The man on the Shard platform watches it beginning to unfold. He admires the sheer beauty of these huge shapes floating ethereally towards their fate. Below the Speaker of the House of Commons bangs his gavel and shouts, ‘Order! Order!’ The Prime Minister rises. What will the questions be about? After all, today’s world is a dull place, the threat of terror now seems to be over, the disposition of the nations of Europe is arranged to the mutual benefit of all, a more relaxed United States of America is living calmly with the rest of the world under its forty-sixth President. The first two decades of the twenty-first century may have been a troubled age but Planet Earth and those who inhabit her are set fair for a new age of optimism.

In London it is 12 midday. In New York and Washington it is five hours earlier, 7 a.m. The men and women rising innocently from their beds will soon hear the shock from three thousand miles across the Atlantic. And because lightning never strikes twice, they will little imagine their own shock to come.

A tall, wraith-like woman ranges alongside and brushes the back of her hand between his thighs.

‘It’s done,’ he says.

‘Yes,’ she agrees, ‘it’s done.’

She melts silently away.

At this moment, Sara Shah is walking back from the Old Bailey to the Temple. She’s been in court all morning, her mobile phone off. She desultorily switches it on; it’s an uneventful day, an uneventful few weeks. She notices a text. It arrived three hours earlier, just before she went into court.

Stay clear of Westminster and Whitehall today.

No name. An unfamiliar number.

She is distracted by the noise of a huge jet overhead on its landing approach to Heathrow.

She looks up.

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements

My thanks to those whose insight and expertise helped so much: Alan Ewers, Andrew Allberry, Jon Appleton, Sahina Bibi, Dorothy Byrne, Lily Capewell, Gavin Esler, Joanna Frank, Jamie Groves, Val Hudson, Nicky Kroll, Joanna Potts, Sarah Shaffi, Victor Temple, Laura Westbury, Robert Young. Thank you also to those who prefer not to be or cannot be named.

My agent, Julian Alexander, and HQ’s inspiring leader, Lisa Milton, have offered constant encouragement. The gifted Ayisha Malik provided invaluable knowledge and understanding. Sue Carney of Ethos Forensics has become a splendidly ingenious, generous ally and new friend. An old friend, Paul Greengrass, demonstrated, with critical effect, his unparalleled creative generosity and the power of his big brain. Another big brain, my editor, Clio Cornish, has been terrific both for her critiques and her creative interventions.

Above all are those closest to home – so thank you, Helena and Olivia, and, above all, Penelope who, in addition to her great editing and narrative skills, is there in so many different ways.

About the Publisher

About the Publisher

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