‘Do you believe him?’ Bish asked, remembering the stickybeak comment.

‘Yeah, I do. Nasrene’s a stickler for manners, and one of the big rules is to respect your elders.’

‘Ask him why he disappeared the day of the bombing,’ Bish said.

Sarraf asked, then translated. ‘He says his wife is working illegally for a wealthy Algerian family in Paris. She sends home money, but mostly he’s raising these kids on his own. When he’s away for work for more than a week, he leaves them with a friend in Amiens. He went to collect them after being gone for eight days, and by the time he returned, his photo was plastered all over the TV. He’s been hiding in this dump ever since.’

‘I’m not buying it,’ Bish said. ‘Why not go talk to the police? He could have cleared things up with the truth.’

‘Really?’ Sarraf’s voice was icy. ‘Because coppers always believe the truth, do they?’

‘Look —’

But Sarraf cut him off with another question to Khateb. It was a quick exchange and Khateb was agitated. Then silent.

Sarraf glanced at Bish. He went to speak but Khateb stopped him.

‘What?’ Bish asked.

Whatever Khateb had just revealed to Sarraf, he seemed to regret it. He began talking rapidly.

‘What’s going on, Jamal?’ Bish asked.

‘He lied about leaving the kids with a friend in Amiens. They aren’t enrolled in school. He needs the older ones to look after the younger ones while he works. He’s scared the authorities will find out and take them away.’

Bish sat forward, his eyes meeting Khateb’s. ‘I’ll bring you in to Attal.’

‘No!’ Khateb shouted. No translation needed there.

‘You heard him,’ Sarraf said. ‘We’re finished here. Let’s just leave these people alone.’

‘He’s a terror suspect. They’ll come hunting him down. Tell him that if he gives himself up as a person of interest, it’ll go much better for him.’

‘You’re asking too much,’ Sarraf said.

‘Then why did you bring me here?’

‘To find out if he was a threat to Violette! That’s all I wanted to know.’

‘Well, how about you answer to Violette when Anti-Terrorism catches up with this guy and starts shooting. Because God help you all if five innocent kids get caught in between.’

Bish retrieved his phone but Khateb was on his feet in an instant, yelling at both of them. They heard crying from the back room. ‘Baba. Baba.’

‘Put the phone away,’ Sarraf said. ‘You’re scaring him. He thinks you’re calling the coppers.’

‘I’m getting the name of someone who can help. Tell him to trust me.’

Sarraf looked torn.

‘This isn’t a repeat of Brackenham, Jimmy,’ Bish said. ‘Tell him I can help.’

When Bish finally got the nod he rang Rachel at the hospital. ‘Do you know a human rights lawyer in the Calais area who could make a big fuss if a French Algerian disappeared beyond the doors of a police station?’ he asked. ‘Someone like a French Amal Alamuddin,’ he added.