Shadow of Shadows

by Ted Allbeury

  26

  It was Petrov who waved down a taxi while Maria sat in the church with Lawler, and by the time they had collected the car from the car park Lawler was beginning to realize what had happened. He turned into a side-street and pulled up the car, turning to look at Maria who was in the passenger seat.

  Tell me all about it.’

  She laughed. ‘There’s nothing to tell except that we talked, and I’ll be staying with Tolya.’

  Lawler turned in his seat to look at Petrov who was smiling but subdued.

  ‘I’m so pleased for you, Tolya.’

  Petrov nodded. ‘I talk with your people OK. As soon as you want.’

  ‘I’ll arrange for us to fly out tomorrow.’

  There will be KGB agents watching at the airport. You can be sure of that. They will guess where she has gone.’

  Lawler nodded. ‘We shan’t be going back from Tegel. We shall fly from Gatow on an RAF plane.’ Lawler looked back at Maria. ‘Is there anything you need in Berlin?’

  ‘Maybe clothes. I couldn’t bring anything with me.’

  ‘We can fix you up with all the things you want in London tomorrow. It will be easier, and safer. Let’s go back to the house.’

  Petrov grinned. They will be pleased with you, Jimmy, when you phone London?’

  ‘They’ll be pleased with you, my friend. They’ll probably send me to Ireland or Abu Dhabi for disobeying orders.’

  He switched on the engine and headed back for the main road, and half an hour later he was introducing Barlow to Maria. Barlow doubled the guards around the house and Lawler phoned London. Silvester sounded pleased but preoccupied. He made no comment about Lawler having deliberately ignored his instructions. Silvester wondered if perhaps they couldn’t fly back that night but he didn’t press the point when Lawler didn’t respond.

  RAF Gatow were co-operative. They had a plane flying back to an airfield near Banbury the next morning at eight o’clock, but they couldn’t provide onward transport to London. Barlow arranged it all for him so that he could sleep for an hour before dinner. He didn’t sleep, because the tight internal security inside the house was no longer necessary, and making love to Siobhan Nolan was far more appealing than sleep.

  They all dined together, and Barlow laid on champagne for their quiet celebration. As Siobhan Nolan looked round the table she was aware of the fact that she was the only one there who was celebrating a simple, normal pleasure. Poor Petrov had his Maria, but he’d also got SIS. Jimmy Lawler had completed his operation successfully, but he too had SIS. She had her one, simple pleasure. James Lawler had asked her to marry him, and she had said yes. But they weren’t telling anybody until they were back in London.

  In the next room they watched the TV news. Aldrin and Armstrong had landed on the moon. Maria leaned across to Lawler and said softly, ‘Can I speak to you alone for a few moments?’

  ‘Yes. Of course. Let’s go in Barlow’s office.’

  He turned to Siobhan. Til be back in a moment, sweetie.’

  ‘OK.’

  He switched on the light in Barlow’s office, closed the door, and perched himself on the edge of the desk. She opened her handbag and took out an envelope, handing it to him. He looked at the writing, and it just said ‘Bubi.’ When he looked back at her face she said, ‘Will you see that he gets that as soon as possible?’

  He looked at his watch. ‘It won’t be tonight but I can get it there early tomorrow morning.’

  She nodded. ‘I haven’t sealed it. It’s only personal, but you can read it if you want. I shan’t be offended. I’ve not mentioned Tolya or said where I’ve gone.’

  ‘It’s not necessary for me to read it, Maria.’ He licked the edges of the flap and pressed them together.

  ‘There’s something else I want to say.’

  He looked up at her face. ‘Go ahead.’

  ‘When you came to see me yesterday I asked you if you could tell me something unfavourable about Bubi. Do you remember?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘And I told you that I had two tests to help me decide whether to see Tolya. It wasn’t that I doubted Tolya, but if I joined him we should both be dependent on you and your people. We should be at your mercy. That’s why I wanted to meet Tolya alone. If you would let us do that, then it was a good sign. Do you agree?’

  ‘Yes. I understand.’

  ’The other test was when I asked you about Bubi. When I left you to make a phone call yesterday I was calling the KGB.’ She smiled as she saw the horror on his face. ‘It’s all right. Don’t worry. I’ve got a close girl-friend who works there. In their translation set-up. She told me some days ago that Bubi was being watched by people who were not KGB. She thought it might be the West Germans. I phoned her yesterday to ask if she had found out who was watching him. She said she hadn’t heard anything. But she told me that they’d picked up a man, a photographer, who was used by them for blackmail jobs, and among his stuff they’d found compromising photographs of Bubi. He said he’d been paid two hundred marks for prints of them by some fellow. They had found the man and interrogated him. He had sold the photographs to a man who was known to work for British intelligence. The KGB couldn’t understand why the British should be interested in Bubi. But I could.’

  ‘So what was the test?’

  ’Like I said. I asked you to tell me something unfavourable about Bubi. I was sure you had those photographs. But when you had the chance to use them you didn’t. I liked you for that. The KGB would have used them. Why didn’t you?’

  He shrugged. ‘I don’t deserve the good marks, my dear. I was going to use them. They were in my pocket.’

  ‘But you didn’t. Why not?’

  ‘Because by the time the opportunity came round I’d talked to you. I liked you. I didn’t feel you deserved that sort of crap. Neither did Tolya.’

  She kissed him gently, on the mouth, and even her mouth was like Siobhan’s.

  The summer sun slanted through the stained-glass windows, casting red and yellow diamonds of light on the soft white pile of the carpet. Silvester sat facing Petrov in a high-backed chair and Lawler was perched on the edge of the table, one leg swinging as they waited.

  Silvester said softly, ‘Go on, Petrov.’

  ‘I was Blake’s controller in Berlin. We got on well. We did good work together. When he went back to London I went back to Moscow. He didn’t like his controller at the embassy in London so I was put back with him to sort things out. Dyer was one of our people in SIS. We only used him operationally if it was very important. Otherwise he just passed documents. But it was Dyer who recruited Blake for SIS in Hamburg. KGB knew he was available and they made him operational. He doesn’t know about Dyer, but Dyer watches him for us.

  ‘Dyer warned Moscow that if Blake came back from Beirut he would be arrested. They thought he was panicking. So Blake confesses and goes to prison. Dyer tells us that Blake has told them everything. Names, safe-houses, dead-letter drops, codes. Everything. Blake thinks if he talks that they give him only short sentence. At first Moscow don’t believe that he talked so much, then in ten days we lost many networks. You know all about that. Serov gives me orders to arrange for Blake to escape and I make arrangements. I came over to London embassy for that time. Is Dyer who organizes the escape. He is brought down to the house in the country and when I signal Moscow he is free, I get a personal message from Serov that Blake is to be killed and I am to do this with Dyer.’ Petrov shrugged. ‘And that’s what we did.’

  ‘What made you stop co-operating with us?’

  ‘One day in interrogation room Mr Reid doesn’t lock the door. There is a knock and Dyer looks in for a moment then closes the door. I was sure he recognize me and inform Moscow and Dyer fixes for me to be killed.’

  ‘And now you’ll co-operate?’

  Petrov grinned and pointed to Lawler. ‘For this man I do anything.’

  Silvester ignored the praise. ‘Tell us about what happened when Blake met Dyer at the h
ouse in the country.’

  ‘We talked in the garden for a few minutes. Blake was obviously surprised, shocked even, that the Englishman had been working for Moscow all those years. He kept asking him questions as if he couldn’t believe it. Then we went inside for a coffee. I put the pill in Blake’s cup. He complained about the taste but he drank half of it, and that was enough. When he was out I gave him the injection, and that was it. He died in a matter of seconds.’

  ‘What did you do with the body?’

  ‘We buried it that afternoon. The hole had been dug a few weeks before by a contractor’s man. We told him we were checking the soil structure. We filled it in ourselves afterwards and planted a willow tree on top. It took us nearly four hours.’

  ‘Where was the house?’

  ‘A village in Kent. Edenfield or a name like that.’

  ‘Edenbridge?’

  ‘That’s it.’

  ‘Could you identify the house?’

  ‘Yes. It was right on its own.’

  ‘And this matter, and your wife, were your only problems?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Well, let me tell you what’s going to happen. First of all the Englishman who was with you at the house in Edenbridge. He was under suspicion already. Not about Blake, but more recent things. He’s been under surveillance for some time. He will be sent overseas tonight. To Rome. If he wants to head for Moscow nobody will stop him. Meanwhile, you and I and James, and a few others, will look into this burial at Edenbridge. When that’s been dealt with I’ll want you, Tolya, to make a signed statement. It won’t ever be used, but I need it so that others will agree with what I intend doing. Then it will be destroyed. The Englishman will be dealt with so that he will never be a problem to you again.

  ‘Now we come to you and Maria. We’ve asked our embassy in Warsaw to get hold of the necessary documents. Birth certificate and so on. There will be no problem there, but it might take a couple of weeks. I’d suggest you plan your wedding for late August or early September. All right?’

  Petrov nodded but didn’t speak.

  ‘We’ve found a very nice cottage for you in Sussex, and when you’ve both seen it and approved it, we’ll buy it in your name, you can furnish it at our expense and move in as soon as you like. We shall provide you with a completely new identity and all the supporting documentation. For both of you.

  ‘We shall pay a lump sum into a bank account in your new name, and you will receive a pension of six thousand a year through a well known insurance company. Nothing will connect you with SIS.

  ‘Meanwhile we’ve rented a house for you in Northumberland. A decent-sized place, a five-minute walk from the sea, and if you’re agreeable I should like the rest of your de-briefing to be carried out with Mr Lawler.’

  ‘That’s OK with me, Mr Silvester. How long is the pension paid for?’

  ‘For as long as either you or Maria are alive.’

  ‘We can move around? Holidays and outings?’

  ‘Of course. You’ll live a perfectly normal life. You’ll both have British passports. You can travel wherever you please.’

  ‘And we are not watched?’

  ‘Not unless you ask to be.’

  Petrov turned in his chair to look at Lawler.

  ‘Is this all OK, Jimmy? You agree with it for me?’

  ‘Yes. There’ll be no problems, I assure you.’

  Petrov looked back at Silvester. ‘I trust this man.’ Silvester stood up, hiding his irritation, and Lawler smiled to himself. Silvester didn’t like his underlings sitting in judgement on his proposals. He interposed before Silvester could work out how to reply without giving offence but without going along with Petrov’s Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval.

  ‘I think I’ll hang on for half an hour or so, Tolya. You go back to Maria and Siobhan at the Hilton, and we’ll have dinner together.’

  Petrov shook Silvester’s hand and gave him a tentative Slav hug that was most reluctantly accepted, and nodding to Lawler went out to the waiting car and driver.

  When they were alone Silvester opened the drinks cabinet and poured himself a whisky.

  ‘A drink, James?’ he said, with no effort that could be construed as persuasion.

  ‘No thanks, Adam.’

  Silvester sighed deeply. ‘Don’t know how you survived all that Slav drama and schmaltz.’

  ‘Well, you did say right at the start that you thought we were much alike.’

  ‘Did I say that?’ Silvester looked astonished.

  ‘You did.’

  ‘My apologies, James.’

  ‘I think you were partly right.’

  Silvester looked at him. ‘Ah well, we’ll have to do something about that. Are you happy about doing the rest of his de-briefing?’

  ‘Yes. I think it’ll work well. The time in Berlin helped a lot.’

  Silvester looked at his empty glass. ‘Maybe. Anyway, I’d prefer to draw a veil over that little lot.’

  ‘What put you on to our mutual friend?’

  Silvester sniffed robustly, hooked his foot round the leg of a chair and pulled it towards him. When he was sitting down he looked up at Lawler.

  There’s some lessons to be learnt there, James. I was careless and stupid. That man Ridger was thrown out of Special Branch for blackmail. He had been working on checking the backgrounds of suspected illegal immigrants. He was taking money, hundreds at a time, to give favourable reports. And then there was a girl. Chilean or Peruvian, I’ve forgotten which. He had sex with her instead of cash. She wasn’t all that unwilling but she happened to be the mistress of one of the attaches at her embassy who laid an official complaint with Immigration. There was an investigation and Ridger got the chop. Very quietly, of course, for everybody’s sake. A warning was circulated about him to various departments including us. Our friend saw it, passed the name to the Soviet Embassy and they hired him to keep tabs on you. Ridger was given a photograph of you, but he wasn’t told about Petrov. Just told to report on all your contacts. When I interrogated Ridger myself it was obvious that he’d been ripping them off. His reports were quite useless. But in the end they were desperate and they showed him a photograph of Petrov, but he didn’t recognize him. Said he wasn’t the man who was with you. The fact that the embassy connected you with Petrov meant that there was a leak somewhere in SIS. I put a special team on it. In the end it came down to only two names left in the hat. One was you, and the other was Dyer.

  Then I realized that despite all this, Ridger was still very cocky. Very sure of himself. So I put Sanders on him from Legal. He made clear that we were going to prosecute him under the Official Secrets Act and he stood to get fourteen years and maybe the blackmail charges would be put up too. And then he spilled the beans. The Russians had hinted that he had protection inside SIS before he took on the job. He didn’t believe it, so they gave him a very brief meeting with a man who obviously knew his way around SIS. I showed him half a dozen photographs and he picked out Dyer without hesitation. That was the day before I told you to take Petrov and the girl with you to Berlin. As I told you, I knew something was going on but I didn’t know what.

  ‘I made them work round the clock, and put a documents team on it. They came up with the original copy of Dyer’s recommendation in Hamburg that Blake should be transferred from the Royal Navy to us. We found that Dyer had made a dozen or more trips to Berlin when Blake was operating there. It’s all circumstantial. Not a shred of evidence that would stand up in court. Not unless we put Petrov in the box and even in camera I wouldn’t be prepared to do that. There are other ways we can deal with Dyer.’

  ‘Like what?’

  ‘Never you mind. Just you concentrate on Petrov and the de-briefing.’

  ‘How long will you need Petrov for the Edenbridge business?’

  ‘I don’t know. We’ve got to locate the place first, and then work out a cover story that will satisfy the people who live there now. Geological survey, buried treasure, God knows what. I’d
allow for a couple of weeks anyway.’

  27

  Silvester sat on the bench seat on the patio to pull on his wellingtons, and Lawler stood waiting with the Assistant Commissioner (Crime). The three of them walked in silence through the garden, across the paddock as far as the edge of the copse. Petrov and the two police constables stood together by the big, yellow-painted, mechanical digger. Twin great mounds of soil rose up at each end of the pit.

  As Lawler looked down into the earth he could see the beginnings of the layer of lime. A few, small, compacted white clusters that were startlingly white against the smooth clods of heavy red clay.

  Then Silvester nodded, and the two constables with their shiny spades made their way down the rough steps that had been cut into the sides of the pit.

  Slowly and carefully they dug down, a few inches at a time, taking depth measurements in the dug earth, and scooping samples into plastic bags. Twenty minutes later one of the constables knelt down, and after a few moments he stood up and nodded to the Assistant Commissioner. He went back to the police car and radioed for a police forensic scientist to be sent from Tunbridge Wells with a police photographer.

  It was an hour before they came, and after a brief examination of the section of the skull uncovered from the soil he supervised the rest of the digging and photography. The present owners of the house were told that the remains were of a pilot brought down during the Battle of Britain.

  The lime had not destroyed the body. In fact, even vital organs had been preserved, apart from the skeleton itself. Two dentists who had cared for Blake’s teeth gave positive identifications from plaster casts of the jaw bones.

  Sir George Andrews sat behind his leather-topped desk, his right hand on a thin file and a large buff envelope. The three men facing him sat waiting for his answer. The Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police was in uniform. The Attorney-General was in a dinner jacket with medals, and Silvester looked sombre in a plain, dark blue suit. Eventually Sir George looked directly at the Attorney-General.