Flashbang

Chapter 3

Alastair watched as they began to near Vauxhall and then closed in on the MI6 headquarters. Tomas leaned forward, whispering something to the driver as they pulled into the carpark. Two agents filed out of the car, Tom following shortly afterwards and with a simple finger gesture, Alastair slid out and followed closely behind Tomas. The soldier looked around, watching agents pass by him as he was quickly body searched.

With everything in order, he proceeded to be guided up the stairs, along the corridor before they reached the wooden door. Tomas knocked sharply before taking a step back and waiting. Alastair's back straightened as rhythmic footfalls brushed against carpeted floors before the lock slid back and the door opened.

Eric's face spread into a smile, giving an acknowledging nod to Alastair before Tomas slipped past his boss and into the room. Alastair glanced over Eric's shoulder, noting the female in the room before movement caught his eye, Eric had held a hand out in which he reciprocated.

"It's very good to finally meet you, Mr. Lansbury. Come on in."

"Aye, sir." Alastair replied, a hint of wariness in his tone, but as Eric moved to one side, he walked in.

The door closed quietly behind him as Alastair went to stand behind a chair. The woman glanced up with a soft smile, "Hello."

Eric moved himself behind his desk, hand reaching out to feel the leaves of his plant before turning to face the trip that now stood in his office.

"Mr. Lansbury, this is Maria, she's the lead coordinator on this operation. You've met Tomas already."

Alastair turned to regard the two before facing Eric, "Tomas informed me of the situation in Beirut, about the six soldiers, but with respect, sir, I would like to know how my name has come about."

"Of course," Eric shot Tomas a look before his eyes settled back on the man in front. "It was more Tom's contribution to the solution. We do not have a lot of time, and thus is an urgent matter. It's difficult to mobilise our troops, due to the amounts of red tape and you were the best option; having been in Beirut before."

"We have not received any ransom threats, nor any such communication from the kidnappers. However, we can't sit around and not act. In short, we're asking for your help." Tomas added.

Alastair narrowed his eyes, remaining silent as he weighed up the pros and cons of accepting such a deal. Beirut had been a mess, something he was not keen to revisit as many enemies had been made during his little visit. He would be saving lives, one of the main reasons he had joined the Royal Marines at 16. His jaw tightened, his brow furrowing breaking the stoic gaze he held, "You want me to go in on such limited information?"

Eric moved a couple of files, before grabbing the main body of the stack and pushing them towards Alastair, "We understand there's an element of trust that is lacking at this point, but I've managed to gain access to the six soldiers' dossiers. We want to keep this as quiet as possible, as we don't know who's behind it and how powerful they may be."

He reached forwards, sliding the files onto his lap. Taking hold of one between finger and thumb, Alastair opened to the first page. A silent sigh escaped his lips, his jaw tightening once more as he gazed at the picture, his grip grew stronger on the corner of the folder.

"Freddie McIntyre," He tapped the picture as he looked up briefly, eyes betraying his emotions. Alastair's voice had softened. "I knew his older brother, James McIntyre, we served together in Afghanistan."

Alastair quickly cleared his throat as he moved to the next file, making note of the names and picking out certain details. His brow furrowed, pausing as he reached the last one, hand placed on top as he looked at the three people in the room, "Why were these men in Beirut?"

It was at this point that people fell silent, their gaze elsewhere. Alastair could see the tightness in Eric's jaw but he turned to the so-called coordinator of the failed op, "If you want my help, cut the bullshit. I need to know what they were doing."

Maria glanced up from her interlaced hands on her lap, clearing her throat, "They were attempting to cut the branches off the trees of the local cartel that has recently been causing havoc and attempting to weasel their way into power."

"Fantastic," Alastair commented dryly. "Did the lads give you any information?"

"Yes and no, they managed to gain us the locations of the drug smugglers but they had not gotten around to gaining any sort of proper names," Maria explained. The softness of her face disappeared, quickly replaced by a hard look. "Are you in or not?"

"Bloody hell, we've just met," Alastair scoffed. "I will, on one condition. We don't cross paths again. Ever. I go back to not existing."

Glances were exchanged as Tomas looked at Maria, Maria's gaze turned to Eric who was tight-lipped. A moment of silence passed, millions of non-verbal cues being thrown back and forth before Eric broke the silence.

"Mr. Lansbury, would you mind stepping outside for a moment, please." Eric asked, though Alastair knew that 'no' was not going to be an answer.