Play@YSDC

11.30am Friday 12th March 2010, Holiday Inn, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire

Seventeen hours since Regina Balfour was abducted.

Simon and Jocelyn meet up outside the hotel. From where they are standing they can see a chain coffee shop and an American diner themed restaurant, both seem to be open. There is also a small cafe serving coffee and snacks in the hotel lobby.

"I could sure use some more coffee," says Jocelyn, still tired. "Steak and eggs at the diner wouldn't go amiss either. Did DS Bates fill you in yet about what my boss at MI5 told me about Balfour and the Church of the Passover Angel?"

"I never argue with coffee," Simon says. "And no, she has not." As she speaks, he absentmindedly scratches himself. "I won't be staying there again-- bed had bedbugs. Gave me quite a few bites.."

"I wonder if my room had them too," says Jocelyn. "I woke up all itchy. Anyway, MI6 twigged to the fact that Balfour was making frequent visits to Kenya, and they suspected he might have been providing material support to a local political group called Red Trumpet. Apparently they're an indigenous ethnic isolate in an interior region not under government control. Balfour went there for a year about fifteen years ago on a religious outreach mission for a fundamentalist church when he was at uni. All that got him on the watchlist, and Six passed it on to Five. The church gets donations of up to a million quid a year, but it's all on the public registry, so it looks legit. They didn't know anything about Lewiston that I hadn't known already."

"Well, well. Things get more curious by the hour!"

"I'm increasingly thinking Lewiston found something out about Balfour that led him to take this drastic step. If only he had told someone what it was. Perhaps it has something to do with this Red Trumpet group. And I keep going back to the code that was in Balfour's book-- I know there was something there. I ordered more copies, but it will take a week to come, at least."

He sighs. "Nothing we can do for the time being but try and track Reginia down. Hopefully we can find Peale and negotiate with her, see why she did this. If the Balfour's are connected with extremists in some way that would explain a lot, but why then kidnap their daughter? Still, I suspect we won't get any answers until we find Reginia. Let's hope Kris found us something we can use on that front.."

"I think that's what happened too," says Jocelyn. "Lewiston and his niece must have been pretty desperate to take such drastic steps. I think my expertise in hostage negotiation will prove useful, but first we have to track down Lindsay. We'll see what the coppers have turned up at her flat."

"Quite."

"Loathe as I am to admit it, all of this talk of angels is getting to me. Had a rather disturbing dream last night. I was in a ruined church at night, and I heard wings. A shape began to form in front of me, looked almost like an angel, but the Old Testament type if you take my meaning. Certainly a byproduct of anxiety and my extensive studying of Balfour's rantings, but for a second I felt true terror." He chuckles. "Rather sad once you realize it's the state Balfour must spend most of his time in, believing in fire and brimstone and avenging angels."

"After what you've been reading, I'm not surprised you had a dream about it," says Jocelyn. "I still have dreams about the 7/7 attacks, and those were almost five years ago. Balfour must have been radlicalised during his time in Kenya, and he brought those beliefs back with him. Lewiston and his niece probably kidnapped Regina because they felt those beliefs were putting her in danger somehow. Yet Lewiston had been undercover for three years in that church. Why did he choose to act now?"

"Aye,a nasty business that. Glad I wasn't in London at the time. If you ever do wish to talk about it, I would be happy to listen." For once, Simon sounds empathic.

"I fear this Red Trumpet business could be leading to something similar. But you raise a good point; why take Regina now? I have to assume they thought Balfour was going to act soon, for whatever that entailed. Another possibility is Regina was never the intended target, she was only designed to bring attention to the Balfour's and add scrutiny towards them. This would be a lot easier to resolve if Lewiston hadn't killed himself."

"Shall we be going, then? Hopefully Detective Sapru has found something for us."

OOC:   Thanks, will try to remember that.

"Of course!" Simon says suddenly, loud enough others around them may hear. Somewhat sheepishly, he lowers his voice.

"Balfour's church, they predict the end of the world for sunset at this coming Tuesday-- there's a countdown on their website. Lewiston must have known this and decided to act. The question is is Balfour and the group he's affiliated with planning some sort of attack? Or maybe they are planning a Jim Jones type of situation, a mass suicide. Lewiston realizes this and tries to save Regina. This is just speculation, but it seems clear to me that they feared for the girl in someway, or were hoping to attract government attention towards Balfour and his church. We now absolutely need to find Lindsay as soon as possible. She's the only one still alive who might be able to tell us what they're planning."

"Yes, that must be it," says Jocelyn. "Well spotted. Balfour has made previous failed predictions of the end of the world before, but Lewiston must have had some reason to think that this time is different. Jonestown was actually a mass murder/suicide. Many of the people didn't know they were drinking poison, or were forced to drink at gunpoint. Heaven's Gate is another cult that ended tragically like that. The Church of the Passover Angel may be planning something along those lines. This will help if we can find Lindsey and get a chance to talk to her."

Simon nods, pays for his breakfast and gets up, ready to get back to work.

Jocelyn finishes her brunch and follows suit.