Chapter 3
Johnny and Oxana are having coffee in the club library. The room is dim and quiet, with deep Victorian armchairs and tall bookcases full of leather-bound volumes. Faded curtains flank tall windows, admitting shafts of dusty light.
‘Are you sure you’re OK?’ Johnny asks.
‘I am OK. But I need to speak to Eve. She’s upset.’
‘I think that’s understandable,’ Johnny says delicately.
‘I suppose it is.’
‘May I offer a word of friendly advice?’
‘Of course.’
‘Tell her the whole truth. Whatever it is, even if she’s not going to like it, tell her. Bad news only gets worse.’
Oxana nods, her expression subdued.
Johnny smiles. ‘I’m sure you can sort this out. Because overall, I think things have turned out well. The Twelve are the future, and they have bottomless resources. They respect us, and we respect them.’
Oxana bites her lip. She stares down at her pink-heeled Chanel mules.
‘She’ll come around, Oxana. But you have to make things right.’
‘I know.’ She closes her eyes. ‘I know.’
Shit. Shit, shit, shit, shit… This whole situation with Eve was avoidable.
The truth is that I never really thought of the deal with the Twelve as a deal, more of a friendly conversation.
Yes, Gladstone made it clear that the Twelve wanted me back, and yes, the figure of five million pounds was quoted, and yes, that very amount appeared in the bank account that Eve and I share, but indolent bitch that I am, I chose to view it as more of a goodwill gesture than an actual, binding retainer. Not that I’m blaming myself, but…
So there’s that to sort out, and obviously Eve’s furious, but all storms blow over eventually.
Meanwhile there’s the job in the Mediterranean, which, I have to admit, tempts me so, so much.
Honestly, when Johnny was telling me the details, I was literally clutching myself under the table.
It’s dangerous – really fucking dangerous – but it’s so me, and I love that the Twelve recognise that.
I’ve never been to the Greek islands. I’ve heard that they’re beautiful, and very romantic.
I wish, more than anything, that Eve was coming too.
I wish she wasn’t furious with me. I wish that I hadn’t lied to her or hidden the truth from her.
But me as a nanny, in one of those adorable outfits?
With the little straw hat? How can I say no?
‘Tell me about the boat,’ Oxana says.
Johnny consults a folder. ‘The Medusa is what’s called an expedition yacht. It’s 58 metres in length, with a range of 6,500 miles and a cruising speed of 13 knots. Would you like a chocolate mint?’
‘Mmm, please.’ She takes three. ‘That sounds like quite a big boat.’
‘It is a big boat. It was built in Bremen in Germany in 2025 and probably cost Tahir Yilmaz the better part of 200 million dollars. So you’ll be extremely comfortable, even if the company’s a little, shall we say, unusual.’
Oxana alternates nibbles of chocolate mint with sips of coffee. ‘So who else is going to be there?’
Johnny leans forward in his chair and consults his notes. ‘Tahir Yilmaz, as I said. And his girlfriend Inci Demir. She’s a pop star, very popular in Turkey, and a bit younger than him.’
‘How much younger?’
‘He’s sixty, and according to her website, which may or may not be accurate, she’s thirty-five.’
‘Ooof!’
‘Quite. Then there’s Emir, who we’ve talked about, and who’s nineteen. His mother is Tahir’s ex-wife Mihra, whom he divorced a couple of years ago.’
‘And Emir’s at this business school in Paris.’
‘Yes, in Fontainebleau.’
‘And it’s his sister Defne that I’m supposed to be keeping an eye on?’
‘Yes. Defne and her friend Buse ?etinkaya. They’re both seventeen.’
‘So I’m babysitting both of them. Defne and the friend.’
‘Well, primarily Defne. But effectively both of them.’
‘Could I have another of those chocolate thingies?’
‘Please. Have the box.’
‘Mmm. Do these girls speak English? Or any language apart from Turkish?’
‘I imagine so. They met at a private school in London.’
‘Right. Anyone else I should know about?’
‘We don’t have any more names, but there’ll probably be a bodyguard or two, half a dozen crew, a chef…’ Johnny shrugs. ‘I’ve honestly no idea. Let’s say, at a guess, there’ll be fifteen to twenty people on board.’
‘So let me get this straight. Tahir Yilmaz and his family and guests will be cruising or sailing or whatever you call it, in the Aegean Sea, going from island to island.’
‘I assume so. I’m guessing they’ll go ashore quite regularly to stock up with food and drink, go shopping, eat at restaurants, go clubbing, all of that sort of thing…’
‘And when they reach a certain island, name and location currently unknown, Tahir Yilmaz will go ashore for his meeting. At which point I have to somehow get onto the island too, evade the bodyguards, kill the N’Drangheta and Albanian bosses, and get back to the yacht in time for dinner.
’ Oxana swallows the last of her coffee.
‘Eve’s right, it does sound pretty far-fetched, even for me. ’
‘Well, I did say it was dangerous. But yes, I’m afraid that is the long and the short of it. Do you want me to let the Twelve know that you consider it too difficult?’
‘I didn’t say that,’ Oxana says sharply. ‘I just wanted to be clear about what’s expected of me.’
‘The Twelve want to prevent the crime bosses collaborating on the manufacture and distribution of fentanyl. Emir’s presented himself to the Twelve, and they’re backing him to control the lion’s share of the trade.
But first, they need to strike a pre-emptive blow against his rivals, and the only way they’re going to accomplish this is through selective assassination.
They need someone to get in close. Someone no one will see coming.
They need you, Oxana. They need Villanelle. ’
‘So when would all this happen?’
‘We don’t know the date of the meeting, but we do know that Yilmaz has ordered the Medusa to be made ready to leave Piraeus, the port of Athens, in ten days’ time.’
Oxana considers. ‘This nanny thing. Am I going to need some sort of training, or do I just improvise?’
‘If you agree to the job, you’ll do a week-long intensive course at Ruffley Hall, outside Pangbourne, which is the training school for Ruffley Royal Nannies.
I’m not an expert in these things, but I believe they’re the best. They’re certainly the most expensive.
The regular course lasts months, possibly even years, and the school insists that if they are to issue you with their certificate – and it’s costing us a substantial amount to get them to agree to that – you’ll have to attend classes in all the different aspects of a nanny’s duties, including baby care. ’
‘I can’t stand babies. They’re so selfish.’
‘I rather agree,’ Johnny says. ‘Nevertheless, you will simulate affection for them.’ He raises an eyebrow. ‘Do you think you can manage that?’
She gives him the faintest of nods.
‘You need that certificate, Oxana. With it, you’re a Ruffley Royal nanny, even though you’re obviously not English. Without it, you’re—’
‘Just some random Russian?’
‘Basically, yes. And your employers will undoubtedly ask to see it, even though you will be concentrating on the care and guardianship of older girls.’
‘Now that sounds like my dream job.’
Johnny regards her expressionlessly.
‘Joking,’ Oxana murmurs.
‘Good, because you’re leaving for Pangbourne this afternoon.’