"Alan Williams - Holy of Holies" - читать интересную книгу автора (Williams Alan)

pre-emptive secret". The advance deposited in the Swiss bank would run into
five figures, and the final sum would be five times that. Then he gave me a
card.'

Mason reached for his wallet and extracted a white slip. It had the name John
Newby in embossed script; no address, no profession. But on the back, in
pencil, a telephone number with a 499 prefix. Mayfair.

'He told me to go away and sleep on it, and then ring the number, at any time
during the morning, when I'd reached my decision.'

'Did he give you a time-limit?'

'Yes. Lunchtime today. I called the number, but it was one of those recorded
things - I had to leave a number myself and they'd call me back. I said there
wasn't a phone at my place but I'd try to get somewhere where they could reach
me.' He licked nervously at his drink, and this time his eyes avoided
Rawcliff. 'I'm afraid I left your number, for this evening.'

Rawcliff nodded. 'Any particular time?'

'I said between seven and eight, unless I rang them back.'

'It's gone nine now. Why didn't you tell me this at the beginning?'

'I'm awfully sorry. I seem to have cocked this one up. You see, I thought you
might think I was a bit daft, coming in and sitting around waiting for a call
from a gang of gunrunners or whatever they are.'

There was a tap at the door and Judith Rawcliff looked in, with a sweet smile
at Flight-Lieutenant Mason: 'You'll stay and have something to eat, won't you,
Terry?'

Mason had stood up and started to say something, when Rawcliff cut in: 'It's
all right, love - we'll have something cold later on.'

She nodded. 'It's curry, so you can heat it up when you want it. And I've left
some salad on the side. Good night, Terry.' The door closed.

Mason said, with a slight agonized wince, 'I ought to have said something to
your wife about going away.'

'Forget it. You've got other things to worry about.'

Mason sat eyeing the telephone, while Rawcliff poured him another drink. The
pilot looked up suddenly: 'What do you think?'

'I wasn't there. But from what you've been saying, it sounds as though they're
rushing their fences.'