The Marching Season

who had given the bearded man a pass for the reading room survived the blast with only minor cuts and bruises. He helped police pick out the suspect on a videotape shot by the library's surveillance cameras. The Garda released a photo-kit sketch and a fuzzy image made from the videotape. Copies were faxed to London. That evening, however, rescue workers once again pulled a body from the rubble that appeared to match the description of the suspect. When a pathologist removed the clothing from the corpse he discovered a heavy brace on the right knee. Detectives ordered the knee X-rayed. The pathologist discovered no injury to the knee—either bone, cartilage, or ligaments—that would require the support of such a heavy brace. "I suspect the man was wearing the brace in order to produce a limp rather than support a damaged knee," the pathologist said, staring down at the corpse's leg. "And I'm also afraid that your only suspect in this case is officially quite dead."
    To the north, in Ulster, case officers from the Special Branch of the Royal Ulster Constabulary began calling on their sources and informants, from the bars and backstreets of West Belfast to the lime-colored farms around Portadown and Armagh. None turned up anything promising. An army surveillance camera had captured Eamonn Dillon's murder, and the security camera over the door of the Celtic Bar had recorded the killer's escape. Neither vantage point produced a usable image of the gunman's face. The RUC appealed for calls to the Confidential Line—a special telephone hot line where informers can provide tips to police anonymously—but none of the 450 calls produced meaningful leads. Twelve claims of responsibility were reviewed and dismissed as hoaxes. Units devoted to technical intelligence gathering—video surveillance and electronic eavesdropping— hastily reviewed recent tapes and intercepts, searching for missed signs of an imminent attack. Their review turned up nothing.
    22 Daniel Silva
    Initially, there was a good deal of dispute about the possible perpetrators of the attacks. Was it one group or two? Was it coordinated or simply coincidence? Was it the work of an existing paramilitary group or a new one? Republican or Loyalist? The assassination of Eamonn Dillon and the bombing of the National Library in Dublin suggested the terrorists were Loyalist Protestants. The bombing of the Underground suggested the terrorists were Republicans, since Loyalist paramilitaries infrequently engaged British forces and had never bombed the British mainland. Known members of the Irish Republican Army and the Protestant Ulster Volunteer Force were quietly brought in for questioning. All denied any knowledge or involvement.
    At 8 P.M., the ministers and security officials gathered in the Cabinet Room at Downing Street for a briefing with the prime minister. All reluctantly admitted they had no credible evidence pointing to any group or individual. In short, they were baffled.
    At 8:45 P.M. that all changed.
    The telephone chirped softly in the busy newsroom of BBC television. The Nine O'Clock News, its main nightly newscast, was on the air in fifteen minutes. The executive producer planned to devote the first half of the program to the terrorist attacks. Reporters were standing by live in Belfast, Dublin, Heathrow, and Downing Street. Because of the chaotic atmosphere in the newsroom, the telephone rang ten times before a junior production assistant named Ginger answered it.
    "I'm calling to claim responsibility for the execution of Eamonn Dillon in Belfast and the bombings at Heathrow Airport and in Dublin." Ginger took note of the voice: male; no emotion; Irish accent, West Belfast by the sound of it. "Are you prepared to take my statement?"
    The Marching Season 23
    "We're a little busy here, sweetheart," Ginger said. "I really don't have time for this right now. Nice talking to you—"
    "If you hang up this telephone you'll be making the biggest mistake of your career," the caller said. "Now, do you want to take my statement, or would you like me to telephone ITN instead?"
    "Fine," Ginger said, twirling a red lock of hair around the gnawed tip of her forefinger.
    "You have a pen?"
    Ginger kept three pens on strings around her neck. "Of course."
    "The execution of the IRA terrorist Eamonn Dillon, the bombing of the National Library in Dublin, and the bombing of the Underground at Heathrow Airport were carried out under the orders of the military council of