“In very short order,” he agreed. “But it’s not quite that straightforward. Gilby only held the rank of captain then. It would seem he’d kept enough records to show that he was just following orders, and he threatened to go public unless they made him up to major and let him go with full honours.”
“Sneaky,” I said, with a certain amount of admiration. If only I’d had something so strong to hang over their heads, things might have turned out very differently. But it confirmed that underlying ruthless edge I’d picked up from Gilby. I could well believe he’d not only force prisoners into mine clearance, but that he’d then resort to blackmail to escape the blame.
I glanced at the door to the bathroom. I could still hear the shower running. Looked like Elsa was taking her time in there. I moved over to the window anyway, just in case, and hitched my hip onto the window ledge.
From there, if I craned my neck, I could see across the forecourt to where Blakemore’s FireBlade and Gilby’s new car were parked on opposite sides of the gravel, facing each other. It was as though they were preparing for a duel.
As I watched I saw Gilby and Blakemore walk down the steps. Blakemore was in full leathers. The two men exchanged a few words, then went to their respective vehicles. The combined noise of their engines being started up was clearly audible, even at the other end of a telephone line.
“What the hell’s that?” Sean wanted to know.
“Boys and their toys,” I said. I watched Gilby perform another of his pebbledash starts with blatant disregard for a cold engine, heading for the driveway. Blakemore streaked the Honda across the gravel after him.
“Gilby’s got a new motor that’s supposed to be something special and he’s trying to race a FireBlade with it,” I said. “It’s a Nissan Skyline R-30-something or other, apparently.”
“R-30-what?” Sean demanded sharply. “Is it a thirty-two, a thirty-three, or a thirty-four? What does it look like?”
“Like a car. I don’t know,” I said, surprised. “I’m not sure of the number. R-32, R-34, what difference does it make?”
“At current prices, about forty-five grand,” Sean said. “If it’s an R-34 he’ll have paid a fortune for it.”
Forty-five grand. “I think it is a new one,” I managed weakly. “Forty-five grand? Are you sure? That’s as much as a house.”
“My God, Charlie, you do live in the impoverished north, don’t you?” Sean said, and there was no mistaking the smile in his voice. It died fast. “Where the hell has Gilby got that kind of money from? The last financial info we dug out on him showed he was only holding himself out of the red by the skin of his teeth.”
“There’s no sign of the place being run on a shoestring,” I said. “The food’s too good. And someone’s spent a fortune restocking the armoury here.” I told him about the SIGs having replaced the old Makarovs he had told me to expect.
“I’ll get Madeleine to look into it, see what she can dig out,” he said. He paused, then, “There’s something else come up that I think you ought to know about.”
“What?”
“It would appear that we’re not the only ones taking an interest in Salter’s death. The Germans are in on it.”
“What do you mean?” I demanded. “I thought you said the police here weren’t bothered.”
I was aware then that I could no longer hear running water from the next room. At that moment the door opened and Elsa came out, wrapped in a pair of towels. She smiled briefly at me and began collecting up clean clothes from her locker.
“It isn’t the police I’m talking about,” Sean said in my ear. “It’s the security services. Apparently they’ve got someone into the school.”
“That’s interesting news, darling,” I said, my voice a purr, “do tell me more.”
For a moment there was utter silence, then Sean asked, “Do I take it that you’re no longer alone?”
“Unfortunately not,” I said. I gave a throaty chuckle. “But I can’t wait until we are.”
Elsa threw me a quick look of distaste. She gathered up her stuff and hurried back into the bathroom, closing the door firmly behind her. I heard her hairdryer start up almost right away.
“Don’t make promises you’re not prepared to make good on, Charlie,” Sean said, and his voice was rich with promises all of its own.
“It’s all right, she’s gone,” I said, ignoring that last remark. “Do you have any idea who this German agent is? Male or female, even?”
Sean sighed. “No, not yet. We’re working on it. Do you have anyone in mind?”
I glanced at the closed bathroom door. “Possibly,” I said. “It might explain why I nearly caught someone searching my stuff this afternoon.”
“Did they take anything? Do you still have the round?”
“Yes, it’s safe, but they had a good look at the phone, so they’ve got your number,” I said. “You think that might be the Germans rather than Gilby’s lot?”
“Probably, but the real question is not who, but why? I can’t believe they’d be investigating Salter’s death unless it was connected to something else.”
“I’ll see what I can find out at this end,” I said, “although asking questions is not exactly making me popular.”
I told Sean all about Todd’s warning, and this time I didn’t gloss over the events leading up to it.
“Are you OK?” Sean’s voice was tight.
I shrugged. My chest was still sore. I could only hope that I hadn’t done any lasting damage. “I’m fine,” I said.
“Charlie, what did you mean earlier when you said they knew just which buttons to press? What did they do to you?” What could I hear in his voice? Weariness or anguish?
I had a brief, vivid flash of Todd holding me down on the desktop. An echo of the panic I’d felt then came clawing up my throat. It was a struggle to overpower it.
“It’s nothing, Sean, forget it,” I said quickly. “Don’t worry about me. I can cope.”
“How can I not worry about you, Charlie?” he asked gently, “I never realised when I asked you to go and do this that it would be so damned difficult.” And there were turns and folds in his voice like melted chocolate.
“Part of me knows full well that you were one of the best soldiers I ever trained,” he went on, “but at the same time part of me can’t help but remember another side to you – soft, vulnerable.” He broke off, took a breath. “If you want to give this up now and come home, I won’t think any less of you,” he said. “You’ve been hurt before because of me. I don’t want it to happen again.”
“That wasn’t your fault Sean.” I found to my horror that I was close to crying. “I’m OK,” I said, stronger. Wanting to believe it. “And now I’ve started I want to see this thing through. One way or another.”
Me and my big mouth.
Ten
“OK, Charlie,” Rebanks said. “Let’s see what you’re really made of.” He moved back, folded his arms around his clipboard, and raised his voice. “Watch and shoot. Watch and shoot.”
I held the SIG out in front of me, both hands clasped loosely round the pistol grip, and stepped out onto the Close Quarter Battle range. As I carefully advanced I was acutely aware of the eyes on me. Not just Rebanks, O’Neill, and Gilby, who’d turned up to watch this lesson, but the other pupils as well.
Those who’d already had their turn were lined up to watch the next victim. By now, they’d all found out about my army background. I’m not entirely sure how. Some, like Declan, took it all as a big joke. Others, like Hofmann, took it as a personal affront, as though I’d been trying to trick them. Even Jan and Elsa seemed more distant with me somehow.
So, this morning on the CQB range, I’d decided to drop the act. I was going to give it my best shot – literally as well as figuratively – and see where that got me. I didn’t think I could be doing any worse.