***
Hasan emptied a twenty-round clip from his Skorpion 61 into the windows of the Ministers' Rooms while Smedley sprinted towards him with the two remaining bags, barging past to the safety of cover.
‘Dead?’ Hasan whispered, pointing at Oscar Salazar.
‘Must have died instantly, poor Oscar,’ Smedley groaned, panting hard, eyes and veins bulging under the weight of the bags.
Hasan peered back into the courtyard and fancied he could hear vehicles moving beyond in New Palace Yard.
Leave him,’ he told Smedley. ‘He will slow us and we haven’t time. We must get the bags inside the chamber fast.’