stunned Frenchman’s chin.
They stare at each other for a long moment.
‘Clip the bloody holster, mate.’ Billy re-holsters the weapon, clips it shut, then turns to Marcellus. ‘Can I speak to you for a moment?’
~ * ~
‘What the hell?’ Billy turns to Marcellus, his voice echoing in the large, empty bathroom. ‘What kind of dickheads do you have working here? It doesn’t exactly instil me with confidence in your organisation.’
‘He’s one of our best agents.’
‘He’s a tool who’s going to get us all killed.’
The old German nods. ‘Admittedly he can be a little ... brusque.’
‘Brusque? I’ve known the guy for three minutes and I already want to shoot him in the leg.’
‘He’s been doing this a long time. He knows what’s what.’
‘I took his taser away from him. Twice. Within the space of a minute. And I warned him before I did it the second time. And it’s a taser. Why isn’t he carrying a pistol?’
‘The taser is a perfectly adequate weapon and he was too proud to clip his holster in front of you. He’s French.’
‘That’s not an excuse.’
‘In some countries it is.’ Marcellus tries to lighten the tone with a grin but Billy’s not buying. The German takes a moment, then lowers his voice. ‘Look, I shouldn’t tell you this, and you can never repeat it, but have you ever been to the Tower of London?’
‘No.’
‘The Statue of Liberty?’
‘This is my first time outside Oz, mate. What’s your point?’
‘The Opera House?’
‘I live in Melbourne and it’s in Sydney, but yes, I have. Once.’
‘Well, none of those landmarks would still exist if weren’t for that man.’
Billy crinkles his face into an expression of disbelief. ‘And how’s that?’
‘Do you ever wonder why there hasn’t been another 9/11 since 9/11? Well, it’s because of him. He uncovered a plot that was one week away from destroying all three of those landmarks on the same day. Now it’s up to you, but you may want to cut him some slack. He just might have saved you from a bad night at the opera.’
Billy takes in a deep breath, then nods. ‘Okay.’
‘Now, can we start the interview please?’
‘Sure.’ A moment passes. Billy looks around. ‘You don’t want to do it in here, do you?’
Marcellus smiles. ‘No, I have an extremely nice office.’
~ * ~
Billy looks out the panoramic window and takes in the countryside. ‘It is nice.’
Marcellus nods. ‘Thank you.’ Beside the German sits Claude, who doesn’t seem to be embarrassed by recent events at all.
Billy turns to them. ‘So, why’d you bring me all the way over here?’
Marcellus answers. ‘Because you got closer to the crew who pulled the Collins Street heist than anyone else, and we’ve been tracking them, or trying to, for the better part of eight months.’
Billy’s clearly confused. ‘But I didn’t catch them. I ended up in a river with gravel rash and no job. I mean, I wouldn’t do it again.’
‘Really?’
The Australian thinks about it. ‘Well, actually yeah, I probably would, which is part of the reason I got fired.’
Marcellus nods. ‘And yet that’s the reason you’re here. We believe we know where the crew is operating from but we need someone on the inside. Someone who can identify them. Someone with a special kind of tenacity, who’d chase after them on a Vespa when they’re driving a truck.’
Billy takes this in. ‘You think the thieves are part of the Formula One World Championship, don’t you?
‘Why do you say that?’
‘The heist happened on the Saturday before the race. And you’re from Interpol so that must mean it’s happened at a number of other places around the world. And Formula One visits a lot of places.’
The German nods once more, impressed. ‘Yes, there have been five robberies, totalling
They stare at each other for a long moment.
‘Clip the bloody holster, mate.’ Billy re-holsters the weapon, clips it shut, then turns to Marcellus. ‘Can I speak to you for a moment?’
~ * ~
‘What the hell?’ Billy turns to Marcellus, his voice echoing in the large, empty bathroom. ‘What kind of dickheads do you have working here? It doesn’t exactly instil me with confidence in your organisation.’
‘He’s one of our best agents.’
‘He’s a tool who’s going to get us all killed.’
The old German nods. ‘Admittedly he can be a little ... brusque.’
‘Brusque? I’ve known the guy for three minutes and I already want to shoot him in the leg.’
‘He’s been doing this a long time. He knows what’s what.’
‘I took his taser away from him. Twice. Within the space of a minute. And I warned him before I did it the second time. And it’s a taser. Why isn’t he carrying a pistol?’
‘The taser is a perfectly adequate weapon and he was too proud to clip his holster in front of you. He’s French.’
‘That’s not an excuse.’
‘In some countries it is.’ Marcellus tries to lighten the tone with a grin but Billy’s not buying. The German takes a moment, then lowers his voice. ‘Look, I shouldn’t tell you this, and you can never repeat it, but have you ever been to the Tower of London?’
‘No.’
‘The Statue of Liberty?’
‘This is my first time outside Oz, mate. What’s your point?’
‘The Opera House?’
‘I live in Melbourne and it’s in Sydney, but yes, I have. Once.’
‘Well, none of those landmarks would still exist if weren’t for that man.’
Billy crinkles his face into an expression of disbelief. ‘And how’s that?’
‘Do you ever wonder why there hasn’t been another 9/11 since 9/11? Well, it’s because of him. He uncovered a plot that was one week away from destroying all three of those landmarks on the same day. Now it’s up to you, but you may want to cut him some slack. He just might have saved you from a bad night at the opera.’
Billy takes in a deep breath, then nods. ‘Okay.’
‘Now, can we start the interview please?’
‘Sure.’ A moment passes. Billy looks around. ‘You don’t want to do it in here, do you?’
Marcellus smiles. ‘No, I have an extremely nice office.’
~ * ~
Billy looks out the panoramic window and takes in the countryside. ‘It is nice.’
Marcellus nods. ‘Thank you.’ Beside the German sits Claude, who doesn’t seem to be embarrassed by recent events at all.
Billy turns to them. ‘So, why’d you bring me all the way over here?’
Marcellus answers. ‘Because you got closer to the crew who pulled the Collins Street heist than anyone else, and we’ve been tracking them, or trying to, for the better part of eight months.’
Billy’s clearly confused. ‘But I didn’t catch them. I ended up in a river with gravel rash and no job. I mean, I wouldn’t do it again.’
‘Really?’
The Australian thinks about it. ‘Well, actually yeah, I probably would, which is part of the reason I got fired.’
Marcellus nods. ‘And yet that’s the reason you’re here. We believe we know where the crew is operating from but we need someone on the inside. Someone who can identify them. Someone with a special kind of tenacity, who’d chase after them on a Vespa when they’re driving a truck.’
Billy takes this in. ‘You think the thieves are part of the Formula One World Championship, don’t you?
‘Why do you say that?’
‘The heist happened on the Saturday before the race. And you’re from Interpol so that must mean it’s happened at a number of other places around the world. And Formula One visits a lot of places.’
The German nods once more, impressed. ‘Yes, there have been five robberies, totalling
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