First Response

LAMBETH CENTRAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMAND CENTRE (5.55 p.m.)

Kamran looked over at the clock on the wall. Six o’clock was fast approaching and there had been no call from Shahid. The coach had left the coffee shop in Marble Arch and was on its way to the Marylebone pub, less than a mile away.

The main screen in the special operations room was showing the feed from the Met helicopter that was tracking the coach and its convoy. The road ahead was clear of traffic but there were still onlookers at most of the intersections.

‘If they detonate now, they’re going to kill a lot of people,’ said Kamran.

‘We’re doing our best to keep the rubberneckers away but the TV isn’t doing us any favours,’ said Gillard. ‘They keep showing the route the coach will likely take and everyone wants their own video to put on Facebook or YouTube.’

‘That might be Shahid’s plan. He lets the great British public do all the publicity work.’

‘I hope you’re wrong, Mo,’ said Gillard.

‘You and me both,’ said Kamran.

Captain Murray came into the Gold Command suite, putting away his mobile phone. ‘They’ve got the timing down to two and a half seconds but that’s about it,’ he said.

‘What do you think?’ asked Gillard. ‘Is that enough?’

‘I wish I could say it was, but two and a half seconds is still a long time when all they have to do is press a button,’ said the SAS captain.

‘What about stun grenades?’ asked Kamran.

‘They’re a double-edged sword,’ said Murray. ‘They’ll likely stun all the occupants but it will increase the time it takes to clear the vehicle. Our driver will be affected, also. The question is whether we can stun them quickly enough and long enough to take them out before they get a chance to detonate. The problem is that flash-bangs don’t detonate instantly. The bad guys will see the canisters a fraction of a second before they go off and, unfortunately, a fraction of a second is more than enough time to press a trigger.’

‘Just a thought,’ said Chris Thatcher. ‘Do you have a negotiating team at the airport?’

‘I had assumed we’d be talking to Shahid,’ said Gillard.

‘That’s been the way it’s gone so far, but once we have the bombers isolated in the hangar there’d be an opportunity to talk to them direct.’

‘Shahid has gone out of his way to make sure that we only talk to him,’ said Kamran. ‘I don’t think he’s going to change his SOP.’

‘I was thinking of not giving him the choice,’ said Thatcher. ‘They’ll be isolated, Shahid won’t be able to see them. It might be an opportunity to make direct contact.’

Gillard looked at Kamran. ‘What do you think, Mo?’

‘When they’ve had the opportunity to negotiate, they haven’t taken it. In fact, other than at Wandsworth, they’ve gone out of their way to avoid it. Having said that, we should be covering all bases. It wouldn’t hurt to have a team there.’

‘What about you, Chris? Do you want to go? We could bike you there.’

‘I think I’m probably most useful here,’ said Thatcher. ‘Mo’s right. Shahid is the main point of contact. I just think it might be helpful to have someone on the ground with negotiating skills.’

‘We have half an hour,’ said Kamran. ‘I could talk to Bromley, see if they have any negotiators on call.’

‘Go for it,’ said Gillard.

Kamran looked up at the clock again.

‘That six o’clock deadline’s worrying you, isn’t it?’ said Gillard.

‘That was his deadline from the start,’ said Kamran. There was just a minute to go. He went to the door and looked at the main screen in the special operations room, which was showing the feed from the Met helicopter. The coach was approaching the Grapes pub in Marylebone.

Murray had followed him and put a hand on his shoulder. ‘It wouldn’t make sense to detonate before they’re all on board.’

‘I hope so,’ said Kamran. He found himself holding his breath as the seconds ticked off. The second hand reached twelve, then ticked past. On the big screen, the coach continued to power along the road, flanked by police motorcycles, their blue lights flashing. Kamran sighed with relief.

‘Don’t relax yet, Mo,’ said the SAS captain. ‘The crunch is half an hour away, when Shahid realises his people aren’t getting on a plane. That’s when the shit is going to be heading fan-wards.’