Debut for a Spy (41 page)

“
Ah, my friend, that is excellent. Now you are thinking like an expert – subtlety of deception in a manner worthy of a Soviet spymaster. You are learning, my friend. Soon you will be a worthy opponent in the game. It is fascinating to watch you develop.”

“
A game? Is that what all this is to you?”

“
Of course, my friend. I bear you no ill will, nor Miss Fletcher. It is all move and countermove. You take my pawn, I take yours – you take my bishop, I take your queen. It is a game, a game of chess, but in this game the pieces are real. Now it's a stalemate. You and I, we will play again, my friend.”

“
I don't think so, Volodya. If this is a game, then you lose. It's check, and mate.”

I shot him in the heart. He slid off the chair, his eyes staring at me, and fell across Mlodzic. I went to him, felt for a pulse. There was none.

Quickly I turned to Kate, undoing the clamps and unbuckling the straps which held her. Her clothes had been thrown on a chair, and I grabbed them in a bundle. Gently I lifted her head, and called her name.

“
Kate… Kate… everything's all right, love. Come on, wake up… it's David.”

Her eyes flew open.

“David? David! Oh, God, it must have been real! Look at me! Those men, where are they? Are they coming back? Oh, God, David, help me! Help me!”

“
Sshh, it's over. They're gone. Come on, let's get you out of here.”

I stood between her and the bodies, and helped get her off the table facing away from them. We moved quickly to the stairs.

“How did you find me? The last thing I remember clearly is being made to get into another car, and then they stuck me with a needle. When I started to wake up I was tied down – I couldn't move. Then the questions, the list, about you, about Mom and Dad, but mostly the list – that damned list.”

She ranted, almost delirious, as we climbed the stairs and went into the living room. She stood there, trying to talk, still unashamedly naked.

“Kate, put your clothes on. We've got to go.”

“
I'll try. I can't lift my arms. Help me, please.”

“
Here, put these on first.”

I handed her the panties. She started to pull them up, then lost her balance. I caught her as she fell against me.

“Sorry.”

“
It's okay.”

We got her panties on, and I handed her the bra.

“You'll have to help. I can't reach behind me.”

“
Forget it, Kate! Just get your slacks and sweatshirt on!”

I was getting exasperated.

“Kate, I know this isn't your fault, but we've got to get out of here. Come on!”

We got the rest of her clothes on in a hurry. I took her by the arm and led her to the door, ushered her through, then closed it behind me. I steered her away from the body on the steps, and we walked toward the gate, passing the Mercedes.

“My suitcase and my carry-on are in the car, David.”

I still had the keys from the guard. We retrieved her bags. At the gate I fumbled keys again, found the right one, and relocked after we passed through. Heading up the lane Kate suddenly slumped against me, walking unsteadily. It was hitting her again.

I looked ahead. Dimly, in the light of a streetlamp, I saw a man apparently out for a stroll. He was smoking a pipe, and sauntering away from us. We were catching up. I couldn't see his face in the shadows as we walked by. I kept my hand on the gun.

A quiet voice said
“Good evening, Minstrel.”

I jumped, the gun was in my hand, and I caught myself.

“Jesus, colonel, I could have shot you! How did you find me?”

“
Two and two made four. The message from you, Miss Fletcher's disappearance – and we've had a watcher on this place since you told us about it. He rang and described your car. We came straightaway. Heard you talking to Nalishkin. Felt you had it under control. You made the prudent move, all things considered. Now, what have you left for us back there?”

“
Four dead. One outside, three in the cellar.”

“
What did you use?”

“
This.” I pulled out the Makarov.

“
Where did you get this?”

“
On the ship. It's Nalishkin's.”

“
You shot them with Nalishkin's own gun? Bloody marvelous!”

“
What do you mean, colonel?”

“
When the Soviets find this little homosexual love nest of murder and suicide, they're going to want to keep the lid on it tightly. Nalishkin's own gun. That makes it easy!”

I handed it over, bullets, magazine, everything.

“Do you have a gun I can use, colonel? Under the circumstances I wouldn't want to be unprotected.”

He reached in his jacket and handed me a 9mm Browning.
“I shouldn't think you'll need it.”

I took out both sets of the guard's keys.

“The keys, sir. The gates, the house, and the Mercedes.”

“
Anything else?”

“
No, sir. I've got to take Kate home. They used a drug to get her here quietly. Coupled with the trauma, it's affecting her strangely.”

He looked more closely at her. She was out of it.

“They shouldn't have used a drug,” he said, “it minimizes the reality. Not thought out. Hurriedly organized. She'll throw it off, David. We use this sort of thing from time to time. There are no lasting effects, but some lose all their inhibitions when they come down.”

“
That's what's happened. We're going, sir.”

“
Forget about this, David. Leave it to us. It probably won't even make the papers. The Soviets will make it vanish.”

“
Colonel.” This was hard for me to face. “I shot Nalishkin in cold blood. I needn't have. I was judge, jury, and executioner. My voice broke. “I don't know who I am anymore.”

“
David,” he said gently, “it had become personal with him. If you hadn't finished it tonight it would have gone on. It's over. Go away and forget it.”

“
No, I may learn to live with it, but I'll never forget it. For me it wasn't a game. Goodnight, sir.”

I held Kate 'til we got to the car, and placed her in the passenger seat. She was still very groggy. I drove off, filled with disturbing thoughts. Gradually I sifted through them and reached a conclusion – the only one which helped my peace of mind.

This time it was really over.

Colonel Hammond had said so.

CHAPTER THIRTY

After
midnight
–
Saturday
,
June
23
,
1962

We were somewhere near Staines when Kate seemed to snap out of it and sit up. It was almost 0100am.

“
David,” she whispered, “my mouth is parched. I need some water, and I have to pee badly. I'm sorry.”

“
Don't be. I'll find something.”

The only thing I was sure of at that hour was the airport – the coffee shop is open all night. We were close to it, so I took a short-cut to the west of Heathrow which put us on the approach road and into the parking lot.

“Can you walk, Kate?”

“
Yes, I think so. Just hold on to me. I'm not very steady.”

She was trembling. We went inside, then straight to the ladies' room. I stood outside and waited. I wasn't taking chances in this place. When she appeared I was relieved. We made our way slowly to the coffee shop and sat at a small booth for two. I ordered coffee, Kate asked for two glasses of orange juice and two glasses of water. When the water came she downed both glasses immediately, then sipped the juice. To this point we'd hardly spoken. I felt I had to wait until she was ready. It came, haltingly.

“It's partly my own fault. The picture on the ID didn't really look like the guy who met me. I should've been more careful, especially after what happened in Colebrook. But I just stupidly went along with him.”

“
If you hadn't they would have jabbed you in the airport and pretended you were sick. They weren't taking no for an answer.”

“
What happened to the real guy from the embassy?”

“
They killed him. He was found in the men's room.”

She shuddered.
“Oh, God.”

There was a silence as she collected her thoughts.

“How did you find me? Why was it you and not the police or the CIA? And with a gun? I don't understand.”

“
It's a long story, Kate, and eventually I'll tell you the whole thing. You deserve to know, considering what you've been through. Very simply, I stumbled into some nasty people who were searching for your dad's list.”

“
That damned list. I wish I'd never heard of it. I don't think it exists, that's how tragic this is. People dying, and for what?”

“
There's something strange about the list, Kate. Official statements say there's no such thing, but there are still people desperately trying to find it.”

“
These guys never said who they were. I guessed Russian.”

“
Yup. KGB.”

“
And you're mixed up with them?”

“
Like I said, it's a long story.”

“
How long has this been a part of your life? I feel like I don't know who you are.”

“
Since the day you told me about Antigone. I was approached and asked to help because I was going to sing at the Soviet embassy. Before I knew it I was in shit right up to my neck.”

There was another introspective silence.

“David, I remember what was going on in that cellar, but it doesn't seem real. I can see it, but it's not me – It was like watching someone else.”

“
It's probably because of the drug they used on you, and because our minds try to cope with bad situations by masking them to make them less-threatening.”

“
Did you hear any of the horrible things they said they were going to do?”

“
Most of them. I thought at first it might be a bluff to scare you, but it nearly got out of control.”

She pondered again.

“They meant it, didn't they?”

“
Yes. The electrodes had convinced me.”

“
Where were you?”

“
In an area they use for voyeurs with one-way glass. They couldn't see me, but I could see you. I couldn't tell how many there were. If there'd been others with guns we'd both be dead.”

“
That close?”

“
It was that close.”

Another silence.

“You killed them, didn't you? The three in the room with me.”

I nodded.

“I'm sorry… no… I'm glad… God… I don't know.”

“
I had no choice, Kate. In the past two weeks I've learned a lot about myself. Some of it scares the hell out of me.”

She recollected again.

“I seem to remember standing in front of you naked and thinking some pretty sexy thoughts.”

“
The after-effects of the drug. It released all your inhibitions. You weren't in control, so don't think about it.”

“
Aren't inhibitions just the barriers we create to hold back our desires? God, if that was any indication of what I really want I'm surprised I haven't attacked you in the night.”

I smiled.
“I think inhibitions mask our fantasies, too, and we all have them. It doesn't mean we either intend or want to make them real. Fantasies are just the speculation of the imagination. Never-never land.”

Another think.

“What's happening with the new lady in your life?”

I considered my reply.
“I may never see her again. It's another part of the long story. It's very involved. You can't imagine what's happened to me since you left last Friday.”

“
If tonight was a sample I'd believe anything.”

I hesitated before bringing the next subject up.

“Kate, we should face up to a couple of unpleasant things.”

“
Like what?”

“
You were abused tonight, both psychologically and physically. Do you want to go to a hospital, or see a doctor?”

“
I thought about it in the car. My thoughts were vague, but this is what I feel. It was like a nightmare. Now I'm awake, it's over, and it's fading away. If you hadn't arrived and they'd hurt me it would have been a different story. Maybe my mind would have come apart. It's really like it happened to somebody else. I sit here calmly, I can talk about it, and I thank God that I got out of it. I don't know how I'll be tomorrow or even in a few days, but if I have any problems we'll deal with them. Okay?”

“
Okay.”

“
Now let's go home.”

As we drove Kate kept up her chatter, mainly about her visit with her grandmother, seeing friends and relatives, the flight, and all the minor details and variations. It told me that however much she protested, the ordeal was taking its toll on her. Still, if this was the way she had to handle it, so be it
– I'd help her play it out. Even back at the flat she didn't want to stop talking, let alone go off to bed. I made some tea, and we sat down at the table in our habitual seats and carried on with whatever came into her head. Through the circuitous process of random conversation we ended up where we had started – her father's list.

“
Why is it so important, David?”

I told her what I knew.

“Then you think the Soviets want it to kill the people who worked with my father?”

“
Probably. Certainly to neutralize their influence.”

“
And the Americans want it to try to get those people to work with someone else.”

“
They'll have a stab at it. From what I understand, your father's credibility and honesty were the only reasons so many of these people co-operated. Without him I doubt it'll work no matter who tries to pick up the pieces.”

I hated to rub salt in the wound, but it seemed like the right time to try the question.

“Kate, you have no ideas at all about the list? Tell me to shut up if you don't want to talk about it.”

“
No, it's okay. I've gone over everything I can think of, and I can't come up with a single clue. If I had anything at all, I'd have told those creeps anything they wanted to know.”

“
After your parents died, is there anything connected to them that you didn't have or weren't aware of beforehand?”

She considered this at length.

“No. Nothing. I've been through this before, and apart from the letter from Dad there's absolutely nothing.”

“
Do you still have it?”

“
I have a copy of it. They kept the original at the embassy because they wanted to analyze it for codes or microdots or something. They said I could have it back in a couple of weeks.”

“
I bet your dad wouldn't have been so obvious. May I see it?”

She returned in a few minutes with a photo copy. It was only one page, neatly written in longhand.

“May I read it, Kate?”

“
You don't even have to ask.”

It was undated, and read:

“My dear daughter Kate,

“
If you are reading this it means that something has happened to me. I chose the life that I lead, and it does have elements of danger. I wouldn't change it, because I think I've made a worthwhile contribution.

What I wanted to leave you with is that you have been the best child that I could ever have wished for. I've loved you from the moment I saw you squealing in the hospital, and that never diminished one iota as you grew into a precocious tot, a scatterbrained adolescent, and a beautiful, intelligent young lady.

I hope you'll remember our holidays in Colebrook, the excitement of world travel, the talks we shared, the plays I never got to see (well, I made a few of them!), and that you'll think of me whenever you hear a Sousa march.

Remember how proud I am of you, and carry that with you whatever you end up doing, and that it doesn't matter what you do as long as you do it well and you're happy.

“If there is one thing I am sure about it is that I respect your judgment in all things. I know this will see you through the perplexing decisions you will face in life.

My love will always be with you.

Dad.”

It was hard to read it without a sense of great loss and deep sadness. Kate had a tear in her eye just watching me.

“I'm sure you've been asked this many times, Kate. But is there anything here that isn't normal? Anything that stands out?”

“That's just it, it's completely natural – there's nothing there that's forced in. I'd have known.”

“
What about a hidden meaning? Is there any way that something here could jog your memory about an incident or a place that wouldn't be seen on the surface?”

“
I've done this, too, and it hasn't worked.”

I looked at the letter.

“The hospital you were born in. Anything?”

“
No. And not only was I too young to remember, Mom and Dad never talked about anything significant that was connected to it.”

“
Colebrook?”

“
We were there so often, and yet I can't think of a single thing that disrupts the pattern. I thought about this when I was there, and Gram and I even talked about it. Nothing.”

“
World travel?”

“
I've been to Europe with them, Central and South America, and all over the States and Canada. If he wanted to leave a clue there I think it would have been more specific. Sorry.”

“
Talks? Did he ever say anything to you about something you should do in case he were to die? A hidden envelope, a place where he'd put things?”

“
No. Never. Not one single thing like that. It was always positive, always sharing, always encouragement. We talked all the time, so it's impossible to single out one thing from years of conversation.”

“
Plays you were in?”

“
David, I've been in plays since I could barely walk. It's been my passion. There were dozens.”

“
What about his reference to the few plays he got to see?”

She considered this.

“He saw Oklahoma! when I was in tenth grade, and two or three things from Sunday school and grade school. I don't even remember them.”

“
Anything from Oklahoma! that stands out, or that you and he talked about?”

“
Nothing at all. We talked about the various actors, the singers, the music, the sets, but it's all normal.”

We seemed to be getting nowhere.

“What's the reference to Sousa?”

“
He liked band music, and Sousa marches were his favorites.”

“
Is there any one in particular?”

“
The 'Stars and Stripes Forever', I think. I don't know the names of any others.”