Алистер Маклин - Red Alert

Graham and Paluzzi, alerted by the gunshot, emerged from behind a door leading on to the stairs and ran across to the helicopter. Philpott, Kolchinsky and Kuhlmann appeared behind them. Graham retrieved the two Berettas, then ordered Calvieri out of the helicopter. Calvieri jumped on to the helipad and slowly raised his hands above his head. Paluzzi frisked him and pocketed the transmitter. He found the key for Sabrina’s handcuffs and unlocked them before helping her out of the helicopter. She took one of the Berettas from Graham and pushed it into her shoulder holster.

Whitlock cut the engine, then got out of the cockpit and looked across at Sabrina. ‘Are you all right?’

‘I’m fine,’ she replied, massaging her wrists where the handcuffs had dug into her skin. ‘Thanks, C.W.’

Whitlock smiled at her, then crossed to where Philpott was standing.

‘Good work, C.W.’

‘Thank you, sir.’

‘Cuff him,’ Philpott said, nodding towards Calvieri.

‘Allow me,’ Sabrina replied, then took the handcuffs from Paluzzi and snapped them around Calvieri’s wrists.

‘Have you got a cigarette?’ Calvieri asked Kolchinsky. ‘I haven’t had one all afternoon.’

Kolchinsky took his cigarettes from his pocket, pushed one between Calvieri’s lips, and lit it for him. Calvieri took a long drag then raised his manacled hands and took the cigarette from his lips. He exhaled deeply, then looked across at Philpott.

‘I’m not taking this rap by myself. You’ll find Nikki Karos at his house on Corfu.’

‘Karos alive?’ Paluzzi snorted. ‘That’s ridiculous. Mike and I were there when he was killed.’

‘It was stage managed for your benefit,’ Calvieri said to Paluzzi.

‘We’ve had the house under surveillance–’

‘Don’t you think he knows that?’ Calvieri cut across Paluzzi. ‘Why do you think Boudien dismissed the staff? To make it look as if Karos was dead.’

‘We saw him die,’ Graham snapped.

‘I don’t know how he faked it, but Nikki Karos is alive. I should know, I spoke to him on his private line this morning.’

Philpott turned to Graham.

‘I want you and Sabrina to check it out. Emile can fly you there tonight.’

‘I’ll fly them over, Malcolm,’ Kolchinsky said. ‘Emile’s a courier, not a combat pilot. If Karos is alive, we could come under fire.’

‘Very well,’ Philpott replied after a moment’s thought.

He took Whitlock and Paluzzi to one side.

‘Commissioner Kuhlmann has agreed to give us two hours with Calvieri before we have to hand him over to the local police. I want you to get as much out of him as you can before they take him away.’

‘Where can we question him?’ Paluzzi asked.

‘Use Vlok’s office.’

‘What about Ubrino?’ Whitlock asked, glancing at the body.

‘The police will be here shortly. Commissioner Kuhlmann and I will stay here to tie up any loose ends. Now go on, get Calvieri out of here before they arrive.’

Whitlock and Paluzzi led Calvieri across the helipad and disappeared down the stairs.

Kolchinsky looked at his watch, then dropped his cigarette end and ground it underfoot.

‘It’s going to be a long haul. We’d better get started as soon as possible.’

‘How long will it take us to reach Corfu?’ Sabrina asked.

‘You’re my navigators, that’s for you to work out.’

Graham and Sabrina exchanged an expressive look as they followed Kolchinsky to the helicopter.

‘Sit down,’ Whitlock said to Calvieri, indicating the chair behind Vlok’s desk.

‘What about these?’ Calvieri asked, extending his manacled wrists towards Whitlock.

‘They stay, for the moment.’

‘So what’s the deal?’ Calvieri asked, sitting down.

‘Deal?’ Paluzzi asked suspiciously.

‘Why am I here? Why haven’t I been handed over to the local police?’

‘You’ll be handed over to them in two hours’ time,’ Whitlock told him. ‘That’s when you’ll be officially booked.’

‘And until then?’

‘Hopefully you’ll agree to cooperate with us,’ Whitlock said. ‘It would certainly benefit you in the long run if you did.’

‘And what exactly does this “cooperation” entail?’

‘A signed confession,’ Paluzzi replied brusquely.

‘And what’s in it for me? I’m hardly going to be pardoned, am I?’

‘A reduction in sentence,’ Whitlock said.

Calvieri sat back and smiled to himself.

‘So I’ll get three life sentences instead of four. Not much of an incentive, is it?’

Paluzzi placed his hands on the desk and leaned forward, his eyes fixed on Calvieri’s face.

‘You’re going to spend part of your sentence in an Italian jail. And that means you’re going to need protection. All I have to do is make one phone call and all the Red Brigades prisoners will be transferred to other jails before you even get there. Can you imagine what those neo-fascist prisoners would do to you? And the warders won’t lift a finger–’

‘You’ve made your point.’ There was fear in Calvieri’s eyes. He chuckled nervously. ‘You certainly know how to negotiate, Paluzzi.’

Paluzzi moved to the door.

‘I’ll get some paper from the other office.’

‘Paluzzi?’ Calvieri called out after him. ‘I could use another cigarette.’

‘I’ll see what I can do,’ Paluzzi replied as he closed the door behind him.

Whitlock sat on the sofa and looked at Calvieri.

‘What made you team up with Karos? You two are complete opposites.’

‘It was a case of us needing each other. I needed him to finance the operation and he needed the money to start a new life in some other part of the world. I don’t know the whole story, but it seems there were several contracts out on his life. He knew it would only be a matter of time before he was hit.’

‘So he orchestrated his own “death” in front of the authorities to make it seem all the more convincing?’

Calvieri nodded. ‘He knew it would take the pressure off him, giving him the chance to start afresh away from Corfu.’

‘What would his cut have been?’

‘Twenty million.’

‘Where would it have come from? You wanted the hundred million split between five terrorist groups…’ Whitlock trailed off and nodded to himself. ‘Of course, you only intended to give to four of them. The fifth was just a cover for Karos.’

‘That’s right. The Red Army Faction in West Germany were never in on the deal. Karos had his own contact in Berlin who would have collected the money for him.’

‘Who hired the Francia brothers?’ Whitlock asked.

‘Karos. They’d worked for him before. I’ve never even met them. I spoke once to Carlo on the phone to stage the shooting in Venice, that’s all. It helped to draw the suspicion away from me.’

Whitlock frowned.

‘There’s one thing I still don’t understand. How did you manage to warn Ubrino that Mike, Sabrina and Fabio were on their way to the chalet?’

‘I had a transmitter in my pocket which I carried with me at all times. Ubrino had the receiver in the chalet. We agreed that I would only use it in an emergency. He contacted the Francia brothers and, well, the rest you know.’ Calvieri sat forward, his manacled hands clasped together on the desk.

‘You were Anderson, weren’t you? I knew it the moment I saw you properly on the helipad. The description matched perfectly. So who was Yardley?’

‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ Whitlock replied, holding Calvieri’s stare.

‘No, I suppose not,’ Calvieri muttered, then slumped back in his chair.

When Paluzzi returned he placed a pad, a pack of cigarettes and a lighter on the desk in front of Calvieri. He then unlocked Calvieri’s handcuffs and handed him a pen.