Free Ultimatum by Simon Kernick Page A

responsibility any more. If it had been any other copper sitting where you are today, things would move slowly. With you, I think we might be able to get somewhere.’
    Tina resisted telling him that as a DC in a mid-sized CID department, she really wasn’t in that powerful a position. ‘I’ll do what I can,’ she said.
    He nodded slowly. ‘I know you will. I hear there’s a team still investigating the events at the Stanhope. I’m assuming they briefed you before you came here.’
    ‘I’ve had some background,’ said Tina noncommittally.
    ‘How are they getting on? I haven’t seen news of any arrests.’
    ‘I can’t discuss ongoing enquiries with you, Mr Garrett.’
    ‘And I bet the bombs this morning gave them something of a shock.’
    ‘Bombs?’
    ‘Don’t tell me I’m better informed than you are.’ He smiled, showing teeth. ‘There were two more bombs about half an hour ago. I saw it on TV in my cell while I was waiting for you. The police were about to raid a flat of someone involved in the first bomb when there were two separate explosions. It looks like it was a trap.’
    Tina resisted asking him for more details. She’d been blindsided by this information. She was annoyed that Mike Bolt hadn’t phoned her straight away, and surprised that the governor hadn’t known either. Or maybe he had, and the bastard had just chosen not to tell her. ‘The bomb, or bombs, this morning are a CTC matter,’ she told him.
    ‘It all looked very sophisticated. That’s what they kept saying on the news. And I’m willing to place a very big bet that the people behind it are the same ones who planned the Stanhope siege.’ He looked round the empty, windowless room. ‘Is this being recorded?’
    ‘Right now, anything you say is off the record. You have my word on it.’
    He put his elbows on the table and rested his chin on the backs of his cuffed hands. He was watching her very carefully. ‘If, hypothetically speaking of course, I was to provide you with information that helped you, how would I benefit?’
    ‘It depends what the information is.’
    ‘The names of the people behind the Stanhope siege and today’s attack.’
    Tina kept her expression neutral. She was surprised by his confidence that the people he was talking about were responsible for both attacks. He’d been behind bars for fifteen months, after all. ‘I’ll be straight with you,’ she said. ‘You’re never going to walk free. Not after what you’ve done. You know the evidence against you is massive, and that your chances of acquittal are almost nil, no matter what kind of representation you have. Which means you’re going to be convicted of premeditated mass murder with zero extenuating circumstances.’ She paused. ‘But there are different ways of doing the time.’
    ‘I need to know there’s a release date.’
    Tina shook her head. ‘I can’t promise you that. There’d be a public outcry if you were let out after what you’ve done.’
    Fox seemed to think about this before nodding slowly, as if accepting the inevitable. He dropped his hands and leaned across the desk again, his face coming too close to Tina’s for comfort. ‘I expect you’re wondering how I know that the people behind the Stanhope siege are responsible for today.’
    ‘It crossed my mind, yes.’
    ‘Check the bombmaker’s signature. It’ll be the same man who built the bombs used at the Stanhope. But the people involved will be covering their tracks. So whatever you or your bosses may think, I’m your best chance of finding them and building a case against them.’
    ‘And you do know who they are?’
    ‘Absolutely. These are the organizers, the ones providing the funds and the resources. But they stay a long way from the action. And they’re not finished yet.’
    ‘Are we talking about unfriendly Arab governments?’ asked Tina.
    ‘There was Arab involvement in the Stanhope operation,’ said Fox. ‘They wanted to pay the UK government