Page 89 of End Game
Three phones were ringing at the same time. William grabbed the red one and listened carefully.
‘RAF Northolt, Flight Lieutenant Penrose reporting in, sir. We are in pursuit of the light aircraft. Feeding through visual now.’
William and Air Marshal Lowery stood alongside the bank of CCTV screens watching the aircraft heading towards them. It looked harmless enough, but what if it was full of explosives?
‘I don’t think it’s explosives he’s carrying, sir,’ said the Flight Lieutenant, ‘but a message that’s clear for all to see.’
They both looked up at the little plane to see a banner fluttering from its tail declaring,FATHERS 4 JUSTICE.
The Air Marshal burst out laughing, before he said firmly, ‘Buzz him, lads, and then escort him back to Bournemouth, and don’t let the pilot out of your sight until you see the plane taxi to a halt.’
‘Roger that, sir,’ said the Flight Lieutenant, as the two planes eased into place.
‘Thank you, Flight Lieutenant,’ said William, before putting down the phone.
‘As he didn’t enter restricted air space,’ said William, putting down the phone, ‘as far as I’m concerned, it never happened.’
‘Roger that,’ said the Air Marshal, with a grin, ‘and, if it’s okay with you, Commander, I’ll return to my seat before the balloon goes up.’
‘Yes, of course, sir, and thank you. I hope you enjoy the rest of the evening.’ William hadn’t even finished speaking before another phone began to ring.
‘You too, Commander,’ said the Air Marshal as he left the Gold Suite.
William picked up the second phone, to hear Rebecca’s familiar voice. ‘Commander?’
‘Any sign of Sun Anqi or Petrov?’ was William’s first question.
‘Negative, sir. No one has reported seeing anyone answering their descriptions. But one of my officers has spotted something he thought you ought to know about immediately. If you look at your end screen’ – William followed her instructions – ‘you’llsee two empty boxes in the Grand Tier section near the Royal Box, which is strange to say the least, as the event’s been sold out for the past six months.’
‘They could be held up in traffic,’ said William, ‘or even ill.’
‘The Grand Tier boxes hold twelve,’ said Rebecca. ‘That’s an awful lot of people to be held up or suddenly taken ill.’
‘I’ll check who’s meant to be in those boxes,’ said William. ‘Stay on the line.’ He picked up another phone, and while he waited for the stadium manager to answer, his eyes remained fixed on the two empty boxes.
He glanced up at another screen to see the Russian team passing the Royal Box and lowering their flag. Was it his imagination, or were there far fewer competitors taking part than in the opening ceremony? A quick check among the older officials and there was certainly no sign of Petrov.
‘How can I help you, Commander?’ asked the stadium manager.
‘There are two empty boxes in the Grand Tier section – can you find out who is meant to be occupying them?’
He heard the noise of tapping coming down the phone before the stadium manager came back on the line. ‘One of the boxes is reserved for the Chinese Ambassador and his party, and the other’ – more tapping – ‘is allocated to the Russian Ambassador and his guests.’
William felt his heart rate quicken. Now he understood why Petrov was nowhere to be seen, but it still didn’t explain the absence of both ambassadors. His eyes moved on to a smaller box, also empty – the same box Faulkner and Booth Watson had occupied during the opening ceremony.
And William accepted that wouldn’t be a coincidence.
•••
‘Sir Julian,’ said the Prime Minister, leaning back, ‘in your capacity as an Olympic judge, have you been faced with any problems during the past couple of weeks that required you to make a delicate decision?’
‘None that I can think of, Prime Minister,’ said Sir Julian. ‘One of the Turkish weightlifters was caught shoplifting in Harrods, but I was able to convince the manager to drop the charges.’
Cameron smiled. He’d been Prime Minister long enough to know when he wasn’t being told the whole story. ‘How interesting,’ he said.
•••
A third phone was ringing, but William was already on two other lines. He cut off the stadium manager and picked up the second phone.
