Urban Assassin by Jim Eldridge

we
find
him?’
    ‘We don’t,’ said Nelson. ‘We let him come to us.’
    ‘We’ve tried that already,’ protested Gerald. ‘He got to Trooper Graham – and to Trooper Mitchell.’
    ‘Those were different scenarios,’ said Nelson. ‘He was in control of them, not us.’
    Mitch noticed both Tug and Benny nodding in agreement, and it suddenly struck him: they’ve been working out a plan. Nelson’s next words confirmed it.
    ‘Look, Gerald, so far we’ve done it by the book.
Your
book. We’ve followed orders. The end result is that too many of your people are dead, Two Moons is in hospital, Mitch here nearly got killed, and Deacon is still on the loose. All the while, all we’ve been doing is running around chasing our tails.’
    ‘That is unfair!’ protested Gerald. ‘There are proper procedures to follow. We’re not just some gang of hot-headed soldiers . . .’
    ‘And neither are we,’ Nelson cut in firmly. ‘We’ve tried it your way and it hasn’t worked. The conference starts the day after tomorrow. Deacon is still out there. If we go on as we have, he’ll kill your prime minister for sure. Do you want that to happen?’
    ‘Of course not!’ shouted Gerald.
    Once again, Nelson didn’t give him time to carry on. ‘Then hand this operation over to us,’ he said. ‘To Delta Unit. You brought us in because we know Deacon. You don’t. We’ve got more chance of stopping him than you have. You think you’re just dealing with some ordinary assassin. You’re not. He’s one of us. We trained with him. We fought with him. We know how he thinks, his methods – we know him from the inside.’ He pointed at the still smouldering building. ‘We advised you against going in like that
because
we know him.’
    Gerald stood, his face betraying his inner turmoil. Mitch could tell that every instinct in him, every part of his Intelligence training, toldhim to say no. But the prime minister’s life was at stake, and the spy had already seen what Deacon could do.
    ‘What’s your plan?’ he asked, finally.
    ‘Like I say, we get Deacon to come to us,’ said Nelson. ‘I’ve talked this over with my senior officers, Captain Tait and Lieutenant Jaurez . . .’
    Just as I thought, mused Mitch. They’ve been planning for this.
    ‘You put out a report that the prime minister’s had to go into hospital for some minor exploratory procedures just ahead of the conference. But instead, one of us goes in, while you keep the prime minister somewhere safe.’
    ‘What makes you so sure that Deacon will go for the prime minister in hospital? Surely he’d wait until the conference?’ argued Gerald.
    ‘No,’ said Tug. ‘This will seem like the ideal opportunity for Deacon. When’s the prime minister going to be easiest to target? At the conference, surrounded by top-level security? Or in a hospital,with just the regular bodyguards on duty?’
    Gerald thought it over. ‘He’ll see through it,’ he said. ‘He’ll know it’s a decoy – he’s used the same trick himself.’
    ‘We can convince him,’ said Benny. ‘Deacon knows we’ve been brought in especially for this because we know him. So we make it public that we’re the bodyguards in the hospital.’
    ‘How? Put out a press release?’ asked Gerald sarcastically.
    ‘Use the TV,’ said Tug. ‘Put out the announcement that the prime minister’s going into hospital. Show him on the news coming out of Number 10 and getting into a car. I’ll be the driver. Mitch and Benny get into the car as bodyguards. The colonel and Gaz get into a second car and we all drive off. Deacon is sure to see it – he’ll be keeping an eye on any media surrounding the prime minister.’
    ‘Once we get to the hospital, you lot smuggle the prime minister out and one of us takes his place in the private room,’ added Benny.
    ‘But you’ve got to keep all your troops out of sight,’ finished Nelson. ‘Make Deacon think it’s just us in there, that we’re the