endangered when unnecessary risks are taken. Don’t you know that danger
lies in numbers? Don’t you think it’s stupid to have your people holed up
so near a place where you intend to carry out an illegal act? Don’t you
ever operate on the need-to-know principle?’
‘This is not our base, Mr Danilov. One night only.’ Agnelli was slightly on
the defensive, slightly uncomfortable. ‘Those people are here simply as
observers.’
‘Observing what?’
:The effects of the explosion.’
Effects? The walls of Jericho come tumbling down? There’ll be nothing to
observe.’
:Psychological effects. Reactions. Guide to our future plans.’
Effects on whom? The crowds thronging the Dam Square?’ Van Effen looked at
him incredulously. ‘That rain’s torrential. There won’t be a single living
soul in the square tonight.’ He looked slowly round the unsmiling faces.
‘Sunday-school kids on a Sunday-school picnic. Cheap thrills? Or the
feeling that they’re not making a contribution, not really participating
unless they’re on the spot? God help us. Let me see all the gear you have.’
Enough moral ascendancy, van Effen thought, was enough.
‘Certainly.’ Agnelli tried, not too successfully, to hide the relief in his
face. ‘Joop?’
‘Yes, Mr Agnelli.’ joop opened a cupboard and brought out some boxes which
he set on the carpet and proceeded to open.
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‘Primer. Detonators. Battery. The trigger mechanism. The setting on this –
here – is activated by
‘Joop.2
‘Yes?’
‘Are you detonating this device?’
‘No. Of course not.’
‘Why not?’
‘Because I’m not an expert. Oh, I see. Sorry.’ Discomfited, Joop withdrew.
Van Effen looked at Agnelli.
‘You have the key for the radio box?’
‘Yes, of course.’ He handed it over. ‘Please excuse Leonardo and myself for
a moment.’ Both men left by a side door. Van Effen unlocked the metal lid
of the radio container and studied the controls on top of the radio. He
turned the power on, touched a knob here, pulled a switch there, calibrated
the gauges on a couple of dials and adjusted two wave-length bands. No one
watching – and everyone was watching – could doubt he or she was in the
presence of an expert. He then studied the timing dial on the triggering
mechanism, produced pad and pencil, made a few rapid calculations tlicn
straightened, obviously satisfied.
‘Nothing to it, really, is thereF Kathleen was smiling.
‘Agreed. Can’t imagine why I’m here.’ He stooped, locked the lid of the
radio container and thrust the key into an inside pocket.
‘You do trust people, don’t you?’ Kathleen said.
‘No. Especially kids. But if you remove temptation from the reach of kids
then they can’t possibly fall into it, can they? I have no wish to be blown
up in the cellars of the palace.’
He turned as Agnelli and his brother re-entered the room. Both were dressed
as policemen, Romero Agnelli as an inspector, his brother as a sergeant.
Van Effen surveyed-them.
‘You make an excellent inspector, Mr Agnelli. Really most becoming. Your
brother looks the part, too, except for one thing: he’s really at least
five inches too short for the police force.’
‘Short legs oriJy,’ Agnelli said comfortably. ‘He’s as tall as anyone when
he’s seated behind the wheel of a police car.’
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‘You surprise me. About the police car I mean. You have – ah – come into
posscssion of one?’
‘Not exactly. We have, shall we say, a car that looks exactly like a police
car. Not too difficult.’ He looked at his watch. ‘A police car is expected
at the palace in about twenty minutes.’
‘Expected?’
‘But of course. We have friends and we have made arrangements. Joop, be so
kind as to pack the equipment, will you?’ He indicated two grey metallic
cases that stood nearby.
‘So you just drive up and walk inside?’ van Effen said.
‘We believe in keeping things simple. Of course.’
‘Of course. No reason required, naturallly..You just walk in.’
‘Yes.’He indicated the two metal cases Joop was loading with equipment.
‘With those.’
‘Again, of course. You declare the contents?’
‘Electronic detecting equipment. For locating hidden explosives.’
‘I didn’t know there was any such thing.’
‘I don’t believe there is. However, in this silicon chip, computerized and
electro-magnetic age, people believe anything. The explosives we’re looking
for have – we believe – been secreted in the basements, somewhere.
Underworld tip. So we go to the basements to look.’
‘You have your nerve,’ van Effen said.
‘Not really. Calculated risk and we calculate that the.risk is not very
high. People don’t normally publicize in advance the fact that they intend
to do something which is the precise opposite of what they intend to do.
And with those uniforms, the police car and the impressive set of
credentials we have we don’t expect to experience too much trouble. We’ve
even got a set of papers for you.’
‘That’s fine. Papers. Papers don’t matter a damn to me. Nor does the fact
that you haven’t gone to the trouble to find me a uniform. What-‘
‘No uniform. You’re a civilian expert. The papers say so.’
‘Let me finish. You two may – and very probably will – get off with your
minimal disguises. But how am I going to disguise my scarred face and the
fact that I have a crippled hand? My
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description will probably be in every paper in the country tomorrow.’
Agnelli looked closely at the scar on van Effen’s face. ‘If you’ll pardon
the cruel remark, that really is a beauty. Joachim?’ This to one of the
two young men. ‘What do you think? Joachim, Mr Danilov, is an art school
student and also a make-up designer for theatrical groups. He requires
quite a large case to carry all his stock in trade. As you can imagine,
in an organization such as ours, we find our friend’s specialized gifts
invaluable.’
‘Do you have anything against beards, Mr Danilov?’Joachim said.
‘Not as long as they don’t make me look worse than I already am.’
‘I have several in a suitably auburn shade. In your case, I’m afraid, it
would have to be a beard of rather a luxuriant style. I know the one.
I’ll apply some paste.’
‘Just so long as I can get it off again.’
‘Forty-eight hours and it will fall off.’Joachim left the room.
‘About that black glove, Mr Danilov,’ Agnelli said.
‘I’m afraid there is nothing they can do with that.’
‘How can you be sure?’
‘How can I be sure? If you’d a hand like mine don’t you think I’d have
tried anything – everything – to camouflage it?’ Van Effen let just the
right note of bitterness creep into his voice.
‘Nevertheless, perhaps I might see 0’ Agnelli’s voice was gently
insistent. ‘I promise you I won’t say “Good God above” or swoon or
anything of the kind.’
Van Effen, being ostentatious without appearing to be, turned his back
on the rest of the company and peeled off the black glove. He held his
hand up to within a foot of Agnelli’s face.
Agnelli’s normally mobile face became still. He said: ‘I promised you I
wouldn’t say “Good God” or anything of the kind – but, well, I’ve never
seen anything like it before. How in heaven’s name did this happen?’
Van Effen smiled. ‘Legitimately, believe it or not. Someone
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made a mistake when we were trying to cap an oil fire in Saudi Arabia.’
‘One trusts he paid for the mistakeF
‘There and then. He was incinerated.’
‘I see. In which case one might almost imagine you’ve been lucky.’
Agnelli took van Effen’s wrist and to-ached the scars with his
finger-nails. ‘That must hurt.’
‘Not the slightest. Skin’s paralysed. Stick a row of needles into it or
slice it with a scalpel. Wouldn’t feel a thing.’ It would be unfortunate,
van Effen thought, if Agnelli took him at his word. ‘It’s unimportant.
All that matters is that I can still oppose finger and thurnb.’
Joachim came back and Agnelli said: ‘Do you mind if Joachim looks at
this?’
‘If he’s the sensitive artistic type I should imagine he’d be better off
looking elsewhere.’
Joachim looked and failed to hide the revulsion in his face. ‘That’s –
that’s avvful! I couldn’t – I mean – how can you bear to go about like
that.’
‘I don’t have much option. It’s the only left hand I’ve got.’
Joachim said: ‘You’d better put your glove back on. There’s nothing I –
nothing anyone can do about that.’
‘Time to go,’ Agnelli said. ‘Helmut, we’ll meet.you and the others down
in the Dam in about half an hour, perhaps forty minutes. Don’t forget the
radio.’
‘The radio?’ van Effen said. ‘You’re going to operate the radio in this
monsoon?’
‘We have a mini-bus. Where’s the key to the radio?’
‘In my pocket,’ van Effen said. ‘I thought it might be safer there.’
‘I’m sure you’re right.’
They left, taking the metal cases with them. Agnelli stopped at a door
close to the entrance, opened it, went inside. He reappeared, leading a