‘It doesn’t pan out and you focus again on any leads we get on Peppa. We need to get to the people behind Tenebris. You want revenge? You find them and you can do what you want. I won’t stop you.’

Hattie looked at Geraint. ‘Has Cameron checked in again?’

Geraint shook his head. ‘Last we heard from her was fifteen minutes ago. She said –’ he leaned over his laptop to read out her message – ‘“Watching Peppa and kid in Gap. Trying on beige clothes. Target made no contact with anyone. Bored.”’

‘With any luck, whoever Peppa is meeting today will lead us back to Tenebris.’

Knowing how close we were to confirming her as the Snake, knowing how close we now were to the end couldn’t rouse us. Everything felt numb. I looked at the dining table. Robin’s coffee mug was still placed in front of his usual chair. I wondered how long it would stay there for. I wondered who would be the first to dare move it. The instant life could simply be over never ceased to amaze and terrify me.

‘After all this is over we will remember Robin properly. We’ll make sure he’s found.’ Hattie bowed his head. ‘We’ll carve his name under here.’ He patted the solid table. ‘We will mourn him. But now, now is not the time. We get to work and show them we won’t be stopped. Pixie and G, remember you don’t go anywhere alone until this is over. It’s not safe.’ He turned to Jake and me. ‘You two be careful out there. We’re not losing anymore Rats to those bastards.’

‘I’m leaving now,’ said Jake. ‘I’ll keep you updated.’

I watched him leave. If something happened to him too I didn’t know what I’d do. As if he could hear my thoughts he stopped halfway to the door, came back and wrapped his arms round me.

‘Don’t worry,’ he said quietly, ‘I’ll be fine. And we’ll find the fuckers who did this and make them pay.’

He let go of me and walked out. I took a deep breath and turned to Hattie.

‘OK, I’m ready. What’s the plan?’

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Five

THE GRAVEL CRUNCHED as we made our way down the drive. After rounding the tree-lined bend, a seventeenth-century castle came into view. A fleet of Range Rovers had driven Peng and the delegation safely from the doors of the Embassy right up to Cherwell Castle’s entrance. Hattie had driven us down in a Platform-issue van, me beside him at the front, Geraint and Pixie in the back working on the van’s inbuilt computers. Tracking Peppa was now solely down to Cameron. We’d yet to hear from Jake. It crossed my mind we might never hear from him. And bodies would just start appearing. Jake unhinged and unrestrained was a dark, dark force.