Ultimate Weapon (53 page)

‘How the hell did you get into this car?’ Jed snapped, leaning forward.

‘We’re the Firm,’ said Wragg, glancing back from the driver’s seat. ‘We can get anywhere.’

‘And we can do anything we want, to anyone, anytime,’ said Muir. ‘You get my meaning …?’

‘Don’t threaten me,’ said Jed.

‘I’ll threaten anyone I fucking well please, nancy boy.’ Jed leant back in the seat, looking ahead. The car was already heading across country. It was just after eleven
at night, and there wasn’t any traffic around. Muir was right. They could do anything they want.
And they probably would …

‘Who are they, Jed?’ said Sarah.

Her voice sounded fragile, nervous. In the nine months since they’d been back from Iraq, they’d talked about the consequences of what they’d learnt in that country. Jed had always supposed there would be a reckoning one day, but as the months passed by, and as he was allowed to quietly leave the Regiment and look for new work, he was starting to wonder if it hadn’t all drifted into the history books.

But your past always catches up with you, he thought.
Just ask Nick …

‘We’re very bad people,’ said Muir, looking straight at Sarah. ‘And we’re not about to go away.’

‘It’s the Firm,’ said Jed. ‘And the Scottish arsehole … well, he’s the government, I suppose.’

‘What do you want?’ said Sarah to Muir.

‘Nobody knows why we really invaded Iraq,’ said Muir. ‘And we intend to keep it that way.’

‘You mean the secret of nuclear fusion.’

Muir nodded. ‘Once he had you, Saddam had it, and we couldn’t have allowed that. It would have made him too powerful. It would have destroyed the global oil industry. There were big forces at stake –’

‘There still are,’ Jed interrupted.

Muir shook his head. ‘I’m not generally a man who makes deals, but I’ve got an offer for you,’ he said. ‘We don’t like this technology –’

‘It could change the world economy,’ Sarah interrupted.

‘Yeah, well, we like the world economy just the way it is, thank you very much,’ said Muir. ‘And we plan to keep it just the way it is, with the same people in charge. So, we’ll make you an offer. You just go back to studying atoms or whatever it is you do in the lab, nancy boy here can make some money in the City, and shag you senseless every night, and everybody’s going to be happy. But if we hear anything more about nuclear fusion, there’s going to be an accident. And nobody will ever hear from you again.’

Wragg pulled the car to a sudden halt. ‘It’s the best deal you’re going to get,’ he said. ‘Jim wanted us to kill you right now.’

‘The bloody bed-wetters at the Firm talked me out of it …’

‘I –’

Sarah was about to speak, but Jed had already grabbed hold of her hand. ‘It’s fine,’ he said, his voice low and determined. ‘We just want to get on with our lives. You’ll never hear a thing about fusion again.’ He paused. ‘But I have made notes of all the science technology needed to build a cold-fusion reactor, and if I ever hear from you bastards again, then they’ll be released to the world.’

Muir started climbing out of the car. Wragg was already walking down the side of the road towards the Audi that had pulled up in front of them. ‘You’re an evil bastard,’ said Sarah, as Muir stepped out on to the dark road.

Muir shook his head ruefully. ‘You want to watch the lip on that one, nancy boy,’ he said, glancing at Jed. ‘I might shag her if it was dark enough, but I wouldn’t marry the cow. Couldn’t stand the arguing …’

‘Watch it,’ muttered Jed.

He’d already slammed the door on the Bentley.

‘How the fuck are we going to get to our hotel now?’ Jed yelled out of the window.

Muir looked back at them. ‘Ask the muffin,’ he said, nodding towards Sarah. ‘She’s the bloody rocket scientist in the family.’

Sarah climbed over to the front seat of the car. The keys were still in the ignition. She fired up the engine, and the car purred into action. Glancing at Jed in the rear-view mirror, a smile started to flicker across her face. ‘You know what,’ she said. ‘There’s no technology. I wasn’t even close to cracking nuclear fusion. And neither were the Iraqis.’