‘God damn it, Geraldine! This is the story of our lifetimes, perhaps the last great story ever broken in print – our story – and you want to splash on some fucking colour piece that everyone already knows about.’

‘Then how about our exclusive pic of the tart being forced into a burqa?’

‘Next to our exclusive picture on the newsstand the Stentorian might have an exclusive interview and ten pictures.’

‘But none anywhere near as good,’ Geraldine said. ‘Our picture’s sensational. Women attacked in the streets. Militant Islam on the march. Police overwhelmed.’

‘Yes and the readers will have a good look at our exclusive fucking picture and then buy the fucking Stentorian.’

‘Well, we’ve got the picture of Kayani playing cricket; no one else has that. And the copy’s tremendous stuff. His parents came over from the Punjab to work; his dad’s a member of the Tory party, entirely pro-British. From patriots to Islamists in one generation, could be a splash: “Why they hate us – the jihadi generation growing up in England.”’

‘No, no, no! This story’s still live, for Christ’s sake. We don’t want an investigation; we want breaking news. Those murderers are still out there, maybe only a few hundred feet away.’

‘And that’s the angle where no one can touch us. Attempted attack on the Beast’s base. Perimeter breached. Terror in idyllic Berkshire.’

‘But you haven’t fucking found them yet, have you, Geraldine?’

‘We’ve made a good start. We’ve been to most of the—’

‘I don’t fucking care.’ He considered for a moment. ‘So we’re not first on anything useable except the bus. No one else has that, Anna?’

‘I haven’t been off the line with our source since he called.’

‘So we’re sure no one else has it?’

‘As sure as it’s possible to be.’

‘And what do we know about these terrorists?’

Anna shook her head. ‘Fuck all.’

Geraldine said, ‘We could put a picture of the bus together with the bloodied tart on the front; tie it all together.’

‘Except we can’t get a decent shot,’ said Anna.

The Editor asked, ‘Can’t you see them through the window?’

‘We’ve tried that. But even taking the glare off all it looks like is someone in a burqa sitting in a bus.’