The driver woke up with a start and asked, “Mr. Thomas?”
“No,” replied Leamas. “Thomas couldn’t come. I’m Amies from Hounslow.” –
“Hop in, Mr. Amies,” the driver replied, and opened the door. They drove West, toward the King’s Road. The driver knew the way.
Control opened the door.
“George Smiley’s out,” he said. “I’ve borrowed his house. Come in.” Not until Leamas was inside and the front door closed, did Control put on the hail light.
“I was followed till lunchtime,” Leamas said. They went into the little drawing room. There were books everywhere. It was a pretty room; tall, with eighteenthcentury moldings, long windows and a good fireplace. “They picked me up this morning. A man called Ashe.” He lit a cigarette. “A pansy. We’re meeting again tomorrow.”
Control listened carefully to Leamas’ story, stage by stage, from the day he hit Ford the grocer to his encounter that morning with Ashe.
“How did you find prison?” Control inquired. He might have been asking whether Leamas had enjoyed his holiday. “I am sorry we couldn’t improve conditions for you, provide little extra comforts, but that would never have done.”
“Of course not”
“One must be consistent At every turn one must be consistent. Besides, it would be wrong to break the spell. I understand you were ill. I am sorry. What was the trouble?”
“Just fever.”
“How long were you in bed?”
“About ten days.”
“How very distressing; and nobody to look after you, of course.”
There was a very long silence.
“You know she’s in the Party, don’t you?” Control asked quietly.
“Yes,” Leamas replied. Another silence. “I don’t want her brought into this.”
“Why should she be?” Control asked sharply and for a moment, just for a moment, Leamas thought he had penetrated the veneer of academic detachment. “Who suggested she should be?”
“No one,” Leamas replied. “I’m just making the point. I know how these things go–all offensive operations. They have by-products, take sudden turns in unexpected directions. You think you’ve caught one fish and you find you’ve caught another. I want her kept clear of it.”
“Oh quite, quite.”
“Who’s that man in the Labour Exchange–Pitt? Wasn’t he in the Circus during the war?”
“I know no one of that name. Pitt, did you say?”
“Yes.”
“No, the name means nothing to me. In the Labour Exchange?”
“Oh, for God’s sake,” Leamas muttered audibly.
“I’m sorry,” said Control, getting up, “I’m neglecting my duties as deputy host. Would you care for a drink?”
“No. I want to get away tonight, Control. Go down to the country and get some exercise. Is the House open?”
“I’ve arranged a car,” he said. “What time do you see Ashe tomorrow-one o’clock?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll ring Haldane and tell him you want some squash. You’d better see a doctor, too. AbOUt that fever.”
“I don’t need a doctor.”
“Just as you like.”
Control gave himself a whisky and began looking idly at the books in Smiley’s stielf.
“Why isn’t Smiley here?” Leamas asked.
“He doesn’t like the operation,” Control replied indifferently. “He finds it distasteful. He sees the necessity but he wants no part in it. His fever,” Control added with a whimsical smile, “is recurrent.”
“He didn’t exactly receive me with open arms.”
“Quite. He wants no part in it. But he told you about Mundt; gave you the background?”
“Yes.”
“Mundt is a very _hard_ man,” Control reflected. “We should never forget that And a good intelligence officer.”
“Does Smiley know the reason for the operation? The special interest?”
Control nodded and took a sip of whisky.
“And he still doesn’t like it?”
“It isn’t a question of moralities. He is like the surgeon who has grown tired of blood. He is content that others should operate.”
“Tell me,” Leamas continued, “how are you so certain this will get us where we want? How do you know the East Germans are on to it–not the Czechs or the Russians?”
“Rest assured,” Control said a little pompously, “that that has been taken care of.”
As they got to the door, Control put his hand lightly on Leamas’ shoulder.
“This is your last job,” he said. “Then you can come in from the cold. About that girl–do you want anything done about her, money or anything?”