‘I’ll get receipts if you want,’ said Porter.

‘Make sure you do,’ snapped Sir Angus. ‘This mission is costing us a fortune already.’

For a moment, Porter could see the fear and sweat on the older man’s face. It’s my life on the line here, he thought. But it’s Sir Angus’s balls. If this mission goes pear-shaped, and it almost certainly will, then his career is finished. And unlike me, he has a lot to lose. He might act tough, but that’s just a show: underneath, I reckon he is a lot more frightened than I am.

‘Wait in the bar for as long as you need to,’ continued Sir Angus. ‘Don’t talk to anyone, but don’t avoid people either. Speak if you are spoken to. We’ll get you some guidebooks, so you can pretend to be a tourist if anyone asks. At a certain point, one of Hassad’s men will come up to you. He’ll be looking for a guy with a couple of fingers missing, but it won’t be Hassad himself, so make sure you keep your left hand on the table so they can get a good look. They’ll use the word “Mahmudiyya”, so that’s how you know it is them.’

‘It’s the town in Egypt where Hasan al-Banna, the founder of the Society of Muslim Brothers, was born,’ said Layla. ‘So I guess that’s why they chose it.’

‘So long as they use the right password, go with them,’ said Sir Angus. ‘They’ll have transport, and they’ll take you to wherever it is they have taken Katie Dartmouth.’

‘What about backup?’ said Porter.

Sir Angus paused. His fingers were tapping on the tabletop. ‘There isn’t any,’ he said. ‘Hassad was very clear about that in his messages. The only terms on which he is prepared to receive you is that you come by yourself.’

‘Someone could be watching out for me,’ said Porter, his tone hardening. ‘At a safe distance –’

‘Not possible,’ snapped Sir Angus. ‘Hassad is allowing you to come, but you must be unarmed, and alone. We have virtually no capability in the Lebanon. They’re so hostile to us, we can’t build a network, and the people who want bribes take the Israeli money because they pay better. The only people with agents on the ground are Mossad, and we can’t ask them because they need all their assets for themselves. If we give you any backup, the chances are that Hezbollah will know about it. This is their home turf after all. Hassad has made it very clear that if you are followed in any way, then he’ll execute Katie Dartmouth on the spot, and make sure every TV station in the world has a live feed of the beheading. And when he’s holding her freshly severed head in his hand, he’ll blame the whole thing on our treachery.’ Sir Angus wiped a bead of sweat away from his forehead. ‘We can take crap if we need to, it’s what we’re paid for,’ he said sourly. ‘But even this organisation doesn’t want to have to deal with that.’