RUSSIA WILL INTERVENE IN THE NUCLEAR CRISIS, he read on his phone.

ALEXANDRE DUVAL, THE NEW RONALD? the Spanish paper asked, noting a positive change in his game.

He and Victoria had planned a trip to Paris for the next weekend. It was her favourite city.

Alexandre threw himself into the book’s next section: more epistemology. He racked his brain. Time grew scarce. The call-up to the French national team demanded hours. He stayed up late many nights. Daylight hours were never enough.

WE NEED TO TALK. 20:00. SIROB

The message came from Boris. Written backwards, it was their prearranged signal to meet in a secret place.

When the hour came, Alexandre pulled up his hood and went incognito to a small restaurant. Boris sat in a dim corner. He opened a folder.

“Sit,” Boris said, and laid out a photograph. Lenel stood in it with three young people, walking beside a sportswear advertisement.

“Do you know them?” Boris asked.

“Apart from Lenel, no. Why?” Alexandre answered.

“I spied on Lenel and recorded what he said with my camera’s directional microphone,” Boris said. He handed Alexandre a folded paper. On it was a note in capital letters: SOMEONE HAS TO PUT OUT SMALL FIRES BEFORE THEY BECOME BIG ONES.

Boris said Lenel had stopped there and made a hand gesture in the air, as if writing a book when he said that.

“What does Ronald have to do with a book?” Boris asked.

“I don’t know.” Alexandre said, remembering Francisca and the meetings. She is right. I am a liar, he thought.

“Did you notice the ad behind them?” Boris pressed.

“Is there something important in it?” Alexandre asked, studying the photograph.

“It’s a sportswear ad with Ronald’s image. Lenel made that writing gesture in front of his picture. Do you see?” Boris said.