Free Fair Game by Stephen Leather Page B

police?’
    ‘I wasn’t given a choice,’ said Shepherd. ‘SOCA took over the undercover unit and I was told I could start working with them or start pounding a beat in a uniform. SOCA was threatening to cherry-pick all the big cases so there wouldn’t have been much to do as a regular cop. I have to say that it didn’t work out that way, though.’
    ‘Why’s that?’
    ‘SOCA has been a bit of a failure,’ said Shepherd. ‘Too many pencil-pushers and too many box-tickers, too many chiefs and not enough Indians. Can you name any major SOCA successes over the past couple of years?’
    Stockmann nodded. ‘I’d be struggling,’ she said.
    ‘Don’t get me wrong, some of the work was challenging but at the end of the day all the investigations were cost-led. If it looked as if a target was going to be too expensive, we’d let it slide. The powers-that-be only wanted us to chase the cases that they knew we’d win, which basically meant that we never went near the top villains.’
    ‘That must have been frustrating,’ said Stockmann.
    ‘I put up three drug barons based in Amsterdam who between them are responsible for half the cannabis and probably ten per cent of the cocaine that reaches the north of England, but I was told that there weren’t the resources to go after them. So that was that. If we don’t go for them and the Dutch aren’t bothered, they effectively have a free pass. And the thing is, they know it. So what’s the point of having a law enforcement organisation if it doesn’t uphold the law?’
    ‘I assume that’s rhetorical,’ said Stockmann. ‘But I understand what you’re saying. Is that why you were happy to move to MI5 with Charlie?’
    ‘It was one of the reasons. Better the devil you know . . .’
    ‘And how are you finding the Secret Service?’
    ‘It’s not that secret, these days,’ said Shepherd. ‘It’s like every man and his dog knows what we do.’
    ‘And the work’s challenging?’
    ‘Espionage, terrorism, major crime.’ Shepherd nodded. ‘Plenty of variety, plus they’re not as budget conscious as SOCA was.’
    ‘Well, I suppose 9/11 and 7/7 were a big help financially,’ said Stockmann. ‘The government put billions into security and they weren’t overly concerned about where it went.’ She swirled her beer around her glass. ‘And how did you feel being in Ireland?’
    ‘It’s not my favourite place,’ he said. ‘The SAS aren’t best popular, despite the peace process and all. Plenty of people still bearing grudges.’
    ‘Was it tough?’
    Shepherd shook his head. ‘Not really. My legend was that I was an IRA sympathiser, brought up in the States and with five years in the Marines. That way it didn’t matter if my accent was all over the place. I was introduced through an undercover agent in New York and got close to the Real IRA’s Operations Director. We were gathering evidence against him and the rest of the Army Council.’
    Stockmann shuddered. ‘I don’t know how you can do that, get close to men who would kill you without hesitation if they knew who you were.’
    ‘The trick is to stop them ever finding out,’ said Shepherd. He sipped his shandy.
    ‘And how are things at home?’ Stockmann asked.
    ‘Ticking along nicely,’ said Shepherd, ‘though the absent father thing isn’t working out as well as I’d hoped. I’m spending a lot of time away from home.’
    ‘Your son still misses his mother?’
    ‘Of course. We both do. But I don’t think either of us is grieving any more.’ He smiled. ‘Liam’s just asked me about boarding school.’
    ‘That J. K. Rowling has a lot to answer for,’ said Stockmann.
    ‘I think he realises it’s not all magic spells and teachers with beards, but it caught me by surprise.’
    ‘How old is he now?’
    ‘Fourteen next birthday.’
    ‘He’s growing up.’
    ‘That he is. I’m just not sure that he’s ready for boarding school.’
    ‘It might make things easier, job-wise. With