Page 88 of Traitors Gate

‘Brief the home team accordingly,’ said the Hawk. ‘Meanwhile, Paul, you can start by looking for the duplicate Jaguar and Land Rover; identical number plates would be my bet. They’ve probably dumped them both within a mile of the Tower. Whoever is responsible for this outrage will know only too well that’s the first thing we’ll be looking for. Start by checking every car park within a three-mile radius. You can begin with the Tower Hotel,’ he said, poring over a detailed map of the City that Angela had placed on the desk in front of him.

‘We won’t find the cars there,’ said Paul.

‘Why not?’ demanded the Hawk.

‘I realize now I saw them pass me on the other side of the road a few minutes before we turned up at the Tower.’

‘Then they will almost certainly have seen you and have ditched both cars by now.’ He didn’t add,if only Inspector Hogan had been in the passenger seat, suddenly aware that it must have been part of their plan to make sure Ross was well out of the way for the operation. ‘I’ll get details of both duplicate vehicles circulated immediately. So don’t waste a minute of the golden hour.’

He slammed down one phone and picked up another. ‘Find Inspector Hogan,’ he barked at his secretary.

54 MINUTES

‘Paul,’ said William, ‘you heard what the boss said. So go back to the exact spot where you saw those two identical cars passing you on the other side of the road and start looking for the nearest car park.’

Danny switched on the engine.

‘And the moment you’ve found them, report straight back to me, not that I expect you to find anything, even fingerprints. On your way,’ said William as he got out of the car to face the Lord Chamberlain.

‘Do I think what’s happened has happened, Chief Superintendent?’ he asked even before he’d reached him.

‘I’m afraid so, sir.’

‘And what do you expect me to do in the circumstances?’ asked a man who was more used to giving orders than taking them.

‘I’d like you to return to the palace—’

‘Empty-handed?’

‘Yes, sir. But my team’s already working on it.’

‘Then I won’t delay you any longer, Chief Superintendent, but be sure to keep me informed.’

‘I will, sir. But it would help …’

‘If I kept my mouth shut,’ said the keeper of the Queen’s secrets.

‘Yes, sir.’

‘I’m willing to do that, Chief Superintendent, but must warn you there’s a time limit. Because when the Queen enters their Lordships’ house tomorrow morning at eleven thirty, if she is not preceded by the Sword of State and wearing the Imperial State Crown, she will have been stripped of her authority as monarch, and I wouldn’t want to be the person who has to explain to her how that was allowed to happen.’

Without another word, the Lord Chamberlain turned on his heel and strode back to his car, just as the great doors of the East Gate opened and William spotted his next problem running towards him.

53 MINUTES

Satisfied that he’d played his role, Booth Watson headed slowly back to his chambers in Middle Temple, where he would wait for his client to call. It could only be a matter of time.

51 MINUTES

‘How can that be possible?’ asked the Governor as he and William ran across the middle drawbridge and on up the steep slope towards the Jewel House.

‘A set of circumstances that could only occur very rarely,’ said William. ‘What you might call a perfect storm.’

‘But I didn’t even spot any threatening clouds,’ admitted the Governor.

‘That’s hardly surprising,’ said William. ‘You’ve only been in the post as Resident Governor for less than two months, and clearly never came across the Lord Chamberlain or his driver during that time.’

‘But there’s the rub,’ puffed an out-of-breath Governor. ‘I was invited to a drinks party at the palace last week by the Duke of Edinburgh, but unfortunately the Lord Chamberlain was accompanying the Queen to another event so I didn’t get to meet him.’

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