As the assistant to Minister for Sport Della Winn, Aamir Mallik is officed in the House of Commons with Della’s husband, Geraint. In his mid-twenties, he is described as being “a tall young Asian man wearing thick-lensed glasses.” Aamir is highly intelligent, having taken a first in politics and economics at the London School of Economics. His is an aloof personality, and Robin finds him to be a formidable impediment in her undercover work. He’s immediately suspicious of her when they first meet.

Della has taken Aamir under her wing due to his being alienated from his working-class Muslim family and dismissed from the graduate training program at the Foreign Office. Not only has Della given him a job, but she’s also allowing him to live rent free in the three-bedroom house where her and Geraint’s mothers previously lived. It’s located in close proximity to the Winns’ current home.

Through recordings obtained by surveillance devices planted in Geraint and Aamir’s office, Strike and Robin learn that Aamir is being pressured by Geraint to get photos from Sir Christopher Barrowclough-Burns that will incriminate Jasper Chiswell.