The cold Berlin air hung thick with the scent of coal smoke and the lingering metallic tang of recent gunfire. The betrayal at the safe house had shaken them all, but none more so than Liam O’Malley, ‘Whisper’ as he was known within the Crimson Gauntlet. He sat alone in the corner of their new, temporary hideout – a cramped, graffiti-covered squat on the edge of the city – meticulously cleaning his Lee-Enfield. The ritualistic act, the familiar feel of the cold steel, usually brought him a measure of calm. Tonight, it offered no solace.