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climbing the stairs, a heavy footfall as if every step was an effort. He walked up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. 'I don't know what to take with me,'
    she said.
    'Pack for a couple of days,' he said.
    'Pack what?'
    'Jeans. Shirts. Underwear. Hell, Andy, I don't know.'
    His fingers moved around her neck and he massaged her slowly.
    'Why me, Martin? Why do they want me in London and you here? Why haven't they told us what they want?'
    She felt her husband shrug. 'Maybe Katie's already in London. Maybe they took her over the water and that's where they'll give her back to us.'
    Andy turned to face him. 'Do you think that's it?'
    'It's possible. Dublin's a small city - it'd be easier to hide her in London. They could have taken her over on the ferry, in a car. Hidden her in the boot or . . .' His mouth snapped shut when he saw the look of horror on her face.
    'Boot? Oh my God . . .' Tears welled up in her eyes and Martin hugged her.
    'Oh, Jesus, Andy, I don't know what I'm saying. I'm just guessing. I don't know where she is or what they're doing.
    Don't get upset. Please.' He wiped away her tears with his thumbs, smearing them across her cheeks. 'I'll drive you to the airport.'
    Andy shook her head. 'You can't,' she said. 'You have to go to work.'
    'The airport's on the way.'
    Andy reached up and held his wrists. 'We talked about this last night. You have to do everything as normal, Martin.'
    'This is different,' said Martin. 'They know you're going to the airport -- they'll expect me to take you.'
    'I don't know . . .'
    'I want to,' said Martin.
    Andy sat down on the bed, too tired to argue. She'd barely slept, and it was as if she was thinking in slow motion. 'Okay,'
    she said.
    Martin sat next to her and put his arm around her. 'Look, I'll drop you at the airport, then I'll go straight to the office. I'll talk to the bank, see how much we've got on deposit.'
    'I hope it's enough,' she said.
    'If it isn't, we can raise more,' said Martin. 'We've got the cash flow, we've got assets. The house alone is worth twice the mortgage. We can raise a hundred grand on a phone call.'
    Tears began to stream down Andy's cheeks. 'Why us,
    Martin?' she asked. 'Why our Katie?'
    'I don't know. I really don't know.'
    She put her arms around his waist and buried her face in his neck, her body racked by silent sobs. Martin held her, feeling more helpless than he'd ever felt in his life.
    Canning walked through the arrivals area, tapping the copy of the Irish Times against his leg. He bought a coffee, sat on a stool and surveyed the terminal. Eager faces watched the sliding doors that kept opening and closing, disgorging a stream of passengers. Canning cast his eyes over the paper's headlines. Government figures showing the Irish economy was booming. Rumours that the American President might make a flying visit to Dublin during his trip to Europe. A supermodel overdosed on heroin. Canning sipped his coffee.
    He flicked through the pages to the crossword. Only six clues to finish.
    A woman pulled out the stool on the other side of his table.
    'Do you mind?' she asked. She was sum in a pale grey business suit, carrying a burgundy briefcase and a mobile telephone. Her shoulder-length hair was blond, but the dark roots suggested that it had been dyed. There was something unnatural about her eyes, too. They were almost too green, as if she were wearing contact lenses.
    Canning waved at the stool. 'Help yourself,' he said. He took a small padded envelope from the inside pocket of his jacket and slipped it between the pages of the newspaper, which he then folded and placed on the table.
    The woman ripped the corner off a pack of sweetener and poured it into her coffee. Canning slid off his stool, nodded at the woman, and walked away. He didn't see her take the newspaper and put it in her briefcase.
    Andy couldn't bear to say goodbye to her husband. She forced a smile and then walked away from the car. She could feel Martin watching her but