‘That seems to mean it cannot be a repeater, since a gas chamber would be larger than that, and nor can it have a bulky spring mechanism for the same reason,’ said the Englishman. ‘It seems to me it must be a bolt-action rifle.’
M. Goossens was nodding at the ceiling, his mind taking in the details of what his visitor was saying, making a mental picture of a rifle of great slimness in the working parts.
‘Go on, go on,’ he murmured.
‘On the other hand, it cannot have a bolt with a handle that sticks out sideways like the Mauser 7.92 or the Lee Enfield .303. The bolt must slide straight back towards the shoulder, gripped between forefinger and thumb for the fitting of the bullet into the breech. Also there must be no trigger guard and the trigger itself must be detachable so that it can be fitted just before firing.’
‘Why?’ asked the Belgian.
‘Because the whole mechanism must pass into a tubular compartment for storage and carrying, and the compartment must not attract attention. For that it must not be larger in diameter than I have just shown, for reasons I shall explain. It is possible to have a detachable trigger?’
‘Certainly, almost all is possible. Of course, one could design a single-shot rifle that breaks open at the back for loading like a shotgun. That would dispense with the bolt completely, but it would involve a hinge, which might be no saving. Also it would be necessary to design and manufacture such a rifle from scratch, milling a piece of metal to make the entire breech and chamber. Not an easy task in a small workshop, but possible.’
‘How long would that take?’ asked the Englishman.
The Belgian shrugged and spread his hands. ‘Several months, I am afraid.’
‘I do not have that amount of time.’
‘In that case it will be necessary to take an existing rifle purchasable in a shop and make modifications. Please go on.’
‘Right. The gun must also be light in weight. It need not be of heavy calibre, the bullet will do the work. It must have a short barrel, probably not longer than twelve inches …’
‘Over what range will you have to fire?’
‘This is still not certain, but probably not more than a hundred and thirty metres.’
‘Will you go for a head or chest shot?’
‘It will probably have to be head. I may get a shot at the chest, but the head is surer.’
‘Surer to kill, yes, if you get a good hit,’ said the Belgian. ‘But the chest is surer to get a good hit. At least, when one is using a light weapon with a short barrel over a hundred and thirty metres with possible obstructions. I assume,’ he added, ‘from your uncertainty on this point of the head or the chest that there may be someone passing in the way?’
‘Yes, there may be.’
‘Will you get the chance of a second shot, bearing in mind that it will take several seconds to extract the spent cartridge and insert a fresh one, close the breech and take aim again?’
‘Almost certainly not. I just might get a second if I use a silencer and the first shot is a complete miss which is not noticed by anyone nearby. But even if I get a first hit through the temple, I need the silencer to effect my own escape. There must be several minutes of clear time before anyone nearby realises even roughly where the bullet has come from.’
The Belgian continued nodding, by now staring down at his desk pad.
‘In that case you had better have explosive bullets. I shall prepare a handful along with the gun. You know what I mean?’
The Englishman nodded. ‘Glycerine or mercury?’
‘Oh, mercury I think. So much neater and cleaner. Are there any more points concerning this gun?’
‘I’m afraid so. In the interests of slimness all the woodwork of the handgrip beneath the barrel should be removed. The entire stock must be removed. For firing it must have a frame-stock like a Sten gun, each of the three sections of which, upper and lower members and shoulder-rest, must unscrew into three separate rods. Lastly, there must be a completely effective silencer and a telescopic sight. Both of these too must be removable for storage and carrying.’
The Belgian thought for a long time, sipping his beer until it was drained. The Englishman became impatient.
‘Well, can you do it?’
M. Goossens seemed to emerge from his reverie. He smiled apologetically.
‘Do forgive me. It is a very complex order. But yes, I can do it. I have never failed yet to produce the required article. Really what you have described is a hunting expedition in which the equipment must be carried past certain checks in such a manner as to arouse no suspicion. A hunting expedition supposes a hunting rifle, and that is what you shall have. Not as small as a .22 calibre, for that is for rabbits and hares. Nor as big as a Remington .300 which would never conform to the limitations of size you have demanded.
‘I think I have such a gun in mind, and easily available here in Brussels at some sports shops. An expensive gun, a high-precision instrument. Very accurate, beautifully tooled and yet light and slim. Used a lot for chamois and other small deer, but with explosive bullets just the thing for bigger game. Tell me, will the … er … gentleman be moving slowly, fast or not at all?’
‘Stationary.’
‘No problems, then. The fitting of a frame-stock of three separate steel rods and the screw-in trigger is mere mechanics. The tapping of the end of the barrel for the silencer and the shortening of the barrel by eight inches I can do myself. One loses accuracy as one loses eight inches of barrel. Pity, pity. Are you a marksman?’
The Englishman nodded.
‘Then there will be no problem with a stationary human being at a hundred and thirty metres with a telescopic sight. As for the silencer, I shall make it myself. They are not complex, but difficult to obtain as a manufactured article, particularly long ones for rifles which are not usual in hunting. Now, monsieur, you mentioned earlier some tubular compartments for carrying the gun in its broken-down form. What had you in mind?’
The Englishman rose and crossed to the desk, towering over the little Belgian. He slipped his hand inside his jacket, and for a second there was a flicker of fear in the smaller man’s eyes. For the first time he noticed that whatever expression was on the killer’s face it never touched his eyes which appeared clouded by streaks of grey like wisps of smoke covering all expression that might have touched them. But the Englishman produced only a silver propelling pencil.
He spun round M. Goossens’ note-pad and sketched rapidly for a few seconds.
‘Do you recognise that?’ he asked, turning the pad back to the gunsmith.
‘Of course,’ replied the Belgian, after giving the precisely drawn sketch a glance.
‘Right. Well now, the whole thing is composed of a series of hollow aluminium tubes which screw together. This one …’ tapping with the point of the pencil at a place on the diagram … ‘contains one of the struts of the rifle stock. This here contains the other strut. Both are concealed within the tubes that make up this section. The shoulder-rest of the rifle is this … here … in its entirety. This is therefore the only part which doubled up with two purposes without changing in any way.
‘Here …’ tapping at another point on the diagram as the Belgian’s eyes widened in surprise … ‘at the thickest point is the largest diameter tube which contains the breech of the rifle with the bolt inside it. This tapers to the barrel without a break. Obviously with a telescopic sight being used there need be no foresight, so the whole thing slides out of this compartment when the assemblage is unscrewed. The last two sections … here and here … contain the telescopic sight itself and the silencer. Finally the bullets. They should be inserted into this little stump at the bottom. When the whole thing is assembled it must pass for precisely what it looks. When unscrewed into its seven component parts the bullets, silencer, telescope, rifle and the three struts that make up the triangular frame stock can be extracted for reassembly as a fully operational rifle. OK?’