forward with an attaché case which he set on the table. Setting his glasses on his nose Assani spun the tumblers until the latches clicked open. From within he lifted a small black bag of chamois leather which he opened. He spilt the contents into the lid of the briefcase. It looked as though a layer of crushed ice had been spread out before them. Makana heard Damazeen’s quick intake of breath.
‘We know war, we two,’ Assani said softly, his long fingers fanning out over the table. ‘Many say that the sacrifices we make in war have no compensation. This, gentlemen, at least goes some of the way to making up for what we have lost.’
‘How much is there here?’ Damazeen’s voice was little more than a hoarse croak.
‘Two million US dollars, on today’s market,’ Assani grinned, ‘give or take.’
Makana had never really seen raw, uncut diamonds before. They didn’t look like much. It was hard to imagine that they could be worth so much money. Damazeen’s eyes were unfocussed, lit up by the strange glow that seemed to issue from the centre of those opaque, oddly shaped lumps that looked as if they belonged on another planet far away. Makana wondered how much he actually knew about diamonds. Turning back to the briefcase, Assani extracted a satellite telephone with a large bar antenna which he unfolded before handing it over.
‘Now,’ he said, holding out a scrap of paper, ‘it is your turn. Here are the coordinates.’
Damazeen took the phone and punched in a series of numbers. A moment later he was speaking in Arabic, reading out the coordinates and urging whoever was on the other end to go ahead as planned. Makana glanced at Bruin, who was standing in the doorway behind him. He felt exposed and unarmed. If Assani decided to renege on the deal and murder both of them once the weapons had been delivered, there wasn’t much he or anyone else could do about it.
Assani took back the phone and made his own call, setting his side of the operation in action. Then he set the phone down and glanced at his watch.
‘Now all we have to do is wait.’
The diamonds were replaced in their bag. The bag returned to the briefcase and the tumblers spun. They adjourned to the next room. Placing the case on the counter, Assani went behind the bar. ‘Now, who would like a drink?’
He produced a bottle of Johnnie Walker and an ice bucket. He poured a large tumblerful for himself. When Damazeen declined he wagged a finger.
‘Oh, you people make me laugh. Always playing games.’ Assani nodded at Makana. ‘You are afraid he will disapprove, n’est pas?’
‘It’s not that,’ Damazeen swallowed nervously. ‘I just don’t want to drink this early in the day.’
‘Comme vous voulez,’ shrugged Assani. He sat down on the sofa and stretched out to rest his long legs on the coffee table. ‘Myself, I fly to Paris tonight. My friends keep telling me to move to Dubai, but I can’t stand the Arabs. All of them are two-faced, even you who should be African.’ He chuckled to himself as he sipped his drink. ‘At least in Paris you can get a decent meal.’
It took forty minutes for the call to come through. Assani was dozing on the sofa by then. Neither Damazeen nor Makana had moved a muscle. They remained under the vigilant eye of Bruin and Fitch. Rubbing his eyes, Assani sat up and pressed the phone to his ear. He listened for a few moments and then nodded. Getting to his feet he gave a signal and the mercenaries pulled on jackets and headed for the door. One was out in the corridor while the second held the door.
‘Now, gentlemen, I am afraid I must leave you.’ Turning to the attaché case, Assani spun the tumblers once more and plucked out the bag of diamonds and handed them over. Damazeen’s eyes lit up as he opened the bag and dug his hand inside to let the glittering reward trickle through his fingers.
‘Do not attempt to leave this room for the next half an hour,’ Assani warned, ‘or one of my associates will shoot you. It has been a pleasure doing business. I suggest you lighten up and have a drink. À la prochaine.’ With a slight bow he headed for the door, briefcase in hand. ‘Oh, I almost forgot.’ He turned and revealed the silenced pistol he must have taken from the case after extracting