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Sean asked.
    ‘From what we know we think it’s highly unlikely they would have met. Cramer was definitely not inside the core of the organization.’
    ‘But you can’t be absolutely sure?’ Chopra just shrugged. ‘And you’ve had this operation approved, despite the risk assessment?’
    ‘You’ll find the Director of Intelligence can be quite flexible around risk assessments when vulnerable children are involved. So are you in?’
    Sean felt the demons that silently waited just below the surface of his conscious mind reaching up for him, and he pushed them back down. The thought of not seeing the beautiful young doctor he’d only recently met made his heart sink further – a picture of Kate’s face, her golden-coloured skin and long, black ringlets, tormenting him with what he was about to miss. ‘Yeah,’ he forced himself to say. ‘I’m in.’

Chapter Three
Two Days Later
    The heavy key turned in the ancient Victorian lock and allowed the prison officer to open the iron-barred door that led into the prison wing where the prisoners on Rule Forty-Three were all kept together, isolated from the main prison population for their own safety. Convicted prisoners and those on remand awaiting court hearings and trials mixed together freely here – the convicted in prison uniform, the remanded still allowed to wear their own clothes. ‘This luxury wing of the hotel’s for you, Cramer,’ the prison officer told him, oblivious to Sean’s true identity. Only the Prison Governor and Head Prison Officer knew about the operation. Sean was posing as a prisoner on remand awaiting trial for sexual assault on a boy under the age of fourteen. The thought of staying in this place for weeks made him feel sick and froze him to the floor. ‘Come on, Cramer,’ the officer barked, ‘I haven’t got all day.’
    ‘Sorry,’ Sean replied meekly and stepped into the inner sanctum of the prison carrying his supply of bedding and towels. The door was slammed shut and locked behind him.
    ‘This way,’ the officer told him, striding along the metal-grid walkway that circled the entire wing, leading to the first-floor cells and two separate staircases, both zig-zagging down to the ground floor where more cells surrounded the communal and dining areas. ‘Hurry-up Cramer. I told you, I haven’t got all day.’
    Sean increased his pace, following the officer to a cell that was little bigger than the ones he was used to locking prisoners in across various police stations around London.
    ‘Your new home,’ the officer told him with a grin, ‘and you get it all to yourself – lucky you. We’re not too busy in here at the moment so enjoy the privilege while it lasts. Now make up your bed and put your wash stuff away, and keep an eye on your body wash and deodorants – they’re valuable things in here.’ Sean said nothing, standing in the middle of the cell still holding his bedding and towels, a sense of claustrophobia creeping into his body and mind. ‘Right,’ the officer exclaimed loudly, ‘I’ll leave you to make yourself comfortable. Dinner’s at six, lock-up’s at eight, TV’s off by eleven or at least turned down so I can’t hear it.’ With that he spun on his heels and walked out, leaving Sean alone to study his cell. An uncomfortable-looking double-bunk was riveted to the lime-green wall on one side, and a fold-down desk on the other. A small white toilet and sink that looked like they belonged in a school not a prison filled the space in one corner. At least Wandsworth didn’t have the pleasure of morning slop-out anymore.
    Sean threw the bundle he was holding onto the bottom bunk and kicked the side of the bed. He closed his eyes and cursed himself for accepting the deployment – for allowing his ego to rule his better, humbler senses – the word hubris ringing loud in his head. ‘Shit,’ he whispered to himself, wondering what the point of being a cop was if he was going to live the rest of his life as