“Why did you leave your country? Why do you want to help me?” Espada asked.
“British intelligence is no longer interesting,” the man said. “In the past decade, SIS came out of the woodwork, so to speak. We … er, they used to be a secret organization. No one knew where our headquarters were located in London. Our covers were solid, all around the world. Nowadays, SIS is in plain sight, in that ugly building on the Thames, and the newspapers print photographs of the leading personnel. Foreign intelligence networks seem to have an uncanny knack of identifying agents. The Union infiltrates them and embarrasses the company. While the work was always political in nature, the mere machinations of playing at secret agent have become political. It got to where I couldn’t make decisions on my own. Too much red tape. Too much bureaucracy.”
Bond shook his head in disbelief. The imposter had him nailed. While Bond was nowhere as cynical in his opinions, he had entertained similar thoughts recently.
“Mr. Bond,” Espada said, “I suppose what I really want to know is if you are prepared to perform the task which Nadir Yassasin and Margareta Piel here tell me that you have been hired to do. You are about to betray your country, commit treason and murder.”
The imposter Bond smiled and replied, “I have no love for Britain anymore. I have lost … people I have loved … because of my work for the British government. One was my wife. It is time for me to pay them back. What have they done for me? My salary was adequate, but compared to what a hit man in the Italian Mafia makes for an assassination, I’m a pauper. Killing people has always been a part of my job. It’s time I was paid properly for doing it. That’s why I joined the Union.”
Espada seemed pleased with the answers. He turned to Yassasin and said, “I believe you were right, Nadir. This man will do nicely. I like him.” He raised his wineglass, and the others followed suit.
“To James Bond,” he said. “May you perform your deed tomorrow morning with finesse and accuracy.”
So that was it, Bond thought. The Union was going to use a double to assassinate someone—someone important—and he would get the blame.
Hedy made her way into the dark valley, trying her best not to stumble over a rock or a fallen branch. The area was thick with oak trees, and the half-moon barely penetrated the leaves. Nevertheless, she finally made it to the path leading up the hill and soon found herself back in the pale illumination of the night sky.
She crept over a ridge overlooking the estate and crouched in the shadows. The back of the annex was visible now, and she could see the minivan parked by a few other vehicles. She wondered what the circular section of the building might be, not realizing that it was a bullring.
The main house was well lit, and she could see at least two guards pacing the grounds around it. A barbed-wire fence surrounded the entire property.
What the hell should she do now? she wondered. She spoke into her microphone.
“Anything happening over there?” she asked in a whisper.
“Nothing,” Heidi answered. “What about you? Where are you?”
“I’m above the main house, on the hill looking down into their backyard. I see a swimming pool, tennis courts, a garden … the van’s behind that barn and there are … two, three, four other vehicles parked there. There’s another parking area at the side of the house, and I see at least a half-dozen cars over there.”
“So if there’s one person per vehicle, then we’re outnumbered,” Heidi said. “Assuming that there are at least two people per vehicle, we’re seriously outnumbered.”
“We can’t just go rushing in there like the cavalry, either. We have no grounds, no warrant. Espada is expected at a major political to-do in the morning, and who are we to screw that up?”
“Maybe we should just make a report and get instructions,” Heidi suggested.
“You’re probably right. You do it. I’m going to stay—” She screamed when a torch beam flooded the area around her. A voice commanded her in Spanish to stand up and raise her hands. Without thinking about the consequences, she went for her gun. A blow on the back of her head put a stop to that, and she fell over.
Espada apparently liked to talk, and he dominated the dinner conversation.
“Reclaiming Gibraltar for Spain has been an ambition of mine since my days with Franco. Bless his soul, he shared my views on the matter. I made a promise to him that one day I would do something significant to further our cause in that regard. Tomorrow, that dream will be fulfilled. It is Spain’s destiny. And … I am willing to die for the cause, if that is the final outcome.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Domingo,” Margareta said. “Mr. Bond here is a professional. He will not miss his targets. And Nadir, Jimmy, and I will be there, too, just in case something goes wrong.”
“And I will not let anything happen to you,” Agustin said, “if I can help it.”
What the hell were they planning to do? Bond wondered. Keep talking! What were the details of their terrible scheme?
But before he could learn more, a guard entered the dining room and whispered something to Espada.
“Bring her in, let’s have a look,” Espada said aloud. The guard went out of the room. “It seems we have another guest. An uninvited one.”
After a moment, the guard brought in Hedy. The wig was gone. Her blouse was torn, revealing a white bra, and her hands were tied behind her back.
Oh no! Bond thought. Which one was she? Heidi or Hedy … ?
The guard held her as Espada addressed her in English. “Who are you, my dear?”
She kept silent.
“Oh, not talking are we?” The guard tossed some things onto the table. They were her identification, microphone, and earpiece. Espada picked up the ID.
“Hillary Taunt. Travel writer,” he read. “What makes you want to spy on my house, eh? You’re not really writing about a private property, are you?”
The girl continued to glare at him.
“She’s with the CIA,” Yassasin said. “We know all about her. She’s based in Casablanca.”
“She’s beautiful,” Margareta said. “So blond … nice figure …”
“Yes, indeed,” Espada agreed. “CIA, eh?” He addressed the guard. “Take her to the compound. I think I might keep her a while. She’s a little older than what I’m accustomed to, but she might provide some amusement for a few nights before she’s discovered missing. After that …” He shrugged.
The guard pulled her away and out of the room. Espada turned to the imposter Bond and asked, “Perhaps you would like to try her out tonight? She will be my gift to you in appreciation for what you are going to do for me tomorrow.”
The imposter Bond smiled lecherously and said, “Why, thank you, Señor Espada. I might just do that.”
Nadir Yassasin cleared his throat. “Whatever happens, we must not be late for the boat. Domingo, you and Agustin and the rest of the men are expected in La Linea by midnight. We have some final preparations to do with Mr. Bond, and he and Margareta will join you in the morning for the border crossing into Gibraltar. Jimmy Powers and I will arrive separately. Remember, when we’re all together at the Convent, you do not know us.”
“I’m no fool,” Espada said. “Very well. Shall we go?”
He stood and held out his hand to the imposter Bond. “I will see you in the morning, then.”
“Thank you, sir, for this opportunity,” the double said.
Espada said good-bye to Margareta and Yassasin, then started to leave the room. He turned back and addressed them all. “Mr. Bond can have his way with that girl tonight, and then we’ll get rid of her. I don’t need a blond American in my harem.”