never met you. His people never saw you.”
“
Me?
You want
me
to bid?”
“Not exactly, Mr. Bennett, no. I’ve already paid quite enough for the formula. I have no intention of paying again. I want you to find the case, and bring it back to me.”
“Steal it?”
“Recover it. You won’t find me ungenerous. There will be a bonus, which is rather more than you deserve under the circumstances. And then you can go back to Monaco and play with your little girls.”
Bennett felt his stomach fighting a losing battle with the whisky and forced himself to swallow. “But I couldn’t do that. These people are crooks—they’re dangerous, you said so yourself. I’m not James bloody Bond.” He shook his head decisively. “No. I’m sorry, but no. I couldn’t do it.”
“I’m not asking you. I’m telling you.”
“Supposing I refuse?”
“That would be most unwise.” Poe looked at his watch. “Sleep on it, Mr. Bennett, and think about possible alternatives. They aren’t attractive. Shimo will show you to your room.”
Bennett followed the Japanese to the end of a long corridor and into a large, comfortably furnished bedroom. The bedcover had been turned down, the curtains drawn. Fresh flowers, mineral water, and a selection of biographies and best-sellers, in English and French, was on the bedside tables. Through an open door, Bennett could see the marble floor of a bathroom. He felt trapped and angry and suddenly tired, and craved a hot bath. He remembered Susie, covered in foam in Monaco. He turned to Shimo. “I’d like to make a call. To my friend.”
“Tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow.” Bennett shook his head wearily. “Do the regulations say I can have a bath?”
Shimo looked at him as though he hadn’t heard. “Don’t attempt to get out through the window. The alarm will go off, and it would upset Mr. Poe’s Dobermans.”
Bennett nodded. Meeting an upset Doberman in the dark: the end of a perfect day.
Shimo closed the door behind him, and Bennett heard the key turn in the lock. He started to undress. What a cock-up. What an almighty, god-awful, frightful cock-up.
8
BENNETT settled uneasily into his confinement. Meals were brought to him in his room. He was forbidden to leave the house, except for a brief stroll each night after dark, in the company of the dog handler and the Dobermans. They slithered soundlessly through the trees, a shoal of four-legged sharks, their eyes blood red in the beam of the flashlight. Only once did Bennett attempt to pat one of them; he had the sense to stop halfway when he saw the lips curl back and the ears go flat. The handler watched with amusement and seemed disappointed when Bennett withdrew his hand.
The helicopter was flying in and out three or four times a day, the edge of the landing pad just visible from Bennett’s bedroom. One of the early-morning departures was Chou-Chou, escorted by Poe and two men carrying large quantities of Vuitton luggage. There was a fond leave-taking, Poe waiting and waving until the helicopter had lifted off. Bennett wondered where he was sending her, and why. To stock up on this year’s jewelry in Paris? Or to keep out of harm’s way in case of trouble on theproperty? The population of men in black suits had increased. Unless he was locked in his room, Bennett was constantly under someone’s eye. There was tension in the air, and the Domaine des Rochers was beginning to feel like a fortress.
A beautiful fortress, Bennett had to admit, made even lovelier by the weather, which he had plenty of time to appreciate from his bedroom. Summer had come early, but the sun hadn’t yet baked the countryside brown. The forested patches on the hills looked as though they had been freshly painted a vivid, shining green, and the clarity of light added a sharp edge of focus to the contours of the land. It was heaven on earth, Bennett thought, which made his situation even more depressing.
He had called Monaco several times, under
“
Me?
You want
me
to bid?”
“Not exactly, Mr. Bennett, no. I’ve already paid quite enough for the formula. I have no intention of paying again. I want you to find the case, and bring it back to me.”
“Steal it?”
“Recover it. You won’t find me ungenerous. There will be a bonus, which is rather more than you deserve under the circumstances. And then you can go back to Monaco and play with your little girls.”
Bennett felt his stomach fighting a losing battle with the whisky and forced himself to swallow. “But I couldn’t do that. These people are crooks—they’re dangerous, you said so yourself. I’m not James bloody Bond.” He shook his head decisively. “No. I’m sorry, but no. I couldn’t do it.”
“I’m not asking you. I’m telling you.”
“Supposing I refuse?”
“That would be most unwise.” Poe looked at his watch. “Sleep on it, Mr. Bennett, and think about possible alternatives. They aren’t attractive. Shimo will show you to your room.”
Bennett followed the Japanese to the end of a long corridor and into a large, comfortably furnished bedroom. The bedcover had been turned down, the curtains drawn. Fresh flowers, mineral water, and a selection of biographies and best-sellers, in English and French, was on the bedside tables. Through an open door, Bennett could see the marble floor of a bathroom. He felt trapped and angry and suddenly tired, and craved a hot bath. He remembered Susie, covered in foam in Monaco. He turned to Shimo. “I’d like to make a call. To my friend.”
“Tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow.” Bennett shook his head wearily. “Do the regulations say I can have a bath?”
Shimo looked at him as though he hadn’t heard. “Don’t attempt to get out through the window. The alarm will go off, and it would upset Mr. Poe’s Dobermans.”
Bennett nodded. Meeting an upset Doberman in the dark: the end of a perfect day.
Shimo closed the door behind him, and Bennett heard the key turn in the lock. He started to undress. What a cock-up. What an almighty, god-awful, frightful cock-up.
8
BENNETT settled uneasily into his confinement. Meals were brought to him in his room. He was forbidden to leave the house, except for a brief stroll each night after dark, in the company of the dog handler and the Dobermans. They slithered soundlessly through the trees, a shoal of four-legged sharks, their eyes blood red in the beam of the flashlight. Only once did Bennett attempt to pat one of them; he had the sense to stop halfway when he saw the lips curl back and the ears go flat. The handler watched with amusement and seemed disappointed when Bennett withdrew his hand.
The helicopter was flying in and out three or four times a day, the edge of the landing pad just visible from Bennett’s bedroom. One of the early-morning departures was Chou-Chou, escorted by Poe and two men carrying large quantities of Vuitton luggage. There was a fond leave-taking, Poe waiting and waving until the helicopter had lifted off. Bennett wondered where he was sending her, and why. To stock up on this year’s jewelry in Paris? Or to keep out of harm’s way in case of trouble on theproperty? The population of men in black suits had increased. Unless he was locked in his room, Bennett was constantly under someone’s eye. There was tension in the air, and the Domaine des Rochers was beginning to feel like a fortress.
A beautiful fortress, Bennett had to admit, made even lovelier by the weather, which he had plenty of time to appreciate from his bedroom. Summer had come early, but the sun hadn’t yet baked the countryside brown. The forested patches on the hills looked as though they had been freshly painted a vivid, shining green, and the clarity of light added a sharp edge of focus to the contours of the land. It was heaven on earth, Bennett thought, which made his situation even more depressing.
He had called Monaco several times, under
Similar Books
