Where was that damned letter opener? He went to the door and called: “Gaafar!” He came back into the room, and saw Billy’s school atlas on a chair. It looked mucky. The boy had dropped it in a puddle, or something. He picked it up. It was sticky. Vandam realized there was blood on it. He felt as if he were in a nightmare. What was going on? No letter opener, blood on the atlas, nomads at Assyut … Gaafar came in. Vandam said: “What’s this mess?” Gaafar looked. “I’m sorry, sir, I don’t know. They were looking at it while Captain Alexander was here–2′ “Who’s they? Who’s Captain Alexander?” “The officer you sent to take Billy to school, sir. His name was-” “Stop.” A terrible fear cleared Vandam’s brain in an instant. “A British Army captain came here this morning and took Billy away?” “Yes, sir, be took him to school. He said you sent him-” “Gaafar, I sent nobody.” The servant’s brown face turned gray. Vandam said: “Didn’t you check that he was genuine?”‘ “But, sir, Miss Fontana was with him, so it seemed all right.” “Oh, my God.” Vandam looked at the envelope in his hand. Now he knew why the handwriting was familiar: it was the same as that on the note that Wolff had sent to Elene. He ripped open the envelope. Inside was a message in the same hand:
Dear Major Vandmn,
Billy is with me. Elene is taking care of him. He will be quite all right as long as I am safe. I advise you to stay where you are and do nothing. We do not make war on children, and I have no wish to harm the boy. All the same, the life of one child is as nothing beside the future of my two nations, Egypt and Germany; so be assured that if it suits my purpose I will kill Billy.
Yours truly, Alex Wolff. THE KEY TO REBECCA 301
It was a letter from a madman: the polite salutations, the correct English, the semicolon, the attempt to justify the kidnapping of an innocent child … Now Vandam knew that, somewhere deep down inside, Wolff was insane. And he had Billy. Vandam handed the note to Gaafar, who put on his spectacles with a shaky hand. Wolff had taken Elene with him when he left the houseboat. It would not have been difficult to coerce her into helping him: all he had to do was threaten Billy, and she would have been helpless. But what was the point of the kidnap, really? And where had they gone? And why the blood? Gaafar was weeping openly. Vandam said: “Who was hurt? Who was bleeding?” “There was no violence,” Gaafar said. “I think Miss Fontana had cut her hand.” And she had smeared blood on Billy’s atlas and left it on the chair. It was a sign, a message of some kind. Vandam held the book in his hands and let it fall open. Immediately he saw the map of Egypt with a blotted red arrow roughly drawn. It pointed to Assyut. Vandam picked up the phone and dialed GHQ. When the switchboard answered be hung up. He thought: If I report this, what will happen? Bogge will order a squad of light infantry to arrest Wolff at Assyut. There will be a fight. Wolff Will know he has lost, know be is to be shot for spying, not to mention kidnapping and murder-and what will he do then? He is insane, Vandam thought-, he will kill my son. He felt paralyzed by fear. Of course that was what Wolff wanted, that was his aim in taking Billy, to paralyze Vandam. That was how kidnapping worked. If Vandam brought the Army in, there would be a shootout. Wolff might kill Billy out of mad spite. So there was only one option. Vandam had to go after them alone. .,Get me two bottles of water,” he told Gaafar. The servant went off. Vandam went into the hall and put on his motorcycle goggles, then found a scarf and wound it around his mouth and neck. Gaafar came from the kitchen with the bottles of water. Vandam left the house and went to his mo- torcycle. He put the bottles in the pannier and climbed on the 302 Ken Follett