‘Yeah, I’m fine. Call me as soon as you hear.’

‘Will do.’

I get out and start down the canal.

‘Rykel?’

‘Yeah?’ I turn back.

‘You don’t think Polman’s the sort to kill himself over this, do you?’

As it stands we have no legal reason to detain him, so I’m not sure what option we have.

‘Think we’ll have to roll the dice on this one.’

‘Thanks, that’s comforting. See you tomorrow.’ She hesitates as if there’s something more to say, but then she nods and the car pulls away from the kerb.

I walk down Brouwersgracht towards Joel’s flat. The alarm/howl has been steadily increasing over the last hour or so, and it’s already strong enough to set me on edge. The moon rises above the rooftops, spilling milky light onto the ink-like canal waters. A moped buzzes over the bridge and I step into its exhaust plume before a soft wind rushes towards me, clearing the air. But I can’t enjoy it. Almost exactly twenty-four hours ago I was watching my life go up in flames. No wonder I’m keyed up, exhausted, but running on adrenaline all the same. And all the while the ringing in my ears, the alarm, which is really the black wolf, increases, narrowing down my world.

‘You look like absolute shit,’ says Joel when he opens the door to find me actually leaning against the frame. We Dutch are known for plain speaking, and Joel likes to keep that tradition up. But he ushers me inside and soon I’m shoeless, flopped on the sofa with a Volcano bag in my hand and an energy drink in the other.

‘You’re gonna love this one, just arrived from the farm today. We based this on some really amazing genetics I got hold of from the US. Crossed it with an old-school plant I’ve been keeping cuttings of until I found the right partner. I’m thinking of calling it Night Queen, after Mozart. The top Fs in the ‘Queen of the Night’ aria,’ he adds when I look blank. ‘As in, this will get you higher even than those.’

I take a long inhale, then blow it out slowly to fully get the flavour. Rinse. Repeat. This is what I needed earlier on, this would have meant I didn’t lose time. I shudder when I think what I did during those lost moments.

‘So, what do you think?’