Seraphine didn’t know about the surgery. She thought the explosion had caused the memory loss. He wanted to tell her that she wasn’t in possession of all the facts, but he didn’t. He figured Marcus might enjoy doing that and, more importantly, he wasn’t sure how she’d take it. He could see that being in the know was something Seraphine took very seriously. ‘So how did the secret service get involved?’

‘The same way I did. They listen and they pay attention.’

‘Listen to Bello’s calls?’

‘Antony Bello’s uncle has been responsible for destabilizing large areas of sub-Saharan Africa for many years. And now he wants to be taken seriously as a legitimate political power. That puts him and his inner circle on everyone’s radar.’

‘So you were all listening to Antony and you heard what? Talk of finding some girl. Would that really pique your interest?’

‘Not in the slightest. And I’m sorry to say that I didn’t bat an eyelid at your cousin’s murder either, but after that things got interesting.’

Harry suddenly saw it clearly. Julian had given these men Harry’s name. And had probably explained how he had come into contact with Alina – through his profession. ‘My job in the Navy was a red flag.’

‘Can’t have the baddies coming after our good guys, now can we?’

‘Who is this Alina?’

‘She’s the daughter of Antony’s first wife, Naomi.’

‘What does she know? Why did he want to find her?’

‘Nobody seems to know.’

Harry hung his head and shook it a little. ‘But I did.’

‘Did you?’

Is that why his own countrymen had wiped his memories? To ensure he couldn’t reveal whatever he knew about this girl? ‘Do you think the secret service knew about the bomb in advance?’

‘It’s unlikely. There was talk of an attack on you but not when or where.’

‘But they’d have been following me?’

‘Absolutely. This was their chance to catch Bello with his hand in the cookie jar.’

‘Holy crap. I help a kid out and all this happens. That’s just—’

Seraphine smiled. ‘You thought you were a nobody and then it turns out you’re a somebody. You should enjoy that.’

Harry didn’t bother to educate her about her flawed logic. Who would ever want to become a somebody under these circumstances?

He must have fallen asleep because when he opened his eyes, Seraphine was out of the car and talking to the pilot of the plane they’d arrived on. Was this her own private jet?

He climbed out and walked towards them.

When she saw him approaching, Seraphine ended the conversation and met him halfway. She held out her hand. ‘It’s been a pleasure meeting you, Harry. You’ve surprised me and I wish you well.’