Microbes of Power (Wallace of the Secret Service Series) (22 page)

‘You will not leave the room, Hugh,’ she declared with a glorious smile. ‘It is unnecessary. You will not seek to learn the secrets of the code – you are a gentleman.’

‘Thank you,’ he acknowledged simply.

He provided her with paper and a fountain pen, whereupon she sat at the desk with which the room was provided, and commenced her task. Shannon lounged in the armchair smoking his pipe, and turning over in his mind the very disconcerting news she had brought to him. It took her nearly an hour to complete the work on which she was engaged. He was able to produce the sealing wax she requested, and turned away, as she drew from the bosom of her dress the emblem of her service, with which she stamped the hot wax. Returning the symbol to its tender resting place and the letter with it, she gathered up the sheaf of now unnecessary papers and burnt them carefully in the grate.

‘It is done,’ she announced triumphantly.

He crushed the ashes underfoot, until there was practically nothing left of them.

‘One can’t be too careful in our job,’ he commented.

‘When this business is finished,’ she declared, ‘I will ask you to give me lessons, in order that I may become a good agent of the espionage.’

‘When this business is finished,’ he retorted, ‘I hope I will receive an invitation to your wedding.’

She blushed hotly, while a tremulous little smile played round her lips.

‘Oh, you confuse me,’ she protested. ‘I think perhaps never will that happiness come to me.’

‘I am sure it will. Why don’t you help Raymond to obtain courage to ask you the question he is yearning to ask?’

‘I! Mon Dieu! How terrible you are. Perhaps he does not desire to ask me that question.’

‘He does, and you know it, Thalia.’

‘I must go,’ she pronounced hastily; looked him gravely in the face. ‘Be advised by me in one matter, Hugh,’ she urged earnestly. ‘Do not go near the British embassy. I think they will watch for you there. Also please change from this hotel, and take another name. It will be easy for them to find you by enquiring at all hotels until they know where a gentleman whose name is Shannon is registered.’

‘You are right. I shall have to make a move at once. I’ll let you know, through Herr Kirche, my new address.’

He opened the door, and looked cautiously out. At once he had closed it again.

‘There is a man standing a little way along the corridor,’ he announced. ‘His back was turned luckily. Will you take a peep to make certain that you do not know him?’

She did so with extreme caution. Like him, she quickly shut the door again; gazed up at him with fear in her eyes, her face even whiter than usual.

‘It is too late for you to go, Hugh,’ she whispered. ‘They have found you. It is Baltazzi!’

It was with an emotion, which was almost pride in her, and certainly admiration, that Shannon heard her words. There was not a thought for her own extremely dangerous position; apparently she was entirely unconcerned about herself. Yet, unless they could think of some means to cause Baltazzi to go away, it was certain that her association with him would become known, and mean death for her; death without compunction or mercy.

‘I’m not worrying about myself,’ he murmured. ‘The only question that concerns me is to get you away from here. If Baltazzi goes back, and reports that you are here with me, it will be fatal for you. On no account must he be allowed to do that.’

‘I do not see how it is to be prevented,’ she returned calmly. ‘Now he has found you, he will keep watch until he sees you. I think he is waiting to make sure. He is not to know that the gentleman with the name of Shannon, staying in this hotel, is the right one. I suppose there are others with your name, Hugh.’

‘Many,’ he smiled. ‘You are quite certain, I suppose, that he hasn’t traced you here?’

‘Oh, I am quite sure of that. Also I am certain none of the hotel staff saw me come to this room.’

‘Good. Then I think I see a way out for you.’

‘For me! But what of yourself?’

‘My dear Thalia,’ he declared, ‘I am perfectly capable of looking after myself. Don’t worry about me!’ He glanced at his watch. ‘Good Lord! It is nearly six, and we haven’t had any tea.’

She laughed.

‘How funny you are! You English are very strange about afternoon tea. Here we are beset by a very difficult and dangerous situation; yet you think with regret of the tea you have forgotten.’

‘Don’t you like your afternoon cup?’

‘Sometimes I do, but to me it is not of great importance.’

‘You don’t mind missing it then?’

‘No, no, of course not.’

‘Well, listen! I am going out. Baltazzi will be sure to follow me. Wait for five or ten minutes; then go. Make quite certain first that the way is clear.’

‘But I do not like it, Hugh. He may attempt to do you harm.’

‘Let him try,’ returned Shannon grimly. ‘I guarantee he will be very sorry.’

‘You will not go anywhere where it is dangerous; I mean to a place where there are no people, and you can be attacked?’

Her question gave him an idea.

‘It might be a good notion,’ he replied slowly, ‘to go where he would be likely to attack me. The danger of Baltazzi might then be removed.’

She eyed him anxiously for a few moments; then gradually a smile replaced the trouble in her face.

‘I do not think he could succeed in doing you harm,’ she
decided, ‘but be careful, my friend, men of his kind do not fight with fairness. They are full of much treachery.’

‘I know, but I shall have one advantage, Thalia. He will not think I am aware he is trailing me.’ ‘He picked up his hat and stick. Now don’t leave this room until you are perfectly certain the way is clear.’

She promised and, with a smiling word of farewell, he went out, closing the door firmly behind him. The man, thin, olive-skinned, and dark-eyed, was still in the corridor, this time only a few yards away. He turned sharply as Shannon approached; pretended to be looking for a room. The Englishman passed him by without apparently taking any notice of him, descended in an elevator and, crossing the lounge, left the hotel. He walked along until he came to a shop, the window of which, containing material of a dark hue, caused the glass to make an excellent mirror. At first he saw nothing of Baltazzi, but presently, to his satisfaction, he caught sight of the man standing a few feet away, and with him was now another. The newcomer was a stranger, and Shannon came to the conclusion that he must be Padakis. Two of them! That rather suggested they had orders to attack him, if the opportunity presented itself. Excellent, thought Shannon; he would provide them with the opportunity. He continued on his way, occasionally stopping to glance in the glass of a shop window to make sure they were following.

He reached the Piazza del Popolo and, turning into the Via Fernando di Savoia, came to the Ponte Margherita over the Tiber. Here he remained for some time leaning on the parapet, and gazing down into the river below. From the corner of his eye, he saw Baltazzi and his companion, a man of about the same height but stouter. They had stopped some distance away and, like himself, were apparently engaged in studying the water. There was an
unusually chilly wind blowing in from the sea, and the hint of a storm – a sudden change after the extremely hot weather Rome had been experiencing. The bridge was almost deserted, and Shannon reflected that here was a splendid opportunity for the two men to attack him. A sudden stab in the back, as they passed their unsuspecting victim, and their chances of being observed, that is, if they chose the moment well, would be practically nil. A car travelling in the direction of the Via Cola di Rienzi sped swiftly by, a farm cart going in the opposite direction rattled noisily past; then, as far as Shannon was able to observe, the bridge was empty, except for himself and his two trailers.

They left their post, and walked quickly in his direction. Immediately he prepared himself, the stick slipping as though unheeded to the ground. Baltazzi, who was walking slightly ahead of his companion, drew closer. The distance between him and the Englishman rapidly diminished; four or five yards separated them, two, one! Then Shannon swung round at the identical moment that Baltazzi sprang forward, a gleaming stiletto upraised viciously in his hand. The Secret Service man neatly sidestepped, and crashed his right fist full into the other’s face with all the power of his mighty body. There was a sickening crunch, a half-stifled cry, and his assailant went down as though he had been poleaxed. At the same time, and with a cry of rage, the second man sprang forward. Shannon went down promptly on one knee and, catching the fellow by the waist, sent him flying over his head and the parapet down to the river below. He was up in time to see him strike the water with a tremendous splash. Presently he rose to the surface, and struck out awkwardly for the bank. It was evident that he was not an expert swimmer, but there were boats about. He would undoubtedly be picked up, which, reflected Shannon, was, on the
whole, rather a pity. He turned, and contemplated Baltazzi for a moment. The fellow lay stretched on his back quite unconscious, his face in a deplorable state. The bridge was still deserted and, picking up his stick, the Englishman set off rapidly along the way he had come. He had no desire to be involved in an investigation, and was relieved when he reached the Via Cola di Rienzi without meeting a soul. There he took a taxi, and was driven back to his hotel. He packed at once, paid his bill, announcing that he had been called away, and drove to the railway station. From there he took another car, the driver of which he instructed carefully. He was conveyed across Rome, coming at length to the Ponte Garibaldi, thence to Trastevere. Not far from the Porta Portese, in the vicinity of the church of St Maria dell’ Orto, was the house of an English widow, whom he knew well. There he obtained rooms.

As soon as he could do so, he went out again, and telephoned Hill. Speaking German, he announced himself as a friend from Vienna, giving a name which he and Hill had agreed he should use in case of emergency. An arrangement was made to dine together in a restaurant near the university, one simple little word from Shannon warning his colleague to take special precautions not to be followed. Hill found him standing by a taxi in which he was at once invited to enter. They were driven rapidly to the Via Garibaldi, from where they walked to Shannon’s new abode. To all of Hill’s interested questions he turned a deaf ear, until they were sitting together in the seclusion of his sitting room.

‘If I have been traced now,’ he declared with a smile; ‘then Plasiras and the rest must have supernatural powers. We are dining here, Tubby, and I can promise you a meal which will make you think you are back in London. But the greatest advantage is that we can talk without restraint. Mrs Herbertson is the widow of a
man who was in the Diplomatic Service, and died of enteric here. Perhaps that’s why she settled down in Rome. She is absolutely reliable, knows quite a lot about my wicked ways, and will ensure that once we have dined, nobody will come anywhere near us. I’m rather sorry now that I didn’t come here in the first place.’

‘But why all this sudden secrecy?’ demanded Hill.

Shannon ignored the question for the moment.

‘I’m sorry I haven’t the doings for your particular brand of cocktail, Tubby,’ he apologised, ‘but I can give you a gin and It, pink gin, mixed vermouth, or a gin and french. What is it to be?’

Hill chose a mixed vermouth, while Shannon prepared a gin and Angostura for himself. Then he sat down, and narrated all that had happened, from the time he had received Thalia’s telephone call until they had met near the Pantheon. Hill showed a good deal of concern at the information that Baltazzi and Padakis were in Rome, had discovered Shannon’s presence there, and traced him to the Hotel Splendide. He laughed with sheer delight, however, at the description of the chastisement that had been meted out to them on the Ponte Margharita. Over dinner they discussed the situation intermittently, continuing it afterwards more intensely and gravely, when there was no longer any possibility of their being interrupted. Hill was, of course, full of admiration and acclamations for Thalia. He contended that, after the service she had performed for Shannon, the latter could not possibly harbour any doubts concerning her. Hugh told him, at once, that his suspicions had long since been dispersed. He spoke, in fact, as enthusiastically of her as his companion, much to that young man’s gratification.

‘Tomorrow morning,’ he declared, ‘I shall ask to speak to the chief himself when I ring through. I shall tell him, of course, what has happened, laying stress on the part she has played, and ask
if, under the circumstances, we can take her altogether into our confidence. If he agrees, as I think he will, you will be able to tell her who you really are.’

‘What a relief that will be!’ commented Hill with feeling. ‘I have never hated anything in my life as much as I have hated this necessity of keeping up the pretence to her of being what I am not.’

‘By the way,’ remarked Shannon drily, ‘en passant, Tubby, let me tell you that I am tired of acting as a benevolent matchmaker. When are you going to ask her to be your wife?’

‘God knows,’ groaned Hill. ‘I don’t seem to have the nerve. Several times I have been on the point of attempting it, only to back out. Hang it all, Hugh! It seems such a colossal cheek to propose to a girl I have known little more than a week.’

‘Rot! You’re chicken-hearted,’ jeered the other. ‘She loves you – you love her. Why, dash it! I’ll do it for you, if you don’t get a move on.’

‘I almost wish you would.’

Shannon stared hard at him; then laughed.

‘I’m inclined to believe you mean it. But there’s nothing doing, old son. That’s a job a man ought to do for himself, especially if he wishes to retain the respect of the girl. Go for it – you’ve nothing to fear. I guarantee that. Now back to our discussion. We’ve got to act at once now that the blighters know there is someone here on their trail. My treatment of the two spies will put the wind up them more than ever. I suppose you haven’t noticed any signs or portents suggestive of the fact that they are about to go elsewhere?’

Hill shook his head.

‘All my efforts at watching them end in dismal failure,’ he grunted. ‘I’ve been as much use in Rome as an attack of measles. It’s perfectly sickening the way Kyprianos is guarded. How on earth
can we get at him, when there are always others with him?’

‘We’ll have to make a way now. We can’t possibly wait.’

They sat silently turning over the problem in their minds for some time. At last Shannon turned to Hill, his eyes gleaming.

‘The stuff is quite ready you say?’

‘Yes; has been for days – all in a hypo, ready for injection.’

‘And the effect is general paralysis – he won’t be able to move a limb or cry out?’

‘No; his body will be more or less dead for a few days, though his mind will remain active enough. The sensory and motor functions of the nerves will be quite lost for at least a hundred hours. After that he will recover, but by slow degrees.’

‘In what part of the body must the injection be made?’

‘In the spine. Why all this questioning?’

‘Because I’m going to get into that flat tonight,’ was Shannon’s quiet reply. ‘I gather that Kyprianos occupies the room he has turned into a laboratory alone, the others I presume have each one of the bedrooms. Between two and three in the morning they all ought to be asleep, and perhaps I can do the job without disturbing Radoloff and Michalis. I’ll take the hypodermic syringe with me and, if you show me the exact spot where the needle must be stuck, I’ll—’

‘Here, steady on, Hugh. Where do I come in?’

‘You stop out. If anything goes wrong, I’ll want someone on the outside to notify headquarters. We mustn’t risk both of us being done in and spoiling the show altogether.’

Hill protested vehemently, but he might as well have attempted an argument with a brick wall. Shannon had made up his mind, and he refused to give way, even on the smallest point. He did not mention that another reason why he had determined to act alone
was because of the love between Thalia and his colleague. He had no wish to run Hill into danger, which might easily end in the loss of his life, when he was on the verge of experiencing a great happiness. There is no time as a rule for sentiment in the lives of the men of the Secret Service, but occasionally it is permitted to creep in. Shannon knew very well that, if he had hinted at his secondary reason for undertaking the venture alone, Hill would have been immensely indignant, and refused point-blank to agree to the scheme. Apart from that, Hugh honestly felt he could manage by himself, and that it was necessary to have an unsuspected assistant to inform headquarters, and carry on in the event of failure. He made Hill show him very carefully the exact spot in the spine where the needle of the syringe was to be inserted. The ex-doctor made one last effort to dissuade him from his purpose.