Page 71 of Licence To Howl
Noneof them breathed a word for the rest of the journey and, when they landed at RAF Northolt, which was far less appealing than Heathrow, there was a small contingent of grim looking men waiting for them at the end of the runway. Sarah Greensmith sighed audibly but Devereau forced himself to plaster on a smarmy grin.
‘Hey! Which way to duty free?’ he asked. ‘I want to pick up some booze and fags before I head home.’
None of the men cracked a smile. That was understandable given the circumstances. The oldest man, a blank faced bloke with thinning hair and the hint of a paunch, lifted up his chin to speak. ‘We will transport you back to your home, Mr Webb. You can expect a thorough debrief in the days to come.’
‘I only like it when Scarlett here debriefs me.’ He winked but his heart wasn’t really in it.
The men still didn’t smile. Neither did Scarlett come to that.
‘Miss Cook will also be debriefed,’ the older man said. ‘In the meantime, we thank you both for your service to your country and we release you from any further obligations.’
Devereau’s pathetic attempts at light-hearted banter vanished. ‘That’s it? You’re giving me the boot?’
‘We will take up the hunt for Stefan Avanopoulos from here. We are in a better position to find him.’
‘I don’t think Avanopoulos is the mastermind.’
The anonymous man barely reacted. ‘I’ve heard your theory. You’re talking about Alina Bonnet. It’s very doubtful that she is still alive. She wouldn’t have the means or the power to pull off an operation like this. Leave the strategy and analysis to us. We’re better at it.’
Devereau bit back his anger at such blithe dismissal. ‘I think you’re under-estimating what she could be capable of.’
‘Women rarely do this kind of thing.’
‘Actually,’ Greensmith broke in, ‘that’s not true. There are several studies which show –’ She faltered in mid-sentence when the man gave her a cold look.
‘Regardless, we have this now. You don’t have to worry, Mr Webb. We are in charge now. You are done.’ He jerked his head to the right. ‘Your car is waiting over there.’ He stepped aside, folding his hands together and waiting for Devereau and Scarlett to depart.
Devereau remained exactly where he was. His eyes swung from man to man before sliding to Greensmith. ‘It’s you,’ he said quietly. ‘You’re going to be the scapegoat.’
‘You should go, Mr Webb,’ Greensmith said.
‘You recruited me. You identified Solentino as a target. You ran the operation to infiltrate his little gang.Yousaw the threat. And now you’ll be blamed.’
She gazed at him and, for the first time, Devereau thought he saw her mask slip. Beyond her brisk, no-nonsense façade, there was vulnerability. And rage. He knew that the latter wasn’t directed at him, however, but at the blank faced men who were standing next to her. There was far more to Sarah Greensmith than he’d given her credit for.
‘Go,’ she repeated.
‘And what if I don’t?’
‘You’re not helping,’ she said.
Scarlett moved up beside him and took his elbow. ‘Devereau,’ she murmured. ‘Let’s get out of here.’
‘It’s for the best,’ Greensmith said. She bowed her head. ‘You did good, Devereau Webb. Don’t ever tell yourself otherwise. This is not on you.’
‘Let’s go, Ms Greensmith.’ Two of the men moved up, each one taking one of her arms, as if they thought she was going to make a run for it and sprint across the airfield to get away from them.
Devereau gazed at them all in disgust. ‘You people. You fucking people.’
* * *
The MI5 driver,who was as taciturn as his colleagues, dropped them off in the centre of Soho.
‘The entire city is on alert looking for Stefan Avanopoulos,’ Scarlett said to Devereau. ‘And I’m fresh out of ideas. Unless you’ve had any brainwaves in the last hour that you’ve not told me, I don’t think there’s anything more we can do.’
He desperately wanted to disagree. He knew, however, that he couldn’t. Sarah Greensmith had been right. The bad guys were about to win. He gave Scarlett a tight nod and looked away.
‘Heart will be too busy right now,’ Scarlett said. ‘I’m not in the mood for people but I don’t want to go home to sit alone and I have no idea what I’ll say to Lord Horvath right now. I know a little place near here. Do you feel like a drink before you head home?’
