And All the King's Men by Gordon Stevens

Author:Gordon Stevens
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, pdf
ISBN: 9780330315340
Publisher: Pan Australia
Published: 1991-09-05T23:00:00+00:00

The Watchman was almost always on time, she knew. Only on two previous occasions had he failed to keep a meeting. At eight, when he had not appeared, she got up, aware of the suspicion a woman sitting by herself would cause after too long a time, walked in the area of the pub for another quarter-hour, then checked again and left.

Propped against the wall outside was a bicycle. It had been there earlier, she realized, except that she had not thought about it. The Black Swan was only fifteen miles away, the thought began to insinuate itself again, the hospital only ten miles beyond that. She could get to the pub tonight, see the old faces, go on to the hospital in the morning. No old faces - she had to confront the truth - everything too much of a security risk. No message for transmission tonight, the thought was persistent, no reason for her being there. Standard procedure, she heard the instructor, you always waiting on schedule in case they have a message. No contact with The Watchman therefore no message tonight; she could easily invent a story if they queried her next time, say she had waited for him. After her schedule — she postponed the decision - then she would make up her mind about stealing the bike and going to the hospital.

Mary made her way to the house in which the courier had placed the radio set, went upstairs, and checked the electricity supply and aerial. Her call sign came through immediately. She reached forward and tapped an acknowledgement.

The telephone rang only once before Drake picked it up. ‘Contact with Orchid.’

‘On my way.’

By the time he reached the signals room the operator had transmitted the message Drake had prepared.

‘She’s received.’

is The Watchman with her?’ The Watchman would never be with her during transmission, Drake knew. ‘Has he been in contact with her?’

‘No idea yet.’ .

In the attic room of the house on the outskirts of the village in Kent Mary bent near the light of the window and decoded the message: orchid for watchman, urgent-most. imperative avoid contact hop network, repeat.

WATCHMAN AVOID HOP. IMPORTANTMOST. CONFIRM.

The traitor, she knew. She wrote her reply, building in her security code, encoded it then tapped it out.

ORCHID. CONFIRM WARNING RECEIVED. REQUEST INSTRUCTIONS.

HAS WATCHMAN BEEN IN CONTACT WITH YOU TODAY.

They waited again for her reply. It was as if she was in a foreign country, Drake could not help thinking, as if she was totally alone and a thousand miles away. In the attic room in Kent Mary decoded the incoming message and knew why The Watchman had not made the meeting that evening.

ORCHID. NEGATIVE. LAST CONTACT WITH WATCHMAN SATURDAY. NO WATCHMAN THIS EVENING CONTACT POINT.

CONFIRM YESTERDAY MESSAGE. HOP CONTACT SUNDAY OR MONDAY.

Already, Drake was aware, he was calculating the odds; knew that he was still not prepared to admit the inevitable and begin to plan for its repercussions.

ORCHID. CONFIRMED.

Still a chance, Drake tried to tell himself, still a possibility

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