Page 4 of Next in Line

CHAPTER 2

THE COMMANDER TOOK HIS PLACEat the top of the table, joining his inner team – a unit that had taken him five years to build, and was now acknowledged to be among the finest in the Yard. But their coup de grâce was surely catching up with Miles Faulkner in Spain after he’d escaped from custody and finally bringing him back to England to face trial.

However, the Hawk could only wonder how many of his team would be called on to give evidence in that particular case. William and Ross would have to face cross-examination from Faulkner’s no-holds-barred counsel. Booth Watson wouldn’t hesitate to let the jury know that two of the Met’s most experienced officers had seized his client illegally during a trip to Barcelona. The Hawk still had one ace up his sleeve though – he knew something about Booth Watson that a leading QC wouldn’t want the Bar Council to find out about – but it would still be a close-run thing.

The Hawk thought of the officers seated around that table more as family than colleagues, but then he had no childrenof his own. However, like all families, they had their problems and differences, and he wondered how they would react to what he was about to tell them.

Detective Chief Inspector Warwick may have been the youngest DCI in the Met, but no one referred to him as ‘Choirboy’ any longer, with the possible exception of DI Ross Hogan, who was sitting opposite him. Ross was undoubtedly the black sheep of the family, a maverick who was more interested in locking up criminals than filling in endless forms, and who had survived his frequent run-ins with superior officers only because the Hawk considered him the finest undercover operative he’d ever worked with.

On Hogan’s right sat DS Roycroft, one of Ross’s many former lovers, who was probably the bravest officer sitting around that table. As a junior PC just out of Hendon, Jackie had tackled a six-foot-six Algerian arms dealer and had him flat on the ground and handcuffed before the next officer arrived on the scene. But she was possibly better known among her colleagues for having knocked out an Inspector who had placed a hand on her leg while on duty. No one came to her defence when she reported the incident, as the Inspector in question was the only witness. And after that her career prospects had come to an abrupt halt, until the commander had spotted her potential and asked her to join his team.

Opposite her sat DS Adaja. Bright, resourceful and ambitious, he had handled any racial prejudice inside and outside the force with dignity and grace. The Hawk didn’t doubt that Paul would be the first black man to make commander. And what amused him was that Paul didn’t doubt it either.

Finally, DC Pankhurst, the youngest member of the team, who never mentioned her public-school upbringing, or first-class honours degree, and certainly not that one of her mostfamous ancestors had been to jail – more than once. Rebecca was possibly the cleverest officer sitting around that table, and the commander had already decided it wouldn’t be too long before she was promoted, though he hadn’t told her yet.

The trouble with commanding such a bright and energetic group was that you had to get up early – very early – in the morning if you hoped to stay a yard ahead of them. But on this occasion, the commander felt confident he was up and running before their alarms had gone off.

‘Let me begin,’ he said, ‘by congratulating you all on the roles you played in solving the cold murder cases that the Assistant Commissioner asked us to deal with. However, that is now in the past, and we must look to the future.’ He glanced up to find he had everyone’s attention.

‘The Commissioner, in his wisdom, has decided to take the unit off murder, and to present us with an even greater challenge.’ He made them wait, but only for a moment. ‘Royalty Protection Command,’ he allowed the words to hang in the air, ‘have become, in the Commissioner’s opinion, a law unto themselves. Their commanding officer, one Superintendent Brian Milner, is under the illusion that his unit is untouchable, answerable to no one other than the Royal Family, and therefore no longer a part of the Metropolitan Police Service. We’re about to disabuse them of that notion. For some time, Milner hasn’t bothered to interview outside candidates whenever one of his officers moves on or retires. That way, he never loses control of the unit, which is a problem in itself, because following the recent terrorist attacks around the world, MI6 have been in touch to warn us that the next target could well be a member of the Royal Family, who they feel are all too often an easy target. And that includes the Queen.’

This silenced everyone for a few moments, before Paulasked, ‘And where do MI6 think such an attack would come from?’

‘Probably the Middle East,’ said the Hawk. ‘Counter Terrorism are keeping a close eye on anyone coming into the country from Iran, Iraq or Libya, to name the three most obvious candidates. Assistant Commissioner Harry Holbrooke didn’t leave me in any doubt what we’re up against. He named the three terrorist organizations who are on his watchlist and pose an immediate threat.’

Everyone around the table continued to make notes.

‘Holbrooke doesn’t think they’ll leave the safety of their own countries, but has no doubt all three of them will have placed several sleeper cells around the UK who can be ready to move at a moment’s notice. He’s already set up surveillance teams to keep a close eye on a dozen or more of the most obvious candidates, but admits he doesn’t have enough foot soldiers to watch them all as his resources are stretched to the limit. With that in mind, he’s asked us to share whatever intel we come across, however insignificant we might consider it at the time.’

‘Cops and robbers are certainly a thing of the past,’ said Ross with some feeling.

‘The dim and distant past,’ said the Hawk. ‘And it doesn’t help that Holbrooke, among others, has lost confidence in Superintendent Milner as head of Royalty Protection, and wants him replaced as quickly as possible.’

‘For any particular reason?’ asked Ross.

‘Yes – when he phoned him at Buckingham Gate and left a message asking him to get in touch urgently, Milner didn’t bother to respond until a week later. And after Holbrooke had fully briefed him on the latest terrorist threat, all Milner had to say on the subject was, and I quote, “Don’t worry yourself, old chap, we’ve got it all under control.”’

‘Which prompts me to ask, sir,’ said Jackie, looking up from her notebook, ‘is the fact the Commissioner doesn’t think Milner is up to the job the only reason we’re all being assigned to Royalty Protection?’

Commander Hawksby remained silent for some time, before saying, ‘No, it isn’t. In fact, even Holbrooke doesn’t know the full story, because I still consider it an internal matter.’ He closed the file in front of him and added, ‘Stop writing,’ which they all obeyed without question. ‘The Commissioner also has reason to believe that Milner and some of his inner circle are bent, not least because he appears to be living the life of a minor royal on the salary of a Superintendent. And if that turns out to be the case, we are going to need incontrovertible proof of what he’s been up to for the past decade before we can even think about arresting him. Not least because, stating the obvious, he has friends in high places, some of whom he’s worked with for several years. With that in mind, Milner will be getting four new recruits joining him in the near future, but they won’t include Ross Hogan, who will be reporting directly back to me.’

‘Am I going undercover again?’ asked Ross.

‘No,’ said the Hawk. ‘In fact you couldn’t be more out in the open,’ he added without explanation.

No one else asked the obvious question, or interrupted while the boss was in full flow.

‘DCI Warwick will be joining Royalty Protection as Superintendent Milner’s second-in-command, but not until the rest of you are all fully up to speed with the problems you’ll be up against, which could take at least a couple of months. And remember, we don’t want Milner to find out what we’re up to. So make sure you don’t express any opinions to other colleagues outside of this room. We can’t afford togive that man the slightest opportunity to cover his tracks before we even turn up. DCI Warwick will be given considerable latitude to root out any other officers who consider themselves above the law, while at the same time trying to find out if they take the terrorist threat at all seriously.’

The commander turned to William. ‘The first problem you may encounter will be Milner himself. If the biggest apple in the barrel is rotten, what hope is there for the seedlings? Don’t forget that Milner has been in command of the unit for over a decade, and considers the only person he has to answer to is Her Majesty the Queen. You’ll have to tread carefully if you’re going to stick around long enough to find out how he’s getting away with it,’ the Hawk added, handing over the baton to the one person at the table who had already been fully briefed.

‘During the next few weeks,’ said William, ‘I want you all to carry out some in-depth research on how the Royal Family go about their public duties, while at the same time assuming you’ve never heard of them. Start with a clean sheet and treat them as if they are all criminals who need to be investigated.’

‘That should be fun,’ said Jackie.

‘You can start by booking a tour of Windsor Castle on an open day when no members of the Royal Family are in residence. Your single purpose is to get the lie of the land while at the same time checking security. I want you all to be a yard ahead, not a yard behind, by the time you report for your first day as Royalty Protection officers.’

‘Any bets against me getting into the castle unnoticed?’ said Ross.

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