‘So you can see, Commander Talbot, what we mean when we talk about the greatest good of the greatest number. What does it matter if we have two ships or ten out here, two hundred men or two thousand? Every extra man, every extra ship may, just may, be of a tiny percentage more help in neutralizing this damn thing on the sea-floor. What’s even two thousand compared to the unimaginable numbers who might perish if that device does detonate sooner or later – almost certainly sooner — if we don’t do something about It?’
‘You put things very nicely, Professor, and you make things very clear. Not that the Ariadne had any intention of going anywhere but it’s nice to have a solid reason to stay put.’
Talbot thought briefly. ‘Solves one little problem, anyway. I have six survivors from the yacht Delos aboard and had thought to put three of the innocent parties among them ashore but that seems a little pointless now.’
‘Alas, yes. Whether they are aboard here or on Santorini it will be all one to them when they join us in what Lieutenant Denholm is pleased to call vaporized orbit.’
Talbot lifted a phone, asked for a number, listened briefly and hung up.
‘The sonar room. Still tick .. . tick . . . tick.’
‘Ah,’ Benson said. Tick .. . tick . . . tick.’
Chapter 4
‘You had an enjoyable tete-a-tete with Mr Andropulos, sir?’ Vice-Admiral Hawkins, together with his two scientist friends, had just come to the bridge in response to Talbot’s invitation that they join him.
‘Enjoyable? Ha! Thank you, incidentally, for rescuing us. Enjoyable? Depends what you mean, John.’
‘I mean were you suitably impressed.’
‘I was suitably unimpressed. Interested, mind you, but deeply unimpressed. Man’s character, I mean, not his quite extraordinary affinity for strong spirits. He comes across as whiter than the driven snow. A man of such transparent honesty has to have something to hide.’
‘And he got his slurring wrong, too,’ Benson said.
‘Slurring, sir?’
‘Just that, Commander. Thickened his voice in the wrong places to try and convince us that he was under the influence. Maybe he could have got away with it in his native Greek but not in English. Cold sober, I believe. And clever. Anyway he’s clever enough to hoodwink those two charming young ladies he has with him. I think they’re being hoodwinked.’
‘And his bosom friend, Alexander,’ Hawkins said. ‘He’s not so clever. He comes over as what he might well be — a paid-up member, if not a capo, in the Mafia. He was quite unmoved when I sympathized with them about the loss of the three members of their crew. Andropulos said he was desolated by the deaths of his treasured friends. Van Gelder
had already told us that. Maybe he was overcome by grief, maybe not. In view of the fact that, like you, I regard him as a fluent liar and consummate actor, I think not. Maybe he is conscience-stricken at having arranged their deaths. Again, I think not. By that I don’t mean he couldn’t have been responsible for their deaths, I just mean that I don’t think he’s on speaking terms with his conscience. Only information I gathered from him is that he abandoned his yacht because he thought his spare fuel tank was going to blow up. A man of mystery, your new-found friend.’
‘He’s all that. Very mysterious. He’s a multi-millionaire. Maybe a multi-multi-millionaire. Not in the usual Greek line of tankers — bottom’s fallen out of that market anyway. He’s an international businessman with contacts in many countries.’
Hawkins said: ‘Van Gelder told me nothing of this.’
‘Of course he didn’t. He didn’t know. Your name attached to a message, Admiral, is a guarantee of remarkably quick service. Reply received to our query to the Greek Defence Ministry received twenty-five minutes ago.’
‘A businessman. What kind of business?’
‘They didn’t say. I knew that would be your question so I immediately radioed a request for that information.’
‘Signed by me, of course.’
‘Naturally, sir. Had it been a different matter I would of course have asked your permission. But this was the same matter. The reply came in a few minutes ago listing ten different countries with which he does business.’
‘Again, what kind of business?’
‘Again, they didn’t say.’
‘Extraordinarily odd. What do you make of it?’
‘The Foreign Minister must have authorized this reply. Maybe censored it a little. He is, of course, a member of the government. I would assume that the mysterious Mr Andropulos has friends in the government.’
‘The mysterious Mr Andropulos gets more mysterious by the moment.’
‘Maybe, sir. Maybe not — not when you consider the list of ten foreign trading partners he has. Four of them are in cities of what you might regard as being of particular interest — Tripoli, Beirut, Damascus and Baghdad.’
‘Indeed.’ Hawkins thought briefly. ‘Gun-running?’
‘But of course, sir. Nothing illegal about being gun-runners — Britain and America are hotching with them. But all governments are holier-than-thou in this respect and never publicly associate themselves with them. Never do to be classified as a merchant of death. Could well explain why the Greek government is being so cagey.’
‘Indeed it could.’
‘One thing strikes me as odd: why is Tehran missing from the list?’
‘True, true. The Iranians — with the possible exception of the Afghans, are more desperate for arms than any other place around. But gun-runners don’t specialize in blowing up planes in flight.’
‘I don’t know what we’re talking about, sir. The Hampton Court maze has nothing on this lot. I have the feeling that it’s going to take us quite some time to figure this out. Fortunately we have more immediate problems to occupy our minds.’
‘Fortunately?’ Hawkins lifted his eyes heavenwards. ‘Did you say fortunately?’
‘Yes, sir. Vincent?’ This to Van Gelder. ‘I should think Jenkins knows the requirements of the Vice-Admiral and his two friends by this time.’
‘You are not joining us?’ Benson said.
‘Better not. We expect to be quite busy later on tonight.’ He turned to Van Gelder .again. ‘And give orders for our six shipwrecked mariners to return to their cabins. They are to remain there until further orders. Post guards to see that those instructions are obeyed.’
‘I think I’d better go and do this myself, sir.’
‘Fine. I’m all out of tact at the moment.’
Hawkins said: ‘Do you think they’ll take kindly to this – ah — incarceration?’
‘Incarceration? Let’s call it protective custody. Fact is, I don’t want them to see what’s going on in the next few hours. I’ll explain why in a moment.
‘The Ministry of Defence had another item of information for us. About the bomber. It had been in touch with air control in Athens and had been instructed to alter course over the island of Amorgos – that’s about forty miles north-east of here — and proceed on a roughly north-north-west course. Two fighter planes — US Air Force F15s — went up to meet it and escort it in.’
‘Did you see any such planes in the vicinity?’
‘No, sir. Wouldn’t have expected to. Rendezvous point was to be over the island of Euboea. The destination was not Athens but Thessalonika. I assume the Americans have, a missile base in that area. I wouldn’t know.
‘Admiral Blyth on the Apollo has also come through. We’ve had luck here — two pieces of luck. A recovery ship en route to Piraeus has been diverted to Santorini. Diving crews, recovery gear, the lot. You’ll know it, sir. The Kilcharran.’
‘I know it. Auxiliary Fleet vessel. Nominally under my command. I say “nominally” because I also have the misfortune to know its captain. Lad called Montgomery. A very crusty Irishman with a low opinion of Royal Navy regulations. Not that that matters. He’s brilliant at his job. Couldn’t ask to have a better man around. Your other item of good news?’
‘There’s a plane en route to Santorini at this moment with a couple of divers and diving equipment for four aboard. Very experienced men, I’m told, a Chief Petty Officer and a Petty Officer. I’ve sent Sub-Lieutenant Cousteau ashore to pick them up. They should be here in half an hour or so.’
‘Excellent, excellent. And when do you expect the Kilcharran?’
‘About five in the morning, sir.’
‘By Jove, things are looking up. You have something in mind?’
‘I have. With your permission, sir.’
‘Oh, do shut up.’
‘Yes, sir. It will also answer your two questions – why Gelder and I are on the wagon and why the six survivors have been — well, locked up out of harm’s way. When Cousteau comes back with the divers and equipment, Van Gelder and I are going down with them to have a look at this plane. I’m pretty sure we won’t be able to accomplish much. But we’ll be able to assess the extent of the damage to the plane, with luck locate this ticking monster and with even great luck try to free it. I know in advance that we’re not going to have that kind of luck but it’s worth a try. You’d be the first to agree, sir, that in the circumstances, anything is worth a try.’