For several hours we sat around the table drinking tea and eating sandwiches, laughing and joking with good-natured banter as we discussed the various ideas each of us came up with, some totally serious, some deliberately daft. I really enjoyed being in their company; they involved me totally and listened to all of my opinions and ideas as we weighed up the viability of each suggestion and the possibility of taking the guy out without being detected.

And for once in my life, someone was actually listening to me as if what I said counted, that it really mattered. It was a great feeling, even though I could hardly believe it, and, more importantly, it made me really feel part of the team. I felt inspired, despite having the definite impression that theyd already worked something out and were merely trying to encourage me to think, leading me in a certain direction, in order to see what I would come up with.

'Theres got to be a way to do this without causing any commotion, Chalky said. 'So to simply break his neck or knife him is out of the question really, and its going to be difficult to rig something up to blow him away as our information is that there are two cafes he uses regularly, one on either side of the street, plus several more in the area. Anyway, an explosion would simply alert the whole place and it would be all too easy for them to seal the area off and make it difficult for us to get back out.

'Besides that, we dont want to be seen carrying anything which might draw attention to us. Dont forget itll be broad daylight and well need to blend in with the locals, so the less we carry the better, Spot added.

'Yes thats right. Chalky nodded. 'Anyway, as you know, Geordie, we prefer to stay away from that sort of gung-ho operation if we can help it, its never that accurate and usually ends up with innocents, like kids, getting hit. And I do have a conscience, he continued. 'Besides, we like the personal touch, its much neater and less hazardous. Carrying explosives can be rather uncomfortable and anyway the reason we are being sent in is because this kind of thing is what we do best any idiot can do a "crash-bang-wallop" job.

As usual Dynamo was bursting with energy and raring to go. 'This guy is proving to be a b.l.o.o.d.y nuisance, why dont we just hijack a bus and run the b.a.s.t.a.r.d over, he joked. 'Seriously though, what about trying to poison him? Drop something into his cup while hes sitting having lunch in the cafe or rig something up to scratch or jab him on the skin?

This seemed to be the best solution so far and for some time we considered the options, the various poisons available that could be put on a needle or into a syringe.

'The trouble with that, Dynamo, is his clothing, it could act as a barrier and wipe the poison off a needle, plus if its a delayed reaction, how will we know whether its worked or not? I dont really think its feasible, do you? Chalky commented.

For several hours, we continued to discuss the possibility of using poisoned needles or syringes, as we scrutinised a full-size chart of the human anatomy hanging on a nearby wall. During my training with them, Id had to study the human structure in considerable depth and had learned how it worked, how its organs, muscles, arteries and nervous system interconnected. Id had to know all of its vital points and weakest areas and how the skeleton formed the framework into which everything else interlinked. Now, looking at the wall chart, an idea began to form in my mind but the fact that it would have to be carried out with such incredible pinpoint accuracy made me reluctant to tell them. I didnt think they would go for it.

'What would happen if the needle was just long enough to puncture his heart? I said slowly. 'If it was long enough and coated with poison, then even if the poison didnt work Im sure the needle entering his heart would do the trick.

Dynamo looked at me for a moment, then got up from the table and went over to the chart on the wall.

'Well, what do you think? I asked dubiously, as Chalky and Spot sat smiling at me for a moment longer, then walked over to join him.

They stood talking quietly to one another for about five minutes then all three of them came back to the table, sat down and stared at me.

Dynamo leaned back in his chair, folded his arms and said evenly.

'Brilliant! How are you going to do it? How are you going to execute this?

For the first time in ages, I almost stammered. 'I havent the faintest idea. Does it have to be me?

'Why not, its your idea, he replied calmly.

Spot was still grinning at me. 'Youre a bit of a dark horse, arent you? he said. 'You know exactly what will happen if you puncture the heart, youve been doing your homework, havent you?

'This is brilliant, Geordie! Chalky said quietly. 'But its got to work first time. The needle will need to pierce the sac around the heart, which will then fill up with blood. It takes a little time for the blood pressure to build up, but once it has done it will look just like a heart attack. There should be no visible signs or any marks on him apart perhaps from a small red dot on his chest where the needle has broken the skin. He paused for a moment before continuing. 'And, more importantly, it might just give us the time we need to get clear.

'How would you propose to do it? Spot asked.

'Well, Ive given it a bit of thought and its obvious that the trick will be in getting close enough to him. If I can do it quickly enough, and providing I dont hit his ribs, he shouldnt feel a thing other than me b.u.mping into him, I explained. 'By the way, do we have any idea of the kind of thing he usually wears? Well need to know.

Spot rummaged around on the table and picked up a photograph of the target, which he handed to me. The man in the picture was a tall Caucasian, about forty to forty-five years old, dressed in a light coloured suit, shirt and Panama hat.

'Our intelligence informs us that so far hes been seen mainly wearing a white or sometimes a grey lightweight suit with white shirt underneath, but Im afraid we wont know that for definite until the day, Spot told me.

'This guy looks white. Is he? I asked.

'Yes, he is. He hasnt been in the country long enough to get very tanned, so itll make him stand out more. Theres no room for error.

I was pretty confident that I could do it, using the movements of The Machine. After all that was what The Machine was all about, the ability to repeat the same action and hit the same spot with deadly accuracy over and over again, specifically designed to ensure that we could inflict maximum damage with minimum risk of detection.

'Ill have to make sure I dont hit one of his shirt b.u.t.tons, I pointed out.

'Or his ribs, Chalky added. 'Otherwise h.e.l.l be jumping around in agony.

'At what point do we do this? When he first leaves the building, when hes at the cafe or when hes returning? Dynamo asked, thoughtfully.

'I dont think well know that until we get there, well just have to play it by ear, Spot replied. 'But if we try to get him before he gets to the cafe and for some reason it doesnt come off and we cant manage it, then we may have a second chance when hes had his lunch and goes back to work. I think the best thing we can do now is to help Geordie practise and perfect the manoeuvre.

'I think it will have to be from the front just between the ribs, we cant get him from the back or the side, I dont think that it will be possible to take him from behind either. Besides, his shirt will be a lot thinner than his jacket, I said. 'Were going to need a needle about five or six inches long, made of hardened steel with a 'T piece wooden handle on it and Ill need a dummy to practise on.

Chalky laughed and pointed at Dynamo. 'Theres the ideal specimen, h.e.l.l make a jolly good dummy, hes definitely the right man for the job!

Dynamo jumped to his feet laughing. 'Watch it you! Men have died for less than that. Right then, Geordie, Im the target. Chalky, Spot, youre the guards.

'What happens if there are more than two guards, Dynamo? What happens if we dont get the chance, or it doesnt work? I asked I didnt want to let them down and was naturally a bit apprehensive about the responsibility I was being given.

'Our information is that he usually has two guys with him; if he has more than that well just have to deal with it on the day and, more importantly, well just have to make sure it does work! he replied emphatically.

We began to practise the manoeuvre, putting the 'guards into various positions around the target, in front, to either side, then at the rear. By using the movements of The Machine, I was able to ensure that I hit Dynamo in exactly the same spot each time, no matter what position he was in or where the guards were.

Then we tried to come up with every possible scenario and, after several hours of practice, believed that we had covered every eventuality. The only way I was going to be able to manage it, would be to pretend to b.u.mp into the target; somehow I would just have to find a way of making it look accidental on the day. I spent a further couple of hours practising on a dummy, ensuring that I hit the exact same target area, over and over again, while the others tried to come up with alternatives.

The main problem was that we didnt readily have access to the types of poison we needed at such short notice. To my amazement, as the day wore on it seemed increasingly obvious that my idea was going to be the only viable possibility of being able to carry out the operation without having to fight our way out.

'Theyd think I was a right nutter if I told them about attempting this back at the camp, Id probably be discharged for being mentally ill! I sn.i.g.g.e.red to Dynamo. 'I can understand what you were saying to me about going back and telling them the truth about what Ive been doing who in their right minds would believe this?

'Well, youd better believe it because if it doesnt work well end up having a fight on our hands. So youd better get it right, Geordie, were depending on you, old boy. Dynamo winked, and grinned back at me.

'Oh, thats great, I said, laughing. 'Ive done one operation and suddenly Im the expert!

'Well, none of us have exactly done this one before, but theres a first time for everything, mate, and this is yours!

'If I get the chance to b.u.mp into this guy, what can I say to him, Dynamo? How the h.e.l.l do I say "sorry" in Arabic?

'Youll have to know a few more words than that: were going to have maybe a couple of hours to wait for this guy so youre probably going to have to do a bit of shopping! Well have to teach you to say "how much is that", "thank you very much" and most importantly "can you show me where Woolworths is?" He sn.i.g.g.e.red.

Dynamo was fluent in several languages, including Lebanese, and he spent the next couple of hours trying to get me to say the phrases he felt I would need. He kept laughing at my attempts, most of which sounded like someone either being sick or spitting. As he instructed me, I continued to practise on the dummy, using a long, stiff hair from a yard brush as a needle. Spot had gone off in the jeep some time earlier and it was late when he arrived back, just as wed finished.

'Hows this, Geordie? he said, producing a very strong piece of wire about eight inches long, which looked like the spoke of a bicycle wheel, although Im fairly sure that it wasnt, it was too strong. 'Any good?

'Yes, thats perfect. All Ive got to do is shorten it and put a point on the end. Where did you get this from?

'Dont ask. He giggled and tapped the side of his nose with his finger as he walked over to the side of the hut and picked up a sweeping brush. 'You want a handle for it, dont you? Here take a bit off the end of this brush! he said, throwing it to me.

We cut off about two inches from the brush shank, thinned it down a bit and put a hole in its centre to fix the sharpened 'needle into. I needed a safe place to carry it, so I made a small hole in my sash where the buckle was and slipped the needle just inside at my waist front. The small piece of wood slipped easily into my pocket.

It was getting late and we needed to rest up before setting off. My head was buzzing as I lay down to try to sleep. I closed my eyes and went through the motions of b.u.mping into the target and eventually dozed off, with Dynamos Arabic phrases repeating again and again in my head.

We slept from about 2330 hours. We had to be up at 0200 the next morning and ready to leave by 0230 when the hack was due to arrive.

PART 2.

OPERATION PINp.r.i.c.k.

As usual, we travelled looking as much like the locals as possible, dressed in jeans, a shirt and boots, I also wore an old combat-style jerkin. The only things we carried apart from our sashes were our boot-knives.

'Here, Geordie, you come from Newcastle! Dynamo said, mimicking my accent as he threw what looked like a black-and-white checked tablecloth towards me. It was a large fringed scarf, of the type worn by men in the Lebanon, which would help to cover up the best part of my face.

'Before we go anywhere well have to get to work on Blue Eyes here! he said to the others.

Id noticed when Id arrived the previous day that theyd all allowed a few days beard to grow and looked a bit scruffy, obviously in readiness for this mission, whereas I was clean shaven. This, of course, was a requirement of the regular army where special permission had to be obtained in order to grow a beard, but already they looked pretty much like natives and by comparison, I thought I looked like a mannequin in a tailors shop window.

They quickly set to work changing my appearance and although I was fairly deeply tanned by this time, they darkened my skin even more by applying some kind of cream, which to me resembled 'gun blue, in order to make me look as though I had a 'blue beard or seven oclock shadow (now called designer stubble). Another cream mixed with a black powder was applied to my hair, which made it very black and shiny and caused my scalp to feel incredibly itchy. Spot told me that all of this would wash off fairly easily and I noticed that when I scratched my scalp the colour rubbed off onto my fingers.

'Make sure you dont get wet, Geordie, we dont want your make-up to run, now do we? Chalky joked.

By 0215, we were all ready, fully kitted out with our weapons, rope harnesses and 'dog-clips attached. Spot glanced at his watch and went outside to watch for the hack. At about 0225, we heard the noise of it approaching but, as it was still dark, we couldnt see anything yet. Chalky, Dynamo and I quickly followed Spot outside, taking the hurricane lamps from inside the hut to put out in a square as a landing guide.

Suddenly, the helicopter seemed to be right on top of us, and its black outline looked huge to me as it hovered deafeningly above us for a brief moment. The downdraught from its blades sent choking clouds of dust flying, which knocked over the hurricane lamps.

As he prepared to land the pilot switched on a spotlight and, blinded by both it and the thick swirling dust, we stumbled around grabbing up the lamps, then quickly extinguished them before throwing them into the hut. I could barely see a thing and the noise was unbelievable.

Bent double, I dashed forward to the helicopter and scrambled on board just as the thing started to leave the ground the noise was deafening. It was dark inside the c.o.c.kpit but, outlined by the spotlight, I saw the shadowy figure of Chalky standing in the opposite doorway. I scrambled in on my hands and knees just as the helicopter began to rise and move forward all at the same time. Caught off balance I fell onto some controls in between the two front seats. The next moment two hands grabbed my shoulders and pulled me backwards onto the seat behind and Chalky yelled into my right ear.

'Buckle up, Geordie, he shouted, gesturing towards the seatbelt.

Spot was sitting on my left and he and Chalky hooked our ropes above the doors on to the newly fixed brackets theyd mentioned earlier, ready to throw out later. They piled the remaining coils onto the floor in front of them where they held them in place with their feet.

The doors had been removed, presumably in an attempt to make access easier and to lighten the load, so we were open to the elements. Inside it was small and dark, and quite a squeeze with the five of us. The back had been removed from one of the front seats and Dynamo sat on this next to Ken, who I now recognised sitting in the pilots seat.

Inside the noise was deafening and although I immediately put my hands over my ears, they hurt from the racket. Spot nudged my left arm and handed me a headset similar to one that he was now wearing and indicated that I should put it on. When I removed my hands from my ears for just the brief seconds it took me to put on the headphones, the noise was horrendous. Even with the headset on it was impossible to make out anything above the engines racket.

We seemed to level off quickly and, as I regained my balance, I looked out through the open doorway and tried to get my bearings but saw only the outlines of treetops directly beneath us before Ken switched the spotlight off. In the far distance I could just make out a couple of small lights from houses but I was totally disorientated and hadnt a clue which direction we were heading in, although I knew it had to be southwards towards the sea.

I could see very little in the c.o.c.kpit, as it was only dimly lit by a couple of indicator lights on the control panel and the dark outlines of the other guys were just visible as they fumbled about with the ropes on the floor.

We flew along only feet above the ground, twisting and turning to avoid detection, and I guessed that our speed must be about eighty miles an hour. Wed only travelled for a few minutes when Ken switched the spotlight back on briefly. Suddenly we went into a steep dive as though we were about to crash, and in the powerful spotlight beam I could see the ground below us a cliff edge and beach, with small white waves breaking on it.

Ken switched the spotlight off again and we headed straight out across the waves into the inky blackness. It was worse than a fairground roller-coaster ride, my stomach was heaving, and at times I felt as though I was being pushed through the floor.

At first we flew very low over the sea, the sky having just enough light in it for me to make out the waves below. A cold wind blew in through the open doorways and right through the c.o.c.kpit: it was freezing. Then suddenly the helicopter began to climb and as it levelled off again Ken indicated that we needed to keep our eyes open. He was talking over the headset but I still couldnt hear a thing for the racket. Chalky lifted one of my earpieces and shouted at me to watch for a red light.

About ten minutes later Dynamo pointed to something at the ten oclock position. Ken looked in the direction hed indicated then swung the hack over and, lining up with the now visible red light, headed in that direction. The red dot bobbed about in the distance as we headed towards it; it was the light of the small fishing boat waiting for us. As we drew nearer, this began to flash off and on and Ken gave us the thumbs-up signal to let us know that the boat had seen us and immediately dropped the aircraft down again to about thirty to forty feet above the sea. Then he gave us another thumbs-up signal to indicate that we were just above the boat and turned the spotlight on again as Chalky and Spot moved into position, one at either doorway.

They each threw out a rope and fastened on their dog-clips before swinging out into the openings where they stood for a moment with the tips of their toes on the edges of the doorways, looking beneath them. Suddenly they both dropped out of sight and the hack rocked violently from side to side. I sat holding the rope until it went slack and I knew it was my turn.

Dynamo moved into place in the opposite doorway as I put two wraps around my dog-clip and stepped out into the opening. Looking down, I could see a small boat bobbing around all over the place about thirty feet below. The helicopter swung backwards and forwards above it as Ken struggled to hold it steady and keep it lined up above the boat, but as Dynamo and I moved, our shifting weight inside the helicopter caused it to sway drastically.

For a brief moment, Dynamo stood in the doorway opposite then he disappeared. I immediately followed him and as I began hurtling downwards towards the boat, I realised I should have had three wraps on the rope instead of two. I had some difficulty in stopping my descent, which I just managed to do about four feet above the water, just as Dynamo landed straight into the boat just ahead of me. But I was swinging about all over the place. The little boat was bobbing around like a cork on the choppy sea, which was being made worse by the helicopters downdraught. As it rose beneath me, my legs crashed into its small cabin. I let go of the rope and fell heavily on to the deck, hitting the wooden engine cover as I landed in a giggling heap. The helicopter immediately turned away from us, back towards Cyprus, with our abseil ropes dragging through the sea beneath it. Ken turned off the spotlight and it instantly disappeared from view.

I lay on the wet heaving deck, my ribs aching from where they had made contact with the engine cover as Chalky and Spot came over to help me up, laughing as much as I was. A wonderful smell of frying bacon wafted out from the tiny cabin.

'My names Lynch, said the guy in charge of the boat, sticking his head out of the cabin door. 'Youre just in time for a bacon sandwich.

How he managed to cook in that tiny confined s.p.a.ce with the boat rocking violently I have no idea but manage it he did and produced a wonderful bacon sandwich and steaming cup of tea. I warmed my freezing hands around the hot mug and looked up at Chalky sitting opposite me.

'How did he get here? I said, nodding towards Lynch.

'Hes one of us and thats all you need to know, Geordie, Chalky replied and winked at me. 'Naturally, n.o.body picks us up but us!

'Well, Im certainly not going to ask how he got that nickname!

Lynch came out of the cabin again. 'Were about thirty miles from the mainland, so make yourselves comfortable.

Hes got to be joking I thought, looking around the deck of the tiny craft. There were pieces of net and bits of cork lying about but all I could find to sit on was something that resembled an old lobster pot while the others made themselves as comfortable as they could on top of the engine cover. The sea was quiet and the little boat was being tossed about quite a lot, which, after the bacon sandwiches, made us all feel a bit queasy although no one was actually seasick.

After wed been travelling for about an hour-and-a-half, the sky began to lighten and in the distance, we saw a few small fishing boats. As we drew nearer, more came into view. Lynch paused as he came out of the cabin carrying another cup of tea for me and looked over at them for a moment.

'Part of the local fishing fleet, he observed before adding, 'weve still got about another six miles to go before we reach the mainland.

As we made our way closer towards the sh.o.r.e we saw more and more of the small fishing boats, all of them heading out to sea. We appeared to be the only ones going inland.

'This must look a bit fishy, dont you think, us going the wrong way? Spot sn.i.g.g.e.red. 'Wont they be a bit suspicious of what were up to?

'No, dont worry, often some of them fish all night and are usually on their way back in at this time of the morning, Lynch told him confidently.

The sun was higher now, warming the early-morning air and glinting brightly off the water ahead of us. Gradually the coastline emerged from the dawn haze and we began to make out a number of bays and small coves. About a mile offsh.o.r.e, Lynch pa.s.sed Dynamo a pair of binoculars.

'Weve been lucky so far, I havent seen the patrol boat in the area, he said as Dynamo scanned the sh.o.r.eline.

'b.l.o.o.d.y h.e.l.l, have you seen this lot, its like flamin Morecambe Bay over there! he exclaimed. 'Theres a lot of people moving about and the port area is pretty busy. I thought it might be quieter this early in the morning.

'Here, give me a look. Chalky motioned for Dynamo to pa.s.s him the binoculars. 'Youre right, this could cause a bit of a problem.

'Dont worry, Lynch said calmly. 'Theres another cove we can go into around that headland about quarter of a mile to the north of the village, there is an old jetty there too. We should be out of sight from everybody in there but youll have to take a chance and make a jump for it on to the jetty I dont want to get in too close and beach this thing.