Десмонд Бэгли - Running Blind

‘But we had a problem,’ said Ryan. ‘How to get it into the hands of the Russians. We started by feeding them a line by a series of carefully controlled leaks. The word was that American scientists had invented a new form of radar with fascinating properties. It had over the horizon capability, it showed a detailed picture and not just a green blob on a screen, and it wasn’t affected by ground-level clutter and so could detect a low-level air attack. Any nation would sell its Premier’s daughter into white slavery for a gadget like that, and the Russians began to bite.’

He pointed out of the window. ‘You see that funny antenna out there — that’s supposed to be it. The radar is supposed to be having a field test here at Keflavik, and we’ve had jet fighters skimming the waves for five hundred miles around here for the last six weeks just to add to the plausibility. And that’s when we brought you British in.’

Taggart said, ‘We sold another story to the Russians. Our American friends were keeping this radar to themselves and we were annoyed about it, so annoyed that we decided to have a look at it ourselves. In fact, one of our agents was sent to pinch a bit of it — an important bit.’ He flicked a finger at me. ‘You, of course.’

I swallowed. ‘You mean I was intended to let the Russians have it!’

‘That’s right,’ said Taggart blandly. ‘And you were handpicked. Slade pointed out — and I agreed — that you were probably not a good agent any more, but you had the advantage, for our purposes, of being known to the Russians as a good agent. Everything was set up and then you fooled everybody — us and the Russians. In fact, you were a devil of a lot better than anyone supposed.’

I felt the outrage beginning to build up, and said deliberately, ‘You lousy, amoral son of a bitch! Why didn’t you let me in on it? It would have saved a hell of a lot of trouble.’

He shook his head. ‘It had to look authentic.’

‘By God!’ I said. ‘You sold me — just as Bakayev sold Kennikin in Sweden.’ I grinned tightly. ‘It must have complicated things when Slade turned out to be a Russian agent.’

Taggart glanced sideways at Ryan and appeared to be embarrassed. ‘Our American friends are a bit acid about that. It wrecked the operation.’ He sighed, and said plaintively, ‘Counter-espionage work is the very devil. If we don’t catch any spies then everybody is happy; but when we do our job and catch a spy then there’s a scream to high heaven that we haven’t been doing our job.’

‘You break my heart,’ I said. ‘ You didn’t catch Slade.’

He changed the subject quickly. ‘Well, there Slade was — in charge of the operation.’

‘Yeah,’ said Ryan. ‘In charge on both sides. What a sweet position to be in. He must have thought he couldn’t lose.’ He leaned forward. ‘You see, once the Russians knew about the operation they decided they had no objection to grabbing the package if they thought it would fool us into believing they’d been fooled. A sort of double blind thing.’

I looked at Taggart with distaste. ‘What a bastard you are,’ I said. ‘You must have known that Kennikin would do his best to kill me.’

‘Oh, no!’ he said earnestly. ‘I didn’t know about Kennikin. I think Bakayev must have realized they were wasting a good man so they decided to rehabilitate him by sending him on this operation. Perhaps Slade had something to do with it too.’

‘He would!’ I said bitterly. ‘And because I was supposed to be a pushover they gave Kennikin a scratch team. He was complaining about that.’ I looked up. ‘And what about Jack Case?’ I demanded.

Taggart didn’t bat an eyelid. ‘He had my orders to steer you to the Russians — that’s why he didn’t help you at Geysir. But when he talked to Slade you had already filled him up with your suspicions. He must have tried to pump Slade, but Slade is a clever man and realized it. That was the end of Case. Slade was doing everything to make sure his cover wasn’t blown and in the end you were more important to him than that damned package.’

‘Write off Jack Case,’ I said sourly. ‘He was a good man. When did you catch on to Slade?’

‘I was slow there,’ said Taggart. ‘When you telephoned me I thought you’d done your nut, but after I sent Case here I found I couldn’t get hold of Slade. He’d made himself unobtainable. That’s against all procedure so I began to look into his record. When I found he’d been in Finland as a boy and that his parents were killed during the war I remembered that you’d mentioned Lonsdale and I wondered if the same trick hadn’t been played.’ He grimaced. ‘But when Case’s body was discovered with your pet knife in it, I didn’t know what the hell to think.’ He nudged Ryan. ‘The knife.’

‘What! Oh, yes — the knife.’ Ryan put his hand into his breast pocket and produced the sgian dubh. ‘We managed to get it from the police. I guess you’d like to have it back.’ He held it out. ‘It’s a real cute knife; I like that jewel in the hilt.’

I took it. A Polynesian would have said it had mana; my own distant ancestors would have named it and called it Weazand Slitter or Blood Drinker, but to me it was just my grandfather’s knife and his grandfather’s before him. I laid it gently on the bedside table.

I said to Ryan, ‘Your people shot at me. What was the idea of that?’

‘Hell!’ he said. ‘You’d gone crazy and the whole operation was in danger. We were floating about in a chopper above that goddamn wilderness and we saw you, and we saw the Russians chasing you, and we reckoned you had a good chance of getting clear away. So we dropped a guy to stop you in your tracks. And we couldn’t be too obvious about it because it had to look good to the Russians. We didn’t know then that the whole operation was a bust, anyway.’

Neither Taggart nor Ryan had a grain of morality, but I didn’t expect it. I said, ‘You’re lucky to be alive. The last time I saw you was through the sights of Fleet’s rifle.’

‘Jesus!’ he said. ‘I’m glad I didn’t know it at the time. Talking about Fleet; you busted him up but good — but he’ll survive.’ He rubbed his nose. ‘Fleet is sort of married to that rifle of his. He’d like to have it back.’

I shook my head. ‘I’ve got to get something out of this deal. If Fleet is man enough let him come and get it.’

Ryan scowled. ‘I’ll doubt if he will. We’ve all had a bellyful of you.’

There was just one more thing. I said, ‘So Slade is still alive.’

‘Yes,’ said Ryan. ‘You shot him through the pelvis. If he ever walks again he’ll need steel pins through his hips.’

‘The only walking Slade will do for the next forty years is in the exercise yard of a prison,’ said Taggart. He stood up. ‘All this comes under the Official Secrets Act, Stewart. Everything has to be hushed. Slade is in England already; he was flown across yesterday in an American aircraft. He’ll stand trial as soon as he comes out of hospital but the proceedings will be in camera. You’ll keep quiet, and so will that girl-friend of yours. The sooner you turn her into a British subject the better I’ll be pleased. I’d like to have some control over her.’

‘Christ Almighty!’ I said wearily. ‘You can’t even act as Cupid without an ulterior motive.’

Ryan joined Taggart at the door. He turned, and said, ‘I think Sir David owes you a lot, Mr Stewart; a lot more than thanks, anyway — which I notice he hasn’t proffered.’ He looked at Taggart from the corner of his eye, and I thought there was no love lost between them.

Taggart was impervious; he didn’t turn a hair. ‘Oh, yes,’ he said casually. ‘I dare say something can be arranged. A medal, perhaps — if you like such trinkets.’