Free Gray Salvation by Alan McDermott Page B

foot-and-mouth disease less than thirty miles from here,’ Thompson said. ‘At the moment, we believe it’s an isolated incident, but just in case it spreads, we’re checking all nearby farms to make sure you have procedures in place to combat it.’
    The woman’s face was a mask of horror. ‘Please tell me you’re joking!’
    ‘I wish I was,’ Thompson said, ‘but so far we have four infected cows and we’re conducting further tests on the other livestock on the farm.’
    A shell-shocked Jennie agreed to show Thompson around the farm, and explained her concerns. ‘Back in 2007, my husband and I had a farm near Pirbright. We lost three hundred head of cattle due to that testing facility’s damn negligence.’
    Thompson nodded mechanically as she led Jennie to a Land Rover and inspected the wheels.
    ‘How many vehicles do you have here at the moment?’
    ‘Just this and my estate,’ Jennie said.
    Thompson had been looking for side roads and fresh tracks during their brief walk, but she’d seen nothing to suggest that Jennie was being anything other than honest.
    She mentally crossed this farm off her list as she put her hand into her pocket and hit the button to test her ringtone.
    ‘Excuse me,’ she said, and held the chiming phone to her ear. She pretended to listen for a moment, then turned to Jennie.
    ‘Sorry, but I’ve just been told about another possible infection. I’m going to have to cut and run.’
    She walked quickly back to her car and sped off. The first farm had been a bust; six more remained in the area.
    Andrew was in one of them, she was sure, and time was running out.

    The Spetsnaz veteran with the scarred face picked up the chirping mobile and pressed the green button.
    ‘ Da. ’
    ‘What’s your situation?’ Bessonov asked.
    ‘He’s packed up and ready to go. We’ll be at the airport in a couple of hours.’
    ‘Just send the doctor,’ Bessonov said. ‘Tell him Polushin will meet him at the freight terminal.’
    ‘What about the rest of us?’
    ‘The news is reporting roadblocks in your area. There’s no confirmation of what they’re looking for, but we have to assume it’s you. They have no reason to detain an English doctor, but ten Russians are a different matter.’
    ‘We have that covered,’ the soldier said. ‘We sent the vehicles north on the motorway. Once they’re spotted on camera, the police will send everyone to intercept them.’
    He’d instructed two farmhands to get as far from the area as they could and, if spotted by the police, to flee for as long as possible.
    ‘Good. I’ll send someone to monitor the area. As soon as the police leave, get to the airport. We have a charter plane waiting to go.’
    The soldier ended the call and told his men to load the crate into the back of the doctor’s estate car. It took four of them to lift it, the MI5 agent’s body making for a heavy load.
    ‘Now what?’ Vasily asked.
    The leader gave the doctor his instructions and watched him climb into the vehicle and drive off.
    ‘Now we wait,’ he said.

    Sarah Thompson negotiated another tight curve on the narrow country lane and stamped on the brake as she saw a green estate coming the other way. Both cars had to ease onto the grass to crawl past each other, then she hit the accelerator, following the directions for the third farm on the list.
    When the satnav’s electronic voice told her she’d reached her destination, Thompson pulled over and climbed out. Over a hedge, she could see an array of buildings and several head of cattle grazing in a nearby field, oblivious to the spitting rain. A two-storey house sat off to one side, and in front of it sat a minibus.
    She immediately got the feeling something wasn’t right. It wasn’t the kind of vehicle she’d expect to see on a farm, and adrenalin started coursing through her veins as she realised she might have the right place.
    Her first thought was to call for backup, but she hesitated. That would mean