‘Pia is estranged from her father, to the extent that she has reverted to her mother’s maiden name: Lackner. Our understanding is that she hates Anton while he, like most men who find themselves rejected by a woman, pines for her approval and remains hopeful of a reconciliation.’

‘Huh,’ said Louis.

‘Second – and I hope this will brighten your day – one of the Vuksans’ men, Aleksej Marković, has come up for air. He’s in Paris, staying at a hotel in the tenth arrondissement. Do you have email on your phone?’

Louis reached into a pocket and removed a primitive Nokia.

‘What the fuck is that?’ said Harris.

‘It’s a Nokia.’

Louis also possessed an iPad mini, but he was scrupulously careful about its use.

‘So I see,’ said Harris. ‘Does it have a winder?’

‘No, but it has something more useful: anonymity.’

Harris conceded the point. He checked to make sure they were not being watched before rousing the iPad from its sleep. A tap of his fingers produced an image of a man drinking coffee outside a café. Louis recognized Marković from the material supplied by Ross.

‘When was this picture taken?’ said Louis.

‘About twenty minutes ago.’

‘That’s fast work.’

‘He was careless – not very, but it doesn’t take a lot.’

‘Why isn’t he in hiding like the rest of them?’

‘Necessity,’ said Harris. ‘What do the Vuksans require?’

‘Money.’

‘Exactly. We think that Paris may be the last stage in one of their people-smuggling ratlines. From there, the cargo either vanishes into the banlieues or, for an additional charge, is moved to the United Kingdom or elsewhere. The only reason for Marković being in Paris is to ensure that a delivery will be concluded safely.’

‘Ross said that the Vuksans might be helping terrorists gain access to Europe.’

‘They are,’ said Harris. ‘Terrorists pay well, and the Vuksans don’t ask security questions.’

‘So why don’t you just lift Marković from the street and see how long he can breathe underwater?’

‘For the same reason that you can’t approach Frend directly. If we apprehend Marković now, whoever he’s waiting for will be alerted and the cargo will be lost. Also – and I’m not privy to every detail, so you’ll have to take this on trust – Marković operates through cutouts. He never meets the cargo directly, but monitors proceedings from a distance. And finally, the French don’t take well to foreign agencies operating on their territory without permission, but if we bring them in, you’ll never get to Marković. We could let the French interrogate him, and listen in as guests, but he won’t give up the Vuksans or the others, even if he knows exactly where they are – and my guess is that he doesn’t, just in case he’s picked up.’

Louis had not missed the flash of the blade: if we bring them in, you’ll never get to Marković.