A Matter of Honor

“I’ll bring it to you by nine-thirty on the dot, sir. You can be sure of that. But for God’s sake, have yours ready to exchange.”

“I will,” said Adam, “as well as all your documents, Colonel.”

Adam lifted the colonel slowly off the ground and then shoved him toward the landing. He switched on the hall light and then pushed the colonel on down the stairs until they reached the front door.

“The keys,” said Adam.

“But you’ve already got my keys, Captain Scott, sir.”

“The car keys, you fool.”

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p; “But it’s a hire car, sir,” said the colonel.

“And I’m about to hire it,” said Adam.

“But how will I get myself back to London in time, sir?”

“I have no idea, Colonel, but you still have the rest of the night to come up with something. You could even walk it by then. The keys,” Adam repeated, jerking the colonel’s arm to shoulder-blade level.

“In my left-hand pocket,” said the colonel, almost an octave higher.

Adam put his hand into the colonel’s new jacket and pulled out the car keys.

He opened the front door, shoved the colonel on to the path, then escorted him to the pavement.

“You will go and stand on the far side of the road,” said Adam, “and you will not return to the house until I have reached the end of the road. Do I make myself clear, Colonel?”

“Abundantly clear, Captain Scott, sir.”

“Good,” said Adam releasing him for the first time, “and just one more thing, Colonel. In case you think of double-crossing me, I have already instructed the Foreign Office to place Romanov under surveillance and put two extra lookouts near the Soviet embassy with instructions to report the moment anyone suspicious turns up or leaves before nine tomorrow morning.” Adam hoped he sounded convincing.

“Thought of everything, haven’t you, sir?” said the colonel mournfully.

“Yes, I think so,” said Adam. “I even found time to disconnect your phone while I was waiting for you to return.” Adam pushed the colonel across the road before getting into the hire car. He wound the window down. “See you at nine-thirty tomorrow morning, Colonel. Prompt,” he added, as he put the Ford into first gear.

The colonel stood shivering on the far pavement, nursing his right shoulder, as Adam drove to the end of the road. He was still standing there when Adam took a left turn back toward the center of London.

For the first time since Heidi’s death, Adam felt it was Romanov who was on the run.

“What a great honor for our little establishment,” said Herr Bischoff, delighted to see the most important banker in the East sitting in his boardroom sharing afternoon tea.

“Not at all, my dear Bischoff,” said Poskonov. “After all these years the honor is entirely mine. But now to business. Did you manage to get Romanov to sign the release form?”

“Oh, yes,” said Bischoff, matter-of-factly, “he did it without even reading the standard clauses, let alone the extra three you asked us to put in.”

“So his inheritance automatically returns to the Russian people?”

“That is so, Mr. Poskonov, and we in return …”

“ … Will represent us in all the currency exchange transactions we carry out in the West.”

“Thank you,” said Herr Bischoff. “And we shall be delighted to assist you in your slightest requirement, but what happens when Romanov returns to the bank and demands to know what has become of his inheritance?” asked Herr Bischoff anxiously.

“I don’t think that problem will arise,” the Russian banker promised. “Now, I would like to see what is in those boxes.”

“Yes, of course,” said Herr Bischoff. “Will you please accompany me?”