‘The military aren’t proposing to take any action yet against the terrorists Abdul has identified, for fear of alerting others, possibly more important, farther along the road. But we’ll pounce before too long.’
Lavenu spoke again. ‘And how was the morale of Monsieur Abdul, eight days ago?’
‘He spoke to our American colleague.’ Tab indicated Tamara.
Lavenu looked at her expectantly.
‘He was in good spirits,’ she said. ‘Frustrated by the breakdowns and delays, naturally, but learning an enormous amount about ISGS. He knows he’s in terrible danger, but he’s brave and tough.’
‘There is no doubt about his courage.’
Tab picked up the story. ‘We assume the bus went north-west from Faya to Zouarké, then due north, with the mountains on its right and the Niger border on its left. There are no paved roads there. Somewhere to the north of Wour the bus will have crossed the border, we assume. Abdul is probably in Libya now, though we have no way to be sure.’
Lavenu said: ‘This is not quite satisfactory. Of course we must accept that we may lose sight of an undercover operative, but are we doing all we can to find him?’
Tab said politely: ‘I don’t know what else we could do, sir.’
‘Presumably the radio signal from the consignment could be picked up by a helicopter overhead, following the most likely route of the bus?’
‘Possibly,’ said Tab. ‘It’s a huge area to cover, but it would be worth a try. We could assume that the bus took the shortest route to a paved highway, which is more or less due north. The problem is that the chopper would be seen and heard by the people on the bus, and the smugglers would realize that they are under surveillance, and then they would take some kind of evasive action.’
‘How about a drone?’
Tab nodded. ‘A drone is quieter than a helicopter and can fly much higher. Far better for clandestine surveillance.’
‘Then I will ask the French air force to send one of our drones to try to pick up the radio signal from the consignment.’
Tamara said: ‘That would be great!’ She would feel much relieved by a sighting of Abdul’s bus.
The meeting wound up soon after that, and Tab walked Tamara out to her car. The French embassy was a long, low modern building that gleamed white in the strong sunlight. Tab said: ‘You remember that my father is arriving today?’ He was smiling, but he seemed nervous – which was unusual for him.
‘Of course,’ Tamara said. ‘I can’t wait to meet him.’
‘Slight change of plan.’
She sensed that this was what he was nervous about.
He said: ‘My mother will be with him.’
‘Oh, my God, she’s coming to inspect me, isn’t she?’
‘No, of course not.’ Tab looked at Tamara’s sceptical expression and said: ‘Well, yes.’
‘I knew it.’
‘Is that so bad? I’ve told them about you, and naturally she’s curious.’
‘Has she visited you here before?’
‘No.’
What had Tab said, to bring his mother to Chad for the first time ever? He must have let his parents know that Tamara was likely to become a long-term part of his life – and theirs. She should be pleased, not anxious.
Tab said: ‘It’s ironic. Here in this lawless country you face danger every day without flinching, but you’re scared of my mother.’
‘It’s true.’ She laughed at herself. All the same, she was anxious. She brought to mind the photograph in Tab’s apartment. His mother was blonde and well dressed, but that was all she could remember. She said: ‘You’ve never told me their names. I can’t very well call them “Papa” and “Maman”。’
‘Not yet, anyway. He’s Malik. She’s Marie-Anatole, but she’s always called Anne, which works in many languages.’
Tamara noticed that phrase – not yet – but did not comment. She said: ‘When do they arrive?’
‘The flight gets in around midday. We could have dinner this evening.’
Tamara shook her head. People were often cranky after flying. She preferred they should have a night’s rest before she met them. ‘You should spend the first evening alone with them,’ she said. Not wanting to suggest that they might be ill-tempered, she said: ‘You’ll need to catch up on all the family news.’
‘Maybe . . .’
‘Why don’t you and I meet them for lunch tomorrow?’