‘I’m good mates with the owner of the dojo where I work in Thailand. If you wanted a gap year, I could probably get you work as a trainer. Maybe even earn something on the side from professional bouts, if you’re that way inclined.’

‘It’s a thought,’ Ning said brightly. ‘I came out of China penniless, so I could certainly use some funds.’

‘Pay’s not great,’ Bruce admitted. ‘But the lifestyle’s cool. You can find yourself a nice Aussie surfer boyfriend.’

Ning looked awkwardly at her feet and grunted. ‘All guys ever want is skinny girls with giant boobs.’

Bruce laughed. ‘Don’t be so down on yourself. Loads of guys would go for you.’

Ning snorted. ‘Like who?’

Bruce smiled. ‘Like me.’

Ning was flattered and erupted in a big smile, but it was also weird because she couldn’t work out if Bruce was flirting, or just being kind. Bruce felt just as awkward, because he’d realised that he was flirting. But he wasn’t on some Thai beach. He’d been working as CHERUB staff, and Ning was a seventeen-year-old agent.

As the pair flushed red, they were both relieved to see Instructor McEwen coming their way, pointing at Bruce.

‘Join the other Crustys,’ McEwen shouted. ‘Ten laps. And Ning, get your sweaty ass out of my gym and into the shower.’

James lunched on hummus and carrot batons while everyone else got pizza, but he cheered up when he took charge of fifteen 450cc Honda bikes.

‘Who’s ridden a motorbike before?’ James asked, as the two teams and four training staff gathered.

Lauren, Bruce, Alfie, Ryan and one of the training assistants raised their hands.

‘These are 450 CRF dirt bikes,’ James explained. ‘Almost indestructible. Top speed is only around a hundred and thirty kph, but they’re built with high ground clearance and fat tyres that make them good on the kind of terrain we’ll encounter in northern Syria. These are stock Hondas for training purposes, but for the mission we’ll be making a few adaptations so that they’re better able to carry equipment, and a custom gear setting to give us a higher top speed on open roads.

‘To begin, I’d like those of us who’ve ridden before to help me get motorbike virgins used to the controls with a few gentle runs. After that, we’ll take a little cross-country ride out to meet Tovah, who’ll be taking the second leg of the afternoon’s training.’

As the most experienced riders, James and Lauren took the lead, showing the others how to fit protective clothing and use the voice-operated microphones inside their helmets, before sending them off for an experimental ride back and forth along the single-track road that ran between the hostel’s main admin building and the dock where supplies got landed.