“But that’s not the main point,” Forrester said. His brain was beginning to work. “The main point is, Belsky isn’t alone.”
“Aeah. He’s got at least two guys working for him.”
“One of whom may be Police or Air Force. ‘Sarge’—Sergeant.”
“It could be a nickname too. But anyhow he’s got local help.” Spode locked his fists around the steering-wheel rim and stared at them. “Damn it I hate working blind. We’re peeling back corners but we don’t even know what to look for.”
“What did they find out about Trumble?”
“They’re still working on it. So far most of what they got checks out with what we know about him. County Attorney’s staff, FBI stint, lobbyist for Shattuck, running for Congress—nothing new there. But the records on Trumble only go back about twenty years. Before that it’s zero. Trumble had an Army discharge certificate but the military-records people in St. Louis have no record he was ever in the service. He had a bachelor’s and a law diploma from Northwestern but Northwestern’s never heard of him. He came to Arizona in fifty-five with an Illinois driver’s license but the Illinois highway department doesn’t show any license was ever issued to him. He had a birth certificate too and a lot of other documentation and so far none of it seems to check out.”
Forrester stared at him. “That’s insane.”
“It doesn’t prove anything about who he was but it proves who he wasn’t. He wasn’t Ross Trumble. There never was a Ross Trumble.”
In the end Spode said, “I’m not holding out on you. That’s all I know. You know the choices as well as I do and it’s up to you.”
“You never like to make decisions, do you, Top?”
“That’s neither here nor there. It’s your choice, not mine—I take your bread, I sing your songs.”
“The Agency wants you to make a target out of yourself to draw Belsky into the open, is that it?”
“Aeah.”
If Belsky had running dogs then he might not do it himself but that didn’t matter in principle: if you could draw the running dogs into a trap it was the same as drawing Belsky into the trap since the running dogs would lead you back to him if you knew how to handle it.
“If you’re going to be the bait in the Agency’s trap you don’t want to be too obvious about it, Top. If they think you’re advertising for attention they’ll pull back.”
“Quit talking about me. Talk about you. I see the way you’re thinking but this an’t Korea and it ain’t 1953. You’re a United States Senator, you’ve got no business playing cops and robbers. Belsky’s got two goons we know about and he may have more—it could be a big organization for all we know.”
“I’ve never subscribed to the conspiracy theory of history. I can’t believe the Russians have recruited very many people here.”
“Christ, you can hire thugs by the dozen for pay—all they care about is the money, they don’t need to know who’s giving the orders or why.”
When Forrester made no immediate answer Spode turned to look at him. The dark strong face was troubled—a very personal concern. “It’s getting too hairy. Not for me, maybe, but for you. I think you ought to dig a hole.”
“Hide out?”
“Just until they run Belsky down.”
“He can’t hire very many thugs who’d be willing to risk harming a United States Senator.”
“Nuts. All the thugs have to do is find you for him. Belsky can take care of the messy details himself.”
Forrester said slowly, “It might take too much time, Top.”
“It might. But you’re a long time dead.”
“We’re just starting to get momentum. If I hole up now this Phaeton fight will lose steam and we may never get it rolling again.”
“I didn’t say it was easy. You could lose your crack at the White House too.”
“You too, Top?”
“Hell I’m all for it. You’d find a slot for me and the Indians would have access to the President’s ear for the first time since Teddy Roosevelt.”
“You’re getting off the subject.”
“I talk a lot when I’m nervous. Listen, you’ve got to decide right now—if you decide to dig a hole you can’t go back to the office from here.”
“No, I suppose not.”
“And you can’t go to your hotel or the ranch and you can’t communicate with Ronnie because if Belsky’s serious about silencing us all those things may be watched.”
Forrester’s chin dipped toward his chest and he dragged a big hand down his face. Spode’s head swiveled, indicating his wary interest in a passing car. Forrester said, “There’s only one subject of interest to a Soviet agent here.”
“The missiles.”
“The missiles,” Forrester agreed. “Trumble was involved with them, you and I are involved with them. Belsky must have some interest in them. I think we have to find out.”
“And maybe blow your whole case. It could mean the Russians are scared to death of the Phaeton and right now anything that scares a Russian to death is something the public’s likely to vote for.”
“But we’ve still got to find out, haven’t we?”
“You mean you feel a duty to find out, even if it does wreck your case. You know I think maybe you’re the first honest politician I ever met? Here you’re already way out on a limb and you want to try hanging from twigs. These people are killers.”
“If I drop out of sight Belsky will know why.”
“What difference does that make? If he can’t find you he can’t hurt you.”
“I just can’t afford to have my hands tied right now, Top. The balance is too delicate. Without a leader the whole fight will disintegrate. But I’m not inclined toward heroics; you know that. I’ll take every precaution I can—I want a fair chance to survive it if Belsky comes after me.”
Spode drew a breath into his wide chest and let it out slowly. “If you won’t pull in your horns all the way at least let me check you into the Ramada under a phony name—one of those rooms in back where you can use the side entrance and not be seen going through the lobby.”
“Fair enough. But I’ve got public appearances to make starting Monday, and I’m not going to cancel them.”
“That gives us a couple of days. Maybe we’ll run him to ground before then.”
“There’s one other thing,” Forrester said. “You mentioned it yourself. They may try to reach me through Ronnie.”
“Aeah. I didn’t want to think that through out loud.”
“We’ve got to. Suppose Belsky gets to her?”
“You mean suppose he forces her to toll you into a trap. They do work that way. If he knows enough about you and her. Maybe he doesn’t—it hasn’t made the papers.”
“Don’t we have to assume he’s got good sources of information? I think we’d better arrange to get Ronnie out of the office.” Concentration made brackets and creases in his face. “Les Suffield can hold down the office for the time being. I suppose we have to expect them to tap the phones. We’ll have to make some arrangement with Les to report to me by outside phone. It had better be clean at both ends so they won’t be able to get at me through Les.”
“Easy. You prearrange it that you’ll call Les at certain times of day at a pay phone. That way he doesn’t have to know where you’re calling from and if they get to him he can’t tell them anything. But it puts Les in a tight spot.”
“We’re all going to have to rely on you to keep the heat off, Top. You’re the Judas goat—you’re the one Belsky’s going to have to find.”