But Stefan could not stop babbling. Tears poured down his slack, beaten face and his ungainly, broken body heaved. The huge, bound paws gesticulated wildly in the moonlight. Then there was a flash of light. Achilles reached for his gun as Stefan turned in a grotesque pirouette. Achilles's body jerked upwards, jumping into the air like a puppet before falling on to the street, his twitching limbs stilled by the hail of bullets. There was a gurgling sound from his throat. Stefan stood still, frozen in the terrifying realisation that he had unwittingly led the Germans to his friends.