‘I doubt if you’ll get the chance,’ Shaw said unkindly. ‘Meanwhile, Santos, let’s have the truth, shall we?’
Santos nodded. Even his lips were trembling now. It took him some moments to get full control of himself and then he said, ‘Very well. There are Germans here that is correct.’
‘What are they doing here?’
‘I–I don’t know, Senor, I—’
‘Oh yes, you do.’ The Webley nosed forward a fraction. There was no mistaking the determination in Shaw’s eyes. ‘Santos, you’re a frightened man. Anyone can see that. Why? Who’s putting the pressure on you — and what for?’
‘I–I cannot—’
‘Come on, Santos.’ Shaw’s voice was hard and menacing. ‘You’d do much better to tell me all you know. You’ll feel happier when you’ve passed it on, believe me! Besides,’ he added, ‘there’s another point and a very practical one: I’m here and the Germans aren’t. So?’
There was a silence; then Santos asked in a shaky voice, ‘You will see that I do not get into trouble, Senor?’
‘Provided you haven’t acted against the laws of your own country, I don’t see that you can get into any trouble in any case.’
‘I have never acted against my laws. It is not that.’
‘I see. You mean, will you get protection?’
Santos nodded fervently.
‘The best protection you can get,’ Shaw told him, ‘is to tell me all you know so that I can deal with those Germans and get them off your back for good. That’s what I’m here for. Once they’re out of the way, you won’t have any more to worry about, Santos. Everything will be just fine. Now… let’s have it. In detail.’
Santos closed his eyes and shook his head from side to side. Then his lids came up again and he looked at Shaw sadly. He said in a defeated kind of voice, ‘I… came into this by accident only, you understand. I am in no way concerned with whatever is taking place.’
Shaw nodded. ‘Go on.’
‘These men,’ the Vice-Consul said slowly. ‘The Germans. ‘I do not know whether they were from East or West Germany, but they are of some undercover movement, something illegal, of that I am sure, though again I do not know what. One would make the assumption that they were criminals, naturally, in the circumstances. However, they came to me, you see, and…’
‘Yes?’
He went on with an effort, ‘They came to me and said that it might be that I would hear rumours of — curious happenings. That is what they said. What sort of happenings, they did not specify. But they said that I, as a prominent citizen, and for the time being a member of the Consular Corps as well as the storekeeper, was in an excellent position to put a stop to any such rumours or stories as might get around, simply by giving the curious a logical explanation—’
‘Of what?’
There was a pause; then, ‘Of a ship,’ Santos said tautly, a gleam of fear in his eyes as he looked for Shaw’s reaction. ‘A ship lying to the south of here, in an unfrequented channel. They did not tell me where, but I would imagine it to be between Tierra del Fuego and Navarino Island.’
Shaw felt the thump of his heart. At last, something was beginning to materialize. That dock began to fit now… a docking base might be a very desirable thing down in those waters — for a ship that didn’t want to be seen in a port. He snapped, ‘What’s this ship doing there?’
‘I don’t know that,’ Santos replied fervently. ‘Genuinely, I do not know! In the first instance, I confess, these men came to me in a perfectly ordinary manner, by way of trade, and told me that their ship was in Argentinian waters by permission of the Government in Buenos Aires — its purpose being to carry out weather investigations and make reports to the world’s Meteorological Bureaux.’
‘Why did they think rumours would start, if the ship was so remote — and was engaged in a perfectly ordinary enterprise?’
‘Why, because they would come into Rio Grande, using a helicopter, for stores. They would do this quite frequently, and it would naturally be remarked upon. Indeed, it appears to have been — in Punta Arenas.’
‘Yes,’ Shaw said impatiently, ‘but that doesn’t explain why a legal enterprise should arouse suspicion, does it?’
‘No.’ Santos frowned. ‘I have perhaps given you the wrong impression, Senor. When they first came, they did not ask me to spread any stories at all — they simply told me that they were here for the reasons I have told you. The rest of it was perhaps my own fault.’ He shrugged. ‘I was foolish, yes. I asked questions on one of their visits, just as a matter of interest in a place where little of interest ever happens. I was thinking the men to be genuine, you see, as they would have had me believe at that point. But they did not like questions and they thought I was prying, and in the end one of them lost his temper and brought out a gun, to the obvious dismay of his comrades. Then I knew that they were not genuine, and they knew that I knew, and so they threatened me, and told me that the story they had already told me was the one I was to put around in Rio Grande and San Pablo. And from this it followed naturally that they were in Argentine waters for no good purpose.’
‘Yes, I’d got that far myself. Now, so far as you know, has the Argentine Government any knowledge of this ship?’
Santos said, ‘That I cannot answer, Senor. It may be that the Government knows that the ship is there and is turning a blind eye to it, but I cannot vouch for the accuracy of this… although I think it must be the case, or they would not have told me that in the first place. You see, I could have checked with the authorities unknown to them — even though after they had threatened me with the gun I was warned that I was not to speak of this officially and on no account to pass any word of it on to the British or the Americans — or indeed anyone else.’
‘Or?’
‘Or they would kill me. That is why I am scared, Senor.’
‘Naturally. Did they specifically mention the Americans, by the way?’
‘Yes, as I remember it, they did.’
‘I see. Anyway, do I take it you haven’t in fact spoken of this to your own Government or police.’
‘That is correct. Not to anyone at all.’
‘Right. Now, is there anything else you can tell me?’ Think, Senor. Any small details — anything can help.’ He added, ‘Did they, for instance, ever mention a man called Fleck?’
Santos shook his head. ‘No… no, they did not. And there is nothing else. I took care to ask no more questions, I assure you! I do not even know the name of the ship, Senor. They always avoided mentioning that.’ He shrugged. ‘No, there is nothing else at all… I would tell you if I knew.’
Shaw looked at him hard. ‘Yes,’ he said quietly after a while, ‘I believe you would — now! You’ve got to help me get those men, haven’t you? Anyway, thank you for what you have told me. You’ve been a great help… more than you’ll ever know, I dare say!’ He got up. ‘Don’t worry, Senor Santos,’ he said as he slid the Webley back into its holster. ‘Leave it all to me. You’ve got just two things to do: Clam up again as of now — not a word to anyone about me or what we’ve been saying — that’s the first thing. Right?’
‘Yes, Senor.’
‘Good. Here’s the second — and it’s by way of being a serious personal warning. You’ll be in danger until I’ve brought this job off. You’ve got to make yourself scarce for the time being. So I want you to take the next plane for the mainland — get to hell out just as fast as you can and stay out till I tell you it’s safe to come back. If you should want to get in touch with me, I’ll be staying at the Hotel Miramar. All right, Santos?’
Santos quaked again. ‘I will do exactly as you say, you may be certain.’
‘Good. You do that. I’ll have my hands full myself — making sure you’re never bothered again afterwards.’