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Ney crossed the office and came to a stop in front of the desk. “You asked to see me, sir,” he said. He couldn’t help feeling nervous at having been summoned by his superior’s superior. It was not a common occurrence for someone of his rank to be called in by the deputy director, and he worried that it meant he was in trouble, though he couldn’t imagine what for.
“Have a seat, Alain,” Lejour said before falling silent for a short while as he examined his subordinate.
Ney wasn’t sure what to make of the use of his first name. On the one hand it suggested he wasn’t in trouble, if he was Lejour would have been more formal with him, but on the other Lejour had obviously taken the time to find out about him, which indicated an unusual amount of interest.
“I’m sure you’re wondering why I asked to see you,” Lejour said after a moment. “It’s about the request you made to Special Agent in Charge Courtois for permission to detain Agent Dubois for questioning — permission will not be given at this time.”
Ney did his best to contain his disappointment. “May I ask why, sir? And why you’re telling me and not Special Agent Courtois?”
“I’m telling you because it is my decision to refuse permission, and I thought it only right that you should hear it from me, as well as the reason,” Lejour said. “There is another operation running intended to secure a conviction against Philippe Noir. While I don’t say it will, there is a possibility that bringing in Agent Dubois will cause problems for the other operation. That is something I wish to avoid. With that in mind, I want you to leave Agent Dubois alone for the time being.”
“But, sir, waiting runs the risk of Dubois realising we’ve found out about him and giving our surveillance operation the slip.”
“I’m counting on you and your team to ensure that doesn’t happen,” Lejour said, his tone suggesting that if it did happen, he wouldn’t be happy. “As for your belief that Agent Dubois can help secure a conviction against Noir, I’m not sure I agree with you. Based on the information in the file you compiled, I think it likely that the most Agent Dubois can do is testify that he sold information to Noir’s cousin, and I’m not convinced he will be persuaded to testify to even that much. In contrast, the other operation that is in progress has the potential to see Noir behind bars, and to see him there for the rest of his life.”
“If we don’t bring Agent Dubois in, sir,” Ney said in as calm a tone as he could manage, “he might discover the other operation. If that happens the operation will be wrecked, and Noir will get away.”
“You may be right,” Lejour said, “but it’s a risk we have to run. The other operation has to be given a chance, otherwise a lot of time and effort will have been wasted. The people involved deserve the opportunity to see their operation through.”
Ney ground his teeth in frustration. He hated the thought of having to put his operation on hold for the sake of another, especially when doing so meant his operation might end up being a bust. “I won’t take the blame if Agent Dubois finds out he’s under surveillance and gets away because I have to wait for this other operation.”
Though he didn’t approve of how Ney was speaking, especially to someone so senior to him, Lejour could understand how he felt, and that left him worried that Ney might decide to, if not disobey his orders, then create a situation that allow him to do what he wanted. “I’ll make a deal with you,” he said, leaning forward in his chair. “There is a possibility the other operation has gone sour, I’m still waiting to hear; if that is the case, you can bring Dubois in.” He held up a hand to forestall Ney when he saw he was about to speak. “Not only that...”
**
“GOOD EVENING, SIR,” Bright answered his phone.
“Bright. How’s the situation in Spain?” Lejour asked, in no mood for pleasantries.
“Hard to say. The doctor told me Luke needs to remain in bed for at least a fortnight, otherwise he risks ripping his stitches out, or worse. Luke disagrees, though.” Bright had been reluctant to tell his superior who his friend was, given his status as a suspect in multiple serious crimes, but without doing so he doubted he would have got Lejour’s cooperation. “He called me earlier and insisted that I tell him as soon as Noir is released, so he can put the final stages of his plan into operation.”
“That presents us with something of a problem,” Lejour told Bright. “Special Agent Ney, he’s in charge of the surveillance operation watching Jean-Paul Renault, has discovered the identity of the agent who has been supplying Renault with information. Ney wants to bring him in for questioning, as well as Renault. He believes he can persuade Agent Dubois to testify against Renault, and then get Renault to sell out his cousin.”
“He might be right about the first part, but I doubt he’ll have much luck getting Renault to turn on his cousin.”
“I agree, and I’ve told Ney as much. He wasn’t happy, nor was he happy when I told him he would have to wait to detain Agent Dubois because of another operation. I was forced to make a deal with him to be sure he doesn’t do anything hasty. Ney will continue his surveillance operation for five days, while you try to get Noir on tape admitting that he killed Tomas Abrantes and gave the order for Sofia Torres’ murder. If you can’t conclude your operation successfully in that time, Ney will be given permission to take whatever action he feels appropriate given the evidence in his possession at that time. What do you think the chances are of you being successful in that time?”
“As I said, sir, the doctor doesn’t think Luke should be out of bed for at least a fortnight, but he thinks differently. I’m going to the base tonight. I’ll talk to both Luke and the doctor then and explain the situation. I’ll let you know what decision is made. There’s another problem,” Bright said. “To the best of my knowledge, Noir is still in a cell, and his lawyer doesn’t yet know to make another motion to get the extradition request dismissed. We need him out for the last part of the plan to work. If he doesn’t get released, it won’t matter what shape Luke is in.”
“You don’t need to worry about that,” Lejour said. “Agent Dubois told Renault that Sofia Torres, Roland Baptiste, and Marc Delcroix are all dead. If Noir’s lawyer hasn’t already started the paperwork, I’m sure he will have by tomorrow morning, so there shouldn’t be any problems on that end of things.”
**
THE MOMENT HE ENTERED the room, Bright saw it was empty. He checked to be sure he had the right room, he did, and then he made his way back down the corridor to the nurse’s station he had passed only a few moments before.
“Excuse me,” he said when neither of the nurses at the station showed any sign of having noticed him. “Can you tell me what happened to Mr Caldwell? He was in room ten, but he’s not there now.”
“He’s no longer here, sir.”
“I saw that. Where is he?”
“He left.”
“What do you mean he left? Where did he go?”
“I don’t know, sir,” the nurse said apologetically. “All I know is that he left. I’ll see if I can find Captain Bilbao,” she said quickly when Bright opened his mouth to speak again. “He might know where Mr Caldwell went.”
Bright was left to wait, impatiently, for more than half an hour before the doctor appeared. With every minute that passed he became more frustrated. He was tempted to leave and go searching for his friend, but he knew that wasn’t a good idea. Not only did he have no clue where Luke might have gone but wandering randomly around a military base was likely to get him into trouble.
“Agent Bright, isn’t it?” Captain Bilbao said as he hurried up, his hand outstretched. “I’m sorry it’s taken me so long to get here. Sometimes a patient takes longer than you expect. I’m sure you understand.” He spoke hurriedly, as if eager to get the conversation finished. “I understand you want to know where Mr Caldwell has gone.”
“Yes, I do.” Bright did his best to keep his annoyance in check, realising that making a fuss with a captain in the Spanish army would accomplish little. “The nurse said he’s left. I assume she means he has left the hospital, but I don’t see how that’s possible when I was told he needs to be here for at least a fortnight.”
“The nurse is correct,” Captain Bilbao said. “Mr Caldwell has left the hospital. He did so against my advice,” he went on. “I was called to his room just before lunch, and when I got there, I found him out of bed and half dressed in the clothes he had remaining from his arrival. I attempted to persuade him to return to bed, making it clear that he was in no condition to leave, but he was insistent. He said he had a job to do.”
“So you just let him walk out of here, even though he had surgery in the early hours of yesterday morning.” Bright couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “How was he even able to get out of bed so soon after surgery?” He knew how tough his friend was, but it still seemed inconceivable to him that Luke was mobile again within forty-eight hours of getting shot and having an operation.
“I don’t know,” Captain Bilbao admitted. “I wouldn’t have thought it possible. The injury to your friend’s side was serious, and the slightest movement could cause him serious problems. I explained that to him, but he insisted on leaving. Short of having him arrested by the MPs, or securing him to the bed, there was little I could do to keep him here.”
It was clear that Bilbao was just as unhappy that Caldwell had left as he was, but that didn’t make Bright feel any better.
“Okay, so you weren’t able to keep him here. I’m sure even MPs would have had a hard time keeping him here, despite the surgery. That doesn’t explain why I wasn’t informed that he released himself.”
“I couldn’t say why you weren’t informed. The nurse was supposed to call you. I would have called you myself, but I had other patients to deal with. Perhaps she got sidetracked by something and forgot, I couldn’t say.”
Bright sighed. “Do you at least know where he went?”
“Yes,” Bilbao said, relieved to be able to provide some positive news. “I was concerned that he would tear out his stitches and start bleeding again, or simply collapse from the effort of walking around, so I had one of the orderlies follow him with orders to bring him back here, by force if necessary, if he showed any signs of trouble. Mr Caldwell went to the barracks being used by the other members of your task force. I believe he has remained there since, though I hope you’ll understand that I can’t say that for certain.”
“Thank you.” Without another word, Bright turned and walked away so he could find his friend.
When he reached the barracks, he found Luke playing cards with Sofia Torres in a corner of the recreation area.
“Evening, Ben. I was wondering how long it would take you to find me here,” Luke said, surprising not only Bright but Sofia.
“How did you know who was there?” Sofia asked. She had no idea how Luke could have known who was approaching given that his back was to the room.
“I could feel angry eyes boring into the back of my head,” Luke said. “And Ben is the only person who would be angry with me right now.” He shrugged as though it was no big thing, though the movement made him grimace. “Besides, I saw his reflection in your glass.” He gestured to the drink in front of Sofia. The look of disappointment on the faces of the other two made him laugh.
“What are you doing here?” Bright asked as he reached out to pick up his friend’s drink so he could take a sip, suspecting that it was more than just orange juice. “And why are you drinking alcohol?”
“I’ve been trying to get him to answer that question for the last hour,” Sofia said, putting her cards down.
“You were asking a different question entirely,” Luke said as he too abandoned his cards. “You wanted to know why I chose to come to Spain and arrange all of this.” He gestured around the barracks. “You can’t understand why I went to the effort to fake the deaths of everyone here when I don’t know you, especially when doing so could have cost me my life. Ben on the other hand wants to know why I’m sitting here playing cards with you when I’m supposed to be in a bed over at the base hospital, being checked on every half an hour by a coldly impersonal lieutenant dressed as a nurse.”
Bright picked up Luke’s glass again. “Don’t forget this. I also want to know why you’re drinking vodka.”
Luke took the glass from his friend and lifted it to his lips. “That’s an easy question to answer,” he said after a long swallow. “Vodka’s a great pain reliever, and a lot more enjoyable than the pills and morphine they were giving me at the hospital.”
“Okay, so that explains the booze. What about you leaving the hospital less than thirty-six hours after having surgery? You had to have a bullet removed from your abdomen for God’s sake, not to mention having your arm pinned back together.” His gaze went to Luke’s arm, which was heavily bandaged and strapped to his chest to keep it immobile.
“I’ve never been particularly fond of hospitals,” Luke said. “Once the surgeons have done their work, there really isn’t much reason to stay in a hospital, not unless there’s something seriously wrong with you.”
“And a bullet in the abdomen and a badly messed up elbow isn’t something seriously wrong?” Bright asked. “I was under the impression that you’re in a lot of pain, and your injuries are too severe for you to be up and out of bed, let alone out of hospital.”
“Well, I won’t deny I’m in some pain, hence the pain relief,” Luke held up the glass, “but it’s at a level I can tolerate. Being out of hospital helps. I’ve always found that just being in a hospital makes me feel worse, no matter what’s wrong with me. Since that’s the case, I left as soon as I felt able to. I’m a lot better off here. Besides, I need to get myself mobile and ready for when Noir is released.”
“That brings me to the reason I came out here to see you.” Bright hadn’t been sure how he was going to bring the conversation around to the phone call he had received from Lejour, and he was relieved that the opportunity had been presented to him. “Is there somewhere we can talk privately?”
“I guess we can use one of the NCO rooms.” Holding his glass in the hand of his strapped-up arm, Luke pushed himself up. He had to stop for a moment once he was on his feet as pain stabbed through his lower abdomen, making him grimace.
Once the pain subsided, which took a few moments, he led Bright through to the dormitory and then into the closest of the private rooms.
“Okay, what’s going on?” Luke asked as he settled himself on the bed, leaving the room’s chair for his friend.
“We have a problem,” Bright said. “It seems that we are now working to a deadline. We’ve got just five days to get Noir on tape admitting to everything. If we can’t manage it in that time our operation will be terminated, though obviously everyone will have to remain here on the base until the trial is over to ensure their safety.”
“Why do we now have a deadline?”
“The surveillance team watching Jean-Paul Renault has had some good luck.”
“And how does their good luck translate to our bad luck?” Luke asked.
“Because their good luck means they’ve identified the agent who has been selling information to Renault, and there is concern that if he isn’t taken into custody soon, he might become aware of the surveillance operation. Lejour has agreed with the agent in charge of the surveillance operation, that if we can’t conclude our operation in the next five days, he can arrest Agent Dubois and Renault.”
Luke shrugged, though he immediately regretted the move for his alcoholic pain relief wasn’t a hundred percent effective. “So what if he does. How does that stop us going ahead with our operation? If anything, having his cousin and the agent who’s been selling him information behind bars is going to make him more likely to want to meet with me, so I can take care of his new problems.”
“Our operation isn’t exactly a standard one,” Bright said. “We might not be breaking the rules in working with someone from the most wanted list, but we are skating close to them, and I think that’s making Lejour uncomfortable. He authorised the operation, so if anything goes wrong with it, he’ll be the one carrying the can. I’m not sure he likes that thought. While our operation was the best chance of getting a conviction against Noir, he was happy to go along with it, but now there’s another option, and one that doesn’t put his position at risk, he'd rather go with that. He doesn’t want to just abandon our operation, though, so he’s given us this deadline of five days to get Noir on tape or we’re done.”
“But Noir hasn’t been released yet, and he won’t be until tomorrow at the earliest. That won’t leave us with much time to get the job done.”
“I suspect Lejour is counting on that. If we say the operation can’t be completed in the time he’s given us, and he already knows you’re injured and are supposed to stay in hospital for a minimum of two weeks, he’ll tell us to wrap the operation up and give the go-ahead for Renault to be arrested.”
“I guess we’re going to have to hope I continue to be as lucky as I always have been. You can tell Lejour we’ll have the operation finished in the time he’s given us. We’ll have Noir on tape admitting that he told his cousin to employ me to kill Sofia Torres and the others, and everything else he’s done, inside of five days.”
“You’re crazy. How can you even think about going ahead with this? You’re in bad shape, you could rip out your stitches and bleed to death with the slightest movement. I know you’re doing this because you think you owe me, but I’ve never felt like that, and even if I did, what you’ve done so far is more than enough to repay the debt.”
“It’s not about that anymore. It’s about the job. I started this, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to give up on it before it’s finished just because of a few injuries. I don’t give up until a job is done. If you think about it, me getting shot actually helps us.”
“Care to explain that?” Bright asked.
“It will help to convince Noir that I’m genuine, and I really have killed the people he wanted dead,” Luke said. “In fact, now I think about it, it would look suspicious if I turned up without any injuries, especially given how many people I’m supposed to have killed. I’m good at what I do, but not that good.”
“I’m glad you can find something positive about you getting shot,” Bright said acidly. “But I still think you’re crazy for being out of hospital so soon after being operated on. And there’s something you seem to have forgotten; this is an Interpol operation, and I’m in charge of it, if I decide your health would be too much at risk, and I’m sure you realise I already think that, then the operation won’t go ahead.”
“Don’t be daft. You can’t keep me on this base, and you know it, so if you decide not to finish this operation, I’ll just go and do it myself. One way or another, our operation will be over in five days, and I don’t plan on exerting myself any more than necessary in that time, so just relax and let me get this finished.”
Angry, and concerned, Bright tried to think of a way to convince his friend to be sensible. He could think of nothing, however. He doubted that anything he said or did would stop Luke doing what it was he had set his mind on.
“Fine. If you want to kill yourself for the sake of putting Noir away, then go right ahead,” he said, getting to his feet. “Just remember, this is your decision. As far as I’m concerned, you’ve already done everything you need to, and more.”