comes from a single, large-scale cutting operation.
‘The trade in cocaine and heroin in that part of London is dominated by a man named Erasto Ali Anwar, more commonly known as Hagar. Kentish Town is his base, but he has a network that sells cocaine and heroin through the London boroughs of Islington, Camden, Hackney and Haringey, and also in nightclubs in central London.
‘According to the Kentish Town drug squad, Hagar uses teenaged boys for quite a lot of small-scale dealing and grunt work. Many of these lads are members of a youth club run by a charity known as The Hangout.
‘Ryan, if you accept the mission, your job will be standard CHERUB stuff. You’ll attend a local school and spend time at The Hangout youth club. Hopefully, within a few weeks, you’ll be able to work yourself into a position where Hagar’s crew take an interest in you. Once you’re inside the organisation, your job will be to find out everything you can.’
Ryan spoke. ‘You said Hagar dealt in cocaine and heroin. Am I interested in both?’
‘The same rules on purity apply to heroin, and police are using the same techniques to track it down. Analysis shows that the heroin sold by Hagar’s gang is of poor to average quality, so it’s unlikely they’re close to the original smuggling source.’
‘Fair enough,’ Ryan said.
‘So are you up for the job?’ James asked.
Ryan nodded. ‘Sure, it sounds like a decent mission.’
‘So what about me?’ Ning asked. ‘If Hagar’s gang only recruits boys, where do I fit in?’
‘I’ve got something different lined up for you,’ James said, as he cracked a slight smile. ‘It’s a long shot, but if it works out it has the potential to smash Hagar’s operation wide open.’
11. BEDS
Officer Wendy opened the isolation cell and found Fay sitting on the end of her bed, glowering.
‘Are you ready to behave?’ Wendy asked.
‘Will you miss me when I’m gone?’ Fay asked back.
Wendy snorted as Fay tucked her school books under her arm and headed for the door. Fay made a short walk to her room, dialled a three-digit combination into her locker and grabbed a towel and clean clothes before heading off for her first shower in five days.
She came back in a bathrobe, and this time there was a Chinese girl sitting on the right-hand bed, doing homework.
‘You’re in the wrong cell,’ Fay said firmly. ‘Where’s Amber?’
Ning shrugged. ‘Amber got moved to a lower security unit, pending release.’
‘You what?’ Fay shouted. ‘Amber’s my roomie.’
‘I’m your roomie now,’ Ning said, as Fay peeled off her bathrobe and grabbed a bra and T-shirt out of a drawer.
Ning went back to concentrating on her textbook, but as Fay pulled on a clean pair of jeans, she noticed that there were no pillows on her bed, while Ning had a mound of four propped behind her back.
‘Who said you could touch my pillows?’ Fay demanded. ‘Give.’
Ning smiled. ‘I’m using them.’
Fay wasn’t used to girls giving her backchat. ‘Pardon me?’
‘Oh, are you deaf?’ Ning said cheerfully, before shouting: ‘I SAID I CAN’T GIVE THE PILLOWS BACK BECAUSE I’M USING THEM.’
Fay now stood over Ning’s bed with her fists bunched. ‘Give me my pillows,’ Fay said. ‘Or I’ll smash your dopey head through the wall.’
Ning tutted. ‘You really are an ill-mannered little girl,’ she said.
Fay couldn’t take any more. She leaned in to throw a punch, expecting Ning to be squealing and handing back pillows a few moments later. But Fay was surprised to find that Ning intercepted her fist, then kicked up with both feet, booting Fay in the stomach.
As Fay doubled over, Ning stood and tried to wrench Fay’s arm behind her back. But Fay managed to straighten up quickly and threw a wild punch which caught Ning in the kidneys.
‘So you know how to fight?’ Ning said, as she stepped forward aiming a barrage of punches.
Fay was forced to retreat until she’d backed up to the metal lockers. Ning landed several heavy punches before Fay stumbled out of the corner fighting for breath. As Ning turned to face Fay’s new position, Fay launched a vicious kick that knocked Ning back into the lockers.
Ning knew that Fay had kickboxing skills, but hadn’t anticipated that she was this good. Ning fought pain from the kick as she charged forward. Fay was tall and had greater reach, while Ning was broad and came forward like a battering ram.
After a speedy exchange of kicks and slaps, Ning grabbed Fay’s hair and threw her across a bed. Then