“Terrible,” agreed Wavery.

“I tell you, it’s an epidemic. And it’s not just me who thinks so. I was talking to your brother-in-law about it.”

“How is Lawrence?”

“Most impressive, I thought. Lady Tredwell sends her regards, by the way. I’ve been staying with them in Gibraltar.”

“Let me take that.” Wavery carried Queesal’s suitcase into his office and placed it under the window beside the radiator.

“Sorry I’m late,” Queesal’s voice came to him. “But there was nothing to tell one that this was the Consulate.”

“There’ll be a plaque shortly.”

Queesal nodded. His face had assumed the stern expression of a ticket-collector. Normally he would have been accompanied in his task by a secretary and a grade-six officer. These had remained behind in Gibraltar. When it came to inspecting the new mission at Abyla the Inspectorate’s advice to Queesal was that he could manage on his own. From Calle Camoes came the sound of a bell striking.

Queesal looked at the watch chained to his waistcoat. As the chimes continued, his eyes bulged.

“Good heavens, is that the time?”

“Oh, you can ignore that,” said Wavery.

“What do you mean, ignore it? It’s nine o’clock.”

Wavery explained about the bell tower. Queesal said, “Then why don’t they do something about it?”

“I think they plan to.”

“Well, you know how things are,” said Queesal, unimpressed. “I’d better get on with this PDQ. Is your secretary ready for me?”

Wavery opened the door for him. Queesal made a gesture of putting his hand to his stomach and then with a little bow of the head he passed into the front room where he stood with his back to Wavery. Behind the desk Asunción waited to show the Foreign Office Inspector the local budget account.

Wavery closed his door. He sat down and removed a bundle of papers from his in-tray. From his friend in the City: apologies for replying so late and sorry not to be in a position to advise Abyla’s bankers. Outside his area of expertise. Nor did he have any useful contacts in the antimony world. But it was good to hear Thomas was alive and flying high in Africa. From an anti-blood sports group in Basingstoke: protest about the bullfight in August. Copy of a letter to Prince Philip from the Chairman of the World Working Group on Storks, Ibis and Spoonbills: as His Royal Highness was aware, few avian species faced so uncertain a future as the baldheaded or crested ibis whose numbers were now perilously low. The discovery of six waldrapp linnaeus on the Monte Hacho headland was a just cause of excitement. But he warned it took the smallest interference to result in the desertion of a colony. Letter from the Palace explaining the interest Prince Philip had taken in these ibis. Prince Philip insisting that a tour of their nests be included in any programme the Consul General proposed for the forthcoming visit. Letter from a firm of solicitors in Aldeburgh with Penny’s suit for divorce. It was not until his eyes settled on the legal syntax that Wavery registered, to the full, that his marriage was dead. He read the petition, and instantly he was sitting with Penny in a French restaurant off Kensington High Street the day before he flew to Gibraltar.