Malik straightened up and looked at the car as it gathered speed, driving past him. He knew the car belonged to Rosnold, but Rosnold was not at the wheel. The car was being driven by a thick-set, blond man wearing an ill- fitting business suit.
Malik's mind worked swiftly. He made an instant decision. He slammed down the cover over the engine and said, 'Go after him!'
Lintz was already on his feet. He slid under the driving wheel. 'What about you?' he asked as he started the engine.
'Never mind about me!' Malik snapped. 'Go after him! Don'tlose him! When you know where he has gone, report to Skoll.'
Lintz nodded, engaged gear and drove off after the fast disappearing T.R.4 which was heading for Munich.
Malik moved into the surrounding forest. He sat down on the dry, dusty ground, using a shrub as a shelter. Five minutes later a Mercedes car which he recognised as the one Girland had been driving, came through the open gates and turned left. A man Malik didn't recognise, who was wearing the same kind of shabby suit as the driver of the T.R.4, was at the wheel. The Mercedes headed towards Garmisch.
Malik rubbed his jaw as he thought. It now looked as if he had guessed right. Girland, the girl and Rosnold had walked into a trap. Getting rid of their cars was the first step towards getting rid of them. There was nothing he could do about this for the moment. He would have to wait until it was dark. With the patience a trained agent, he relaxed against a tree and waited.
Two hours later, it was dark enough for him to make a move. He got to his feet and silently left the forest. He began to walk around the high wall surrounding the Schloss.
Some four hundred metres from the entrance gates, he paused and looked up at the towering concrete and flint wall. He studied the spikes set in the top of the wall. From his shabby jacket the produced a length of thin, nylon cord. At one end of die cord was a rubber-covered hook. He tossed the hook towards the spikes. The second throw succeeded. The hook settled silently around one of the spikes and held firm. Malik glanced from left to right. Satisfied there was no traffic, he caught hold of the cord, braced his feet against the wall and walked up, his strong hands hauling him effortlessly to the top. Here, he paused, and surveyed the dense forest below. He unhooked the cord, manoeuvred himself around the sharp spikes and then let himself drop on to the dry, mossy ground on the other side of the wall.
He paused to coil the cord to a convenient size to fit his pocket, then drew from a shoulder holster a Mauser 7.63 pistol, fitted with a silencer. Moving like a shadow, he walked through the forest until he eventually reached the clearing between the forest and the wide, closely cut lawn. The moon was behind the clouds, and Malik could just see the distant lights from the Schloss. He squatted against a tree, nursing his gun and waited. An hour dragged by, then suddenly things began to happen.
From a first floor window, Malik saw a man appear on the balcony. There was a brief glimpse of a woman, but the man threw her violently back into the room. The man climbed over the balcony rail, hung for a moment, then dropped heavily to the terrace below. He recovered his balance and darted down the steps to the lawn.
Malik stood up, watching.
Suddenly a bright beam from a searchlight flashed on from the roof of the Schloss and picked up the running man.
Malik watched the brief, deadly battle between the man and the two alsatian dogs. He watched the man start to run fast towards him, then he heard the crack of a sporting rifle and saw the man drop.
Malik moved silently back into the darkness of the forest. He remained there, motionless while two men came across the lawn und carried the lifeless body back to the Schloss.
Lu Silk and von Goltz stood on the lighted terrace, looking towards the forest. Von Goltz held a microphone in his hand.
Speaking slowly and clearly, his voice picked up on the speakers in the forest and along the walls of the Schloss, he was saying 'You cannot leave the grounds. Don't go near the walls. A lethal electric current has been turned on. Please come back. Mr Rosnold is not badly hurt. He is recovering. Please come back.'
Listening to this, Silk moved impatiently.
'Are you sure they can't get out?'
Von Goltz switched off the microphone.
'Impossible ... no one can get out now. The walls and the gates are lethal, but it could take time to find them. If I had more dogs, I'd flush them quickly, but without dogs ...'
'Can't you get more?'
Von Goltz shook his head.
'Those two dogs that swine killed were trained to hunt men. The dogs belonging to my neighbours are sporting dogs.
Besides, there would be questions asked. When it is light, we will have a hunt in the forest. It could be amusing. I am satisfied these two can't leave the estate.' He paused, then went on, 'But if they attempt to climb the walls . . .' He switched on the microphone and again repeated his warning that the walls were lethal.
In the shadows, Malik listened and grimaced. Girland, standing on the third floor balcony overlooking the terrace, concealed in the darkness, also listened and grinned. He moved back into the vast dark room that seemed to be full of heavy furniture. He closed the windows.
'It's working,' he said, joining Gilly. 'They think we are in the grounds as I thought they would.' He produced a tiny, powerful electric torch and swung the beam around the room. 'This looks big enough for a railway station.' He took her hand and led her down the aisle between the furniture until they reached a door. Gently, he opened it, listened, then threw the beam of his torch into what appeared to be a small retiring room. 'Let's settle here,' he said. 'It looks less grand.'
Breathing fast and shaking, Gilly followed him into the room and he closed the door. His torch directed her to a dust-covered settee.
'Sit down.'
They sat side by side.
'What are we going to do?' she asked. He could feel she was trembling. 'If they find us ... they'll murder us, won't they?'
'They have to find us first.' Girland leaned close to her. 'They won't start looking for us until tomorrow when it is light.
With any luck, they will search the forest. While they are out there, I'll go down and find a telephone. I'll call the U.S.
Army in Munich. They'll arrive in force and we'll walk out. There is nothing to worry about. You'll just have to make up your mind to forget about having dinner and wait until tomorrow morning.'
'Call the army? Are you crazy?' Gilly tried to see Girland's face in the dim light. 'Why should they bother with us? You must call the police!'
'No... the U.S. Army,' Girland said. 'Because, my pet, you happen to be the daughter of the future President. When I tell them you have been kidnapped, the whole U.S. Army stationed in Germany, plus tanks and aircraft will come rushing to your rescue.'
'No!' Gilly said fiercely. Til never trade on my father's rotten reputation!'
Girland sighed.
'Are you sure?'
'Yes... I'll never...'
'All right... all right... don't get so worked up. You have made your point.-So you don't want the U.S. Army to rescue you?'
'No!'
'A pity ... it could have been fun to have lots of tanks bashing down the gates and fat Generals rushing up the drive. All right, then here's what you do. Go downstairs and find the count. When you find him, tell him you won't accept your father's favours and would he please cut your throat'
Gilly sat for some moments, speechless.
'Oh, I hate you!' she exploded, thumping her fists on her knees. 'You are horrible . . . you don't
