“Any sign of Macgregor yet?” Adam asked.

Ros shook her head. “No, and he ought to be here by now. Do you think he’s had cold feet?”

“Possibly, or else someone got wind of what he was planning to do.”

“I’ll circulate again in a few minutes, but while I’m here we might as well make use of the buffet. It’ll give us a reason for staying in one place.”

Adam placed some food onto a flimsy paper plate. “It’s always the same with finger foods,” he said, “trying to balance the plate with one hand and hold a drink with the other. Especially when there’s the danger if you put the glass down someone will decide to spike it.”

“We can use this side table for the moment and guard the drinks between us.”

Adam took hold of one of the bite-sized savouries and groaned. “And why do they have to make the food items so that they instantly fall apart when you try to eat them?” He licked his fingers to remove the sauce.

“You could always stick to cocktail sausages,” Ros said. “They’re usually safe.”

At that a black nose appeared from under the buffet table. Ros dropped the sausage and the nose disappeared with its prize.

Then she said, “Isn’t that Macgregor coming in now?”

“Yes, but looks who’s following him, Samuel Jenkins,” Adam replied.

“We need to get to him first.”

They made their way as fast as they could across the room, but a number of guests had arrived at the same time as Macgregor, which slowed them down.

To his dismay, Adam saw that Jenkins was now right behind Macgregor. There was no point in shouting, Jenkins would be able to strike before Macgregor could react. And then he saw Jenkins fall to the ground, tripping up a couple of other guests in the process. In the confusion, Ros managed to get through to Macgregor and grabbing his arm pulled him away and she and Adam hustled him out of the building.

As they hurried down the steps, a taxi conveniently drew up and Tariq opened the door. They bundled Macgregor inside the taxi and watched as it drove off again.

“What do you think happened?” Ros asked.

“From the damp look of Jenkins’ trouser leg, I would say our furry friend grabbed it and pulled, causing him to fall over.”

“Do you want to go back for him?”

“No, he’ll have disappeared. It’s possible Lucas might have been able to follow him, but it won’t be easy. And speaking of which…”

They saw the werewolf trotting over, a box in his mouth.

“Did you lose him?” Ros asked. The werewolf nodded.

“What have you got?” Adam asked severely.

The werewolf showed him a box of chocolate fingers.

“From the kitchens?”

The werewolf nodded again.

“Which is where Jenkins led you?” A further nod, so Adam said, “Before or after you got chased out?”

The expression said, ‘I’m an agent, I don’t stop for food when I’m following someone’.

“So, Jenkins led you into the kitchens, but you were chased out, at which point you grabbed the biscuits?”

The werewolf wagged his tail happily.

“Very well, you can have them when we get home. And don’t look at me like that. I’m not having you dropping crumbs all over the car.”

They walked back to where Adam had parked. The werewolf with his nose pressed hopefully on the box.

As Adam unlocked the car he said, “Very well, you can have two now. But that’s all!”