For a second or two, it seemed she’d dispute this. To inform him that it was unlikely he’d ever be in a position where there was something he knew that she didn’t, yet. He remembered their being in a pub together once, at a wake for a dead colleague, and she’d outlined his role in life, the full ambit of his responsibilities. It’s hardly Tinker Tailor, John. You wipe their noses, feed their cats, and make sure they’re not blowing their pensions on internet poker. The kind of summation he might have made himself, though he’d have pretended there was humour in it. But instead of heading down that road again, she said, “Okay, you’ve got my attention. For twenty seconds. Let’s hear what your problem is, and then I’ll decide whether it’s worth this gross intrusion of my privacy.”

“I’m being played.”

She rolled her eyes. “You’re being ‘played’? You’re being played? Seriously, John, that’s a three-word sentence, and it’s only the middle one isn’t ridiculous. Who do you think is trying to play you? An amateur percussionist?”

“One of them’s Richard Pynne.”

And this landed, he could tell.

She took a moment to change her bag from one hand to the other. “Pynne? What would Richard Pynne be doing on the streets? He was reassigned from Ops. I think he’s in charge of the stationery cupboard now.”

“And someone called Edward. Biggish guy. Fifties. Wearing a suit, but looks like he’s done heavy lifting in his time.”

“It’s a big organisation. We could have any number of Edwards on the books.”

But this name too had triggered recognition. He could tell.

“But here’s me using up your twenty seconds. What were this pair after? Just the bullet points.”

“They want me to find Benny Manors.”

“Manors, Manors, Manors. Oh, Manors. Well, they went to the right person, I assume. He’s on your round, isn’t he?”

“Yes. Except . . .”

“Except what?” She halted, and John had walked a step on before he noticed and halted too. “Except you’ve mislaid him, yes?”

“He’s not exactly one of my lock-ins.”

“If he’s on the payroll, he touches base. It’s not a complicated principle.”

“He hasn’t always kept his appointments,” John said.

“But when I check your records, and I will, I’ll find the monthly reports all in order, right?”

“I keep clean records.”

“I’m sure you do. Okay, leaving that aside, this pair, Pynne and this Edward, are looking for Benny Manors, and they come to you. What exactly do they have on you that makes them think you’ll do their bidding?”

And here was the gamble.