Free Soft Target (Major Crimes Unit Book 2) by Iain Rob Wright

pub in Studley as well, ” Palu said.  “ Apparently there ’ s clear footage of the suicide bomber. ”
    Something on Howard beeped. “ There ’ s been another video, ” he said, looking at
his phone.  “ Released on the Internet, this time.  It already has a million hits
on ClipShare . ”
    “ They must be angry that we kept their first video secret, ” Dr Bennett said.  “ They want to make sure they get credit this time. ”
    Sarah sighed.  “ Now they can claim the Government kept the cause of Sunday ’ s attack secret.  It ’ s a good way to sow even more discord. ”
    “ Put the video on the big screen, Howard, ” Palu
instructed.  “ It ’ s the only thing we have to work with for the moment. ”
    This time, the three men in
the video were not wearing headscarves.  They wore red bandanas over their
mouths instead.  Each was also wearing matching army fatigues. Sarah couldn ’ t be sure, but the uniforms looked like British Army, issued in the
eighties perhaps.  Her father had worn something similar during the Falkland ’ s conflict. 
    In the background of the video
was a single desk holding a dusty old lamp.  There was nothing else to see
except brick wall and an unidentified light source overhead.  It swung and
tilted slightly as if a ceiling bulb were swinging to-and-fro.
    The man at the front of the
shot began his speech, his voice gravely and thick beneath his bandana.  His
eyes were a deep brown and soulless.  “ People of the UK,
today begins your reckoning.  Your villages burn like the ones set aflame by
your own government.  The time for you to taste your own medicine has come. 
Your trinkets and idols will be taken from you, death and misery left in their
place.  You will suffer, as innocent people around the world have suffered
under your country ’ s amoral boot heel for centuries.  We are watching your soldiers,
your agents, and your murderers-for-hire all around the world.  Every time they
take a life, we will take more, that is our pledge.  The four villages set
ablaze are payback for a decade of murder in Afghanistan.  You kill, we kill. 
Remove your soldiers and the killing will stop.  Have your Prime Minister
renounce Britain ’ s imperialistic past and it ’ s greed-soaked
present, and we will disband.  Until that time, we are humanity ’ s army, fighting for the future.  Shab Bekheir will show you
the way .  Sometimes death is the only way to ensure life. ”
    There was silence in the room
for several minutes while they all let things sink in.
    Palu ’ s phone beeping broke the silence.  “ The Prime Minister has just responded to the most recent tape, ” he told them.  “ She promises the terrorist ’ s actions will not go
unanswered and that Great Britain does not bend to threats. ”   He shook his head wearily.  “ The media are in uproar, warning against a
war on UK soil.  They ’ ve caught
wind of the first tape being suppressed and are citing the Government ’ s incompetence as the reason three more
attacks were allowed to happen. ”
    “ There ’ s going to be panic, ” Bradley said in a strained voice.
    “ I
need to contact Homeland, ” Dr
Bennett said, standing up to leave the room.  “ See if President Conrad is going to make a statement of support. ”  
    Bradley zapped something over
to the television screen.  It was the black and white CCTV feed from the pub in
Studley.  It showed a middle-aged woman wearing a long black cardigan.  She ’ d just entered the bar area of a typical bistro pub and was looking
around casually.  It was a place more eatery than boozer – the money was in the grub these days.  It made a strange target for
a terrorist attack.
    “ What are we looking at, Bradley? ” Howard asked.
    “ This is CCTV video footage taken from the Barley Mow pub in Studley, ” he explained.  “ The local police have cleaned up the image as best they can and cut
the footage down to the two minutes