A Devil Is Waiting - Jack Higgins [78]
Owen, behaving exactly as Ali Selim had predicted, had crossed Park Lane and was running so fast down Curzon Street that he missed Jean Talbot emerge on the other side of the road, bound for the park. Intrigued, she crossed the road and ran after Owen, noting him turn into Shepherd Market. A final burst of speed brought her there in time to see him hammering at the door of Mary’s Bower. She stepped into a doorway, waited, saw Henri Legrande open the door, Kelly at his shoulder. The alley was quiet at that time in the morning, and she heard what they said.
Henri Legrande: “What the hell is it?”
Owen: “I’ve just had a call from Abu. Only it appears he’s really Ali Selim.”
Kelly: “Come off it, Owen.”
Owen pushed past them, went inside, and the door closed. Mystery piled on mystery here. Jean conquered an insane impulse to go knock on the door herself, turned, and jogged away.
In the sitting room, Kelly said, “It can’t be for real.”
“Oh yes it is, and he wants to speak to us.” His mobile sounded. “I think this is him now,” and he put it on speaker. “So what do you want?” he demanded.
“Listen to me carefully,” said Selim. “After the riot in Hyde Park, friends spirited me away, but Ferguson’s gang tried to assassinate me and nearly succeeded. So now they are going to pay, and you’re going to help me. Or else you’re all going to see the inside of a British prison.”
Henri laughed out loud. “Why should we? You can’t get us into trouble. We haven’t done anything.”
“Is that so?” Ali Selim said. “Within a three-day period, Daniel Holley’s Alfa was sabotaged and almost went into the Thames. And hired thugs waited outside the Gideon girl’s home, followed her down the street, attacked her, and would have raped her if not for Holley and her willingness to use a weapon without hesitation.”
There was a stunned silence, and Owen said lamely, “Now, look here.”
“You told me none of these things. And we have still one more pearl in the oyster: the attempted car bombing in the driveway of the Gideon girl’s house. And the reason you did not tell me about any of this was because they were all failures.”
Henri said calmly, “Okay, fair enough. How did you find out?”
“You and Kelly certainly talked about them enough.”
Kelly’s head shot up, and he looked around the room.
“We’ve been bugged,” he said. “In the shop.”
“But of course, all three of you were. Four, as we had to include Jean Talbot, you being in the habit of visiting her so frequently, Owen.”
“Damn you,” Owen said bitterly.
“The technicians must have been good, whoever it was,” Henri said.
“Oh, they are. A Muslim organization we call the Brotherhood. They cover all trades and professions. For example, if I wanted Mary’s Bower accidentally burned to the ground this week, it would be done. I could take my pick of brothers who would shoot you in the back on the street. As for your friend Jean Talbot, Owen, I would advise her not to try to walk home in the dark from now on, not even in Mayfair.”
The three men exchanged looks, and it was Owen who said, “So what is it you want us to do this time?”
“Kidnap Sara Gideon. That’s where the Seconal that one of my assets left in the glove compartment of your car comes in. One ampoule jabbed in the arm, and it’s good night, Vienna, for eight hours.”
“But to what purpose?” Henri demanded. “What do we do with her?”
“You wrap her up carefully, so you can push her in one of those collapsible wheelchairs, drive to Frensham Aero Club, put her in one of Rashid Oil’s jets, fly to Rubat, and deliver her to me at the Monsoon.”
“No way.” Owen was shaking his head. “This has gone far enough.”
Henri patted him on the shoulder, trying to calm him. “What will you do with the girl?” he asked Ali Selim.
“What do you care? You tried to drown her, left her in the hands of possible rapists, then attempted to car-bomb her.”
“I just