Hari Harsent was the brains behind the original deal. Hari had made us rich, but I knew he was greedy now for more. I was probably next on his list. Greed put us all at risk, as Lew had discovered, fifteen years earlier. Hari had taken his share of that result, he had his pay as a cop, and the bar he ran in Ewwel Town was a business that brought in more. None of it was enough for him. For some, having more is never enough.

The physical layout of Hari’s bar was this. On the ground floor was the small stage where the music acts performed, with a raised section, lights, power sockets, and so on. There was a cleared space for a crowd, or for dancing. Around the edge were seats and a few tables. The area behind the bar was where the staff area, kitchen, toilets, etc., were situated. On the floor above, Hari’s personal space was directly over the bar. When not on police operations he relaxed there every evening a band was playing. He stayed out of the way, listening on large relay speakers. He played the music loud. He rarely, never, went down to the bar while the band was playing. He was alone, stayed alone, deep in a big chair, drinking hard from a table littered with bottles.

At the end of every gig, while the bar was still open, Hari would go downstairs, talk to the bar staff, see some of the regulars, chat to the band members, perhaps share a drink with them. All this I knew.

I checked my preparations one more time, then I slipped out of the hotel without being seen, into the humid night. Once I was on the main street, music blared from doorways and windows, and from small speakers attached above the stalls of street traders. Crowds surged by. Prostitutes were on every corner. The smell of spicy meat smoking on the charcoal braziers of the vendors was appetizing. I walked on. I was not noticed. Who in the crowd would see me or recognize me?

I followed my planned route. It was about half a kilometre from the hotel to Hari’s bar. I was tempted to hurry but I was sticking to my plan. I maintained a steady pace because I did not want to get out of breath.

I came to the square where Hari had his bar, went to the building and pushed through the doors. A support band was playing, not well. The place was full but not yet crowded. Most of the people were much younger than me. I had not thought of that. I felt prominent for being older. I bought a glass of beer, but I held it without drinking more than a couple of sips. I made eye contact with no one. The support band were coming to the end of their set. They were running late, but I could wait.