caravan to vaccares by Alistair MacLean

Author:Alistair MacLean [MacLean, Alistair]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2011-04-02T14:00:00+00:00

'You mean -you mean you do it all in your head? It's not possible, Charles.'

He patted her hand and smiled indulgently.

'What you can get me is a litre of beer. It's becoming uncommonly warm. Find a waiter, will you?'

Lila moved obediently away and Le Grand Duc looked after her. There was nothing indulgent about the expression on his face when he saw her talking briefly and smiling to the gypsy girl who had so recently read her fortune: there was nothing indulgent about it when he examined the Chinese couple at an adjacent table: even less so when he saw Cecile join Bowman in a white car in the street: and least of all when he observed another car move off within seconds of Bowman's.

Cecile gazed in perplexity round the interior of the white Simca. She said: 'What's all this about, then?'

'Such things as phones,' he explained. 'Fixed it while you were having breakfast. Fixed two of them in fact.'

'Two what?'

'Two hired cars. Never know when you're going to run short.'

'But -but in so short a time.'

'Garage is just down the street -they sent a man to check.' He took out Czerda's barely depleted wad of Swiss notes, crackled it briefly and returned it. 'Depends upon the deposit.'

'You really are quite amoral, aren't you?' She sounded almost admiring.

'How's that again?'

'The way you throw other people's money around.'

'Life is for living, money for the spending,' Bowman said pontifically. 'No pockets in a shroud.'

'You're hopeless,' she said. 'Quite, quite hopeless. And why this car, anyway?'

'Why that get-up you're wearing?'

'Why -oh, I see. Of course the Peugeot's known. I hadn't thought of that.' She looked at him curiously as he turned the Simca in the direction of a sign-post saying 'NImes'. 'Where do you think you're going?'

'I'm not quite sure. I'm looking for a place where I can talk undisturbed.'

'To me?'

'Still your apprehensions. I'll have all the rest of my life to talk to you. When we were on the patio a battered-looking gypsy in a battered-looking Renault. sat and watched us for ten minutes. Both of them are about a hundred yards behind us now. I want to talk to the battered-looking gypsy.'

'Oh!'

'Well might you say "Oh!" How, one wonders, is it that Gaiuse Strome's henchmen are on to us so soon.' He gave her a sidelong glance. 'You're looking at me in a very peculiar manner, if I may say so.'

'I'm thinking.'

'Well?'

'If they're on to you, why did you bother switching cars?'

Bowman said patiently: 'When 1 hired the Simca I didn't know they were on to me.'

'And now you're taking me into danger again? Or what might be danger?'

'I hope not. If I am, I'm sorry. But if they're on to me, they're on to the charming gypsy girl who has been sitting by my side -don't forget that it was you that the priest was tailing when he met up with his unfortunate accident. Would you rather I'd left you behind to cope with them alone?'

'You don't offer very much in the way of choices,' she complained.

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