Hammersley put his hands in his trousers pockets.
“I fancy so.”
“What are you going to do?”
“What I’ve been told to do.”
“My orders supersede yours.”
“H-m. I’m not sure.”
“You can’t doubt my credentials.”
“Hardly that. Er—I think I know best, that’s all.”
Rizzio took a pace or two before the fireplace in front of him, his brows tangled, his fingers twitching behind his back. Then he stopped with the air of a man who has reached a decision.
“You understand what this refusal means?”