‘I don’t follow. What’s that got to do with opioids?’

‘Mary reckoned a lot of addicts go to these ceremonies. To cure themselves. Drug addicts, alcoholics, all kinds of people. Cleanses your body or something. I didn’t understand it myself. But you might want to look into it. Once we’re out of here, like.’

Bowman smiled at his mucker. ‘Thanks, Tiny.’

‘Don’t thank me just yet. I’ll keep this between us for now. But if you can’t get your habit under control, I’m going straight to John.’

‘It won’t come to that,’ Bowman said. ‘I’m not gonna let this beat me.’

‘I hope not.’ Loader flashed a cheeky grin. ‘After all, if you get kicked off the team, who’s going to be my wingman?’

‘With your crap dance moves, Tiny, the only thing you’re at risk of pulling is a muscle.’

Loader laughed. ‘Come on, you Cockney bastard. Let’s go.’

They turned and headed for the stairs.

04.38 hours.

Fifty-two minutes until first light.

Twenty-Seven

Twenty-Seven

They stepped out to a hive of frenetic activity. Teams of Karatandan soldiers were toiling away in the eerie predawn. Four of them worked in pairs, digging gun pits in the lawn either side of the eagle-topped fountain. One other guy hacked at the trunk of a palm tree. His mate bucked another felled tree into six-foot-long logs using a petrol chainsaw. A third soldier lifted up one of the logs and hauled it over to the nearest gun pit. He stacked it beside the heaped soil at the edge of the hole. Another soldier began covering the timbers with the backfilled earth, compacting it with the flat head of the shovel. The wood and soil would create an area of frontal cover strong enough to stop a small-calibre round. Further to the east, a hundred metres away, two other Karatandan soldiers were stacking garden rocks and stones from the pagoda around the rim of their shallow trench. Creating a classic murder hole. The guys would leave a gap in the rocks wide enough to stick their rifle barrels through, allowing them to cut down the enemy without exposing themselves to incoming rounds. The remainder of the local troops were hastily clearing the fields of fire across the ground on the north side of the estate, burning down trees and bushes.

Mallet stood beside the soldiers at one of the half-finished fire pits, bellowing at them. ‘Call that a fucking pit? I’ve seen puddles deeper than that. Keep digging.’

He caught sight of Bowman and Loader and beckoned them over. Mallet scowled at them both. ‘Where have you two idiots been?’

Loader started to reply but Mallet cut him off with a wave of his hand, chopping air.