Desmond Bagley - The Freedom Trap

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Desmond Bagley
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Desmond Bagley

The Freedom Trap

To Ron and Peggy Hulland

One

I

Mackintoshs office was, unexpectedly, in the City. I had difficulty in finding it because it was in that warren of streets between Holborn and Fleet Street which is a maze to one accustomed to the grid-iron pattern of Johannesburg. I found it at last in a dingy building; a well-worn brass plate announcing innocuously that this Dickensian structure held the registered office of Anglo-Scottish Holdings, Ltd.

I smiled as I touched the polished plate, leaving a smudged fingerprint. It seemed that Mackintosh knew his business; this plate, apparently polished by generations of office boys, was a sign of careful planning that augured well for the future the professional touch. Im a professional and I dont like working with amateurs theyre unpredictable, careless and too dangerous for my taste. I had wondered about Mackintosh because England is the spiritual home of amateurism, but Mackintosh was a Scot and I suppose that makes a difference.

There was no lift, of course, so I trudged up four flights of stairs poor lighting and marmalade-coloured walls badly in need of a repaint and found the Anglo-Scottish office at the end of a dark corridor. It was all so normal that I wondered if I had the right address but I stepped forward to the desk and said, Rearden to see Mr Mackintosh.

The red-headed girl behind the desk favoured me with a warm smile and put down the tea-cup she was holding. Hes expecting you, she said. Ill see if hes free. She went into the inner office, closing the door carefully behind her. She had good legs.

I looked at the scratched and battered filing cabinets and wondered what was in them and found I could not possibly guess. Perhaps they were stuffed full of Angles and Scots. There were two eighteenth-century prints on the wall Windsor Castle and the Thames at Richmond. There was a Victorian steel engraving of Princes Street, Edinburgh. All very Anglic and Scottish. I admired Mackintosh more and more this was going to be a good careful job; but I did wonder how hed done it did he call in an interior decorator or did he have a pal who was a set dresser in a film studio?

The girl came back. Mr Mackintosh will see you now you can go right through.

I liked her smile so I returned it and walked past her into Mackintoshs sanctum. He hadnt changed. I hadnt expected him to change not in two months but sometimes a man looks different on his home ground where he has a sense of security, a sense of knowing whats what. I was pleased Mackintosh hadnt changed in that way because it meant he would be sure of himself anywhere and at any time. I like people I can depend on.

He was a sand-coloured man with light gingery hair and invisible eyebrows and eyelashes which gave his face a naked look. If he didnt shave for a week probably no one would notice. He was slight in build and I wondered how he would use himself in a rough-house; flyweights usually invent nasty tricks to make up for lack of brawn. But then Mackintosh would never get into a brawl in the first place; there are all sorts of different ways of using your brains.

He put his hands flat on the desk. So you are, he paused, holding his breath, and then spoke my name in a gasp, Rearden. And how was the flight, Mr Rearden?

Not bad.

Thats fine. Sit down, Mr Rearden. Would you like some tea? He smiled slightly. People who work in offices like this drink tea all the time.

All right, I said, and sat down.

He went to the door. Could you rustle up another pot of tea, Mrs Smith?

The door clicked gently as he closed it and I cocked my head in that direction. Does she know?

Of course, he said calmly. I couldnt do without Mrs Smith. Shes a very capable secretary, too.

Smith? I asked ironically.

Oh, its her real name. Not too incredible there are plenty of Smiths. Shell be joining us in a moment so I suggest we delay any serious discussion. He peered at me. Thats a rather lightweight suit for our English weather. You mustnt catch pneumonia.

I grinned at him. Perhaps youll recommend a tailor.

Indeed I will; you must go to my man. Hes a bit expensive but I think we can manage that. He opened a drawer and took out a fat bundle of currency. Youll need something for expenses.

I watched unbelievingly as he began to count out the fivers. He parted with thirty of them, then paused. Wed better make it two hundred, he decided, added another ten notes, then pushed the wad across to me. You dont mind cash, I trust? In my business cheques are rather looked down upon.

I stuffed the money into my wallet before he changed his mind. Isnt this a little unusual? I didnt expect you to be so free and easy.

I daresay the expense account will stand it, he said tolerantly. You are going to earn it, you know. He offered a cigarette. And how was Johannesburg when you left?

Still the same in a changing sort of way, I said. Since you were there theyve built another hundred-and-sixty-foot office block in the city.

In two months? Not bad!

They put it up in twelve days, I said drily.

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