that someone won’t start asking questions. In an attempt to avoid looking nervous, I try to convince myself that it is best to let the Americans dictate things at this early stage. All of us are keen for the first handover to be completed and out of the way. Their experience here is greater than mine, but I do not like letting others make decisions on my behalf. There is already the danger that my best interests could be undermined by forces beyond my control. With this development, it feels almost as if the Americans are laying traps for me, and yet I know that this can surely not be the case.
“The actual process of handing over any information should be simple and straightforward,” says Fortner, who halts momentarily as the swimmer approaches us, does a brisk turn, and moves away. He continues, “There’s an absence of risk if you just keep to the basics. Let me give you a few examples of how we can work all this to our mutual advantage.”
Hot chemical air is rising off the water and continuing to sting my eyes, but I manage a nod that I hope looks alert and concentrated.
“To start out, you can make duplicates of disks on the laptop at your apartment and photocopy any sensitive documentation at a convenience store in your neighborhood without arousing undue suspicion. Who’s in those places, after all? Old ladies buying scratchcards and teenage kids sifting through porno magazines. Nobody’s gonna notice. Better to do it there than under the cameras at Abnex, right?”
“What about getting the documents to you?” I ask.
“Just get a cab or subway over to our apartment like you would any other time. Or you can meet me in a restroom, a movie theater, any public area where an exchange will go unnoticed. Or we can do it at your apartment in Shepherd’s Bush. The key is variety, to avoid anything that may look like a routine to a possible tail.”
I bob my head without responding. This is the first time they have mentioned anything about my being followed.
Katharine says, “The only thing I would add…”
The man is already back again, swimming fast and hard to burn himself out. The three of us stare wanly out at the pool as he touches down, somersaults, and swims away. When he is safely out of earshot, Katharine continues.
“The only thing I would add is that it’s better to say as little as possible about JUSTIFY when you’re visiting Colville Gardens, or if we’re meeting at your apartment. Just in case there’s any audio surveillance. We’ll put some background music on whenever you show up, and you should do the same when we come to Shepherd’s Bush. And don’t just do it when it’s us that’s visiting. Make a habit of putting on a CD whenever somebody comes round. That way it won’t stand out as unusual if anyone happens to be listening in. Now, is there anywhere in particular that you would like to use as a location for the first drop?”
Her voice is full of patience. Without thinking, I reply, “What about Saul’s flat on Saturday night? We’re all going for dinner anyway, so it might just as well be there.”
Fortner’s response is tentative: “You cannot be seen handing any information to us. That’s critical, Alec.”
“Yeah. Maybe it’s not such a good idea.”
He narrows his eyes, working things through in his mind.
“Not necessarily,” he says, as two young girls come out of the changing room and make their way gingerly down the steps into the pool. “There is a way we could work it.”
“How?”
He waits for the girls to swim away.
“What’s the combination on your briefcase, the one you take to work?”
“One sixty-two.”
“On both sides?”
I nod.
“All right, then.” He shifts his legs under the water, moving his left hand in the shallows. “Just bring the information to Saul’s apartment at, say, seven thirty, and at some point during the evening either Kathy or myself will get to the case, open it up, and take out whatever’s there.”
“That’s not making things too complicated?”
“Piece a cake,” he replies confidently. “Once that’s done, and we’ve had a chance to examine the price sets, we’ll arrange for ten thousand dollars to be deposited in the account that our operation is setting up for you in Philadelphia.”
“Pounds.”
“What?”
“I said pounds. I want it in pounds.”
“That wasn’t a part of our initial agreement.”
Katharine nervously passes her hand over her hair, flattening it down.
“I’m making it one now,” I tell him, my voice still light and friendly. “I understood that payment would be in sterling.”
“Alec, this is highly irregular.”
“I don’t think so. And don’t tell me the Agency can’t afford it.”
“That’s not the point. There’s a principle involved.”
I say nothing. Fortner’s hands are tied, and he will have to consent.
“We’ll see what we can do,” he says quietly.
Katharine looks away.
“Thank you.”
I feel bad now, like I’ve gone too far.
“What if there’s no opportunity to get to the case during dinner?”
“Most probably there will be, Alec, if you put it somewhere smart.” There’s now a hint of irritation in Fortner’s voice. “If we can’t do it safely, we won’t do it at all. And if that happens, just take the case home and bring it to us some other time. But just remember one thing…” He brings his hand out of the water to make his point firmly and with great care. “Nobody is expecting you to do what you’re doing. That’s the beauty of it. Nobody’s watching us anymore. That should help to calm any nerves you might have.”
I do not answer this, merely nod my head.
“That’s settled then,” he says, crouching down until the water is up to his neck. Katharine does the same. “Just leave the case in the hall of Saul’s apartment. We’ll take care of the rest. It’s gonna be real easy. Now let’s do some laps.”
It has started to rain as we make our way through the lobby doors and out on to Chichester Street. A strong wind is blowing along the face of the building. Katharine comments on how quickly the summer has passed. Fortner tells us to stay indoors while he fetches the car, so we head back inside and sit down.
Katharine immediately leans forward and adopts the manner of a concerned friend. She wants to get back that closeness we had, that shared understanding by which I was first ensnared.
“Alec, it’s difficult for you, I know,” she says. “You wanna do everything right by Fortner, you don’t want to let him down. But all this must be quite a shock for you. You sure you don’t have any concerns?”
“Of course,” I tell her with a confident smile. “I’m completely okay about it.”
“You sure? Because back there in the pool you seemed a little spaced out, a little tense.”
It’s bad that she thought this.
“Not at all, no. I was just a bit apprehensive about using Saul’s flat. You know, the friend thing.”
“We can change that if you want.”
“It’s fine. It makes sense. I’ve thought about it now. Don’t worry.”
“You sure? Because you know you can always come to me if there’s a problem.”
And with this she reaches across to touch my sleeve, her fingers pressing against my wrist.
“I’m sure,” I tell her, looking away.
Clearly, this is how they will proceed from now on. The pattern has been set. Fortner will handle the business end of things while Katharine takes care of the emotional side, coddling me whenever I am beset by doubt. It’s pointless, of course, to confide in her, for my every word will be reported back to him for careful analysis. All my conversations, no matter who they are with, have this quality of evasion about them. They are significant not for
