‘Let’s just bear in mind the Coyote is going to need an exit plan,’ said Hattie. ‘A gun for hire is for profit. No point in succeeding in the mission if he’s taken out or caught in the process. He needs to walk away from this and that is our best hope of catching him.

‘Remember, things are looking up. Tenebris are running scared. They’re making mistakes. And we’re very close to unmasking the Snake. Peppa is now the prime suspect. Daddy Pig’s marriage is imploding – there’s a flurry of activity online and the audio is all about divorce lawyers and shouting matches. Even if he was the Snake he wouldn’t have time to be covertly passing on information. George Pig has now told Kate about her mother and he’s got his hands full with her grief and guilt and all the rest. I still don’t like those suspicious emails but it’s looking unlikely he’s the Snake.’

‘What are we waiting for then?’ asked Cameron. She took a bite of the large bacon sandwich she had just unwrapped. ‘We pick up Peppa now and we end this,’ she said through her mouthful.

‘We have no direct evidence that Peppa is the Snake,’ said Hattie. ‘The Committee have clearly stated we cannot act until we have something, anything, confirming our suspicions. Peppa will shortly be attending the WAF pottery café morning and we’ve intercepted a text message from an unknown number – it’s registered to a pay-as-you-go – saying they must meet today.’

‘No confirmation on where or when?’ I asked.

‘None. They must’ve arranged it in person or using some form of communication we haven’t managed to monitor. It’s why we can’t let her out of our sight today. Getting that dolly with the tracker into play is vital so that Cameron and Robin can monitor her while we’re all away at the shoot.’

‘I’m heading to the WAF meet now. I’ll let you know when the switch has been made.’

I stood up and picked up my bag. Jake came up to me.

‘I hear Will found out about Johnnie.’

‘What did you tell him?’

‘Just that he needn’t worry. He was just a twat in tight trousers. That you never gave a shit about him and that—’

‘I meant, what did you tell him about how we met?’

‘I said he was an informant. What did you say?’

‘Something similar, thankfully.’

Jake looked at me. ‘Are you OK?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘You’re stressed. You’re not normally this stressed.’ He took my hand and held up my left thumb and ran a finger over the bitten-down nail. ‘You haven’t given this little guy such a battering since that time we were trapped out in the middle of the Sahara.’

I looked at my thumb. I had no idea I did that.