And he had to admit that there was something very healing about being on the water, especially after the bruising encounters he’d endured. He had insisted on accompanying Marijke to the summit meeting in Köln to put his case for confronting Mann. But while the German police had been grateful for his profiling advice, they remained adamant that they wouldn’t support such an unorthodox operation. Senior officers had argued that it would be seen by their courts as entrapment, and refused to risk any potential trial by going along with Tony’s proposal. He’d argued as persuasively as he knew how, but they’d remained obdurate. All they were prepared to do was to maintain surveillance on Mann and his boat.

After the meeting, Marijke had grabbed him and hustled him off to a quiet bar near the police headquarters. ‘I didn’t agree with you at first,’ she’d admitted. ‘But I listened to you today, and I think maybe yours is the only way to put a stop to this.’

Tony stared at the table, knowing that if Marijke understood why he was so keen to confront Mann she would withdraw her support. There was nothing more dangerous in a police operation than personal feelings that spilled over into professional actions. He felt as if all he’d achieved since he’d arrived in Germany was to make things infinitely worse for someone he loved, and he desperately needed to do something that would feel like an atonement. Keeping these thoughts to himself, he’d simply replied that what they needed now was a plan. ‘The academic community is going to be buzzing with rumours,’ he added. ‘Like I said in the meeting, either he’s going to go to ground until the fuss dies down, or the chances are anyone he targets now will refuse to have anything to do with him. There’s no telling what he’ll do if he’s thwarted like that. I know they talked today about trying to set up a sting, but there are just too many potential targets for that to be practical, especially if he changes the way he makes his rendezvous with victims. I understand why the police are reluctant to endorse me going head to head with Mann, but there’s no other way. So how do we persuade your people to back me?’