Stopping World War Three Page 25

  ‘I see.’ I suddenly realised the game plan. ‘You’ve made sure I’m wanted by the police in Britain and Crete to force we to work for you organisation. I suppose you intend to set me up with a new name, a new passport and a new home, More blackmail! Who smashed up my house... you or Primar?’

  ‘We did,’ he told me smoothly. ‘We wanted to make sure you had no papers, documents or material relating to any other organisation or agency. We cannot afford double agents in this enterprise, not when one mistake could lead to world war. We had to check you out very thoroughly.’

  ‘And the function of the doubles?’

  ‘They were brought in to fill your places whenever we needed you to be elsewhere. Winston Churchill and General Montgomery had them in the Second World War. The bridge tournament in Istanbul was a typical example. There was nothing sinister in finding and training doubles although we did have some difficulty finding a man similar to you with a high standard of bridge. At the time, we learned of Tomar Duran’s brother’s interested in stealing the laser gun plans so we had to rush you back.’

  ‘What if I’d been caught at the complex stealing the plans? All your work to recruit me would have come to nothing.’

  ‘I don’t think so. Mr. Devon’s not the man you think he is. He’s a person with a brilliant mind in the field of electronics. You know he took weapons with him in case he was caught. Well let me tell you that he would sooner shoot the whole of the security team at Dandy Advanced Electronics than eat his lunch. Your only danger was the electrified fence. But then it’s only ten feet high.’

  ‘You bastard!’ I swore angrily. ‘You had no right to set me up like that!’

  ‘I disagree,’ he returned firmly. ‘We simply investigated you thoroughly. ‘Now... when you accept your appointment, you’ll want to check out recruits of your own. Think hard on how you’ll do that before criticising me.’

  ‘Who wrote the note: ‘Don’t fly to Turkey if you value your life. Don’t fly to Turkey if you value you wife!’’

  ‘We did that to test your resolve. Some people would have backed out in the face of such a threat. We needed to find out what you would do. We were delighted you ignored the threat and recognised your commitment. You came through with flying colours.’

  ‘What about the man who attacked me in my hotel room? 376

  ‘He had nothing to do with us. He was a genuine thief and you caught him in the act.’

  ‘I suppose I made a real fool of myself at The Golden Peacock, showing up there like an idiot when Jan was merely a guest.’

  ‘I liked the touch when your wife gave you three clues and you worked out the solution. Then Schmuel Musaphia told you the answer knowing you’d already solved it.’ He paused for a moment and then smiled. ‘So how about it, Jason? Enlist with the 21st Century Crusaders at a handsome salary, a new name, a new address in England, a new car, and everything provided. Surely that’s compensation for everything you’ve been through! And then there’s the cause. An important one to prevent the occurrence of World War Three. Doesn’t any of that grab you?’

  ‘To tell you the truth,’ I told him angrily, ‘I’m extremely annoyed at having to risk my life so many time for your pleasure. Not only that but people are dead.’

  ‘There are always casualties in a war, Jason,’ he retorted. ‘You have to set your mind on the future not of the past. You’ll thrive on this appointment and contribute in a major way. It’s a two-way thing. We need each other... destiny calls you. I’d like your permission to nominate you to the committee as Commander Jason Scott, How about it?’ He noticed my reluctance but chose to smile.

  ‘If I don’t agree, you’ll report me to the authorities for the murder of Primar, Penny Smith and Tomar Duran, won’t you. Then when I start ranting about the 21st Century Crusaders and World War Three they’ll lock me up in a padded cell in a mental institution and throw away the key.’

  ‘That’s about the drift of it,’ he returned casually. ‘If you haven’t made up your mind yet we’ll talk later on.’ He moved on and I had the feeling that he was going to speak to someone else who had also run the gauntlet like myself.

  I suddenly realised I hadn’t asked him about Jan when she appeared in the doorway of the refectory. She was dressed in a brown uniform similar to the one Penny had worn in Crete. She moved towards me steadily making her way through the throng. Our eyes met and I scanned her face. She looked extremely well and showed no traces of stress or duress but that was to be expected as her welfare had never been threatened. My attitude crystallised into one of cautious coldness as she approached but she took my hands warmly into her own hoping for a reciprocal response.

  ‘So this is what it’s come down to in the end,’ I began. ‘The 21st Century Crusaders. Why couldn’t you tell me?’

  ‘I was under orders not to do so, darling,’ she replied smoothly.

  ‘What about the holy orders? The ones you made in church when you became my wife?’

  ‘Those vows have been kept. I haven’t broken them. You’re the one who took a mistress but I hear she’s dead.’

  I gave her a wry smile. ‘Bad news travels fast. Why all the deceit, Jan. It would have been so easy to confide in me.’

  ‘That’s the way it’s done, Jason,’ she countered sharply. ‘We’re making history here... protecting the world. I don’t want to go through life gardening, watching television and wasting my life. Most people are only interested in themselves. That’s not me. I want to contribute to something worthwhile... to do something for mankind! And now you’ve been offered a fantastic job as Commander of the United Kingdom, we can be together and I can assist you. We have the opportunity of a wonderful life together.’

  ‘What about the note you wrote me, telling me to get lost?’

  ‘They asked me to offend.’

  ‘So you wrote it... under orders.’ I paused and heaved a sigh. ‘What do we do now?’

  ‘That depends on whether you still love me.’

  ‘I wouldn’t have married you if I didn’t love you,’ I told her amorously. ‘Let’s say that I crossed the line once but that problem no longer exists and I would never do it again.. I don’t know how you feel about it.’

  ‘Life is for forgiving and for forgetting,’ she responded philosophically. ‘Perhaps we can try harder this time. Are you willing to do that Commander Scott?’ She placed her arms around my neck and kissed me gently on the lips. ‘No, don’t say anything, darling,’ she cooed as I was about to tell her I hadn’t made a decision on the appointment. She took my hand and led me out of the auditorium, across the flag-stoned floor to the car park and pointed to a black saloon. We got inside and she smiled at me warmly.

  ‘It’s nice to have you back,’ I told her showing some emotion for the first time. ‘I missed you... a lot. I spent half my time trying to save your from your abdutctors.’

  ‘I know,’ she laughed loudly. ‘You missed me at St. Katherine’s

  Dock... at The Golden Peacock... at our house, and at Penny’s apartment. I had to keep moving to stay ahead of you.’ She opened the glove compartment in the dashboard and took out two passports and a set of keys. ‘You are now William Grover and I’m Selina Grover. These are our passports. The keys will open the door to our new address in England. So we have new identities and a new home. You no longer work for Dandy Advanced Electronics. A letter’s been sent to the Chairman advising him of your resignation on the grounds that you’ve been accepted for an immediate appointment in Kuwait with an international oil company.’

  ‘That’s taking a lot for granted, isn’t it? I retorted feeling my temper rising at the liberties being take with my life and my future.

  ‘Trust me.’ she told me. ‘Just trust me. This is the right way ahead.’

  I felt that if anyone ever asked me to trust them again I would explode. I took her in my ar
ms to hug her and kiss her warmly on the lips.

  ‘Let’s start from fresh again,’ she advanced emotionally with tears showing in her eyes. ‘The past is gone, the future depends on us.’

  We hugged and kissed for a while and then she drove off out of the great rock hideout. Outside, a caravan of camels moved smoothly across the desert. All was peaceful but that was the moment when the world was most vulnerable. At the root of civilisation was the essence of change. The only thing that remained stable was nature!

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