believe me, Col,â Iles said.
âPerhaps he
was
naive,â Maud said.
âBut you told us heâd been chosen for his maturity,â Harpur said.
âMaturity in certain basics,â Maud said. âImportant basics, though lacking that vital something else. The expertsâ formula for the ideal undercover candidate might need amending.â
âSo, selecting him was a terrible error?â Harpur asked.
â
Any
selection for undercover is a terrible error,â Iles said.
âBut thatâs rather negative, isnât it?â Maud said.
âNo. Not âratherâ. Itâs
totally
fucking negative,â Iles replied.
âI think undercover has been known to work,â Maud said.
âWe canât ask Parry to confirm that,â Iles said.
âWe
can
get his assassin, assassins, though,â Maud replied.
âAnd you believe the assassin, assassins, could be a police officer, police officers, scared of exposure as payrolled protectors of the firm?â Harpur asked. âThe cop killer â or killers â is â or are â cops?â
âAs Iâve said, my job is to suggest questions,â Maud told them.
NINE
BEFORE
T om drove alone to a would-be welcoming place, brilliant for confidential meetings and basic grub â a motorway service station, this one on the M4. Neither party got the advantage of home ground, and anonymity was easy in the changing crowd. They had his registration number and car colour and make. He didnât have theirs, but the instructions said to wait in his Megane and theyâd locate him and tap his driver-side window in gentle, friendly style. Cash for petrol used and a dayâs subsistence would be provided, without need of a signed receipt from Tom. The petrol and subsistence claim should be rounded up to the nearest £5 multiple, so thereâd be no awkward fiddling about with coins.
Theyâd take a table in the service station eatery and organize snacks, or just tea or coffee. The car park would have CCTV, and to conduct their little conference inside the building like this was considered less noticeable than three men in a Megane evidently talking something important, notably not using any of the on-hand facilities, and passing money, even without coin complications.
âSo, Tom, youâll ask: why are we here? Whatâs the objective? Important to have an objective. Army orders always name an objective, and we can learn from them. In my opinion, that is. Well, itâs like this, isnât it? Youâve been picked out as suitable for undercover â oh, but more than just suitable, outstandingly suitable . . . yes, outstandingly. Terrific results from Hilston, and Hilston isnât known for its generosity in assessment. Thatâs all taken care of, then â the general potential aptitude, the overall flair. No question it is there and ready for use. But for use how, where? This is what I mean by the objective. Itâs time for us to focus your talent â seek to apply it to a specific situation, namely the piss-awful situation that I and others have been confronted by on our patch for upwards of a year, an impregnable drugs firm.â
He introduced himself, while they walked from the Megane to the services restaurant, as Detective Inspector Howard Lambert. The smaller, physically slighter man with him he said was Mr Andrew Rockmain, a psychologist working mainly with the London Metropolitan police, but available to other forces if needed. He had the rank in the Met of Commander, more or less equivalent to Assistant Chief Constable in a provincial outfit. Heâd be around thirty-five to forty. He had longish fair hair and wore a blue denim top with khaki cargo trousers and sandals, no socks.
Lambert said: âMr Rockmain is not like that Cracker character on TV, using psychology to solve mysteries. Mr Rockmain looks at situations and applies his special skills to
âPerhaps he
was
naive,â Maud said.
âBut you told us heâd been chosen for his maturity,â Harpur said.
âMaturity in certain basics,â Maud said. âImportant basics, though lacking that vital something else. The expertsâ formula for the ideal undercover candidate might need amending.â
âSo, selecting him was a terrible error?â Harpur asked.
â
Any
selection for undercover is a terrible error,â Iles said.
âBut thatâs rather negative, isnât it?â Maud said.
âNo. Not âratherâ. Itâs
totally
fucking negative,â Iles replied.
âI think undercover has been known to work,â Maud said.
âWe canât ask Parry to confirm that,â Iles said.
âWe
can
get his assassin, assassins, though,â Maud replied.
âAnd you believe the assassin, assassins, could be a police officer, police officers, scared of exposure as payrolled protectors of the firm?â Harpur asked. âThe cop killer â or killers â is â or are â cops?â
âAs Iâve said, my job is to suggest questions,â Maud told them.
NINE
BEFORE
T om drove alone to a would-be welcoming place, brilliant for confidential meetings and basic grub â a motorway service station, this one on the M4. Neither party got the advantage of home ground, and anonymity was easy in the changing crowd. They had his registration number and car colour and make. He didnât have theirs, but the instructions said to wait in his Megane and theyâd locate him and tap his driver-side window in gentle, friendly style. Cash for petrol used and a dayâs subsistence would be provided, without need of a signed receipt from Tom. The petrol and subsistence claim should be rounded up to the nearest £5 multiple, so thereâd be no awkward fiddling about with coins.
Theyâd take a table in the service station eatery and organize snacks, or just tea or coffee. The car park would have CCTV, and to conduct their little conference inside the building like this was considered less noticeable than three men in a Megane evidently talking something important, notably not using any of the on-hand facilities, and passing money, even without coin complications.
âSo, Tom, youâll ask: why are we here? Whatâs the objective? Important to have an objective. Army orders always name an objective, and we can learn from them. In my opinion, that is. Well, itâs like this, isnât it? Youâve been picked out as suitable for undercover â oh, but more than just suitable, outstandingly suitable . . . yes, outstandingly. Terrific results from Hilston, and Hilston isnât known for its generosity in assessment. Thatâs all taken care of, then â the general potential aptitude, the overall flair. No question it is there and ready for use. But for use how, where? This is what I mean by the objective. Itâs time for us to focus your talent â seek to apply it to a specific situation, namely the piss-awful situation that I and others have been confronted by on our patch for upwards of a year, an impregnable drugs firm.â
He introduced himself, while they walked from the Megane to the services restaurant, as Detective Inspector Howard Lambert. The smaller, physically slighter man with him he said was Mr Andrew Rockmain, a psychologist working mainly with the London Metropolitan police, but available to other forces if needed. He had the rank in the Met of Commander, more or less equivalent to Assistant Chief Constable in a provincial outfit. Heâd be around thirty-five to forty. He had longish fair hair and wore a blue denim top with khaki cargo trousers and sandals, no socks.
Lambert said: âMr Rockmain is not like that Cracker character on TV, using psychology to solve mysteries. Mr Rockmain looks at situations and applies his special skills to
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