Алистер Маклин - Red Alert

‘Neither did I.’ Rust indicated the armchair in front of his desk. ‘Sit down, I’ll order us some tea.’

‘I can’t sit around here for the next two hours. I’ve got to get back to the Offenbach Centre. There’s still so much to do, especially if the cylinder does turn out to be a dummy. You can call Malcolm when the results come through.’

‘I’ll get hold of Emile for you,’ Rust said, reaching for the telephone.

‘Two hours?’ Philpott said after Kolchinsky had finished briefing him. He took a sip of tea then sat back in his chair. ‘Not that it matters. We have to keep searching.’

‘Where’s Visconti?’ Kolchinsky asked, picking up his Beretta from the desk.

‘Sit down,’ Philpott said, indicating a chair. ‘Have some tea and calm down. You’re like a hyperactive child at the moment.’

‘There isn’t time–’

‘Sergei,’ Philpott cut in, pointing to the chair.

Kolchinsky slipped the Beretta into his shoulder holster and reluctantly sat down.

Philpott poured him a cup of tea. ‘Ingrid Hauser’s working with Visconti now. I’d rather use you as an auxiliary. That way you can help out if one of the teams falls behind schedule. It will save us having to pull out one of the other teams to help them.’

Kolchinsky nodded and lit a cigarette.

The telephone rang.

Philpott answered it. He listened in silence.

‘Thanks for letting me know,’ he said at length, and replaced the receiver.

‘What is it, Malcolm?’ Kolchinsky asked anxiously, noticing the concern on Philpott’s face.

‘That was Vlok. He has just received a bomb threat.’

Graham and Marco knew their recall had nothing to do with the vial, that much Philpott had told them on the telephone. Apart from that they were just as much in the dark as the other three teams who were already in the office when they got there.

‘What’s this all about, sir?’ Graham asked.

‘There’s been a bomb threat,’ Philpott replied. ‘Dieter Vlok took the call. The caller claimed to have planted a bomb somewhere close to the building. It’s due to go off at three o’clock.’

‘That’s in thirty-eight minutes time,’ Marco said, looking at his watch.

‘Have you told Calvieri?’ Whitlock asked.

‘I haven’t told anybody outside this room. Vlok’s the only other person who knows about it. And I’ve sworn him to secrecy. I haven’t even told Commissioner Kuhlmann, and I don’t intend to. Strictly speaking, the bomb threat falls under his jurisdiction but knowing him, he’ll want to evacuate the building as quickly as possible. And that could make Calvieri panic, especially as he specifically warned us against staging a bomb scare.’

‘Where is Kuhlmann?’ Whitlock asked.

‘Interrogating Cellina,’ Philpott replied. ‘You’re going to have to postpone the search for the vial. At least for the time being. We have to find that bomb.’

‘If there is a bomb,’ Graham said.

‘I’m not taking any chances, Mike.’ Philpott shook his head in desperation. ‘If there is a bomb, and it goes off, and it comes out later that we received a warning beforehand there’s going to be hell to pay. Heads will roll. Starting with mine.’

‘You’re going to have to try to reason with Calvieri,’ Paluzzi said to Philpott.

‘I intend to. I’m sure he won’t let us evacuate the building but he might be able to find out if there is a bomb. And if so, where it’s hidden.’

‘Leaving us to defuse it?’

‘Of course I’d rather bring in the bomb squad, Mike, but their first priority would be to evacuate the building. And that would give Calvieri itchy fingers.’ Philpott gestured to Kolchinsky. ‘Sergei’s worked out the areas for each team to cover. I want you to get on to it right away.’

‘We’re just clutching at straws, sir,’ Graham said. ‘What chance have we got of finding it?’

‘Have you got a better plan, Michael?’ Kolchinsky snapped angrily, opening the door leading into the outer office. ‘Let’s go. The Colonel will bleep us if he gets any positive feedback from Calvieri.’

Philpott waited until they had left then dialled the extension number Calvieri had given him.

Calvieri was watching an interview with the French Prime Minister when the telephone rang. He crossed to the side table and answered it.

Philpott told him about the bomb threat.

‘The Greek ELA?’ Calvieri said.

‘That’s who the caller claimed to be representing,’ Philpott replied. ‘We have to evacuate the building. If the bomb–’

‘No,’ Calvieri cut in angrily. ‘I’ve told you already, I’ll push the button if any attempt is made to evacuate the building.’

Philpott exhaled deeply, struggling to control his temper.

‘I’m not going to argue with you, Calvieri. There isn’t time. If you’re not prepared to have the building evacuated then at least find out whether there is a bomb or whether it’s just a hoax. You’ve got the contacts. I don’t need to remind you that it’s just as much in your interest as it is in ours to get it defused in time.’

‘I’ll look into it.’

‘It’s already two twenty-five–’

‘I said I’ll look into it!’ Calvieri replaced the receiver, then spun round and punched the wall furiously.

‘What is it?’ Ubrino asked anxiously.

‘Get Bettinga on the line,’ Calvieri said softly.

‘Why, what–’

‘Just do it!’ Calvieri yelled.

Ubrino nodded hesitantly, then picked up the receiver and dialled a number in Rome to find out where he could contact Bettinga.

Calvieri looked down at his hand. The skin around the knuckles was torn and the blood trickled down between his fingers. He noticed Sabrina watching him carefully. He sat down opposite her.

‘You think I’ve finally snapped, don’t you?’

‘No, but I think you’re pretty pissed off about some thing,’ she replied, holding his stare.

‘You could say that.’ Calvieri winced when he tried to flex his fingers. ‘This is going to hurt like hell in the morning.’

‘I assume from what you said on the phone that there’s been a bomb scare.’

‘You’re very perceptive,’ Calvieri replied, then looked across at Ubrino. ‘Well?’

‘They are trying to find out where Signore Bettinga is at the moment,’ Ubrino said, his hand over the mouthpiece.

‘Who are you talking to?’

‘Larusso, one of the cell commanders in Rome.’

‘I know who he is! Ask him if he’s got the number of the ELA headquarters in Athens. That’s all I want to know.’ Calvieri turned back to Sabrina. ‘Yes, there’s been a bomb threat. Are you familiar with the ELA?’

She shook her head.

‘It stands for Espanastatikos Laikos Agonas which, roughly translated, means the People’s Revolutionary Struggle. Radical fundamentalists, nothing more.’ Calvieri took the transmitter from his pocket and turned it around in his hand.

‘I’ve spent months planning, and perfecting, this operation. And now the ELA are threatening to ruin it all. If the bomb were to go off the whole complex would be evacuated. The perfect opportunity for a search.’

‘It sounds like a case of the biter bit. If, of course, there is a bomb.’

‘There’s a bomb, I’m sure of that. You’ll find–’

‘I’ve got the number,’ Ubrino called out.

‘Call it and ask for Andreas Kozanakis head of the ELA.’ Calvieri turned back to Sabrina. ‘As I was saying, you’ll find that anonymous bomb threats are invariably hoaxes. But if an organization gives its name, that means they’re after publicity. And who’s going to take them seriously if they’re not prepared to back up those threats?’

‘The voice of the expert,’ Sabrina said with disdain.