Baptism

It's 07:45 AM. A monk lies dead in Snowdonia, a knife protruding from his throat. The mission has begun.

By 08:56 AM, a London Underground train is stationary in a tunnel, with 400 passengers trapped inside.

At 09:15am, DCI Ed Mallory has just started his day. He's the Met's top hostage negotiator, despite having been blinded 13 years earlier.

Mallory is about to discover that, today, an underground train is not the only thing on the line.

©2012 Max Kinnings (P)2012 W F Howes Ltd