‘So why did this R character tell Fletcher to get rid of the phone?’ said Gabriel.

‘The previous text had been from Fletcher, who said, “You can trust me”. Then, we were right, “one of three”. Signed off with an eight eight.’

‘I bloody knew it, Skeffington. Show me.’ He handed over the paper. There it was. One of three in black-and-white. There was no time for smugness, no time for an ‘I told you so’. She had even ignored Skeffington’s ‘We were right’ comment. And the hollowness and anxiety from yesterday swept across her again. If only they had Fletcher in the cells right now. They could have wheedled something out of him, she was sure. Now they had nothing but this threat.

She waved away Skeffington and called Tennant.

#

‘There can’t be any doubt, boss,’ she said after briefing him. ‘Chilton Park is the first of three planned attacks. And it was organised months ago. This R, Fletcher’s handler, helped him get a job at the theme park nine weeks ago. The NRF are playing a long game.’

Tennant grunted in agreement. ‘Trouble is, we’re in a minority here. I’ve been on to the director general of Thames and JTAC, but their assessment is, and I quote, that Fletcher is an “isolated individual, claiming without substance to be part of a fragmented, disorganised group”. They’ll be hard to budge on moving the threat level up, even with this.’

‘That’s crazy, sir, we’ve got more than enough.’

‘Not in their view, Sophie,’ said Tennant. ‘It would help make a case if we had some indication of what the NRF are planning next.’

‘Could be anything,’ said Gabriel, not hiding her frustration.

‘Then narrow it down, take a step back. What do we know about their intent?’

Gabriel paused for reflection. ‘We know Chilton Park was designed to be a shocker – extreme right-wing martyrdom with maximum publicity, maximum terror. But not necessarily maximum death toll. They could have killed far more people with a vehicle or bomb, so this was about targeting their victims while not offending their key supporters. No white people were injured or killed, only those from black and Asian ethnic minorities.’

‘And?’

‘I dunno,’ said Gabriel. ‘It was unpredictable, out of the blue, I guess. Whoever planned this has an eye for drama, for the spectacular.’

‘And?’

‘And it was a calling card – statement of intent from a new group,’ said Gabriel. ‘All good stuff, but how does that help us?’

Tennant paused. Gabriel could imagine his brain exploring angles, sifting them and discarding them. ‘There’s no Muslim holidays or festivals in the near future, so we can rule that out. Could be a mosque or a school.’ Another pause. ‘I reckon we can dismiss music concerts – security is too tight. But what if it’s not a location, but an event?’ His voice was excited now. ‘Sophie, what if the first and second attacks are linked?’

‘Another theme park? Doesn’t seem likely.’