James seemed to take this on board. ‘True. But we’ll be packing up later and leaving for Turkey first thing. I’d have to write a mission proposal, get it by Ewart and get approval by the ethics committee. And even if I did all that, they’re never going to approve the mission.’

‘Why not?’ Ryan asked.

‘Because it can be done by adults,’ James said. ‘It’s an absolute rule. CHERUB agents are never put in danger unless the mission can’t be performed by an adult.’

‘Screw CHERUB then,’ Ryan said. ‘I’ll quit.’

James laughed. ‘Ryan, give it up. We’re fine with the team we’ve got.’

‘James, listen,’ Ryan said firmly. ‘I want to help. I’ve got four months until I turn eighteen. Chances are, I’ll spend that time on campus twiddling my thumbs. This could be my last shot at doing something that matters.’

‘You might also get killed,’ James pointed out. ‘This isn’t a CHERUB mission. It’s a full-on commando raid and you’re seventeen years old.’

‘I know what it is,’ Ryan said. ‘People younger than me died in the trenches in World War One. You can still join the British Army at sixteen, so if there was a war today I’d still be old enough to go fight on the front lines.’

James was torn. He’d worked with Ryan on the massive mission to bring down the Aramov clan. He had no doubt that Ryan was an outstanding agent, and while they could do the mission with five people, a sixth would make life easier and give more of a cushion if things went bad. But it stuck in James’ throat that Ryan was still so young.

‘I want this,’ Ryan said. ‘Think back to when you were my age. You weren’t stupid, were you? You were capable of making your own decisions.’

James felt a tear well in his eye as he remembered his own last days at CHERUB. The sense of going back to being an ordinary person. The feeling that the most exciting part of your life was probably over.

‘You’d be an asset to the mission,’ James admitted, pulling out his phone as Ryan broke into a smile. ‘So, as far as I’m concerned, you’re welcome on my team if you quit CHERUB. But while this mission is off the books, the chairman of CHERUB is still my boss when I get back to campus. So you’ve got to speak to Ewart and make sure this is all OK.’

Ryan smiled as he took out his mobile and dialled CHERUB campus.

33. BEST