‘I won’t bite, Elizabeth. Come on, take a seat.’

Kirk hesitated for a moment. She didn’t know why. She had arrived full of confidence, but suddenly she felt nervous. Perhaps the intended intimidation had been effective after all. Whatever the cause, she was beginning to doubt how convincing her deception would be.

She would not let that doubt beat her. She strode forward without a word, took the seat and looked Meyer directly in the eye.

‘You look well, Elizabeth.’ It was Meyer who broke the silence. ‘The UN suits you.’

‘Just what the hell is this all about, Jack?’ The role Kirk had chosen to play demanded immediate outrage. ‘I’m not used to being screamed at down a telephone. Or ordered across town without warning.’

Meyer looked annoyed.

‘Straight to the point, Elizabeth. Fine, I’ll do the same. Where the fuck is Joe Dempsey, and what the fuck has he done with Eden Grace?’

The first question was expected. The second was not. Kirk kept her face impassive, giving nothing away, as she considered the meaning of what Meyer had just revealed.

They’ve no idea their own agent’s turned on them.

‘I haven’t got the first clue where Joe Dempsey is,’ Kirk lied, going for a combination of confusion and belligerence. ‘And I’ve never even heard of an Eden Grace. Anyway, why? What’s Dempsey done that’s pissed you off so much?’

‘We’re dealing with a national security threat, here.’

‘From Joe Dempsey? Are you serious? Look, Dempsey is many things, but he’s no security threat. The man’s an attack dog. Dangerous and loyal as hell. No one on our side has anything to fear from that man.’

‘Yeah? What about the four Secret Service agents he killed in Manhattan this afternoon? What about the fifth agent who’s unaccounted for? You wanna tell them that he’s nothing to fear?’

Kirk allowed her jaw to drop.

‘What . . . what the hell are you . . . are you saying the incident in Yorkville today, that . . . that was Dempsey?’

For the first time Kirk saw doubt in Meyer’s eyes. Her performance must have looked as good as it felt. He was buying this.

‘You know exactly who it was,’ Meyer replied, his tone far less certain than his words.

‘I . . . I don’t . . . what happened?’ Kirk allowed her voice to rise as she spoke. ‘What were your agents doing there?’

‘You know what—’

‘NO, JACK!’ It was Kirk’s turn to shout. To catch him off guard. ‘NO, I DAMN WELL DON’T. NOW TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED.’

Meyer looked as uncertain as Kirk had ever seen him.

‘Jack,’ she implored, ‘if my agent has killed your men, I need to know exactly what’s happened. I need to act, dammit. Someone’s gone rogue here and we have to figure out who.’

Meyer remained silent, studying her.

Kirk rose to her feet, feigning impatience.

‘You know what? Screw this. If you won’t tell me what the fuck is going on, Knowles sure as hell will.’