‘When do you expect them to be ready?’
‘When they’re ready, one supposes. Things move leisurely in the groves of
Academe.’
‘Think you could hurry them up, sir? National emergency, something like
that.’
‘I can but try.’ De Graaf called a number, spoke to someone he called
Hector then, still holding the phone, turned to van Effen. ‘Six o’clock?’
‘Five forty-five, if possible.’
De Graaf spoke briefly, hung up and said: ‘Very precise about our timing,
aren’t we?’
‘Person coming round at six-thirty to the Trianon to give me the radio data
for detonating this bomb in the palace cellars.’
‘First I heard of it. One finds it uncommonly difficult to keep up with
your activities. One finds it rather droll, if I may say so, to find a
police officer paying the courtesy of punctuality to a criminal.’
‘Yes, sir. Do you know – personally, I mean – any plastic surgeons?’
‘Plastic surgeons! What on earth do you want with – well, I should know
better, you’ll have your reasons. But plastic surgeons? Do you think I know
everyone in this city?’
‘To my knowledge, sir, yes. Or nearly everyone.’
‘I could talk to the police surgeon.’
‘De Wit is not a plastic surgeon, sir.’
‘Ah! I have it. My old friend Hugh. Outstanding. Professor Hugh Johnson.’
‘Doesn’t sound like a Dutch surgeon to me. I mean, he’s not Dutch, is he?’
‘English. Trained at East Grinstead. I’m told that’s the best plastic
surgery unit in Europe, if not the world. Man’s a genius.’ De Graaf smiled.
‘Not as smart as the Dutch, though. Not, specifically, as clever as one
Dutch lady, a native of Amsterdam, whom he met here on an exchange visit.
Six months after they got married he found himself domiciled in this
country. Still
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doesn’t know how it happened to him. The very man.’De Graaf cleared his
throat in a delicate fashion. ‘If you could give me some slight indication
as to what you’Want -‘
‘Certainly. In the guise in which I meet Agnelli I have scars on my face
and hands – remind me to tell you what I’ll look like tonight when we
meet at the University otherwise you won’t recognize me. I want those
scars to look even more realistic and, more important to be of such a
nature that they can’t easily be pulled off, washed off or scrubbed off.’
‘Ah. I see. I mean, I don’t see.’ De Graaf pondered briefly. ‘Don’t like
this at aill. You are referring, of course, to Agnelli and his friends
and any suspicions they may harbour. I thought you were of the opinion
that your bona fide status as an internationally wanted criminal was
fairly secure.’
‘I increasingly believe so, sir. But they don’t sound like a lot with
whom one can safely take any chances. Might even find a reason tonight
to prove – without seeming to, of course – the genuineness and permanence
of those scars.’
De Graaf sighed. ‘We live in a devious world, a very devious world.
Without wishing to give offence, Peter, I must say you seem perfectly at
home in it. See what I can do. Damned phone again.’
Van Effen picked it up, listened and said: ‘Send a man around with them,
will you? Wait a minute.’ He turned to de Graaf. ‘Sergeant Oudshoorn.
Says number thirty-eight is deserted. Neighbours say nobody has lived
there for years. Most of the furniture is gone, too. Sergeant Oudshoorn
– he’s young, enthusiastic, I told you he’d relish this assignment and
we did give him a sort of carte blanche – has been investigating some
locked cupboards and desk drawers.’
‘With the aid of crowbars and chisels, I suppose..’
‘I imagine so. J also imagine that it’s extremely doubtful that we’ll
ever have any complaints on that score. Thing is, he says he’s come
across some odd-looking maps, charts and plans that he can’t make head
or tail of. Probably of no importance whatsoever. But we’re in no
position to overlook one chance in a thousand. I’ve asked Oudshoorn to
have them sent round. Do you think that, en route, this messenger might
pick up some
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knowledgeable lad from the City Surveyor’s office who might just be able to
enlighten us about those maps?’
‘Chance in a thousand, as you say. Suppose you want me to do the dirty
work?’
‘Yes, sir.’ He spoke into the phone. ‘Tell whoever it is that’s bringing
the papers round to stop by the City Surveyor’s office and pick up someone
who will accompany him here. The Colonel is arranging it.’
While de Grad was issuing his instructions over the phone -he never made
requests – van Effen turned on the radio and kept the volume low. When the
Colonel hung up the phone he still kept the volume low – the cacophonous
racket of the latest nim one on the hit parade was not to van Effen’s taste
– but turned it up when the noise stopped. The modulated voice of an
announcer took over.
‘We interrupt this programme with a special news bulletin. The FFF, about
whose activities you must have all heard or read in the past forty-eight
hours, have issued another statement. It reads as follows:
‘ “We promised to breach the North Holland Canal or the Hagestein weir. Or
both. In the event, we chose to breach the canal. The reason we did not
damage the Hagestein weir is that we have never been within fifty
kilometres of it. In spite of this we have to admit that the turn-out of
army, police, air-force helicopters and the experts from the
Rijkswaterstaat was most impressive.
‘ “It should now not be in doubt that we can cause flooding, of a degree
according to our choosing, wherever and whenever we wish and that we can do
this with impunity: the possibility of detection does not exist. The
country’s authorities, as we have pointed out before and have demonstrated
again, are quite powerless.
‘ “We are sure that the people of the Netherlands do not wish this state of
affairs to continue. Neither, quite frankly, do we. We have certain terms
that we wish to be met and would like to discuss those with a responsible
member of the government. We suggest that an arrangement for such a
meeting, time this evening, location immaterial, be broadcast over TV and
radio at
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6 p.m. this evening. No negotiator below the level of cabinet minister will
be considered.
‘ “We suggest that our negotiator should noi be apprehended, held as
hostage or subjected to any degree of restraint. Should any of the
authorities be so misguided as to do this we would warn them that mines are
already in position to the north and south of Lelystad. Precisely how far
north and south we choose, in this instance, not to say. The mines, in this
instance, are very much larger than on previous occasions and the repair of
the breaches will be a matter of days if not weeks. If our negotiator does
not return to us by a certain hour to be agreed, then large portions of
Oostlijk-Flevoland will be inundated. No warning will be given as to the
time of those breaches: they will be some time during the night.
‘ “We think it almost superfluous to point out that the responsibility for
the safety of the Oostlijk-Flevo.land and its inhabitants ties exclusively
with the government. We do not ask for a great deal – just to speak with a
government representative.
( 44 Should the government ignore our small request and refuse to appoint
a negotiator, we shall go ahead and flood the polder. After that, when next
we make a similar request accompanied by a similar promise, we think’the
government may deem it more prudent to be a degree rather more cooperative.
We are sure that the citizens of the Netherlands would agree that for the
government, motivated solely by affronted pride and stiffnecked outrage, to
put this large area and those who live there at such risk, would be
intolerable and unforgiveable.
~ ‘ “The time to cooperate is now, aot when incalculable and avoidable
damage has been done. “The mines are in position.”
That is the message in its entirety. The government has requested us – not
ordered, requested – not to pass comment on or discuss this outrageous
demand until they have decided what course of action to adopt. It wishes to
reassure the people of this country that the government is confident that
it has the resources at its command to meet this or any other threat.’
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Van Effen switched off the set. ‘God save us from politicians. The
government, as is its wont, is talking through a hole in its collective
hat. It’s been caught off-balance, hasn’t had time to think – one
charitably assumes it can think – and can do no better than trot out old
~oring, meaningless platitudes. Confident, they say. Confident of what?