But, in that case, would Newkirk have dropped the matter so quietly after the London conference?
Ulanov smiled to himself and stared from the car window without being aware of any of the passing scenery. You’ve been seeing too many movies, my friend, he told himself. Try this far more logical scenario and see how it fits: Ruth McVeigh is intrigued by the story Gregor told her in the restaurant the first night they met, the story that was recorded on the small tape-deck taken from Newkirk. She considers trying to trace the treasure, not knowing she is wasting her time. Gregor Kovpak, fully aware that Ruth McVeigh is wasting her time, is simply taking advantage of the opportunity to spend time with the girl, hoping that eventually something romantic might develop between the two. Which would explain why Gregor had said nothing to him in London. He would have been embarrassed to give his true reasons, at his age, for going to East Germany with a much younger woman. It would also explain the secrecy with which Kovpak arranged the air passages to Schönefeld Airport, as well as explaining all those fancy clothes Gregor bought for himself. The poor fool is simply falling in love, Ulanov thought, which in itself is not a particularly smiling matter, since obviously nothing can come of it.
In which case, Ulanov concluded in his discussion with himself, I am simply on a fool’s errand, practically opening myself to a charge of being a Peeping Serge, and taking up the time of two security cars, two drivers, and a colonel of the East German security forces, not to mention my own time. But at least, he went on to himself, it’s a lovely day, a fine day with ample refreshments, and it’s a Sunday, and what better to do on a lazy Sunday if not to take a drive in the country?
He drained his bottle of beer, lit a cigarette, bent over to replace the empty bottle in the cooler to keep it from rolling around, and then glanced up at the small buzz that indicated the inter-communication unit was about to produce. He pressed a switch; the colonel’s voice came on the radio speaker. There were no obvious microphones to be held and spoken into, possibly to be observed by passing motorists.
“Major?”
“Yes?”
“I think you have company.”
“What!” Ulanov picked the cigarette from his lips, listening carefully.
“When you left Schönefeld, and before I picked you up and followed, another car came out of the airport parking lot and turned after you. Well, that could have been a coincidence, but I’m a suspicious person by nature, so I dropped back and gave him plenty of room. He made the same turn at E-8 and again at E-74 — again it might have been someone willing to accept the extra mileage for the convenience of the autobahn, someone going north who simply didn’t want to drive through the city. But when you turned into Route 2 and he followed, I thought that was enough of a coincidence to advise you...”
Ulanov had not made the mistake of looking over his shoulder, or of adjusting the driver’s rearview mirror to see who might be following him. He had a pretty good idea of who it was, although he wondered how Newkirk — if it were he — had learned so quickly of his flight plans. A leak, most likely, at Aeroflot, Ulanov thought, and filed the idea away for future action. An agent at the Aeroflot London office could easily be convinced to become a double agent, which could be a useful thing. If, of course, he was really being followed, and if his tail was actually Newkirk. He continued to lean back comfortably, glancing from the window as if enjoying the view, while speaking for the benefit of the hidden microphone.
“What can you see of the car?”
“It has West Berlin plates. One person in the car. A man.”
“Is it possible to get close enough to get some sort of a description without being — well, seen?”
“I can do better than that. I can drop back a bit and use my binoculars. He’ll never know.” There were a few moments of silence, then Colonel Müeller’s voice came on again. “The car is a fairly new Ford, West German make, decent sized, and the man driving seems to be fairly tall. Wearing a dark suit. Heavy head of hair—”
“Wearing glasses?”
“I can’t tell...” The colonel thought a moment. “If you could slow down suddenly — as if to avoid a small animal in the road — and then pick up speed again...”
Ulanov glanced at the driver; the man obediently applied his brakes a moment, and then stepped on the accelerator again.
“That’s it,” Müeller said into the microphone approvingly. “He put his brakes on, too, even though he’s a good distance behind you. Which proves conclusively that he’s following you. In any event, when he automatically looked into the sideview mirror to be sure nobody was too close to him on that side when he braked, I caught his profile. Yes, he’s wearing glasses.”
“His name is Newkirk,” Ulanov said, and thought a moment. If Newkirk was following him, was he also merely wasting his time on a pair of love birds? Or was he onto something that he, Ulanov, didn’t even suspect? He turned to his driver. “What’s your rank?”
“Sergeant, sir. Non-uniformed. Sergeant Wolper.”
Ulanov nodded and spoke for the benefit of the microphone and Colonel Müeller. “Franz, pass that car — don’t pay any particular attention to it as you do — then pass me and take up following the two ahead. With the bug it should be no problem. Also, you can get closer to them than I could since they don’t know you. When we get to Eberswalde, I’m sure they’re going to turn right and go to Bad Freienwalde.”
“Why?”
“It’s a long story,” Ulanov said wearily. “But I’m sure.”
“And from there?”
“I have no idea, but from there it might be extremely important not to lose them. Follow them, but discreetly, of course. I’m going to turn left back to E-74 and then head back into Berlin.”
“Taking your friend Newkirk with you, I gather. By the nose.”
“Or giving it a good try. Now, Franz, what range do these police communication systems have? The ones we’re using?”
“Fifteen to twenty miles, depending on the weather. Why?”
“Because after I take care of friend Newkirk, I will want to get back with you, and you may be a good deal farther away from me than the range of the set. How do I do it?”
The colonel thought a moment. “Well,” he said slowly, “eventually those two are going to have to stop for the evening” — As he was speaking his car was approaching Ulanov’s Zis. His driver touched the horn in warning and then the car with the colonel was past, swaying a bit as it regained the center of the narrow road, and slowing down a bit. The colonel continued to speak. He had not even glanced in their direction as they had passed — “and when they do, I’ll call and leave a message for you at my office, telling you where we — and they — are. And where we can join up again. Or you call my office and let them know where you’re calling from, and I’ll get in touch. Either way, or both. All right?”
“Fine.” Ulanov thought a moment and then wrinkled his nose. “Franz, do you have a corporal named Burkhardt on the switchboard there in the evenings? Or nights?”