Midnight Runner - Jack Higgins [74]
"Thanks for the tip. Say, do you do lunch, my friend?"
"Yes."
"Well, we'll do the tourist bit and be back."
The three men at the window whispered together again, then got up. The one with the beard paid Murphy at the bar and followed the others out.
Quinn said, "Not exactly friendly."
"They wouldn't be. All strangers are under suspicion in areas like this. That's why it's essential to keep the American touch. I'll pay the bill, and let's go and act like tourists."
They explored the village, what there was of it, and paused at the Shogun, where Dillon found a pair of binoculars. They went to the end of the jetty and took turns checking the fishing boats out at sea, then they climbed up the hill to the castle. It wasn't much except for the view, and then the Volvo they were waiting for came down the road below, entered the village, and pulled up at the pub.
"And here they are, right on time," Dillon said, as Hennesy got out and opened the door for Kate Rashid, and Rupert moved round to join her.
"Now what?" Billy asked.
"Hang on. There's no sign of Keenan yet." But almost immediately an old Ford wooden-framed station wagon appeared from a back lane and pulled up behind the Volvo. Dillon focused the binoculars. "There you go: Barry Keenan, Sean Casey, Frank Kelly."
They watched the three men enter the pub, and Billy said, "So, what do we do?"
"They'll be a while, too long for us to hang around watching. We'll go up the road for an hour or so and take a look at Drumcree House. We'll come back later."
B arry Keenan had the look of a scholar more than anything else--of medium height and wearing a tweed suit, his black hair peppered with gray--and yet he was a man who had been responsible for many deaths. Casey and Kelly were typical IRA foot soldiers, straight off a building site or a farm.
Kate and Rupert had already been shown through to the snug by Murphy, and the three men joined them. Outside, Dillon and his friends were walking toward the Shogun. He operated the remote control and a tiny red light came on.
"We're in business." He smiled and opened the driver's side of the Shogun. "Let's go."
A pleasure to meet you," Keenan told her. "What do I call you?"
"Countess will do."
"The Countess it is, and your friend?"
"My cousin, Rupert Dauncey."
"Right, Countess, let's get started. What do you want from me?"
"What did Colum tell you?"
"He said you needed a bomb expert and that Hazar was the destination. That was all he knew, except that it would be a big payday."
"He's right there." She pushed the briefcase she'd brought with her across the coffee table. "A hundred thousand pounds, evidence of my good faith."
Keenan opened it, revealing the stashed banknotes. "Jesus," Sean Casey whispered. Keenan showed no emotion and closed the briefcase.
"That's an advance against one million pounds," she said.
Kelly and Casey looked at each other with wide eyes. Keenan said, "And what would you expect me to do for money like that?"
"Blow up a bridge for me."
"In Hazar?"
"No, the Empty Quarter. That's north of it. It's disputed territory, so even if you should get caught, you couldn't even be tried in a court of law. It makes some activities...easier."
"I know all about the place," Keenan said. "I know you and your brother hired my uncle, Aidan Bell, to blow some people up last year, but it got all cocked up, and the three men he brought with him all died. I even know who killed them: Sean Dillon and that old bastard Ferguson."
Kelly said, "A damn traitor, Sean, and him working for the Brits."
"Tell me, I used to hear from Aidan for a while, but then he stopped. Do you know how he is?"
"What he is, Mr. Keenan, is dead. Dillon shot him."
"But we'd have heard," Kelly said.
"No, Ferguson has a disposal team. Cremation off the record. His outfit does it all the time."
Keenan stayed calm, and yet the skin seemed to have stretched over his