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eighteen-year-old-squaddie level. ‘ Pommes frites . . . Bier . . . Taxi . . .’ was pretty much my limit, with the occasional ‘ danke ’ and ‘ bitte ’ thrown in. If anything else I wanted wasn’t on display – so I could point at it and shout – I had to go hungry.
    Spag stormed up to them, both hands still gripping the bag. ‘Shouldn’t we get moving?’
    Tenny carried on checking comms. He’d send Dex a sitrep when we were at the meet, and another as we left. If we didn’t report in, it meant a drama at our end. If he didn’t acknowledge, it meant one at his.
    I moved closer to the group. The contact was in his fifties. He ignored Spag. He dug in the pockets of his leather overcoat and pulled out a pack of F6.
    Red Ken waved a hand. ‘ Nein, nein .’ He flipped open his day-sack and dug out one of the mysterious rectangular packages, a carton of Benson & Hedges.
    The contact beamed as he ran his fingers along the cellophane. When Red Ken threw in a cheap disposable lighter, his early Christmas was complete.
    It was too much for Spag. ‘Jee-sus, let’s get going here! We stopping for tea and cucumber sandwiches, or what?’
    Red Ken was close to decking him. ‘We’ll go when we’re good and ready.’
    Tenny stepped between them. ‘We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for this guy. If he wants to wait and smoke, that’s what we do.’
    He shook the contact’s hand, triggering another stream of waffle. Tenny nodded. His German was excellent too.
    ‘We have to hold back a while. We have to give Vladislav time to make the RV. He wants to be there before us to check it out. And he has something he needs to discuss with Red before we move.’
    Spag wasn’t having any of it. ‘Fuck him. He’ll be history when this whole pile of crap collapses.’
    Red Ken offered the contact a cigarette from his own pack and they both lit up. Both drew deeply to help their creases along. The tips glowed and the smoke mingled with our breath. Red Ken glared at the American. He wasn’t playing. He showed every sign of being prepared to stand there until they’d smoked the whole carton.
    Spag spun on his heel and stormed back to the aircraft.

5
    I stood alongside Tenny as the other two kippered their lungs. My eyes were constantly on the move, checking for lights or other giveaways.
    Tenny checked his day-sack was secure. ‘You still coming to the wedding?’
    ‘Wouldn’t miss it for the world.’
    Even with his hair, Tenny had managed to trap the most beautiful woman on the planet. I was sure she’d been designed in a test tube. She was smart and funny too, a teacher at the girls’ prep school in Hereford. I was more than a little jealous of the great life he had ahead of him.
    ‘I’ve been thinking about going back to the Green Jackets after this tour. Janice and I are going for kids ASAP. I want to see them grow up, be a proper dad instead of spending years away. What do you reckon, Nick?’
    I hesitated. I might have shared food, sleeping-bags and even body lice with him, but I was the last person to ask about family stuff. ‘Don’t know, mate. Big decision. They offering a commission?’
    The day-sack was secure and he hauled it back over his shoulders. ‘Yep, seems like a good deal. Stay in, but still get to be a family man. Well, as much as you can, eh?’
    I nodded as if I knew. ‘I’d go for it, mate. You’ll be a general by the time I get within reach of sergeant. I’ll be your driver if you want.’
    The other two finished their cigarettes. Red Ken picked up the butts and put them in a pocket of his day-sack. ‘Right, let’s get on with it.’
    Tenny grabbed Spag and we crunched across the field towards the contact’s vehicle.
    ‘Listen in.’ Red Ken walked backwards so we could hear him clearly. ‘Stasi have been sniffing around this guy. They know something’s happening. Normally they want a kickback on the cash – or they have something to sell. They didn’t offer him anything, so