Agnelli smiled his easy smile. ‘You have been overcome by a bout of righteousness? A law-abiding upholder of justice and the straight and narrow path?’
‘None of those things, I must admit. But you must understand that although I operate mainly outside the law and have a past that wouldn’t bear rigorous examination, in fact, any kind of examination, I’m a pretty normal citizen in most ways. I’ve come to like the Dutch, and, although I don’t know them from Adam, I’ve come to respect, even admire, their royal family.’
‘Your sentiments do you credit, Mr Danilov. Believe me, I share them. But I hardly think those are your real reasons for refusing. You said yesterday afternoon that you would not become involved in any operation where there might arise even the danger of risk to limb, far less to life. Is that not so?’ Van Effen nodded. ‘I assure you no such risk will arise tonight.’
‘Then you just want to cause a harmless explosion inside the palace-‘ ‘Precisely.’
‘And why in heaven’s name should you want to cause a harmless explosion inside the palace?’
‘You are not to concern yourself with that. It is, as you may well guess, a purely psychological gesture.’
‘How am I to know it will be harmless?’
‘You’ll be able to satisfy yourself on this score when you get there. The explosion will take place inside an empty cellar. There are empty cellars on either side of it. All four doors are lockable and we will remove the keys after they have been locked. There are also empty cellars above. There is absolutely no danger to anyone involved.’ ‘There’s danger to us. The palace is heavily guarded. Word has it that the guards are likely to ask questions of an intruder after they’ve shot him dead. My aversion to people getting killed includes myself.’ ‘Please, Mr Danilov. We are not simple-minded. Do I look like a person who would embark upon an operation like this without every detail being meticulously planned in detail beforehand?’
‘I’ll grant that. You don’t.’
‘Then you may rest assured that we will encounter no trouble. As an additional assurance, both our leader and I will be there with you. We have no more ambition to end up in durance vile than you have.’ ‘Maybe your records are not so unblemished either.’ ‘Unblemished or not, it would go hard with anyone caught with explosives within the precincts of the palace.’
‘Very neat.’ Van Effen sounded sour. ‘So now you know I have a record whereas I don’t know whether you have or not.’
‘It hardly matters, does it?’
‘If it does, it escapes me at the moment. It’ll probably come to me when it’s too late. What’s this bomb like?’
‘I’m not sure.’ Agnelli smiled. Van Effen had practically committed himself. ‘I’m not an explosives expert. Such talents as I have lie elsewhere, more in the organizing field, shall we say. I understand that it weighs three or four kilos and is made of some material called amatol.’
‘What are the cellars made of?’
‘Made of? You mean the walls?’
‘What else could I mean?’
‘I really couldn’t tell you.’
‘I don’t suppose it matters. I was just trying to figure the blast effect. If the cellars are deep and have ‘Those cellars are very deep.’
‘So. And with the palace on top they’ll have to support a very considerable weight. I don’t know how old this particular part of the palace may be, I know nothing about the palace, but the walls would have to be pretty stoutly built. Reinforced concrete is unlikely. Dressed stone, I should guess, and of a considerable thickness. Your little firework is hardly likely to dent them. AU the people in the palace will be aware of is a slight shake, if that, a tremor that wouldn’t raise any eyebrows at the nearest seismographic station, wherever that may be. As for the sound factor, it would be negligible.’
‘Are you sure?’ Agnelli’s tone was unaccustomedly sharp. ‘if my assumptions are correct, and I see no reason why they shouldn’t be, then I’m sure.’
‘No loud bang?’
‘They wouldn’t hear it in the palace drawing-rooms, far less out in the Dam Square.’
‘How could one ensure that it is heard?’
‘Bring along enough spare amatol, let me have a look at the walls and I’ll tell you. ‘Tell me, is it your intention just to leave the explosive there, lock the doors, throw away the keys — it will have occurred to you, of course, that there will be duplicates?’
‘These we have.’
‘And arrange for the bang after you’re clear of the palace?’ Agnelli nodded. ‘Then why on earth do you want me for a simple job like this? I’ve little enough in the way of conscience but I’d feel downright guilty taking money for a job like this. A young teenager in his first year in a physics or chemistry lab could do this. All you require is a battery, any old alarm clock, some household flex, a fulminate of mercury detonator, a primer and you’re off. Even simpler, all you require is a length of slow-burning RDX fuse. What you don’t want is an explosives expert — me. It’s a matter, Mr Agnelli, of professional pride.’ ‘This is a job for a professional. It’s to be set off by remote radio control.’
‘A teenager in his second year in a physics or chemistry lab. Can’t you do, yourselves?’
‘For good reasons we want an expert. The reasons are not for you.’ ‘You have the technical data for this radio-controlled device.’ ‘A professional needs an instruction book?’
‘Only an amateur would ask a professional such a stupid question. Of course I need an instruction book, as you call it, but it’s not instructions I require. These systems are not difficult if you know how they work. Problem is, there are quite a number of different systems: it’s not instructions I require but data. As far as the device and the control are concerned, I need to know such things as voltage, wattage, wavelength, radio range, type of detonator, the nature of the triggering mechanism, the type of shielding and a few other odds and ends. You have this? The data, I mean?’
‘We have. I shall bring it along tonight.’
‘You will not. I have no wish to give offence, Mr Agnelli, but only a rank amateur would suggest that I start to learn about this device on the spot. I want to be so thoroughly familiarized with the data that I can leave them all behind before I go near the place. 1 shall want those data at least an hour in advance.’
‘Or no deal?’
‘I wouldn’t insult you by making threats or blackmail. I assume that a reasonable man, recognizes a reasonable request?’
‘He does. We’ll send it around at, say, six-thirty this evening?’ ‘Fine.’ Van Effen paused briefly. ‘Well, well. We have been making diligent enquiries, haven’t we?’
‘It really wasn’t very difficult. We come now to the delicate question of remuneration — although I did promise it would be on a generous scale.’
‘You did mention the possibility of permanent employment?’ ‘I did.’
‘Then let’s regard this as a test demonstration. You know, efficiency, reliability, professionalism. If I measure up, let’s then discuss payment for future jobs.,
‘Fair and generous. So fair, in fact, that I feel almost diffident about raising the next delicate point.’
‘I would hare for you to embarrass yourself Let me raise it for you.’ ‘This is more than generous.’
‘My nature. You have given me highly secret and very valuable information for which the police would doubtless reward me handsomely.’ Van Effen knew from Agnelli’s brief frown then renewed smile that he had indeed guessed correctly. ‘I shall not be giving this information to the police. Reasons? One, I am not a double- crosser. Two, I don’t like the police and they don’t like me — I don’t want to be within a long distance of any policemen. Three. Purely selfish and financial — I am certain I can make a great deal more money from working for you on several occasions than I can from betraying you once. Four, I do not wish to spend the rest of my life with a hit man or hit men only one step behind.’ Agnelli was sniffling very broadly now. ‘The fifth is the most compelling reason. From what you have just told me you obviously have informers, contacts inside the palace who would immediately alert you to the presence of the police. As there could and would he only one person who could have betrayed you I could, possibly, be summarily disposed of, although I think you would find it much more elegant to turn me over to the police and suggest that they have a look at extradition requests from Poland and the United States. I think I would prefer the States — I might at least get a semblance of a fair trial there. I am not wanted, of
