There is a special kind of anger that goes beyond all possible limits of normal furious, burning rage. It starts deep in the pit of your stomach and gradually spreads to the extremities of the whole body, turning the blood to ice water, boosting adrenal output and focusing the mind more sharply than a combat fighter pilot’s. The hindbrain becomes hyper-aware, the physical senses are greatly amplified, and time seems to move in slow motion.

That was the kind of anger Ben was experiencing at this moment.

The man calling himself Saunders said, ‘Good. Now, here are the ground rules. You are about to receive a set of mission instructions, which you will follow very carefully and exactly. If you refuse to take the mission or comply with said instructions, the team of men who will be watching over Miss Kirk day and night are under orders to dispatch her. A task they will carry out in the most professional, quick and humane manner, but even so I’m sure you prefer to avoid that outcome. Once your mission is complete, the team will stand down and she will never know they were even there.’

‘Really? I can trust you on that, can I?’

If Saunders detected the sarcasm, he didn’t show it. ‘You have my word.’

Ben said, ‘I’m still waiting for the rules.’

All the mannerisms of phony politeness had left Saunders’ face, and the real man was visible behind his former mask of genteel courtesy. The big lemur eyes behind the magnifying lenses were as hard as glaciers and locked unwaveringly onto Ben’s.

Saunders replied, ‘They’re very simple. Please remember that the surveillance team will be watching every move Miss Kirk makes, and everyone with whom she comes into contact. If someone so much as says hello to her in the street, within seconds we’ll know everything about not just their lives, but those of their entire circle of family and friends. Likewise, all her communications, such as landline and mobile phones, emails and social media, are being closely monitored. Therefore, the slightest attempt on your part to warn her, in any way, will be detected the instant you make it, and will result in her being shot in the head at the first opportunity. There will be no reprieve, no second chance.’

Chapter 3

Ben said, ‘No need to sugar-coat it, Saunders. Tell me it like it is.’

Saunders went on, ‘Likewise, if you try to involve the authorities in this matter, she will be shot in the head. Should you be tempted to enlist any of your talented business associates to intervene in this situation, she will be shot in the head.’

Ben was thinking that if he were to snap this man’s neck like a stale stick of baguette and hurl his dead body out of the aircraft, she’d probably be shot in the head, too. ‘She’ll be expecting me to call when I get home.’