‘Officially, at least!’ cried Connor, his fists clenched, his eyes burning holes into the back of the colonel’s head. Had his whole world been built upon shifting sands? Had Buddyguard been sold to him on a lie? The fate of their fellow recruits buried alongside the truth? If so, then everything he’d believed Colonel Black to be – honest, loyal and honourable – was a sham.

‘It was for everyone’s protection,’ insisted the colonel. ‘It kept us under the radar.’

‘You lied to us,’ said Connor, distraught. ‘You lied about our recruitment. You lied about the fate of our friends. You lied about Buddyguard being sanctioned by the British government. What else have you lied about?’

Colonel Black looked up at him from where he knelt on the floor, his face a battlefield of injuries, the ragged scar across his throat like a rope round his neck. ‘I didn’t lie. I was economical with the truth.’

Connor was stunned into silence. He no longer knew what to think.

Her expression taut and pale, Charley appeared to be in equal shock. ‘You told me Blake had returned home,’ she said accusingly.

‘I’m sorry,’ replied Colonel Black. ‘I thought it for the best. You were still recovering from your fall at the time.’

Charley looked daggers at the colonel. ‘We trusted you with our lives. Our friends died and you didn’t tell us!’

‘In war, soldiers die. That’s just the luck of the draw. You didn’t need to know the body count. It would’ve distracted you from your own assignments. Put you at greater risk. But I never took any of you for granted. I spared no expense in your training or equipment. I did everything in my power to reduce that risk. My recruits’ welfare and safety has and always will be my number one priority.’

‘You deceived us,’ said Connor. ‘You recruited us under false pretences.’

‘No, Connor, I saw the potential in you. Made you the man your father was.’ He looked up at Connor, his flinty eyes rimmed red. ‘Yes, I admit that I used his legacy to draw you in. But you can’t deny that you wanted to follow in your father’s footsteps. That you wanted to become a bodyguard.’

‘There he goes again, exploiting your grief,’ interrupted the Director. She was perched against her desk, arms crossed, watching the scene unfold with malicious delight.

The colonel dragged himself to his feet and lurched forward. ‘You cannot let this weasel of a woman twist your minds! She is a master manipulator! She –’

The guard hit him again, this time in the back of the head. The colonel buckled and slumped to the floor, blood spilling across the polished glass. Mr Grey seemed to observe the spreading pool with pleasure, then glanced sidelong at the guard. ‘Careful not to kill the colonel. I haven’t finished his dental work yet.’

The guard laughed, but Mr Grey didn’t – he was serious. Connor felt sickened and furious. Whatever Colonel Black had or hadn’t done, he didn’t deserve that brutal treatment at the hands of such sadists.

The Director unfurled her arms and, like a vulture looming over the body of a mortally wounded lion, stood beside the colonel. ‘I ask you again, Connor, why be loyal to this man? This charlatan who sacrifices you like lambs to the slaughter, who considers you expendable …’

She turned to her desk, picked up a super-thin tablet computer and inputted a command. An electronic screen was activated on the wall and Colonel Black appeared: his face ashen, eyes dilated, but all his teeth still present and his nose yet to be broken. He was talking to the camera. ‘I use them for human shields … They’re expendable! So what do I care what you do to them?’

The colonel lay unconscious on the floor, unable to defend himself. Connor knew that he shouldn’t believe what he saw and heard, especially after Charley’s forced betrayal. Still the words and sentiment stung. Charley exchanged a heartbroken look with him. She was as devastated as he was. She’d previously questioned Colonel Black’s integrity. Prior to Connor’s assignment in Russia, she’d supposedly overheard the colonel saying: That’s what we train them for. The size of the contract is worth the risk of a buddyguard or two. Colonel Black had, of course, denied those were his exact words, insisting he’d said it was never worth the risk. Still Charley had been deeply concerned at the extreme risks of the operation. And, in hindsight, rightly so. Now, in light of what they knew about the colonel, it seemed her suspicions had been well founded. He was mercenary and dishonest.

Having delivered the final nail in the coffin, the Director settled behind her desk and smiled. ‘Now, let’s get down to the business at hand. Surrender the flash drive, Connor, and we can put all this sorry mess behind us. You and Charley can walk free.’ She looked at Charley in her chair. ‘And I mean that literally, Charley.’

Connor narrowed his eyes distrustfully at the Director. After everything Equilibrium had done in their attempts to hunt them down and eliminate them, the last thing he’d anticipated was a deal on the table. Not that any agreement was likely to be honoured by the Director. He wasn’t that naive. Nonetheless he decided to play her game in the hope of a true opportunity to escape. ‘What about our friends?’ he asked.

‘You mean the ones on the ship?’ The Director pursed her lips. ‘I’m sure we can come to an arrangement.’

‘Don’t … give her … the drive,’ groaned Colonel Black, slowly coming round. ‘You know … what’s at sta–’

Mr Grey stood on the colonel’s hand, grinding the bones with the heel of his shoe. ‘Don’t interrupt, Colonel.’

Trying to ignore Colonel Black’s gasps of pain, Connor made his demands. ‘Tell me the ship’s location and container number. Once I’ve had confirmation they’re free, I’ll give you the drive.’

The Director smiled. ‘I’m afraid, Connor, in this negotiation I hold all the cards. Drive first, freedom second.’

Connor clenched his jaw, fighting the impulse to simply leap forward and throttle the woman. ‘How can we trust you?’

The Director spread her hands. ‘How can you not? Your friends are fast running out of food and water. The longer you take, the shorter their lives will be. Besides, you don’t owe Colonel Black anything. So why hold out? Why put your own life at risk for something he stole from us?’

Connor looked the Director square in the eye. ‘Because Equilibrium killed my father!’

Only the slightest flicker of surprise registered on the Director’s face before the mask came down again.

‘That’s unfortunate, Connor,’ she said, her tone briefly sympathetic. ‘But I assure you it wasn’t personal. So, unless you want to be responsible for the deaths of your friends, I’d advise handing over the drive right now. Otherwise I’ll be handing you over to Mr Grey. And I can promise that he won’t be as considerate as I’ve been.’

Mr Grey smiled a hyena-like grin at him and Connor felt his chest tighten at the pitiless cruelty in the assassin’s ice-grey eyes. He looked to Charley, but the despondent slump of her shoulders told him they were out of options. They had no alternative but to give up the drive.

Then his smartband vibrated gently on his wrist. Connor sneaked a peek at the display, glimpsing the message from Amir:

Green box – Oxygen Masks!

Out of his peripheral vision he spied a green box to his left attached to the wall.

‘Well? I’m waiting,’ snapped the Director. ‘And my patience is fast running out.’

Connor’s smartband vibrated again.

Hold your breath.