The waiter set down their demitasse cups of espresso. They were the only two customers in a small nook in the back. The big tote bag was underneath the table. A rear door was open onto a small garden where a caged parakeet cheeped.
“Marina was one of our agents,” Claire said. She paused, glancing toward the open door as the parakeet went silent. “She moved back and forth between here and Marseille. Now she’s working across the border.”
“Germany?”
“Spain. Our records in Paris officially list her as inactive.”
“Since when?”
“Since five months ago, when she filed a complaint against Gilley. Something similar to what we both witnessed, or so I was told. That’s the problem. I never saw it, and now it no longer exists. Expunged.”
“By your COS?”
“Yes. She then went into deep cover and disappeared, apparently with the help of her old case officer. It was only through Audra that I was able to track her down. She’s in San Sebastián.”
“Spain?”
“The Basque country, where she’s keeping an eye on ETA, the separatist terror group, through an off-the-books arrangement with Madrid station. ETA would kill her in a heartbeat if they found out, which tells you all you need to know about how much she fears Kevin Gilley. Fortunately she’s a natural for the posting. Paris-born, but to a Basque mother, a Harki father.”
“Harki?”
“Algerian, but fought for the French in the war. When the rebels won, he immigrated here. Their families haven’t exactly been accepted with open arms, which is one reason Marina is such a good agent. Grew up never knowing who she could trust. Audra sent word this afternoon that she’s needed here, to meet with you.”
“But if Audra could find her, couldn’t Gilley?”
“Probably. But two of his people took out an ETA bomb maker a few years back, and ETA does tend to hold a grudge. Marina found a way to betray both Gilley operatives to the Spanish. You might say that she and Gilley are now blood enemies for life. Given the choice, he’d kill her before you. But he’s certainly not foolish enough to go after her there. It’s why she feels safe, relatively speaking.”
“Why don’t I go to her?”
“At this point, the fewer borders you cross, the better. We can’t be sure that Canadian identity is still secure. Besides, ETA would be every bit as brutal with you, and once you were down there I’d have no way of helping you. The more isolated you become, the more likely you’ll be found.”
“Right. Either by our people, or by Gilley’s.”
“Aren’t those one and the same?”
“I think now he may be recruiting people off the books completely,” Helen said.
Claire raised her eyebrows. Helen explained what she’d learned about Delacroix and the way Gilley operated in Berlin.
Claire set down her cup with an agitated rattle in the saucer.
“That makes our job even tougher. And if Marina knows this, it would explain why she’s playing hard to get.”
“She’s refusing to come?”
“Not refusing, but she has asked for logistical help, more than Audra is equipped to give her. More than I can give her, too, but I’m working on it.”
“Why not just make another statement, or even a tape, and send it through a courier?”
“After all she’s been through, she no longer trusts the usual channels, not for this. In person or nothing, that’s what she’s saying.”
“Even if it means risking a trip here?”
“Irrational fear and mistrust. An occupational disease, I’m afraid. What all this means is that you may have to sit tight for a day or two.”
“I can think of worse places for waiting around.” She smiled, but Claire was all business.
“Even if she comes, she’ll only meet you on her terms, and through her arrangements. I won’t be able to vouch for either. If Gilley has set up any trip wires to alert him to her return, then you’ll be just as compromised. All I’ll be able to do is make sure she knows how to find you. With Audra doing what she can from afar.”
“Audra again. Our Oracle at Delphi.”
“Yes. The word ‘records’ in her job title apparently covers just about everything we’d never have the clearance to see.”
“Our records officer in Berlin seems to be in awe of her. Claims she knows a little bit about everything.”
“That would explain how she got wind of Gilley’s extracurriculars. I know it’s how she saw my report, back before my COS incinerated it. But Marina’s account never made it to Langley, in any way, shape, or form, which is why you have to collect her story firsthand. And this time it won’t just be something on a piece of paper.”
Claire reached into the tote bag and withdrew a small but clunky cassette recorder and placed it on the table. A cheap Japanese model, like the kind you might buy in any electronics store.
“Voice-activated, but not as clumsy or as loud as that one in the safe house.”
“But not one of those sweet little Swiss numbers, either.”
“It’s for the sake of cover. Get caught with a Nagra and they’ll know your profession right away, even here. This way, if you’re searched by any authorities, you’re a bird-watcher who likes to record their songs. You’re in Paris to take a little break from your jaunts into the countryside. Two birdsong cassettes are already in this bag with the rest of your things, along with a field guide for the birds of Europe.”
“I didn’t exactly bring outdoorsy-looking clothes.”
“But I did.”
She pulled a blue canvas overnight bag out of the big tote and unzipped the top. It was packed full.
“There are some traveling clothes in here as well. Also a few scarves, a light cardigan, an extra pair of sunglasses, even another wig—quick-change items to keep with you at all times in case you’re trying to lose someone. I had to work fast, so I hope you don’t mind the selection.”
Helen checked one of the labels.
“How’d you know my size?”
“I guessed. I’m pretty good at that. In the bird book, one of the pages is bent at the corner. The page number is the address for a small hotel on Passage de Flandre, where there’s a room reserved under your cover name for a late arrival tonight, so I hope you didn’t leave much back at your hotel.”
“Only a toothbrush, a few clothes. You think I shouldn’t go back?”
“It’s best if you don’t. And you definitely should avoid the Latin Quarter. If Gilley’s hiring college boys, that’s the perfect place for them to blend in. Your hotel tonight is up in the 19th arrondissement, where the streets are a little calmer, more plebeian, with fewer snap-happy tourists. Although if we’re still not ready to pull this off tomorrow, then we may need to move you again, preferably a little farther northeast.”
“Why northeast?”
“Because I’m guessing that’s where Marina will end up. She grew up in Bondy, one of the banlieues.”
“Banlieue?”
“Means suburb, but to any Parisian it says slum. With high-rise concrete cités, pockets of Algerians who’ve never quite fit in. Gang graffiti on the walls, mosques in trailers. You still see plenty of old-fart Maurice Chevaliers in berets, but it doesn’t feel at all like Paris. It’s Marina’s old stomping ground, one of the places she can be assured of having a surer footing than Gilley. The good part of all of this is that Marina’s story should be the last piece of the puzzle. Then you’ll have enough ammunition to come in from the cold, and we can put you on the first train back to Berlin.”
“And then?”
“If they have any brains, at the very least they’ll be impressed by what you were able to accomplish right under their noses. Not to mention their immense relief that you didn’t go over to the other side. And this way you’ll have some leverage for cutting yourself a deal before they send you home. Or at least more leverage than you had before.”
“Except then I wasn’t a wanted fugitive.”
“True. But can you think of any other way?”
“No. I can’t.”
They sat in silence, sipping their coffee.
“Speaking of sins,” Helen said. “If I include your report, won’t they know exactly where it came from?”
“I’ve covered my tracks pretty well. I made sure it got into the hands of at least half a dozen people before they quashed it, so they’ll be under as much suspicion as me. Will they question me? Sure. I’m fine with that.”
“What if they flutter you?”
Claire laughed.
“Let them try. In our training against Soviet interrogation techniques, I beat the polygraph three out of four.”
“Nerves of steel!”
“Or the world’s greatest liar. It’ll certainly come in handy if I ever get married.”
Helen laughed, a welcome release. She’d rarely met anyone whose company made her feel so invigorated, so vital. The circumstances certainly had something to do with it, but she had a feeling that they would have hit it off no matter what.
“It’s too bad we can’t pal around a bit more.”
“Agree completely. But I’m afraid that, for both our sakes, you’re going to be mostly on your own from here on out. I can help a little after-hours, but I can’t afford any more prolonged absences without arousing suspicion. The COS apparently noticed my lengthy lunch today, and was asking around. All of this is my way of telling you that we may not see each other again, so we should agree on a daily contact time, by phone if necessary, and late enough in the day for me to relay any further news from Audra.”
“Sixteen hundred hours?”
“That works. For tomorrow I’ll call you at your hotel. If we need to change the arrangement we can do it on the fly.”
“Okay. Any parting advice on how I should pass my time tomorrow? I doubt it would be a good idea to just stay in my room all day.”
“You should get out and about and play your role, even if it means mixing back into the Instamatic crowd. Remember, you’re a frugal Canadian with birdsongs on the brain, vacationing out of season to cut costs, and maybe a little overwhelmed by the City of Light. In fact, it would probably be a good idea to let a few shopkeepers take terrible advantage of you, so definitely do some shopping. Buy something gloriously tacky.”
“All right. I will.”
“And when the time comes to set something up, I’ll know where to find you, so maybe you could check in at your room a few times along the way. Otherwise, be as carefree as possible, even though you’ll always be one false step away from being found. Either by the Company or by Gilley.”
Helen swallowed hard.
“How cheerful.”
“Intentionally so. For every precaution you’ve taken up to now you’ll need twice as many in the next day or two. All of it while keeping a dopey, touristy smile on your face.”
Helen shook her head.
“I really don’t know half of what you do. Or how you do it.”
“Sure you do. You’re just out of practice.”
“I’ve never gotten into practice.”
“You’ve managed to survive, and you’re halfway home to what you hoped to accomplish. You’re nimble and smart and you’re not what they’re accustomed to. So do us proud, all right?”
“All right.” Claire squeezed her hand. “I will. Then, if they ever let me out of prison, I’ll—”
“Seriously? Prison? Is that what you think they’ll do?”
“Well, won’t they?”
“After what you’ll be giving them, it will be all they can do to buy your silence. Same thing the Brits do with all of their wayward sons. The last place they’ll want you to end up in is a court of law, where you’ll be free to say whatever you please—under oath, no less, while you tell the American public what its government servants have been up to. No, no. Make it back to Berlin and they’ll have to deal with you on your terms. It’s the in-between that’s the tricky part.”
“What’s the worst they’d do? I mean, assuming it isn’t Gilley.”
“I think they’d kill you, dear girl. As quickly and cleanly as circumstances allow.”
“Then I suppose I’d better get moving.”
Claire nodded and looked around. A glance out the back door, and another over her shoulder toward the front entrance. A woman whose radar, as far as Helen could tell, was never switched off.
“It’s probably better if we don’t leave together,” Claire said.
“Of course.”
Helen stood, tried to muster a smile even as she began to feel weak in the knees.
“Goodbye, then. And thank you.”
“I’ll keep doing what I can. With regard to logistics, anyway. And while I’m not the least bit religious, I’ll say this, anyway. Godspeed.”
Helen walked briskly away, and did not look back.