AT 03:07 HRS, Carr called Kev McMullen down from the far end of the runway.

They were now all together, some two hundred metres due south of the pick-up point, and Carr was scanning the western skyline.

A minute later, he picked out the dark shape of the A400 at the same moment that the distant hum of its engines reached his ears.

‘Geordie,’ he said. ‘Green flare, pal.’

Skelton fired off the flare, and a matter of seconds later, getting bigger and louder at an astonishing rate, the giant aircraft kissed the tarmac a kilometre away.

The sound was deafening, as the giant turboprops were reversed, and then the air was filled with dust and grit, and avgas fumes, and the smell of burning rubber from where the huge tyres had bit into the road.

The Airbus rolled to a stop bang on the markers, the rear bay door already descending.

A moment later, a dozen men disembarked the massive aircraft, quickly fanning out into defensive positions.

Carr walked forward with Skelton, stopping short as the pilot began his turn, in preparation for take-off.

Once that was done, a figure stepped off the tailgate as Carr approached, hand out.

‘Welcome to Libya, Rich,’ said Carr, with a grin. ‘How’s life?’

Rich Arnold looked at Geordie Skelton and shook his head in mock disgust.

‘Fuck me,’ he said. ‘Not you as well.’

‘Some cunt’s got to look after this mad bastard, Richard,’ said Skelton, with a laugh.

‘So what the fuck are you doing out here?’ said Arnold.

‘Job was too tough for the Regiment,’ said Carr, deadpan. ‘So they called in a few experts instead.’

Arnold laughed, and turned to his left.

‘Liam, Scotty,’ he said. ‘Help the two ladies aboard, please.’

He saw McMullen and rolled his eyes.

‘Jesus,’ he said. ‘Any fucking more of yous?’

‘Fred West, Rich,’ said Carr. ‘But he’s in a body bag, unfortunately.’

Suddenly, all the levity went from Arnold’s face.

‘Fuck me, poor bastard,’ he said. ‘Fred was a good hand.’

‘Aye,’ said Carr. ‘We’ve got one injured as well, mate.’ He pointed to his truck. ‘In the back, over there, with Fred.’

Arnold turned away again.

‘Jordan, Ryan – casualty and a body bag over there, lads,’ he said.

As the pair of troopers ran to the pickup, McMullen and Skelton began to load on the bags containing the weapons and ammo, laptop and comms equipment.

Carr turned to Arnold.

‘Give me a sec,’ he said. ‘Got to deny one of the vehicles.’

‘Only one? And how comes there’s three?’

‘We got some visitors,’ said Carr. ‘Didn’t have time to tell you.’

‘Who are they?’

‘Don’t ask.’

‘Well, it’s a good job you marked them, else the boys would have brassed them up.’