Rafi was introduced to the crew of the first helicopter to carry concrete to the wrecked train, who by the end of the day had flown more sorties than any other crew. He then found himself talking to Roger and Steve from the Immigration team. They seemed awestruck by their fellow guests and were standing quietly to one side – conversation with them was an uphill battle.
‘I’m so pleased you could come. Whilst you are here, you might like to make the most of it – where else can you meet the head of MI5?’ Rafi surreptitiously pointed out Ewan. ‘Next to him is the Chief of the Defence Staff and shortly we’ll be joined by the Prime Minister. And, Roger, you might even pluck up the courage to tell the new Home Secretary what you think of the system you work under! You shouldn’t feel out of place… please remember that without your help things would be far, far worse.’
They visibly grew in stature and headed off to mix with the other guests.
At that moment the PM and the Chancellor arrived with their entourage. Saara did the introductions, from which it became apparent she now had friends in high places.
The PM was apologetic. ‘I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve brought along a couple of gatecrashers. My last meeting overran and, as a reward for them talking too much, here they are!’ he introduced the leaders of the two main opposition parties, who were now high-ranking cabinet ministers.
The PM moved off to work the room as only a top class politician can.
Meanwhile, the Chancellor was greeted by Steve and Saara. He was in an ebullient mood. The flak he had feared following the Stratford disaster had not happened. His initiatives had worked their way through Parliament and were having a rejuvenating effect on public sentiment.
‘I’ve been meaning to ask you a question, if you don’t mind?’ asked Rafi. ‘How close were we to joining the Euro?’
The Chancellor put his arm on Rafi’s shoulder and ushered him to one side. ‘Between you and me, it was close – very close! In the House, I was almost more worried waiting to receive the message from the Bank of England, which would tell me whether they’d done a deal with the Central Banks, than the messages telling me if the terrorists had been captured. When I stood up we only had a couple of smaller Central Banks offering to support Sterling, but it was at an unacceptably low exchange rate and contingent on others getting involved. The Governor of the Bank of England did a fantastic job.’ His voice went quieter. ‘I am told it is a senior individual at the Hong Kong Monetary Authority who we have to thank. He realised how intertwined Sterling, the City of London and the international financial markets were. Anyway, within forty-five minutes he had three of the top twenty countries with the highest foreign exchange reserves agreeing to support Sterling. Then Japan, the US and India came on board and the rest is history.’
The Chancellor smiled. ‘I was jubilant when I read the message saying how much support Sterling had. I could scarcely believe my eyes. And I must tell you how much I appreciate all you have done. Your foresight into what was going on in the financial markets, and your team’s proposals got me out of a really difficult situation. Thank you.’
Saara and Kate joined them. Rafi sensed that his conversation with the Chancellor had come to an end and he and Kate went off to mingle.
Food appeared. It was Mr Cheung at his best and Rafi told him so.
Plate in hand, Rafi stood in the middle of the room, enjoying the atmosphere and taking in the scene around him. He felt a soft squeeze around his waist from behind. ‘If I’d known you were this well-connected perhaps I’d have taken you a bit more seriously!’ said the seductive voice. ‘And who would have guessed that so many of my friends are friends of yours?’
The sentence was interrupted by the restaurant door swinging open. There, filling a substantial portion of the frame, was a heavily-built man. Behind him, was a well-dressed man of indeterminate age and a stunning dark-haired young woman.
The deep voice rang out. ‘Have I missed all the fun? Look who I met at the airport – a Dutch generaal! Someone should have told me that Heathrow is further away than your City Airport; and whoever put in those bloody bus lanes should be told they screw up the traffic when you’re in a hurry!’ This was followed by a booming laugh. ‘They tell me this is where we can find DCI Adams and an air chief marshal,’ rang out the deep voice, ‘And if I’m lucky, a Mr., Khan might be hiding here, with some vodka – if he values his life!’ The colonel paused. ‘If not, I’ve brought some best Estonian Turi.’
Beaming, Rafi and Kate went over to meet Colonel Matlik and his two companions.
He stuck out his hand as Rafi approached. ‘Rafi, it is great to meet you at last! I hope you don’t mind, I’ve brought my daughter, Kristina, with me. She knows nothing of your English ways. I thought if Kate and Emma were here to keep an eye on possible suitors, she might just be safe,’ he said with a chuckle.
‘And we have an invitation to see your Queen for tea tomorrow afternoon – such a nice surprise. Kristina has been impossible for weeks, fretting about what to wear. Now, where did you say the vodka was?’ And off he strode as if he were a man on a mission.
Rafi looked across towards Saara. She was smiling. He sensed that the guest list was complete. Standing behind Rafi was the Air Chief Marshal, and next to him was the PM.
‘Prime Minister and Mr Khan,’ said the Air Chief Marshal, ‘it is my pleasure to introduce you to Generaal Wilm Van Dijk of the Royal Netherlands Air Force. Had Wilm not stuck his neck out for us and lent us almost all his fleet of helicopters and transport planes, we would have been in great trouble.’ They shook hands and started talking.
Emma came over and introduced herself to Colonel Matlik’s daughter, Kristina. The colonel reappeared with two glasses and passed one to his daughter. ‘I told you they do things a bit differently here.’ He pointed out some of the more illustrious guests. ‘Where else in Europe can one go to a local Chinese restaurant and meet the Prime Minister, the heads of the armed forces and the intelligence service, and two police chiefs – and find them all mingling with the public? There must be an election coming up soon!’ he boomed.
David appeared at the colonel’s shoulder and suggested he might like to meet Ewan. Emma, meanwhile, took Kristina under her wing and together they went off to find Aidan.
Rafi walked over to chat to his grandfather, but saw he was in deep conversation with Colonel Gray. He stopped and moved over to be with Kate, who was standing watching the party. Within moments he and Kate were joined by the two commissioners.
‘We are most grateful to you for all you’ve done,’ said Len. ‘I always knew Giles had a good team at Wood Street.’
‘I understand that we’ll be meeting you again tomorrow,’ said Giles.
‘At the Garden Party?’ enquired Kate.
‘No, before that,’ said Giles.
Kate and Rafi looked puzzled.
‘Has anyone told you why you’re to see the Queen beforehand?’
‘No,’ said Kate blankly.
‘Well, Kate, you’re to be awarded the Queen’s Police Medal and Rafi is to be given the Queen’s Gallantry Medal. The police force is very proud of you.
They both looked at Giles in amazement and Rafi gave Kate a hug.
Ewan joined them. ‘Thank you for the invite; Jeremy tells me that you’re keeping him busy. Oh, by the way, did you see the photos of Maryam in the newspapers a couple of months ago?’
Rafi nodded. ‘I recall reading an article which described her as: Helping the police with their enquiries and intimated that she had done a deal – is that true?’ asked Rafi.
‘You shouldn’t believe everything you read,’ said Ewan. ‘In reality she’s being totally uncooperative. The photo was a setup. She’d thought she was about to be released on a technicality and was meeting a European human rights judge. The sheikh, Basel and Jameel, who are locked away in separate high security prisons, just happened to see the papers that day. They’re furious! As the saying goes, Divide and rule.’ Ewan gave Rafi a friendly pat on the shoulder. ‘Great party; if you’ll excuse me there are a couple more people I should like to chat to. Do keep in touch.’