The Oasis by John Creasey

Author:John Creasey
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2017-04-13T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Ida Pleads

From the moment when he had said “Let me finish” Mercia had been studying Palfrey with increasing intensity. He saw, through his half-closed eyes, that she was astonished. The fire in her eyes died away and in its place was a glow, almost of wonder. She sat quite still, one hand still shielding her face; and she was breathing so quietly that she hardly seemed to be breathing at all.

Slowly, almost whispering, she said:

“Sap, you—you are magnificent. They were right about you.” When he didn’t answer, she went on: “I’ve never heard it put so—so lucidly, so vividly. That is exactly what they say.”

Palfrey did not ask who “they” were, but waited for her to go on. When she did, there were stars in her eyes.

“It doesn’t matter who had tried before,” she said. “We can succeed. But we need your help.”

Drily, Palfrey remarked: “A lot of self-appointed saviours thought I might make a good disciple, too. Somehow, I never do.”

“But if we convince you that we’re right, you won’t—you can’t—refuse.”

Palfrey almost said: “You can’t convince me” – and then bit the words back. She was looking at him almost adoringly. It was an absurd word to use about himself, but it was the right one. In those few minutes, since he had talked with such fluency and understanding, it was as if she had been dazzled – mesmerised – by him, and in such a mood she might believe anything he wanted her to.

“If I were convinced,” he said, gruffly, “that would be different.”

“And you are exactly the man we want!”

“Mercia,” Palfrey said, frankly, “I would make a very bad God.”

“You don’t have to be a God,” she retorted. “You have to be a man of vision and you have to have a worldwide organisation which will do exactly what you tell it. We have an organisation which is very powerful in certain places but is nothing like so widespread as yours. Sap – listen to me.”

She held out her hands, and again he took them, partly because it was instinctive to do so, partly because he knew that the more impressed he seemed to be, the more she would confide. There was another reason, too: she was quite beautiful, and he responded to the woman; he would have done so at that moment whatever the circumstances, whatever subject they had been discussing.

“Sap, listen to me,” she repeated. “I have always believed you could help, and so has my husband. Professor Dioll hasn’t – he would have preferred you dead. He wanted you to be killed but I sent two men to warn you of danger.”

“And they led my men to the hotel and the laboratory, which in turn led to the disaster,” Palfrey remarked heavily.

“Yes,” she said, “but sooner or later those places had to be destroyed. Eustace knew about them, that was why he had to be killed. He—”

“Morro knew!” exclaimed Palfrey.

“Yes,” said Mercia, quite positively. “He once followed Ida there, and sooner or later you would have found out, too.

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