Suddenly the rage was rampant in my mind. This couldn’t go on. It had to stop. It was an unprecedented assault on the Met, and a murderous, unwarranted attack on individuals.

But right now there seemed no way of stopping it. Not unless the bitch in black made another mistake. Or we managed to collar Slack and got him to call a halt to the killing spree.

But how likely was that? I was willing to bet the bastard was enjoying himself. He was getting his own back. Making sure he went out with a bang.

It was a sick, deafening swansong from a man who appeared to blame others for the bad things that had happened in his life.

A man who now felt he had a final score to settle.

I saw the woman who killed my unborn baby when I left Aidan and went to get myself a coffee.

The drinks machine was in the waiting room and next to it was a television on the wall. I switched it on and tuned into the BBC news channel.

It was nearly dawn outside so the media had had plenty of time to get across the story. They were reporting that a huge hunt was underway across London for a woman who was believed to be a professional assassin. She had struck early the previous evening at the home in Balham of DI Laura Jefferson, who was attached to the organised crime task force.

The woman had climbed into the back garden and tried to shoot Jefferson through the kitchen window. But the detective had been armed and returned fire, causing the woman to run away. However, the detective’s partner, Aidan Bray, had been hit by a bullet and was recovering in hospital.

The assailant had then tried to flee on a motorbike but came off it when she collided with a car at traffic lights on Balham High Road.

She then opened fire with a revolver on two police officers who arrived in a patrol car. One was killed, the other wounded.

‘The woman managed to escape on the bike and her current whereabouts are unknown,’ the reporter said. ‘But Scotland Yard has just released video footage of the woman and are appealing for anyone who has seen her to come forward.’

Grey CCTV images flicked across the screen showing a leather-clad rider on a motorbike. There were three short clips from different cameras but in none of them could her face be seen.

I felt my breath stall as I stared at the television, and a blind fury welled up inside me.

The reporter explained that there was no video of what happened at the traffic lights because the camera positioned there wasn’t working. He also said that police were convinced that the woman was responsible for the murders of Dave Prentiss and Mrs Nash.