Bondzies stood under the stream of icy water and tried to make sense of what had happened.

It had been a routine mission in The Fens. There had been a bit of rough stuff, but James had been in control of the situation.

He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. A tight pull on the Martini. Yes. Better.

He'd never seen it coming. And the worst part was that the slug which took him in the toe was fired by someone from his own side! 0069 had always been something of a loose cannon. James liked the chap socially, but was never sure he could trust him in the field.

Actually, the worst part was that M had now taken Bondzies off active duty for the weekend and it was going to be 0069 himself that stepped into James' central role for the Long Sutton manoeuvre.

The freezing shower was starting to focus him. There was nothing for it. He'd just have to watch from the sidelines for this week and think of England.

The opening skirmishes had already begun when Bondzies hurtled up to Long Road. He checked his Rolex. 12.10. Damn! Quinoa Galore had kept him busy far longer than he'd realised.

As he looked onto the field of play, James was distressed to see that his old sparring partner from the CIA and vice-captain for the day, Felix Heavier, was already limping from the fray. Miss Walshypenny was trying her best to keep order, but there was 0069, at it again. One misplaced pass later and Agent Barnabus was left horribly exposed. Penalty corner. Mr Big stepped up. Second phase goal. The maelstrom continued, and stalwart Douglas McRugless was the next to take his leave, bleeding freely from a stiff Scottish upper lip.

With a shudder of premonition, James had visions of a bald genius stroking a cat, then realised it was just Mark Williams, arrived early for the M1s game that was to follow.

Little by little, inch by inch, Bondzies' comrades fought back. Ali Edge was deployed to close down the enemy's howitzers. Matt Kenzie bombasted around midfield with his own heavy arsenal. Jon Mann thrust and parried with typically cruel efficiency.

With one final roll of the dice, Felix Heavier was summoned for a last rumble. Accompanying him was Owen Russell, who had spent the last twelve months in deep cover as The Man With One Knee. A short corner was awarded with sixty seconds to go. Mr Big steeled his gaze. This was it. The die was cast. The roulette wheel span. Bondzies adjusted his bow tie, casually, and swore under his breath. What he wouldn't give to be on the right post!

Such were his heightened senses that the scene seemed to play out to James in slow motion. Out the ball came, slickly stopped by Heavier and moved on by Manny. It pinballed around as lives hung in the balance. And then, there was Russell, stepping out once more as the ultimate predator. With a wink to camera, he delivered the killing blow.

James Bondzies returns next week in From Bourne Deeping with Love.