‘If you’re planning an arranged marriage for me, I’ll kill you, you know that.’
‘No guy is getting near you, not without getting past us,’ said Daniel.
Sarah giggled. ‘You guys are terrible,’ she said. ‘Anyway, it’s only a first interview.’
‘They’d be crazy not to hire you,’ said Daniel.
She looked at her watch again. ‘I should go.’
Both men hugged her tightly.
‘Be careful,’ said Daniel.
Sarah frowned. ‘What do you mean?’
Daniel forced a smile. ‘I don’t know. I just…’ He shrugged. ‘Go on, off you go. And don’t come back without a job offer.’
The two brothers stood and watched as Sarah walked to the escalators. She raised her right hand and waved without looking back as she disappeared from sight.
‘Don’t go,’ whispered Daniel.
Adam turned to him. ‘Why did you say that?’
‘I don’t know. I just had a bad feeling.’
‘She’s a big girl now. She can take care of herself.’
‘She’s our little sister. And since Mum and Dad died, she’s our responsibility.’
‘She got a first at Oxford,’ said Adam. ‘You got a two: two in special effects from Bolton.’
‘Fuck you, bruv.’
‘Fuck you too,’ said Adam, ruffling his hair.
‘We can’t all be doctors,’ said Daniel. ‘I’ve got to run. We’re on location.’
‘Yeah? What’s the movie?’
‘A low-budget sci-fi thing they’re filming up at Pinewood. I’ve got to make three heads explode on a budget of two grand.’
‘I bet Spielberg never had these problems.’
‘Everyone has to start somewhere.’
Adam put an arm around his younger brother’s shoulders. ‘I was joking, bruv. You’ll make it big one day. This family’s destined for greatness, I can feel it.’ He took a last look at the entrance to the Underground, then headed outside with his brother.
PICCADILLY LINE (7 July 2005, 8.50 a.m.)
Sarah sat down in the last free seat in the carriage and took a deep breath. As the train pulled away from the platform she looked over at the young Asian man standing by the door with a backpack slung over one shoulder. He was staring at her with deep-set eyes. The train picked up speed. Now the man was staring at a woman with a young daughter. The child was three or four years old, holding a small Paddington Bear. She smiled at Sarah and Sarah smiled back.
The man straightened his back and raised his right hand. He was holding something in his hand, something metallic. He took a deep breath, threw back his head and screamed at the top of his voice, ‘Allahu Akbar!’
There was a blinding flash and then everything went dark.