significantly smarter than the others parked nearby.

‘You look worried,’ Seraphine said as she reversed.

‘How long until they come after us?’