Contents ( 84)
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- NINETEEN
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- THIRTY-NINE
- FORTY
- FORTY-ONE
- FORTY-TWO
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-FOUR
- FORTY-FIVE
- FORTY-SIX
- FORTY-SEVEN
- FORTY-EIGHT
- FORTY-NINE
- FIFTY
- FIFTY-ONE
- FIFTY-TWO
- FIFTY-THREE
- FIFTY-FOUR
- FIFTY-FIVE
- FIFTY-SIX
- FIFTY-SEVEN
- FIFTY-EIGHT
- FIFTY-NINE
- SIXTY
- SIXTY-ONE
- SIXTY-TWO
- SIXTY-THREE
- SIXTY-FOUR
- SIXTY-FIVE
- SIXTY-SIX
- SIXTY-SEVEN
- SIXTY-EIGHT
- SIXTY-NINE
- SEVENTY
- SEVENTY-ONE
- SEVENTY-TWO
- SEVENTY-THREE
- SEVENTY-FOUR
- SEVENTY-FIVE
- SEVENTY-SIX
- SEVENTY-SEVEN
- SEVENTY-EIGHT
- SEVENTY-NINE
- EIGHTY
- EIGHTY-ONE
- EIGHTY-TWO
- EIGHTY-THREE
- Acknowledgements
‘So where is she now?’
‘There’s no way to know for sure. But the group already killed Mansour’s younger brother and tried to kill Mansour, too. That’s why he handed himself in.’
‘Which means the sister is probably dead, too,’ she observed.
‘Most likely. Why keep her alive?’
Kirk shook her head. None of this was making sense.
‘So what do you think this is, Joe? If it’s an organised crime group – and it sure as hell looks like it is – then we’re wrong. The bomb wasn’t Knowles silencing Dale Victor. But it also means it’s not the terrorist attack the news is reporting either. Where does that leave us? Why would a bunch of people traffickers want to take down a commercial airliner?’
‘This is where it gets interesting,’ Dempsey replied. ‘My source says that Mansour’s contact with the group isn’t Italian.’
Kirk went with her gut.
‘Italian-American?’
‘Maybe, but not in the way you’re thinking, Elizabeth. According to my source, this guy is Secret Service.’
Kirk sat back, shocked.
‘Are you telling me the man who orchestrated getting the bomb onto the plane – the man responsible for killing over five hundred people – are you telling me that man works for the president of the United States of America?’
Dempsey allowed himself a grim smile.
‘Yes. Yes, he does.’
THIRTY-THREE
The prison guard looked upwards as he waited behind the red iron gate. It gave the camera a clear view of his face and the security credentials on his chest pocket. Both were needed to authorise his entry, via the control room inside.
The whole process took almost four minutes. No two gates within the block could be unlocked and open at one time, and so the guard patiently waited his turn.
Nizar Mansour stayed silent as the seconds passed.
The unlocking of the gate was heralded by a metal clang and an electronic buzz. As the guard pushed the gate open, the strain visible in his muscled arms was testament to the barrier’s weight.
Once the gate was open, they stepped through. Mansour first. The guard behind him.
‘Move on.’
The prison guard prodded Mansour in the back as the gate closed behind them. As if his verbal instruction had not been clear enough. It was unnecessary. Mansour was already walking as he felt the stiff, solid fingertips and the effortless forward pressure.
Strong man, Mansour thought to himself. They’re taking no chances after the van.
The gate had been the entrance to Belmarsh’s High Security Unit. And beyond it was the HSU nerve centre; a central hub built over two floors. Four more gates – positioned like four points of a star, with the red main gate as its fifth – led to four segregated wings, each built in a simple straight line, again across two floors.
All were visible from the central point of the hub, which sat as the centre of the star. But Mansour could see that the wings themselves were isolated. With their gates closed, each one only allowed a view of itself and the unit’s heart.