Novosty's voice betrayed impatience. "We can't use ordinary hoodlums in this operation, Marsh. We need men with good heads or the mission will fail."
"Right enough," the Briton said, unperturbed.
Koval stuck his head in from the kitchen. "A glass of vodka, Comrades?"
"I'll give it a go," Marsh said.
"Yes, please." Novosty nodded. He rose, took off his jacket — and headed straight for the bedroom.
I made a dash for the closet. Just as I pulled the door closed, Novosty entered the room and threw his jacket on the bed. He pulled his tie off and for a moment I thought he was coming to the closet with it. I had Wilhelmina out and ready to fire if he opened the door. But he turned short of the closet and slipped out of my field of vision for a moment, apparently hanging the tie on some hook on the wall. He had been three feet from a 9mm slug in the chest. In another moment, he left the room.
I hadn't had time to leave the closet when I heard a commotion from the kitchen. Koval exclaimed loudly in Russian, and then there was a crash. He had found Heather. Seconds later, she screamed.
I slammed the closet door open and rushed into the living room. Novosty heard me coming and was waiting for me. Metal slammed against my skull and I saw Novosty's arm and the gun butt that had hit me as I went down, pain ricocheting in my head.
I fired Wilhelmina automatically, but the slug only splintered wood behind Novosty's head. As I hit the floor I almost lost the Luger, but I held on grimly while my legs grabbed for purchase. I had Wilhelmina aimed for a second shot when Marsh's big fist rammed my face. The impact knocked me fiat and this time I did lose the Luger.
"Try not to kill either of them!" Novosty called out. There was another crash from the kitchen and a yell from Koval. Heather was keeping him busy. But I was in big trouble of my own. Marsh had moved over me now, waiting for me to get up. I chopped at his leg, connected with his shin, and he cried out. I grabbed his foot, pulled hard and he hit the floor beside me.
I got my feet under me finally. My head was spinning, but as Marsh struggled up, I grabbed him by the lapels, turned with him in a half circle and flung him against Novosty, just as the Russian was aiming his snub-nosed automatic at me. Marsh knocked Novosty back over a table and both men crashed to the floor.
I started toward them but this time Novosty was too quick for me.
"Stay where you are!" The Russian was up on one knee, the automatic pointed at my chest. I had little choice; Hugo the stiletto could not be brought into play fast enough.
"Anything you say," I said.
Koval emerged from the kitchen at that point, holding Heather.
"Well," Novosty said with obvious satisfaction, "our two friends from Land's End. It is a pleasure to meet you again."
"I wish I could say the feeling is mutual," I said.
Marsh now staggered back to his feet.
"Go wash your face off," Novosty told him. "Koval, tie these two up."
Koval grunted. He released Heather and disappeared into the kitchen again while Novosty held the gun carefully on us. In a minute, Koval was back. He tied my hands behind me with a length of strong rope. Then he tied Heather. Novosty had us sitting on the old flower-patterned sofa in the middle of the room by the time Marsh returned, his face washed and a couple of strips of adhesive across his cuts. He glowered at me.
Novosty brought a chair up near us and sat down. He lighted a cigarette, the brand we had found in the wastebasket.
"Now," he said, blowing smoke toward my face. "Do you work for MI5?"
The rules are that you never tell the enemy anything he doesn't know already even if it seems insignificant at the time. Novosty knew this but he had to ask.
"We're with Scotland Yard," Heather said coolly. "You're moving drugs, aren't you?"
Novosty laughed. "Oh, really," he said. "You can do better than that, I'm sure."
Heather's face remained expressionless. She seemed not to have been badly hurt in her fight with Koval, I was relieved to see. Novosty turned to me.
"And what is your story?" he asked.
I looked into those flat eyes and wondered again how this man could be our killer. Novosty could kill all right and undoubtedly had that very thing in mind for us. But he would do it coldly and ruthlessly and without emotion because it was a job that had to be done. There would be no remorse in it, but no real pleasure either. He was a, professional.
"I don't have a story," I told him.
Novosty smiled an easy smile and took a gentlemanly drag on the long cigarette. Again he blew the smoke towards me. 'The girl is MI5," he said smoothly. "No, wait. SOE. I recall a dossier. And you with your American accent. A ruse maybe, or are you on loan from the Americans?"
Novosty was smart. I leaned back against the sofa and glared at him. "You figure it out."
He shrugged. "It makes little difference which agency you're working for," he said lightly.
"Let Marsh work on him," Koval suggested.
"Yeah, I'll give the bleeding bloke something to think about," Marsh growled.
"You see how eager my friends are?" Novosty grinned at me. "It would be well for you to consider cooperating."
"I told you!" Heather said. "We're undercover policemen. Why don't you just show us where the heroin is and cop a plea? We'll recommend leniency at the Yard."
Novosty shook his head, smiling. "You have an imaginative colleague," he said to me. "But not a very realistic one, I'm afraid." The smile faded. He leaned over and carefully squashed the cigarette in an ashtray. When his eyes met mine again, he meant business.
"I know you killed one man at Land's End. What about the other two? Did you kill them too or are you holding them for interrogation?"
"No comment," I said.
He nodded to Marsh; the big Englishman slugged me across the mouth with his open hand. My head snapped back so hard, I thought for a moment he might have broken my neck. Blood ran from the corner of my mouth. I saw Heather watching anxiously.
Well?" Novosty said. "What did you overhear at the cottage? Are any of our friends there alive and what have they told you?"
I sat and stared at him, conscious of the blood trickling down to my chin. Novosty looked at Marsh, and the big hand came at me again, this time balled into a fist. The blow knocked me on to my side on the sofa. I lay there for a moment, groggy, and then the big hands pulled me back to a sitting position.
"I don't like to do this," Novosty said, "but you give me little choice. How long were you at the window of the cottage before our friend saw you?"
I licked swollen lips. "What window?" I said.
Novosty's eyes narrowed- "So that is the way it is going to be."
Koval moved closer to Novosty. "Let Marsh work on the girl," he said quietly. He jerked his head at me. "He likes her — I can tell."
"All right," Novosty said. "But start off mildly. We want to know what they've learned."
"Perhaps quite mildly, eh?" Koval said. He nodded at Heather's long and lovely legs.
Novosty waved a hand. "Whatever you wish."
Koval gave Marsh a look, and Marsh put on a big grin. He moved over to Heather and pulled her to her feet. Koval held her while Marsh untied her hands. Koval ran a fat hand over her breasts, slowly, grinning now. Heather hauled off and slapped his face.
Koval responded by slapping her back, hard. She would have lost her footing if Marsh hadn't been holding her. Her face was red from the blow.
I set my jaw and tried not to watch. It was going to get worse before it got better. But if they found out that we knew about the Defence Ministry, we would have lost the only advantage we had.
Koval and Marsh were wrestling Heather's clothing off. She fought them as best she could, grunting but otherwise silent. In a moment, she was naked. Marsh held her while Koval ran those pudgy hands of his over her very slowly. Novosty looked bored.