That was the answer to many things.’ Jansci wrapped the handkerchief round his hand, clenched his fist to keep it in place, and stared into the dull-red heart of the fire. ‘We know now why Imre went missing, we know now why the Count was betrayed. They caught Imre, and they took him down to Stalin Street, and he talked to them, just before he died.’
‘Imre!’ the Count whispered. ‘Before he died. Heaven forgive me. I thought he had run out on us.’ He looked uncomprehendingly across at the telephone. ”You mean that — ‘
‘Imre died yesterday,’ Jansci murmured. ‘Poor, lost, lonely Imre. That was Julia. Imre had told them where she was and they went out to the country and took her, just as she was leaving to come here. And then they made her tell Where this place was.’
Reynolds’ chair crashed over backwards as he rose to his feet and his lower teeth were showing like a wolf’s.
‘That was Julia screaming.’ His voice was hoarse and unreal, totally unlike his normal voice. “They tortured her, they tortured her!’
That was Julia, Hidas wanted to show that he meant business.’ Jansci’s dull voice became muffled as he buried his face in his hands. ‘But they didn’t torture Julia, they tortured Catherine in front of Julia, and Julia had to tell.’
Reynolds stared at him uncomprehendingly, Jennings looked baffled and fearful, and the Count was swearing to himself, over and over, a meaningless, blasphemous litany of oaths, and Reynolds knew that the Count understood, and then Jansci was talking, mumbling to himself, and all of a sudden Reynolds understood also and he felt sick and fumbled his chair upright and sat down, his legs seemed to have become weak and nerveless.
‘I knew she hadn’t died,’ Jansci muttered. ‘I always knew she hadn’t died, I never gave up hoping, did I, Vladimir? I knew she hadn’t died, . . . Oh, God, why didn’t you let her die, why didn’t you make her die?’
Jansci’s wife, Reynolds realised dully, his wife was still alive. Julia had said that she must have died, died within days of the AVO taking her away, but she hadn’t died, the same faith and hope that had kept Jansci searching the breadth of Hungary in the sure knowledge that she lived must also have kept the spark of life burning in Catherine, firm in the faith that one day Jansci would find her. But now they had her, Hidas had left the Szarhaza because he had known where to find her, these devils of the AVO had her . . . and they had Julia, and that was a thousand times worse. Unbid, shadowy pictures of her crossed his mind, the mischievous way she had smiled at him when she had kissed him good-bye near Margit Island, the deep concern in her face when she had seen what Coco had done to him, how she had been looking at him when he wakened from sleep, the dead, dull look and the clouded eyes when foreknowledge of coming tragedy had touched her mind. . . . Suddenly, without being aware that he had had any intention of doing so, Reynolds rose to his feet.
‘Where did the call come from, Jansci?’ His voice was back to normal again, no trace of the ice-cold rage showing through.
‘The Andrassy Ut. What does it matter, Meechail?’
‘We can get them back for you. We can go now and get them back. Just the Count and myself. We can do it.’
‘If any two men alive could do it, I can see these two before me now. But even you cannot do it.’ Jansci smiled, a slow, wan smile that hardly touched his lips, but none the less he smiled. “The job, only the job, nothing but your job. That is your creed, what you live by. Your job is done, what would Colonel Mackintosh think, Meechail?’
‘I don’t know, Jansci,’ Reynolds said slowly. ‘I don’t know, and God knows I don’t even care. I’m through, I’m finished. I’ve done my last job for Colonel Mackintosh, I’ve done my last job for our intelligence service, so with your permission, the Count and I — ‘
‘One moment.’ Jansci held up his hand. ‘There’s more to it than that, it’s even worse than you think. . . . What did you say, Dr. Jennings?’
‘Catherine,’ the old man murmured. ‘What a strange coincidence, my wife’s name is Catherine also.’
“The coincidence is affecting us even deeper than that, I’m afraid, Professor.’ For a long time Jansci gazed sightlessly into the fire, then he stirred. ‘The British used your wife as a lever against you and now — ‘
‘Of course, of course,’ Jennings murmured. He was no longer trembling, but quiet and unafraid. ‘It is obvious, is it not, why else should they have rung up? I shall leave at once.’
‘Leave at once?’ Reynolds stared. ‘What does he mean?’
‘If you knew Hidas as well as I,’ the Count said, ‘you wouldn’t have to ask. A straight trade, is it not, Jansci? Catherine and Julia returned alive in exchange for the professor here.’
‘That’s what they say. They’ll give them back to me if I return the professor.’ Jansci shook his head, slowly, finally. ‘It cannot be, of course, it cannot be. I cannot give you up, I cannot give you back, God only knows what they might do to you if they had hands on you again.’
‘But you must, you must.’ Jennings was on his feet and was staring down at Jansci. “They will not harm me, I am too useful to them. Your wife, Jansci, your family — what is my freedom compared to their lives? You have no choice in the matter. I am going.’
‘You would give my family back to me — and you would never see your own again. Do you realise what you are saying, Dr. Jennings?’
‘Yes.’ Jennings spoke quietly, doggedly. ‘I do know what I’m saying. It’s not the separation that’s so important, it’s just that if I go to them both our families will be alive — and who knows, freedom may come my way again. If I don’t your wife and daughter die. Surely you can see that?’
Jansci nodded, and Reynolds, even through his anxiety, through his almost overpowering anger, could still feel pity, could feel heart-sorry for any man presented with such a cruel, inhuman choice: and that the choice should be presented to a man like Jansci, a man who only moments ago had been preaching the creed of loving his enemies, of the need for understanding and helping and conciliating his Communist brother, made everything so bitterly intolerable. And then Jansci cleared his throat to speak, and Reynolds knew what he was going to say even before he said it.
‘I am more glad than ever, Dr. Jennings, that I have helped in what little way I could, to save you. You are a brave man, and a good man, but you shall not die for me or mine. I will tell Colonel Hidas — ‘
‘No, I will tell Colonel Hidas,’ the Count interrupted. He crossed to the phone, cranked a handle and gave a number. “The Colonel is always so pleased to have reports from his junior officers. . . . No, Jansci, leave this to me. You have never questioned my judgement before: I beg of you don’t start doing it now.’
He broke off, stiffened slightly, then relaxed and smiled.
‘Colonel Hidas? Ex-Major Howarth here. … In excellent health, I’m glad to say. . . . Yes, we have thought over your proposition, and have one to make in return. I know how grievously you must miss me — me, the most efficient officer in the AVO, a fact vouched for, you will remember, by no less a person than yourself — and propose to remedy this. If I can guarantee that Professor Jennings will not talk when he reaches the west, will you accept myself, a humble makeweight to be sure, in exchange for Major-General Illyurin’s wife and daughter. . . . Yes, yes, certainly I’ll wait. But I haven’t all day.’
He cradled the phone in his hand, and turned to face both the professor and Jansci, holding out a hand to stop their protestations and the professor’s futile efforts to take the phone from him.
‘Rest easy, gentlemen, and reassure yourselves. Noble self-sacrifice has little appeal for me: in fact, not to put too fine a point on it, it has none at all. . . . Ah, Colonel Hidas. . . . Ah, so, I feared as much. … A blow to my self-esteem, but then I am, I suppose, only a little fish. . . . Then the professor it must be. … Yes, he is more than willing. . . . He will not go back to Budapest for the transfer, Colonel Hidas. . . . Do you think we are mad? If we go there, then you have all three, so if you insist on Budapest then Dr. Jennings crosses the border Tonight, and nothing you or any man in Hungary can do can prevent that. You know that better than — aha, I thought you would see reason — you always were so reasonable a man, were you not? Then listen carefully.