Milton pulled his phone from his pocket. He had not even had the chance to turn it on since he had arrived in the country. He held down the button and waited for it to power up. The screen woke and the phone buzzed with two text messages welcoming him to Bali. He ignored them and opened his contacts, scrolling down until he found the name he wanted.

Victoria Deschamps.

Milton tapped her number.

“Hello?”

Milton could hear the sound of excited children in the background.

“Victoria? It’s John.”

“Hey,” Victoria said. Milton could hear the warmth in her voice. “You made it. Fantastic. I’m by the pool. You at the airport? Want me to come and pick you up?”

“It’s not quite as simple as that.”

“What’s up?”

“I need your help.”

“Wait a minute.” The children’s voices grew quieter as, presumably, Victoria moved away from them. “What is it?”

“I need a safe place for a while.”

“Right,” she said. “Not what I expected.”

“And a doctor.”

“Are you hurt?”

“No. It’s not for me. I’m fine.”

“So?”

“I’ve got a woman with me. She’s sick and needs treatment, but it needs to be discreet. Do you know anyone?”

“Possibly. Where are you?”

Milton glanced around the deserted parking lot.

“I’ve got no idea. A couple of miles from the airport. I can ping you my location.”

“Have you got transport?”

Milton looked through the scratched windshield of the elderly Nissan. “I think so.”

“I’ll text you the location of a hotel. Drive there and go around to the rear. Someone will meet you there. This woman? How did she get injured?”

“She’s not injured—she’s sick. She’s a drugs mule. I’m not an expert, but I’d put money on a bag splitting inside her.”

Victoria cursed. “For fuck’s sake, John. You know they don’t play around with drug smuggling here!”

“I know. You don’t need to worry—it’s got nothing to do with me, and nothing will blow back on you.”

“So why is she with you?”

“Because she’s been blackmailed into smuggling the drugs and she needs my help.”

Victoria exhaled. “Right—okay. We can figure it out later. Get to the hotel. There’s a man I know who used to be a doctor in London before… Well, he’s colourful. I’ll tell you about him afterwards. I’ll get him to meet you there.”

“Thanks.”