The giant leaped forward, landing unsteadily on the rolling floor, his mask of fury giving way to a smile of triumph. "I"d rather do it another way," he shouted. "Not by the bullet. I ken a bullet"s too guid for ye." His hand almost hid the Python revolver, which pointed directly at Bond"s chest, motioning his victim to the other side of the cabin, towards the large hatchway marked out in red, and bearing the legend DO NOT ENTER IF RED LIGHT IS ON. "Ye"ll get over there," Caber growled, keeping his balance, even though the aircraft was undoubtedly in a nose-down att.i.tude, descending rapidly.
There was no way to avoid the order without ending up with his chest torn away by the Python"s bullets. Bond crabbed across the cabin towards the hatchway.
"Now," - Caber had managed to get close behind him, but not near enough for Bond to try a tackle, - "now ye"ll slide that thing open, and hold it until ma own hand"s on it."
Bond did as he was bidden; felt the revolver barrel jab at his back and saw Caber"s hand take over the weight of the sliding hatchway as, together, they stepped through into the high sparred and girdered rear of the Starlifter. The aircraft made another fast and unexpected turn, throwing them apart, so that Bond banged his right arm against a rising, curved spar.
"I"m still behind ye, Bond, with the wee shooter, so dinna do anything daft. There"s a wee bit of a lever I have to pull over here."
The rear loading bay was cold: a bleak airborne hangar of metal, smelling of oil and that odd plastic scent of air that you get inside aircraft. The buffeting was worse here, almost below the high tail of the Starlifter. Bond had to grip hard on the spar to keep his balance, for the big aeroplane seemed to be turning alternately left and right, still going down, with occasional terrifying bucketing and noise - which Bond now clearly recognised as other aircraft pa.s.sing close and buzzing them.
"There we go," Caber called, and Bond heard the solid sound of a large switch going down. It was followed by the whine of hydraulics and an increased reverberation. Bond twisted around, to see Caber leaning against a bulkhead just inside the hatchway, the revolver still accurately aimed, while his left hand was raised to an open metal box inside which a two-foot double knife-switch had just been pulled down and was locked into the "on" position. There was another great wallowing as the huge plane dropped a couple of hundred feet, and both men clung hard to their precious holds. Caber laughed. "The Laird had some daft idea of pushing ye out an" trailing ye along with the pick-up line when we went fur the ransom. I"m gawn tae make sure o" ye, Bond."
There was a distinct decrease in temperature. Bond could feel air blowing around him. Looking back towards the tail end of the hold, he saw the rear sides of the fuselage moving away, long curved sections, slowly pivoting outwards, while an oblong section of the deck gently dropped away to the increased whine of the hydraulic system. The ramp was going down. Already he could see a section of sky.
"It"ll tak aboot twa minutes," Caber shouted. "Then ye"ll have a nice ski slope there. Ye"ll be goin" doon that, Bond. Coin" doon it tae h.e.l.l."
Bond"s mind raced. If he was to die, then Caber would have to kill him with the gun. It was not likely that he could even get within grappling distance of the man. They were a good twenty feet from each other, and the Starlifter, still with its nose down, was yawing and performing what he recognised as evasive action of the most extreme kind. Perhaps it was his imagination, but Bond thought he could hear the metal plates singing and stretching with near human cries of pain as the aircraft was flung about the sky.
There is a dread, deep within most people, of falling to their death from a great height. James Bond was no exception. He clung on to his spar, transfixed by the quickly widening gap between metal and sky. Sudden death had never bothered him - in many ways he had lived with it for so long that it ceased to bring nightmares. One minute you would be alive, the next in irreversible darkness. But this would be different. He felt the clammy hand of death on his neck, and the cold sweat of genuine fear closed over him.
With a heavy rumble and thump, the ramp locked down, sloping away and leaving a huge open hole the size of a house in the rear of the aircraft. The sky tilted behind the opening, then swerved as the Starlifter went through yet another manoeuvre.
"This is where we say fare ye weel - for auld lang syne, Bond. Now git ye doon that ramp and practise flying wi"out wings."
"You"ll have to shoot me down it," Bond shouted. He was not going without some show of a fight. Letting go of the spar, he aimed himself at Caber just as the Starlifter dipped lower, the tail coming up at a precarious angle. Bond lurched forward, almost losing his balance, going down out of control towards Caber. In this heart-stopping moment Bond saw the smile broaden on the man"s face, his gun hand coming up to point the Python straight at 007"s chest.
Again the deck jerked under them and Bond staggered to one side as the aircraft dipped and the door to the hatchway slid open. For a second, Bond thought it was the movement of the aircraft. Then, still pushed forward by the angle of descent, he saw Lavender, the dirk from the dead guard"s stocking firmly in her hand, raised to strike.
Caber tried to turn and bring the revolver to bear, but the instability of the deck combined with the unexpected a.s.sault gave him no chance. Almost with a sense of dread, Bond saw the dirk flash down - Lavender"s left hand joining her right over the hilt as she plunged it with all her strength into Caber"s throat. Even with the noise of rushing air, the buffeting and roar of engines, Caber"s gurgling rasp of terror echoed around the vast hold. The revolver fell to the deck as he scrabbled at his throat, from which the blood pumped out and down his jersey. Then Caber spun around, still clamping hands to his neck, fell, and began to roll like a piece of freight broken loose in a ship"s hold.
Bond reached the door, making a grab for the man as the aircraft once more changed its att.i.tude, the nose coming up and the engines changing pitch in a surge of power as it started to gain alt.i.tude. Bond grasped Caber, but he could not hold the heavy man, who slipped away, rolling towards the point where the deck dipped into the long-angled ramp. Lavender turned her head away, hanging on to Bond, as Caber tumbled like a stuffed effigy, trailing blood, towards the ramp, hesitating fractionally as he began to fall. He must be almost dead already, Bond thought; but the horrible gargle of blood from the dirk-slit throat turned into a bubbling scream of terror as Caber slid down the ramp - a chilling and hideous sustained note.
As he reached the far end of the ramp, the big man"s body seemed to correct itself, the gore-streaked face looking up towards Bond, arms outstretched, fingers clawing at the metal. For a second their eyes locked, and even though Caber"s already held the glaze of death, they also contained a deep, dark hatred reaching out from what would soon be his grave. Then Murik"s giant lieutenant slid over the edge, out of sight, into the air beneath the Starlifter.
"I killed him." Lavender was near to a state of shock.
"An obvious statement, Dilly darling," Bond still had to shout through the noise. "What matters to me is that you saved my life." He reached up to the big knife-switch, grasping the wooden handle and pulling it up, into the "off" position.
The hydraulic whine began again, and the ramp started to move. Then, as Bond turned, he saw Lavender looking towards the closing gap, her eyes widening and lips parted. In the s.p.a.ce still visible, a pair of Da.s.sault Super Mirages could be seen hurtling in towards the Starlifter. As they watched, Bond and Lavender saw the bright flashes at the nose of each aircraft. The Mirage jets had pa.s.sed, in a clap of air, with the crack and thunder of engines, before the Starlifter felt any effect from the short bursts of fire.
There followed a series of ma.s.sive thuds, small explosions and the rip of metal. The deck under their feet began a long wave-like dance and the Starlifter appeared to be poised, hanging in the air. Then the engines roared again, and the deck steadied.
Bond"s nose twitched at the acrid smell of smoke.
Pushing Lavender to one side, he slid open the hatchway to be met by a billow of smoke. Two or three of the small-calibre sh.e.l.ls from the Mirages had pa.s.sed through the roof, slamming into the main console, from which the flames flicked upwards, while smoke belched out in a deadly choking cloud.
Bond yelled at Lavender to keep out of the way. Already, during the tension in the rear hold, his subconscious had taken in the fact of two large fire extinguishers clipped into racks on either side of the sliding hatchway. He grabbed one of the heavy red cylinders, smashed the activating plunger against the nearest metal spar, slid back the door and pointed the jet of foam into the control room.
Coughing and spluttering from the fumes, Bond returned for the second cylinder. It took both the extinguishers at full pressure before the fire was out, leaving only eye-watering, throat-cloying fumes and smoke to eddy around the cabin.
Keeping Lavender close on the hold side of the door, Bond waited for the smoke to clear. He was now conscious of the Starlifter settling into a more natural flying pattern. Then came the heavy grind and thump as its landing gear locked into place. The one short burst of fire from the French fighters had done the trick, he thought. The international symbol for an aircraft"s surrender was the lowering of its landing gear.
Inside the control cabin, the air was less foul, leaving only a sting in the nostrils. Lavender went straight towards one of the oval windows and, sliding up the blind, reported that they seemed to be losing height. "There"re a pair of fighter aircraft on this side," she called.
Bond made for the other window. Below, the coastline was coming up, and they were in a long wide turn. On his side as well two Mirages kept station. He peered down, looking for landmarks until he saw the familiar shape of the Canigou. The fighters remained in place, lowering their undercarriages and flaps. They were making an escorted final approach to Perpignan.
Bond looked around. The bodies of the two technicians had been thrown across the cabin, but of Anton Murik there was no sign. Lavender said that, perhaps, when he came round, the Laird of Murcaldy had gone forward to give instructions to his crew. But when they landed at Perpignan and the police, together with M"s envoys, came aboard, Murik had disappeared.
In the briefing that followed, one of the Mirage pilots reported seeing a man fall from the rear ramp: undoubtedly Caber. Another thought that a crew member may have baled out, but in the general melee he could not be certain.
The jets had come in fast and to start with the Starlifter had only taken evasive action, refusing to comply with their orders. It was only as a last resort that two of the fighters had fired one short burst each. It was after this show of strength that the Starlifter had surrendered. It was also after the firing that the jet pilot thought there might have been a parachute descent into the sea, but, he maintained, it was difficult to be sure. A lot of smoke was coming from the rear of the transport for a while, and there was light, scattered cloud.
"If he did jump," one of M"s officers said, "there wouldn"t be much chance of survival in the sea."
In the aircraft back to London, Lavender voiced the view that she would never be convinced of her guardian"s death until she had actually seen his body.
It was, then, with a certain number of unanswered questions, that Bond reported to M that evening at the Regent"s Park headquarters.
22.
Warlock"s castle
"You ran it a bit too close for comfort, 007." M sat at his desk, facing Bond.
"For whose comfort, sir?" James Bond was weary after the long debriefing, which had begun almost as soon as he had arrived back in London during the late afternoon. Since then Bond had gone over the story from the very beginning a number of times, and suffered the constant interruptions and cross-questioning that were par for the course. The lengthy conversation had been taken down on tape, and Bill Tanner joined Bond and M, while one of the senior female officers looked after Lavender - and, no doubt, grilled her as well, thought Bond.
"Even then you let him get away." M sounded irritated.
"Too close for whose comfort, sir?" Bond repeated.
M waved the question to one side. "Everybody"s. What concerns me now is the whereabouts of Anton Murik, so-called Laird of Murcaldy."
The white "phone bleeped on M"s desk. Following a brief exchange, M turned to his Chief-of-Staff. "There"s a signal in from Perpignan. Bring it up, will you?"
Tanner left, returning a few seconds later. The news at least solved part of the mystery. M read it over twice before pa.s.sing it to Bond. The French authorities had now been over the Starlifter from stem to stern. Among the extra fitments aboard, they had discovered a small hold, accessible from under one of the tables in the canteen section. It was large enough to conceal one man and was kitted out with sufficient rations and other necessities for a few days. There were signs that it had been used; and the exit, through movable plates on the underside of the fuselage, had been opened.
"That settles it," M snapped, picking up his "phone. "Better get this report typed up and signed, Bond. I"ll have to alert Duggan and Ross. The fellow"s still at large."
Bond held up a hand as though appealing for M to put down the "phone. "With respect, sir, can I ask some questions? Then, maybe, make a couple of requests?"
Slowly M put down the telephone. "Ask away. I can promise nothing, but be quick about it."
"The requests will be determined by the answers to questions..."
"Get on with it then, 007. We haven"t got all night."
"Are Duggan"s and Ross"s men still prowling around Murik Castle?"
"Moved out this afternoon. They"d been over the castle and Murcaldy village with the proverbial toothcomb." M began to fiddle with his pipe.
"Did they find anything?"
"Made a number of arrests, from what I gather. A baker called MacKenzie; some of the brawnier lads in the village. Took away a number of small arms and a few automatic weapons. Gather they"ve left the Laird"s collection of antique weapons intact. All the modern stuff"s been brought back to London."
"Did they find papers? Legal doc.u.ments, mainly concerning Miss Peac.o.c.k? Possibly some convertible stocks, shares, that kind of thing? Well-hidden?"
"Haven"t a clue, 007. Hidden doc.u.ments? Melodramatic stuff, that."
"Can you find out, sir? Find out without mentioning when my report"ll be going to Sir Richard Duggan and Special Branch?"
M raised his eyebrows. "This had better be good, 007." He stabbed at the telephone. Within minutes, Bond and Bill Tanner were listening to one side of a conversation, punctuated by long pauses, between M and Sir Richard. At last M put down the "phone, shaking his head. "They took away all stray papers. But no legal doc.u.ments concerning Miss Peac.o.c.k. There were a couple of safes. Duggan says they"ll be going over the castle again in a day or so."
"And, in the meantime, it"s unguarded?"
M nodded. "Now the requests, eh, Bond?"
Bond swallowed. "Sir, can you hold my report for about forty-eight hours? Particularly the facts about the Aldan Aeros.p.a.ce Flying Club - the place we took off from en route for Perpignan."
"Why?"
"Because I don"t want Special Branch thumping around there. If Anton Murik"s escaped by hiding in the Starlifter, I believe he"ll be on his way back to that flying club now. He has a lot of contacts, and his helicopter"s there."
"Then we should have Special Branch waiting for him..."
"No, sir. There are legal doc.u.ments hidden at the castle, and - as I"ve said - probably some mad money as a backup. Anton Murik will be heading for the castle. He"ll know the time"s come to destroy the evidence of Miss Peac.o.c.k"s claim to the t.i.tle and estates of Murcaldy. I want him caught in the act, alive if possible."
"Then we should send in Duggan"s men with Special Branch."
"Sir, he should be mine." Bond"s voice was like the cutting edge of a sabre.
"You"re asking me to bend the rules, 007. That"s Duggan"s territory, and I"ve no right..." He trailed into silent thought. "What exactly were you thinking of?"
"That the Chief-of-Staff comes with me, sir. That you give us forty-eight hours" freedom, and the use of a helicopter."
"Helicopter?"
"To get us up there quickly. Oh yes, and just before we go in, I"d like some kind of overflight."
"Overflight," M came near to snouting. "Overflight? Who do you think I am, 007? President of the United States? What do you mean, overflight?"
Bond tried to look sheepish. Bill Tanner was grinning. "Well, sir, haven"t we got a couple of old Chipmunks, fitted with infra-red, and the odd Gazelle helicopter? Aren"t they under your command?"
M gave a heavy cough, as though clearing his throat.
"If the Chief-of-Staff and I went up in the helicopter, we"d need an overflight about five minutes before landing. Just to make certain the coast is clear, that Murik hasn"t arrived first."
M fiddled with his pipe.
"Just for safety, sir."
"You sure you wouldn"t like a squadron of fighter-bombers to strafe the place?"
Bond grinned. "I don"t think that"ll be necessary, sir."
There was an even longer pause before M spoke. "On one condition, Bond - providing the Chief-of-Staff agrees to this foolhardiness." He looked towards Bill Tanner, who nodded. "You do not go armed. In all conscience I cannot, at this stage, allow you to move into Duggan"s area of operations carrying arms."
"You did say the Laird"s collection of antique weapons had been left intact, sir?"
M nodded, with a sly smile. "I know nothing about any of this, James. But good luck." Then, sarcastically, he added, "Nothing else?"
"Well..." Bond looked away. "I wonder if Sir Richard"s people could be persuaded to let us have the keys to the castle for a while? P.D.Q., sir. Just so that I can recover clothes left there, or some such excuse."
M sighed, made a grumbling noise, and reached for the telephone again.
It was almost four o"clock in the morning when the Gazelle helicopter carrying James Bond and Bill Tanner reached Glen Murcaldy.
Bond had already been through the landing pattern with the young pilot. He wanted to be put down on the track near to the point where the Saab had gone into the large ditch. Most of all, he was concerned that the Gazelle should be kept well out of sight, though he had armed himself with two sets of hand-held flares - a red and a green - to call up the chopper if there was trouble.
Exactly five minutes before reaching touchdown, they heard the code word "Excelsior" through their headphones. The Chipmunk had overflown the glen and castle, giving them the all clear. There was no sign of any vehicle or other helicopter in the vicinity.
The rotor blades of the Gazelle had not stopped turning by the time Bond and Tanner were making their way through the gorse and bracken towards the grim ma.s.s of Murik Castle below. The early morning air was chill and clear, while the scents brought vivid memories back into Bond"s head - of his first sight of the castle and of its deceptive interior, of the attempted escape, Murik"s control room with its array of weapons, the East Guest Room and its luxurious decor, and the more unpleasant dankness of the twin torture chambers.
They carried no weapons, as instructed, though Bill Tanner had, rightly, managed to get hold of a pair of powerful torches. M had experienced difficulty with the keys, managing only to obtain those to the rear tradesmen"s entrance, which, Duggan told him, was the only door left for access, the rest having been left with the electronic locks on.
It took over half an hour for the pair to get as far as the Great Lawn. Bond, silently making signals, took Tanner alongside the rear of the castle, the old keep rising above them like a dark brooding warning against the skyline. If Bond was right it would be from the helicopter pad behind the keep that Anton Murik would make his final visit to his castle; Warlock"s Castle, as Bond now thought of it.
In spite of the place only having been empty for a short time, the air smelled musty and damp once they got inside the small tradesmen"s door. Again, recent memories stirred. It was only a few days ago that Bond had been led through this very door and into MacKenzie"s van, at the start of the long journey which had ended with a deadly rendezvous over the Mediterranean.
Now he had to find his way down to the Laird"s control room and collection of weapons; for Bond was certainly not going to face Anton Murik without some kind of defence. For a while they blundered around by torchlight, until Bond finally led the way down to the long weapon-adorned room in the cellars. Even Bill Tanner gasped as they swung the torches around the walls replete with swords, thrusting weapons, pistols, muskets and rifles.
"Must be worth a fortune by itself," whispered Tanner.
Bond nodded. They had, for some unaccountable reason, whispered throughout the journey down from the tradesmen"s entrance, as though Murik and his henchmen might come upon them unawares at any moment. Outside dawn would just be breaking, streaking the sky. If Murik was going to make his dash for freedom he would either arrive soon, or they would still be waiting for him to come under the cover of nightfall. Bond was running his torch over the weapons when Tanner suddenly clutched at his arm. They stood, motionless, ears straining for a moment, then relaxed.
"Nothing," said Tanner. Then, just as suddenly, he silenced Bond once more.
This time they could both hear the noise: from a long way off, up through the brick, stone and earth, the faint buzz of an engine.