‘You don’t think your CI may have lied to increase his value to you?’
‘That is always a possibility with a Criminal Informant,’ I said. ‘But the Khan brothers were known returnees. These men were battle-hardened jihadists.’ I took a deep breath. And then another. My rep was right – losing my rag would be bad news for everyone. ‘We now believe that it was Asad and Adnan Khan who brought down that Air Ambulance helicopter on Lake Meadows shopping centre. They wanted to take as many innocent lives as possible. So it wasn’t any kind of stretch to believe they were in the market for a couple of Croatian hand grenades.’
‘But that has never been proved in a court of law, has it, DC Wolfe?’ Flynn said. ‘Their involvement in the Lake Meadows attack?’
‘The house on Borodino Street was packed with drones. It was a drone that brought down that helicopter.’ I felt my blood rising. ‘The Khan brothers boasted on social media about their exploits in Syria. Torturing non-believers, burning prisoners to death, beheading aid workers – the usual heroics.’
I felt my Federation rep stir nervously by my side.
I smiled again at Marilyn Flynn, letting some of the anger seep out of me.
‘But you’re right,’ I agreed. ‘They died before they could be brought to any kind of justice. So – never proven in a court of law. That’s correct.’
She nodded, opened her laptop and hit a key.
Photographs of Jackson Rose and Raymond Vann appeared on the flat TV screen beside her. They were standard Met ID photos. But today they looked like police mugshots of guilty men. Even their call signs – Jackson was C7 and Vann was C3 – looked like jail numbers.
‘For the tape, can you identify the two firing officers, DC Wolfe?’
‘C7 is DC Jackson Rose and C3 is DC Raymond Vann.’
‘Had you met either of the two firing officers before Operation Tolstoy?’
‘I had never seen DC Vann before. But I grew up with Jackson – DC Rose. He’s my oldest friend.’
She stared at me, letting it sink in, exchanging a look with the old boy, Gordon Hunt, before proceeding.
‘You were on board the jump-off van with the entry team, correct?
‘Yes.’
‘What happened when you arrived in Borodino Street?’
‘DS Alice Stone was murdered.’
A flicker of irritation on Flynn’s face.
‘Before the death of DS Stone.’
‘The entry team were about to leave the van when the front door opened and someone wearing a niqab came out. One of those long black robes with a face veil.’
‘We know what a niqab is, DC Wolfe.’
‘I identified the figure as Asad Khan.’
‘How long did the ID take you?’ Flynn said.
‘I don’t know. A second? Five seconds? I really don’t know.’
Time moves differently when you are in the presence of violent death, I think. It stretches. A moment can feel like a thousand years.
But sharing this thought seems pointless.
‘Carry on,’ Flynn said briskly.
‘I made a positive identification of the target. DS Stone left the jump-off van and attempted to detain Adnan Khan. He was in possession of an assault rifle. He fired multiple shots at DS Stone. They proved fatal.’
‘Is this the weapon?’
A profile of a fifty-year-old Heckler & Koch G3 appeared on the screen with the strapline EVIDENCE and a serial number.
‘Yes.’
‘Then C7 – DC Rose – shot Mr Khan,’ Flynn said.
‘No,’ I said. ‘The SFOs left the jump-off van. C7 – DC Rose – issued the appropriate verbal warning to Mr Khan. “Armed police! Drop the weapon and show me your hands!” DC Rose – C7 – followed procedure to the letter. And then I saw C7 fire two shots at Mr Khan. They both struck the target.’
A small smile on Flynn’s glossy lips. ‘You can remember his exact words? In all that confusion and gunfire? You have a remarkable memory.’
‘Thank you very much.’
I felt my rep moving in his seat.
‘Why did you enter the house?’ Flynn said.
‘I was there to ID the two targets. That was my role. We had only identified one target. I believed that the other brother, Adnan Khan, was in the house. And there was the possibility of other armed KAs being on the premises. We had no idea how big the cell was.’
‘KAs?’
‘Known associates. As you are aware, there is an ongoing investigation by CTU to see if the Khan brothers were part of a wider network of murdering nutjobs.’
‘What happened inside the house?’
‘I saw drones. Boxes of drones everywhere. That’s when I knew these gentlemen had been responsible for bringing down that Air Ambulance helicopter.’
Flynn shook her elegant head.
‘Let’s forgo the speculation and stick to the facts, shall we, DC Wolfe?’
‘Then these are the facts. I entered the house on Borodino Street and in the kitchen I discovered Ahmed Khan, the father of the Khan brothers, Azza Khan, their mother, and their teenage granddaughter Layla, whose father died fighting for Islamic State in Syria. They were all clearly terrified. I instructed them to leave the house as quickly as possible with their hands in the air.’
I raised my hands to demonstrate. Palms facing outwards, showing they held nothing.
Gordon Hunt stirred.
‘Was that because you were afraid that some trigger-happy SFO might take a potshot at them when they came out,’ he said, smiling.
It was not a question.
‘No,’ I said. ‘I was afraid they could die in crossfire. My colleagues from SC&O19 conducted themselves with total professionalism throughout Operation Tolstoy.’ I paused at a memory. ‘Seconds after Asad Khan had shot and killed DS Stone, SFOs who loved her were giving Asad Khan first aid in an attempt to save his life.’ I shook my head with genuine wonder. ‘I never questioned their professionalism. I was simply trying to ensure there was no unnecessary loss of life.’
Gordon Hunt seemed wide-awake now.
‘And after Mr and Mrs Khan had fled the building with their granddaughter you went down to the basement and witnessed C3 – DC Vann – discharge his weapon into Adnan Khan.’
Again, it is not a question.
‘No,’ I said. ‘That’s not what happened.’
I am not going to rat him out.
But I am not going to lie for him.
I felt the sweat trickle down my back for the first time today.
Because I suddenly understood that I was attempting to do the impossible.
How far can you bend the truth until it stops being the truth?
‘I heard a single shot in the basement,’ I said slowly. ‘I then left the kitchen and went down into the basement. C3 had already discharged his weapon. I assumed that Khan had made some move for a weapon or that C3 – DC Vann – believed he had made such a move. I identified the target, Adnan Khan. He was dead.’
They let that sit there for a while. They made a point of not looking at each other. The perspiration slid further down my spine.
My Federation rep was perfectly still.
‘Just to be clear,’ Hunt said. ‘You were not in the basement when Khan was killed?’
‘No.’
Hunt consulted his notes.
‘Because C3’s testimony puts you down there.’ He paused. ‘In the basement, DC Wolfe, when the fatal shot was fired, DC Vann insists you were there and you witnessed Adnan Khan on his feet and making a sudden movement, as if to retrieve a weapon – although no weapons were found in that basement. You can’t corroborate his version of events?’