Number Four walked to the killing floor from reception and up to Number Three’s office. He knocked on the open door.

‘What?’ - Number Three said not looking up, he was busy reading some papers.

‘Special delivery from the kempeitai’ - said Number Four, holding up the two evidence bags.

Number Three looked up - ‘What’s that?’

‘Evidence from The target’ - said Number Four - ‘Turkish cigarette butts and a glass.’

‘What the actual fuck’ - said Number Three, standing up and crossing his office to look at the evidence bags.

‘Shall I send them to forensics?’ - Number Four asked.

‘How the fuck did those bunch of clowns pull this off?’ - Number Three asked - ‘Yes, straight to forensics for priority processing against the Bedivere crime scene evidence.

‘You think we might have Perceval Number Three?’ - Said Number Four.

‘We shall cross that bridge when we get to it’ - said Number Three - ‘If the Target is Perceival, then this becomes a whole different game.’

‘Roger that’ - said Number Four.

‘How are the Gawain suspects holding up by the way?’ - Number Three asked, sitting down again behind his desk.

‘My one - Charlie Ellis - had a seizure last night. The doc pumped him full of fluids via IV to tackle the dehydration and blood pressure issues. Nil by mouth, but he is stable again. The woman didn’t make it - she was a longshot anyway. Cardiac Arrest during questioning. The other two are real troopers - really holding it together. We will start the questioning again in a little bit. I think we are close to having a breakthrough.’

‘Nice. Keep up the good work’ - said Number Three.

Number Four crossed the killing floor and stopped at a desk with an intelligence agent sitting at it.

‘I want these sent to forensics and run against the print and DNA evidence from the Bedivere crime scene. Top priority. Ultra rush job.’

‘Roger that’ - said the intelligence officer.

Number Four crossed the killing floor in the other direction and walked down a hallway, stopping outside the metal doors of a meat locker. He pulled the door lever open and stepped inside.

Inside the meat locker was a kitchen with five cooks and a chef. The chef was tasting sauces and soup - and shouting at the cooks. There was a clatter of pots on the stove and flames jumping into the air.

‘How are we looking?’ - Number Four shouted over the noise.

‘15 minutes, Number Four’ - the chef shouted back, before being distracted and shouting at a cook over the seasoning in the soup.

Number Four stepped out of the meat locker and slammed the door shut.

Number Four walked back down the hallway and crossed the killing floor and disappeared down a different hallway. There were rows of refrigerators. Outside one of them was a guard.

‘Have him ready in ten minutes and in the meat locker. Hook him up to the box of tricks’ - Number Four said to the guard.

‘Roger that’ - said the guard.

Number Four walked back to the killing floor and found his desk. He sat down and picked up the phone. He dialed zero and waited.

‘Yes the Ministry, 16th floor, the Inspector please.’

Number Four waited.

The Inspector picked up his phone - ‘Operations.’

‘Ah Inspector - this is Number Four.’

‘Good afternoon Number Four’ - said the Inspector, leaning back in his chair.

‘Just to let you know, we have the package that your errand boy dropped off for us.’

‘Jolly good Comrade’ - said the Inspector, smiling to himself.

‘How did you manage to pull this off comrade?’ - Asked Number Four

‘Operations knowhow Number Four - if there's one thing we know, it is how to run an operation’ - the Inspector was smiling even more now. He pulled open his desk drawer and pulled out the bottle of Victory whiskey.

‘The package is heading over to forensics right now - ultra rush job. We should have a few more answers in about 2 hours comrade.’

‘And if those answers are what you and I think they will be - what has Number Three got planned?’ - the Inspector splashed some whiskey in his cold tea and put the bottle back in his desk drawer.

‘If the answers are what you and I think they will be - then we will have a new set of questions that need answering, and that will be for Number Two and Number One to manage.’

‘Roger that Number Four’ - said the Inspector, smiling and sipping his cold boozy tea.

‘Anyways - I must press on. I have a guest for high tea’ - Number Four hung up the phone. He stood and walked across the killing floor down a corridor. The guard was standing outside of a meat locker.

‘Is he ready?’ - Number Four asked.

‘Yes - the doc is just checking his blood pressure. All looks good for round two’ - the guard said.

‘Alright - let’s crack on’ - said Number Four, stepping into the meat locker.

A doctor was removing an IV line from Charlie Ellis’ arm. The doctor looked up and saw Number Four coming into the meat locker.

Charlie Ellis had a burlap sack bag over his head. His legs were secured to the legs of the chair he was sitting in with nylon restraints. The shoe for his right foot was missing, and an alligator clip was attached to his toe which was connected to the control box that was attached to a car battery. His arms were secured to the arms of the chair with nylon restraints. A nylon strap was around Charlie’s waist securing him to the chair.

His trousers were soiled and wet. He reeked of urine, vomit, and feces. The front of his shirt was stained with vomit and blood.

‘Fit for duty’ - the doctor said, packing away the IV drip and blood pressure gauge.

‘Good’ - said Number Four, sitting down at the desk on the opposite side to Charlie Ellis.

‘Just go easy with the juice’ - the doctor said, leaving the room.

‘Roger that doc’ - said Number Four.

The guard closed the door behind the doctor, and Number Four gave him a nod. The guard walked up to Charlie Ellis and pulled off the burlap sack hood.

‘Hello Charlie’ - said Number Four, smiling.

Charlie Ellis looked wrecked. His face was puffy and his eyes were bruised and bloodshot. He looked disoriented and confused.

The room was the same. Number Four sat across from Charlie Ellis at the same desk, with the door bell button to the left hand side.

The guard walked around behind Charlie Ellis and picked up a cable with an alligator clip and attached it to Charlie's left ear lobe.

‘You gave a us quite a scare last night Charlie’ - said Number Four, still smiling - ‘Luckily we always a have a doctor on hand when we have guests, and he managed to get you stabilized and ready for round two.’

Charlie said nothing. He couldn’t. He was well hydrated, but his throat was so dry that he couldn’t swallow. His tongue was so dry it seemed to be cracking and breaking apart in his mouth. He just sat there - staring at Number Four, unable to move, speak, and barely able to think.

Number Four gave the guard a nod. The guard stepped to the table behind him and poured a glass of water from a jug and then returned to stand next to Charlie Ellis. The guard held the glass to Charlie’s mouth, and Charlie was able to sip some water. The guard held the glass there by Charlie’s mouth, and Charlie was able to drink some more. Charlie coughed and sputtered as some of the water went down the wrong hole. The guard waited for him to gain his composure and then offered him more water. Charlie managed to gulp some water down, spilling most down his shirt.

‘Feeling better?’ - Number Four said, still smiling at Charlie.

Charlie didn’t say anything.

‘You must be famished Charlie - you must be craving something decent to eat’ - as Number Four was saying this, there was a knock at the door - ‘Perfect timing!’

Number Four gave the guard a nod, and he walked to the door and opened it up. A cook wheeled in a serving cart followed by the chef.

‘Hello chef - what do we have on the menu today?’ - Asked Number Four, looking from Charlie to the chef and smiling.

The cook wheeled the serving trolley beside the table and started placing plates on the table.

‘Be careful of the button’ - said Number Four, holding his hand above the doorbell button and looking at Charlie - ‘we don’t want any accidents.’

Charlie moved his head, looking at the chef and the cook..

‘Today we have a lovely menu’ - the chef said, smiling at Charlie and Number Four - ‘For the appetizer we have wagyu meatballs which are slow roasted in tomato sauce and served with polenta croutons. The salad is a Caesar salad topped with parmesan cheese frico, garlic croutons, and a lemon zest. The soup is pumpkin soup cooked with spicy chorizo, crème fraiche, and toasted pepitas. The main courses today are beef wellington with potato puree, glazed root vegetables, and a red wine demi-glace - with lobster risotto which has a butter poached lobster tail, butternut squash, and sage seasoning. Dessert is a peanut butter fudge cheesecake made with bittersweet chocolate, salted caramel, and topped with whipped cream.’

‘That sounds delicious chef - thank you!’ - Number Four said delightedly as he looked at the chef and then back to Charlie Ellis - ‘please thank your team for all their hard work.’

The chef bowed, and then shouted at the cook. The cook cowered and pushed the serving trolley away and out the door. The chef followed him.

The guard closed the door behind the chef as he left.

Number Four gave another nod to the guard, and he brought the jug of water over and filled a glass and set it amongst the plates of food and soup.

Number Four picked up a fork, and stabbed a wagyu meatball with it. He placed the meatball in his mouth and chewed - ‘Oh Charlie, that is so good!’

Charlie looked at the plates of food and the glass of water.

Number Four wiped his mouth with a napkin and then said - ‘Today is all about choices Charlie. It is up to you, you can have the tricks…’ - Number Four’s finger hovered over the doorbell button - ‘or you can have the treats! I would recommend the treats - the chef is excellent and his food is always delicious, and you look like you could do with a good meal and something to drink.’

Charlie’s gaze went from the plates of food to Number Four’s face - ‘Treats’ - his voice came out weakly.

‘Treats! Excellent choice Charlie - if my memory serves me correct, you are on minus 5 points. You do remember how to play the game, don’t you Charlie?’

‘Yes’ - Charlie said - ‘I don’t want any tricks please sir. I don’t want anything please. I just want to go home please sir. Please sir.’

‘Very good Charlie - a positive mindset, working towards a goal. So here’s the deal, I am going to bump you up to minus 3, and when you get to zero points we will stop, and you can have some more water and maybe some of this delicious pumpkin soup. When you get to plus 5 points the game is over, and you have won and you can leave! How does that sound?’

‘I don’t know what you want to know…’ - Charlie’s head slumped forward and he began to cry and sob.

‘That’s because you haven’t heard the questions yet Charlie! Try to stay positive.’

Charlie lifted his head and looked at Number Four and then the guard - and he continued to sob.

‘Okay - you have had this question before and you didn’t do so well. Just remember to focus and to tell the truth. If you tell the truth, nothing can go wrong - Do you know anyone in The Unit?’ - Number Four stopped smiling.

Charlie Ellis looked towards the ground and said - ‘No.’

‘I think you’re lying, Charlie - so I am going to have to deduct a point. You are now on minus 4.’

Charlie Ellis began to cry.

‘You know what happens at minus 5 Charlie - you get a trick, and you just told me you don’t want any tricks’ - Number Four’s finger lingered above the door bell button - ‘One more time Charlie, do you know anyone in The Unit?’

Charlie continued to sob, and somehow he managed to say - ‘Yes’.

Charlie would say anything to stop this. The pain of the electrocution, the laying on the hard floor, the thirst, and the pounding headache. He just wanted to go home and away from this madness.

‘Very good Charlie’ - Number Four smiled and winked at the guard - ‘you are back to minus 3, that was a very good recovery.’

Number Four knew the door was open. He moved his hand away from the door bell button.

‘And who do you know that is in The Unit, Charlie?’

‘A man I met’ - Charlie said crying heavily.

‘A man you met? I will give you half a point for that Charlie, minus 2 and a half. Where did you meet this man?’

‘In the pub. The Victory and Glory.’

‘The Victory and Glory - that is down by Shiltern, is it not?’

‘Yes.’

‘Very good Charlie - another half point. You are on minus 2. Does this man you met in the Victory and Glory have a name?

Charlie thought of the first name he could think of - ‘Mike.’

‘Mike?’

‘Yes, Mike.’

‘Mike what?’

‘I don’t know - I only knew him as Mike.’

‘Alright - I’ll give you another point for that Charlie. You are on minus 1. One more correct answer and you get to take a break and enjoy some refreshing water, and maybe some delicious soup - or the meatballs, whatever you fancy.’

Charlie knew he was in trouble. He knew that he was sealing his own fate. He knew that every word he uttered would get him in more trouble, but he couldn’t fight it any longer. He knew he couldn’t win this game, and he knew he wouldn’t be going home. All he cared about was stopping the pain. He just wanted to be left alone, he wanted something to eat, he wanted to drink - lots to drink - and he didn’t want to be electrocuted again.

‘How do you know Mike from the Victory and Glory was in The Unit?’

‘He told me, said he was looking for recruits to fight with him.’

‘Very good Charlie - very good indeed. Plus one point takes you to zero. Quite a comeback Charlie.’

Number Four stood up and stretched.

‘Alright - help out our guest with getting a bite to eat and some water’ - Number Four said to the guard - ‘Not too much, probably just the soup and some water - maybe some bread.’

Number Four left the room whilst the guard was giving Charlie Ellis some more water. Number Four closed the meat locker door and walked back to the killing floor. He went to the intelligence officer he had given the evidence bags to earlier - ‘Anything back from forensics yet?’

‘On your desk’ - the intelligence officer said.

Number Four walked to his desk and there was a brown sealed internal post envelope sitting on top of the other papers. Number Four untied the string and pulled out the report;

“Print match between unknown subject and prints retrieved from the Bedivere crime scene 100% - DNA analysis ongoing.”

Number Four walked to Number Three’s office and knocked on the open door.

Number Three looked up - ‘Is that a signed confession in your hand?’

‘Not yet - we’re making progress, but this is much more pressing’ - Number Four stepped into Number Three’s office and closed the door behind him.

‘We have Percival’ - Number Four handed the forensics report to Number Three.

Number Three took a moment to digest the report, and then handed it back to him.

‘We do have Percival - Number Three leaned back in his chair - ‘Problem is, what do we do with him?’

‘Bag him up and put him in a meat locker for a chat’ - said Number Four instructed.

‘I am going to have to speak to Number Two about this’ - said Number Three - ‘This is a bit above my paygrade.’

‘Roger that’ - said Number Four.

‘Good work Number Four’ - Number Three nodded his head.

Number Four left Number Three’s office and walked back to his desk. He picked up the phone and dialed zero, and waited.

‘Yes the Ministry, 16th floor, the Inspector please.’

Number Four waited.

‘Operations’ - the Inspector said.

‘Hello Inspector - this is Number Four.’

‘Hello Number Four - how is your tea party going?’

‘Good - I need to ask you a question, are you aware of the target using an alias?’

‘Alias?’ - Asked the Inspector.

‘Yes - over the course of your investigation - which I am sure was thorough - did you become aware of the target using an alias?’

‘Mike’ - said the Inspector.

‘Mike?’

‘Yes - Mike.’

‘And if I may ask - how did you become aware of the target’s use of this alias?’ - Said Number Four.

‘The target frequents a massage parlor and uses the alias Mike to make appointments’ - said the Inspector.

‘Very good - thank you comrade’ - Number Four proceeded to hang up the phone.

He logged onto his work station and entered the personnel files for the People’s Ministry of State Security and Policing. The secret service had access to all personnel files up to the Superintendent level. An assistant deputy-minister is the equivalent rank of a Chief Inspector.

Number Four found the assistant deputy-minister’s personnel file and printed off his ID badge photo. He then took the printout and walked back to the meat locker. Number Four opened the meat locker door and the guard was feeding Charlie Ellis some pumpkin soup.

‘He ate some bread and some risotto, and drank a fair amount of water’ - the guard said to Number Four.

‘Alright - break time is over. Back to work!’ - Number Four took his seat at the desk and picked up a fork and stabbed another wagyu meatball. He popped the meatball in his mouth and chewed.

‘Magnificent!’ - Number Four wiped his mouth with a napkin and looked at Charlie.

‘Feeling better?’

‘Yes’ - Charlie Ellis had some orange pumpkin soup dripping down his chin and onto his shirt.

‘Good - now let’s get this all done and dusted so we can get home nice and early. Agreed Charlie?’

‘Yes’ - said Charlie, who was feeling a bit more normal.

‘I am going to show you a photo, Charlie - and you are going to tell me if this is Mike who you met in the Victory and Glory pub - okay?’

Charlie nodded.

Number Four showed Charlie Ellis the photo of the assistant deputy-minister.

Charlie stared at the photo. He had never seen the man before. He thought it could be a trap - they could be showing him a photo of anyone and seeing if he said it was Mike to try and unravel his story, but Charlie was too tired and too drained to think about game strategy.

‘Yes’ - said Charlie with a sigh.

‘Are you sure?’ - Number Four asked, leaning in.

‘100%’ - said Charlie, doubling down.

‘You met this man - Mike - at the Victory and Glory pub in Shiltern and he asked you to join The Unit?’

‘Yes. Can I have a meatball please?’

Number Four stared at Charlie Ellis for a while, and then picked up a fork and stabbed a meatball. He leaned across the desk and held the fork with the meatball on the end of it, and Charlie Ellis opened his mouth and took the meatball and chewed it up.

‘1 point Charlie - you are now on plus one points.’

‘Plus three points’ - said Charlie Ellis between chews.

‘What?’ - Number Four said.

‘You asked three questions there. Was the man in the photo Mike - which I answered, and would be one point. You then asked me if I was sure, which I answered. Another point. You then asked me a separate question - if the man in the photo was the same Mike I had met in the Victory and Glory pub when he asked me to join The Unit. Which I answered. That’s another point. So I am now on plus three points.’

‘Is that three different questions?’

‘Yes it is - that’s another point. Plus four points now.’

‘Hang on - I’m in charge of the points, not you.’

Charlie said nothing.

‘Alright - where were we?’ - Number Four said.

The guard shrugged.

‘You had just asked me if the man in the photo was the same Mike I had met in the Victory and Glory pub, which I answered “yes’ to. That is another point, so I am on plus 5 points and have therefore won the game’ - said Charlie - ‘Can I have another meatball?’

Number Four thought for a moment. He had Percival’s prints at the murder scene, he would soon have Percival’s DNA at a murder scene, and he had a positive ID from a witness identifying Percival. He didn’t need to carry on questioning Charlie Ellis anymore.

‘Alright - congratulations Charlie. You have won’ - Number Four stood up - ‘Get Charlie a bit more food and then have him sign his “release papers”, and freshen him up a bit please.’

Number Four left the meat locker and closed the door. He walked back to the killing floor and walked up to an intelligence officer sitting at a desk.

‘How did you get on?’ - Number Four asked.

‘Charles confessed, but Carlos didn’t make it. Seizure’ - said the intelligence officer.

‘My Charles confessed as well - it must be the meatballs’ - said Number Four.

‘Yes, mine couldn’t get enough of them’ - said the intelligence officer.

‘Oh well, so two prisoners called Charles Ellis and two confessions. Let’s let the People’s court deal with this one’ - said Number Four.