‘The Serbs entered Srebrenica on July eleventh and we handed the town over to Mladić. We watched the Muslim women and children being taken away in buses. I don’t know what happened to the children, but most of the women were probably being raped within hours. The men and boys stayed. Mladić told us they’d be transferred to camps later, but we knew better, even before the executions started. The Serbs killed eight thousand at Srebrenica: old men, young men, teenagers. We stood by and let them do it, and when it all became too much we drove away. I’ve heard it said that we had no choice, but we did, because there is always a choice.’

‘And what should you have done?’ said Louis.

‘We should have stood our ground,’ said Hendricksen. ‘We were soldiers. We should have fought.’

‘You’d have died.’

‘Perhaps,’ said Hendricksen, ‘but sometimes that’s not only a soldier’s duty but also his destiny. Had we died in the service of those people then the UN, and the Americans in particular, might have been forced to act sooner. And even if we had been killed, we would have died heroes. Instead, we were blamed for what happened. We returned home in disgrace. It’s a stain upon our personal honor, and our nation’s, that can never be erased, not unless some opportunity to make reparation comes around.’

‘So you see the Vuksans as a chance to do the right thing?’ said Angel. ‘If you’ll forgive me for saying so, I’m not sure that equates.’

Hendricksen tore his gaze from the floor.

‘Spiridon Vuksan was there, at Srebrenica,’ he said. ‘He was one of Mladić’s advisors, sent by Belgrade to judge the length of his leash. I saw Spiridon with my own eyes. I heard a lieutenant ask him if the male prisoners should be separated according to age, which might make them easier to handle, and Spiridon told him that the Turks – that was what he called the Muslims, “Turks” – wouldn’t be a problem for long.

‘And then he noticed me listening, and he looked at me and smiled. I wanted to shoot him then. I wanted to shoot them all. He saw it in my face. He spread his arms wide, and spoke to me in English. “Do it,” he said. “Be a man.” But I did nothing.’

Hendricksen still held a half-eaten sandwich, but whatever appetite he once had was gone. He placed the sandwich on a plate and wiped the crumbs from his hands.

‘We’re not on a crusade,’ said Louis.