Nina was almost as terrified. ‘Who the hell did that?’

‘Dunno, but they did us a favour.’ Eddie slid Eleanor to the ground and crawled to a small gap in his cover. He was all too aware he was risking his life – even in the low light, the sniper might spot the movement, and if they were using a night-vision or thermal scope he would stand out as brightly as a flare – but he had to know who they were facing.

Not the local police, that was for sure. Several shadowy figures were making their way up the hill. All wore black clothing, faces masked. They also carried weapons, the sky’s grey sheen reflecting faintly from gunmetal.

He drew back. ‘Whoever they are, they’ll be here in a minute,’ he said. ‘At least six armed men.’

‘Can we get away?’ Nina asked.

‘With that sniper down there, they’d pick us off before we got fifty yards.’ He went to Harhund’s body and took the gun from his still-twitching hand.

‘You’re gonna shoot it out with them?’ asked Miller in disbelief.

‘No, but I want to stop them from walking right up and killing us without a fight.’ He checked the remaining rounds, then moved to a new vantage point. ‘Get back behind the biggest wall, see if you can—’

‘Professor Wilde! Mr Chase!’ A woman’s voice, accent revealing she was not a native English speaker. ‘We are here to help you. Please show yourselves.’

Nina blinked in surprise. ‘They knew we were here?’

‘Better that than they’re just randomly walking around New Zealand looking for heads to blow off,’ said Eddie. He raised his voice. ‘Who’re you?’

‘We are here to help,’ the woman repeated.

Eddie took another peek through the wall, seeing the black-clad figures spreading out to flank the ruined cottage.

‘You and Professor Wilde will not be hurt.’

‘And what about the Millers?’ Nina asked.

There was a conspicuous silence.

‘Oh shit,’ gasped Miller. He scrambled to Nina and put a beseeching hand on her shoulder. ‘You’ve got to help me!’

Nina looked back at him, eyes hard. ‘Why?’

The younger man had no answer to that.

‘I would have to agree with her,’ Eleanor said icily.

The new arrivals reached the ruins. Eddie gave Nina a look of concern, then slowly stood. Harhund’s pistol was in his hand, but he kept it at his side. Sub-machine guns snapped up at him – but the closest figure, the woman, gestured and they were lowered again. ‘You do not need the gun,’ she said.

‘Need and want are two different things, as I’ve told my daughter about twenty million times,’ he replied. ‘I’ll keep it until I know what’s going on. Unless that’s going to be a problem?’ He put an edge of threat into his voice.