Avenger by Andy McNab Read Free Book Online Page A

in the mix. Which means no big bang. OK?'
    Danny realized that he should have known there was always a sound operational reason for his grandfather's decisions. 'Yeah, sorry.'
    'No problem.' Fergus smiled at Elena. 'And anyway, like I told you before, we'll get him long before Elena starts mixing up the brew.'
    Elena didn't look convinced.

11
    Returning to Foxcroft was going to be strange. Spring was moving towards summer, but it felt as though years had passed.
    Elena was with Deveraux in the front of the gunmetal-grey Nissan Almera, and Danny was in the back. Deveraux had made it perfectly clear that Danny would be going nowhere near Foxcroft itself, because as far as Dave and Jane Brooker were concerned, he had long since left the area with his grandfather.
    But with Fergus booked in for a physiotherapy session on his injured leg back in Oxford, Deveraux had decided that the journey to Camberwell in southeast London, and then on to the Passport Office, located in Eccleston Square, Victoria, would be a good opportunity for her to question the youngsters to see how they were progressing with their training.
    A complete cover story had been invented by MI5 to get Elena away from Foxcroft on a temporary basis: Marcie Deveraux was her aunt, her late mother's sister. All the necessary paperwork and documentation had been provided to convince social services that it was quite natural for aunt and niece to spend some time together before deciding whether or not to make the arrangement permanent.
    But an unexpected return to Foxcroft was now necessary to collect Elena's birth certificate and to get the application form countersigned by Dave.
    Under Deveraux's instruction, Elena had called the Passport Advice Line the previous afternoon to discover the correct procedure for obtaining a passport urgently. She was told she was ineligible for the one-day, Premium Service; that was only available to existing passport holders. The best Elena could get was the Fast Track service, which would guarantee a passport sent to her within a week.
    Fergus and Deveraux decided that was the route they had to take. If Black Star were to discover that Elena had been able to find a way around rules and regulations, the entire mission would probably be compromised.
    It would have to be a week, and Black Star would have to know why.
    The day before, Elena had rung to make an appointment at the office in Eccleston Square, and then they had collected an application form and had some passport photos taken in a booth at Woolworths.
    Now, at just before 8:20 a.m., Deveraux parked the car in a side street close to Foxcroft. She had chosen the arrival time deliberately. The young residents of Foxcroft would have left for school by 8:20, which meant that there would be no old friends around for Elena to have 'catch-up' chats with. The fewer people she came into contact with, the better.
    Deveraux switched off the engine and turned back to Danny. 'Stay here. We won't be long – I've allowed thirty minutes so that we don't arouse the Brookers' suspicions. So don't you go walkabout. Got that?'
    Danny nodded. 'Can you leave the keys in the ignition?'
    'Why? Are you thinking of going joyriding?'
    'I'm not that stupid,' said Danny with a sigh. 'If I've got to sit here, I might as well listen to the radio.'
    Deveraux considered for a moment. 'All right. But not too loudly. I don't want you drawing attention to yourself, or to the vehicle.'
    She opened the driver's door and looked at Elena. 'Ready?'
    'Yeah. It'll be good to see Dave and Jane.'
    'Just be careful what you say,' said Deveraux as she stepped out of the car.
    'I know!' snapped Elena. 'You've told me a hundred times.' She reached for the door handle and angrily wrenched it open.
    'Give my love to Dave and Jane,' called Danny as Elena got out.
    Deveraux leaned back into the vehicle and glared at Danny over the back of the driver's seat. 'Don't be stupid.' She moved back and slammed the door just as Elena shut