'And what's your work, if you don't mind my-?'
'Let's just say that it consists very largely of uncovering what people would rather keep hidden.'
'You make yourself sound like some kind of spy.'
'A spy?' said the bald man gently. 'Now what on earth can have put such a notion into your head?'
'Just the way you were talking. I hope I haven't offended you.'
What with his vocal predispositions and his present mental state, the lightness with which Leonard spoke was very creditable. The man had reacted to his suggestion abnormally, no doubt of that. And-the thought came in an instant-if this Lady Hazell was getting information out of people there would have to be somebody to pick it up from her. In the pause that now followed, Leonard turned his face away and slightly up, as if glancing idly round the room. Then he looked out of the corner of his eye at the bald man, who proved to be looking at him in the same fashion. He shifted his gaze abruptly and found it held, also askance, by that of a parrot that was clinging uncomfortably to the bars of its cage.
There was a longer pause, broken by the sound of voices. Leonard turned and recognized Hunter and Ayscue coming into the room with Ross-Donaldson. A car had presumably driven up and the front door been knocked at and opened, but Leonard had been too absorbed to notice.
Hunter approached and nodded to Leonard, then caught sight of the bald man.
'Well, this is a surprise,' he said, on a higher note than usual. 'Fancy running into you here. I see that you and Brian have got together already.'
'We haven't been introduced. I was sitting here reading when-'
'Well, I must remedy that right away, though neither of you is the type to stand on ceremony, I know. This is Dr. Best, who runs the mental hospital down the road where I spent those few days recently-Captain Leonard.'
'You and I have spoken together on the telephone,' said Dr. Best to Leonard. 'I thought I recognized your voice.'
'You two have got a lot in common,' began Hunter.
Leonard said quickly, 'Something important has come up which I must tell you about at once. Will you excuse us, Dr. Best?'
'Certainly,' said the doctor amiably, watching him.
'Would you like a gin and tonic, Hunter?' called Ross-Donaldson.
'Just a tonic, if I may. Well, Brian, why all the mystery?'
'I stopped you because you were about to reveal that I'm a Security man. You are not to do that under any circumstances. That's an order, Max.'
'But you don't usually… You don't mean you think there are spies about or something, do you?'
'Just a routine precaution. Now I want to ask you something. That man, Dr. Best, I suppose he must have questioned you pretty exhaustively when he was treating you, about your life and your job and so on. Think carefully before you answer. Did he show any interest in what's going on at the camp?'
Hunter seemed to think carefully. Then he said, 'Yes. Yes, he did. It struck me at the time, but so much else was happening that I haven't remembered until now. He must have asked me what the chaps were up to half a dozen times in different ways. Was it the sort of thing that could cause me anxiety, was I worried the program wouldn't be finished in time, it would help him if he knew more about it. He really kept on at me. I just said I didn't know, which you'll agree is true. And now I come to think of it, I'm jolly glad it is true.'
'Why?' Leonard's habitual urgency was redoubled.
'I'll tell you in a moment… Thank you very much, Alastair. Do forgive Brian and me for being unsociable, but we have a certain rather urgent problem to solve.'
'Right,' said Ross-Donaldson. 'Don't hesitate to call on me if you think I can be of the slightest assistance.'
He went over to Ayscue. Leonard closed in on Hunter.
'Why? Why are you glad you don't know about Operation Apollo?'
Hunter looked about and lowered his voice. 'Because Dr. Best questioned me under hypnosis,' he hissed.
'And you can't remember what questions he asked you?'
'No. But I have a sort of feeling that they were put very… persistently. On and on and on at the same point without getting anywhere. Of course, I suppose I could be wrong about that.'
'Mm. You've been most helpful, Max. Thank you.'
'It's a pleasure, believe me, Brian. Anything else I can do?'
'As a matter of fact there is. I'll have this man investigated and watched, naturally, but there's often something to be gained from a frontal approach. I wonder, if we go back to him now, could you suggest to me and him that I go over to the hospital and he show me round?'
'Yes, okay, but why do you want to see the place, from his point of view?'
'Oh, I'm interested in techniques of questioning prisoners under drugs and so on. Leave that to me.'
But in the event this stratagem was not needed. Hunter had barely finished making his suggestion before Dr. Best was leafing through his pocket diary.
'Would eleven-thirty next Tuesday be convenient?' he asked. 'And afterwards I hope you'll allow me to give you lunch in my quarters.'
