'Did you speak to him last night?' asked Revnik.

'To Vasili? Yes, I got through eventually,' said Alexei.

'Where was he?'

'On the road to Seville. I don't know where.'

'What did he have to say?' asked Revnik.

'That Yuri Donstov had made him an offer that you wouldn't have given him in a million years.'

'He's right there,' said Revnik. 'What else?'

Alexei shrugged. Revnik glanced up. A hard fist clubbed Alexei in the side of the head, knocked him and the chair over.

'What else?' said Revnik.

They hefted Alexei and the chair back to vertical. A lump was already up on the side of his face.

'"What the fuck,"' said Alexei. 'He had an accident.'

That had Revnik's attention.

'Tell me.'

'We were talking and he suddenly said: "What the fuck is this…" then BANG! and the sound of tyres screeching, a thump, a crash and then it all went dead.'

Revnik hit the desk.

'Why the fuck didn't you tell us that last night?'

'I was drunk. I passed out.'

'You know what that means?' said Revnik to no one in particular, but pointing across the room. 'It means that what was in there is now in the hands of the police.'

They looked at the empty safe.

'Take him away,' said Revnik.

They took him back out to the car, drove up into the hills. The smell of pine was very strong after the cool of the night. They walked him into the trees and the ex-KGB man finally got to use his Stechkin APS.

2

Outside Seville – Friday, 15th September 2006, 08.30 hrs

The sun had been up for twenty-five minutes over the flat fields of the fertile flood plain of the Guadalquivir river. It was close to 30°C when Falcon drove back into the city at 8.30 a.m. At home he lay on his bed fully clothed in the air-con and tried to get some sleep. It was hopeless. He drank another coffee before heading into the office.