First Response

LAMBETH CENTRAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMAND CENTRE (12.56 p.m.)

Kashif Talpur’s boss was a thirty-five-year-old inspector with the National Crime Agency. His name was Mark Biddulph and he arrived at the communications command centre in a leather jacket and jeans. ‘Day off,’ he explained. ‘I was at the dentist’s about to have a tooth drilled.’

‘Sorry to drag you away but we’re in the middle of a shit-storm,’ said Kamran. ‘We’ve got eight would-be suicide bombers at various locations around London.’

‘I saw it on the TV at the surgery,’ said Biddulph. ‘But what do you need me for? I’m not in anti-terrorism.’

‘One of the bombers seems to be your man — Kashif Talpur.’

Biddulph’s jaw dropped. ‘No fucking way,’ he said. ‘Excuse my French, sir, but Kash is one of my best men.’

‘There’s no way he could have fundamentalist leanings?’

‘He’s third-generation British,’ said Biddulph. ‘Grandparents came over just after the Second World War. His dad’s a teacher, mum’s a nurse. He supports West Ham, for God’s sake.’

Kamran tapped on his keyboard and Talpur’s face filled one of his screens. ‘Is that him?’

Biddulph stared at the picture taken from the CCTV camera on the bus.

‘Mark?’ prompted Kamran.

Biddulph stammered for a second or two, then shook his head fiercely. ‘Yes, that’s him. At least, it looks like him. But it can’t be.’

‘Can you call him?’

‘Sure.’ Biddulph took out a mobile and called a number. ‘Straight to voicemail,’ he said. He put the phone away. ‘Where is he?’

‘On a bus in Tavistock Square, threatening to blow himself to kingdom come if we don’t release six ISIS fighters from Belmarsh.’

‘That’s impossible,’ said Biddulph. ‘I don’t mean unlikely, I don’t mean out of character, I mean one thousand per cent impossible.’

‘Where is he supposed to be today?’

‘Brentford. That’s where the gang operates, mainly,’ said Biddulph. ‘He’s been doing a great job. There’s a group of two dozen Asians, minicab drivers most of them, that have been seducing the girls, passing them around and prostituting them. He infiltrated the gang but it soon became clear they were also involved in big-time drugs smuggling. The investigation has grown and grown but we’re almost ready to move in.’

‘And what does he do when he’s undercover?’

‘Hangs out with the Asian gang. Works part-time in a kebab house in Brentford. Almost four months now.’

‘So what’s he up to? Could this in any way be part of the case he’s on?’

Biddulph shook his head. ‘These Asians are Muslim, but in name only. They drink, they smoke dope and they screw underage girls. They go to mosques but maybe once a week, if that.’

‘But Talpur is a Muslim?’

‘Well, again, yes, but you don’t see him in the office face down on a prayer mat. And he drinks. Always buys his round. He can handle his booze, too.’

‘Could he have been hiding all this time?’ asked Biddulph.

‘What — you mean concealing fundamentalist leanings so that he could penetrate the Met?’ He shrugged and sighed. ‘Look, he’s a bloody good undercover cop so, yes, I suppose that’s possible. But if he was involved in some long-term penetration of the Met, why throw it all away to lay siege to a bus? Surely there’d be better ways of sticking it to us.’ He held up his hands. ‘But that’s just crazy talk. As I said, Kash is a bloody good officer, one of my best men.’

‘So what’s he doing on that bus?’ asked Kamran.

‘I have absolutely no idea,’ said Biddulph. ‘All I can think of is that he’s had some sort of breakdown.’

‘At the moment he’s got a trigger in his hand and he’s refusing to let anyone off the bus,’ said Kamran. He thought for a few seconds, then reached a decision. ‘You need to get out there and see if you can talk to him.’

Biddulph nodded. ‘No problem.’

Kamran turned to Lumley. ‘Joe, arrange a car for Inspector Biddulph. We need to get him out to Tavistock Square ASAP. Blues and twos.’ He looked back at Biddulph. ‘Is he married? Kids?’

Biddulph shook his head. ‘Three siblings. You’re thinking a tiger kidnapping?’ It was a common tactic used in robberies where a family member was kidnapped to force the relative to co-operate with the robbers. But the technique had been refined by the IRA, who had used tiger kidnappings to force civilians to plant car bombs, sometimes losing their lives in the process.

‘If you’re sure he’s not turned fundamentalist, maybe he’s being pressured,’ said Kamran. ‘Give me a list of family members before you go and I’ll get someone to check that no one has gone missing.’