if.thunderball-第7章

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nd　dropped　the　sham　voice。　He　added　sharply；　〃And　if　you　catch　fire　you　can　sue。〃
　
　The　dripping　head　tried　to　turn；　failed。　Bond　moved　toward　the　door。　Count　Lippe　now　had　a　new　voice；　controlled　but　desperate。　He　said　woodenly；　concealing　the　knowledge　and　the　hate；　〃Give　you　a　thousand　pounds　and　we're　quits。〃　He　heard　the　hiss　of　the　open　door。　〃Ten　thousand。　All　right　then；　fifty。〃
　
　Bond　closed　the　door　firmly　behind　him　and　walked　quickly　down　the　corridor　to　put　on　his　clothes　and　get　out。　Behind　him；　deeply　muffled；　came　the　first　shout　for　help。　Bond　closed　his　ears。　There　was　nothing　that　a　painful　week　in　hospital　and　plenty　of　gentian　violet　or　tannic　acid　jelly　wouldn't　cure。　But　it　did　cross　his　mind　that　a　man　who　could　offer　a　bribe　of　fifty　thousand　pounds　must　be　either　very　rich　or　have　some　very　urgent　reason　for　needing　freedom　of　movement。　It　was　surely　too　much　to　pay　just　for　avoidance　of　pain。
　
　***
　
　James　Bond　was　right。　The　oute　of　this　rather　childish　trial　of　strength　between　two　extremely　tough　and　ruthless　men；　in　the　bizarre　surroundings　of　a　nature　clinic　in　Sussex；　was　to　upset；　if　only　in　a　minute　fashion；　the　exactly　timed　machinery　of　a　plot　that　was　about　to　shake　the　governments　of　the　Western　world。
　
　5。　S。P。E。C。T。R。E。
　
　The　Boulevard　Haussmann；　in　the　VIIIth　and　IXth　Arrondissements；　stretches　from　the　Rue　du　Faubourg　St。　Honoré　to　the　Opéra。　It　is　very　long　and　very　dull；　but　it　is　perhaps　the　solidest　street　in　the　whole　of　Paris。　Not　the　richest…the　Avenue　d'Iéna　has　that　distinction　…but　rich　people　are　not　necessarily　solid　people　and　too　many　of　the　landlords　and　tenants　in　the　Avenue　d'Iéena　have　names　ending　in　〃escu；〃　〃ovitch；〃　〃ski；〃　and　〃stein；〃　and　these　are　sometimes　not　the　endings　of　respectable　names。　Moreover；　the　Avenue　d'Iéna　is　almost　entirely　residential。　The　occasional　discreet　brass　plates　giving　the　name　of　a　holding　pany　in　Liechtenstein　or　in　the　Bahamas　or　the　Canton　de　Vaud　in　Switzerland　are　there　for　tax　purposes　only…the　cover　names　for　private　family　fortunes　seeking　alleviation　from　the　punitive　burden　of　the　Revenue；　or；　more　briefly；　tax…dodging。　The　Boulevard　Haussmann　is　not　like　that。　The　massive；　turn…of…the…century；　bastard　Second　Empire　buildings　in　heavily　ornamented　brick　and　stucco　are　the　〃sieges；〃　the　seats；　of　important　businesses。　Here　are　the　head　offices　of　the　gros　industriels　from　Lille；　Lyons；　Bordeaux；　Clermont　Ferrand；　the　locaux　of　the　gros　légumes　；　the　〃big　vegetables〃　in　cotton；　artificial　silk；　coal；　wine；　steel；　and　shipping。　If；　among　them；　there　are　some　fly…by…nights　concealing　a　lack　of　serious　capital…　des　fonds　sérieux　…behind　a　good　address；　it　would　only　be　fair　to　admit　that　such　men　of　paper　exist　also　behind　the　even　solider　frontages　of　Lombard　and　Wall　Streets。
　
　It　is　appropriate　that　among　this　extremely　respectable　pany　of　tenants；　suitably　diversified　by　a　couple　of　churches；　a　small　museum　and　the　French　Shakespeare　Society；　you　should　also　find　the　headquarters　of　charitable　organizations。　At　No。　136　bis　；　for　instance；　a　discreetly　glittering　brass　plate　says：　〃F。I。R。C。O。〃　and；　underneath：　〃　Fraternité　Internationale　de　la　Résistance　Contre　l'Oppression　。〃　If　you　were　interested　in　this　organization；　either　as　an　idealist　or　because　you　were　a　salesman　of；　say；　office　furniture；　and　you　pressed　the　very　clean　porcelain　bell　button；　the　door　would　in　due　course　be　opened　by　an　entirely　typical　French　concierge。　If　your　business　was　serious　or　obviously　well…meaning；　the　concierge　would　show　you　across　a　rather　dusty　hall　to　tall；　bogus　Directoire　double　doors　adjoining　the　over…ornamented　cage　of　a　shaky…looking　lift。　Inside　the　doors　you　would　be　greeted　by　exactly　what　you　had　expected　to　see…a　large　dingy　room　needing　a　fresh　coat　of　its　café…au…lait　paint；　in　which　half　a　dozen　men　sat　at　cheap　desks　and　typed　or　wrote　amidst　the　usual　accouterments　of　a　busy　organization…IN　and　OUT　baskets；　telephones；　in　this　case　the　old…fashioned　standard　ones　that　are　typical　of　such　an　office　in　this　part　of　Paris；　and　dark　green　metal　filing　cabinets　in　which　drawers　stand　open。　If　you　were　observant　of　small　details；　you　might　register　that　all　the　men　were　of　approximately　the　same　age　group；　between　thirty　and　forty；　and　that　in　an　office　where　you　would　have　expected　to　find　women　doing　the　secretarial　work；　there　were　none。
　
　Inside　the　tall　door　you　would　receive　the　slightly　defensive　wele　appropriate　to　a　busy　organization　accustomed　to　the　usual　proportion　of　cranks　and　time…wasters　but；　in　response　to　your　serious　inquiry；　the　face　of　the　man　at　the　desk　near　the　door　would　clear　and　bee　cautiously　helpful。　The　aims　of　the　Fraternity？　We　exist；　monsieur；　to　keep　alive　the　ideals　that　flourished　during　the　last　war　among　members　of　all　Resistance　groups。　No；　monsieur；　we　are　entirely　unpolitical。　Our　funds？　They　e　from　modest　subscriptions　from　our　members　and　from　certain　private　persons　who　share　our　aims。　You　have　perhaps　a　relative；　a　member　of　a　Resistance　group；　whose　whereabouts　you　seek？　Certainly；　monsieur。　The　name？　Gregor　Karlski；　last　heard　of　with　Mihailovitch　in　the　summer　of　1943。　Jules！　（He　might　turn　to　a　particular　man　and　call　out。）　Karlski；　Gregor。　Mihailovitch；　1943。　Jules　would　go　to　a　cabinet　and　there　would　be　a　brief　pause。　Then　the　reply　might　e　back；　Dead。　Killed　in　the　bombing　of　the　General's　headquarters；　October　21st；　1943。　I　regret；　monsieur。　Is　there　anything　further　we　can　do　for　you？　Then　perhaps　you　would　care　to　have　some　of　our　literature。　Forgive　me　for　not　having　time　to　spare　to　give　you　more　details　of　FIRCO　myself。　But　you　will　find　everything　there。　This　happens　to　be　a　particularly　busy　day。　This　is　the　International　Refugee　Year　and　we　have　many　inquiries　such　as　yours　from　all　over　the　world。　Good　afternoon；　monsieur。　Pas　de　quoi　。　So；　or　more　or　less　so；　it　would　be　and　you　would　go　out　on　to　the　Boulevard　satisfied　and　even　impressed　with　an　organization　that　was　doing　its　excellent　if　rather　vague　work　with　so　much　dedication　and　efficiency。
　
　On　the　day　after　James　Bond　had　pleted　his　nature　cure　and　had　left　for　London　after；　the　night　before；　scoring　a　most　satisfactory　left　and　right　of　Spaghetti　Bolognese　and　Chianti　at　Lucien's　in　Brighton　and　of　Miss　Patricia　Fearing　on　the　squab　seats　from　her　bubble　car　high　up　on　the　Downs；　an　emergency　meeting　of　the　trustees　of　FIRCO　was　called　for　seven　o'clock　in　the　evening。　The　men；　for　they　were　all　men；　came　from　all　over　Europe；　by　train　or　car　or　airplane；　and　they　entered　No。　136　bis　singly　or　in　pairs；　some　by　the　front　door　and　some　by　the　back；　at　intervals　during　the　late　afternoon　and　evening。　Each　man　had　his　allotted　time　for　arriving　at　these　meetings…so　many　minutes；　up　to　two　hours；　before　zero　hour…and　each　man　alternated　between　the　back　and　the　front　door　from　meeting　to　meeting。　Now　there　were　two　〃concierges〃　for　each　door　and　other　less　obvious　security　measures…warning　systems；　closed…circuit　television　scanning　of　the　two　entrances；　and　plete　sets　of　dummy　FIRCO　minutes；　backed　up　one　hundred　per　cent　by　the　current　business　of　the　FIRCO　organization　on　the　ground　floor。　Thus；　if　necessary；　the　deliberations　of　the　〃trustees〃　could；　in　a　matter　only　of　seconds；　be　switched　from　clandestine　to　overt…as　solidly　overt　as　any　meeting　of　principals　in　the　Boulevard　Haussmann　could　possibly　be。
　
　At　seven　o'clock　precisely　the　twenty　men　who　made　up　this　organization　strode；　lounged；　or　sidled；　each　according　to　his　character；　into　the　workmanlike　board　room　on　the　third　floor。　Their　chairman　was　already　in　his　seat。　No　greetings　were　exchanged。　They　were　ruled　by　the　chairman　to　be　a　waste　of　breath　and；　in　an　organization　of　this　nature；　hypocritical。　The　men　filed　round　the　table　and　took　their　places　at　their　numbers；　the　numbers　from　one　to　twenty…one　that　were　their　only　names　and　that；　as　a　small　security　precaution；　advanced　round　the　rota　by　two　digits　at　midnight　on　the　first　of　every　month。　Nobody　smoked…drinking　was　taboo　and　smoking　frowned　upon…　and　nobody　bothered　to　glance　down　at　the　bogus　FIRCO　agenda　on　the　table　in　front　of　him。　They　sat　very　still　and　looked　up　the　table　at　the　chairman　with　expressions　of　the　sharpest　interest　and　what；　in　lesser　men；　would　have　been　obsequious　respect。
　
　Any　man　seeing　No。　2；　for　that　was　the　chairman's　number　of　the　month；　even　for　the　first　time　would　have　looked　at　him　with　some　degree　of　the　same　feelings；　for　he　was　one　of　those　men…one　meets　perhaps　only　two　or　three　in　a　lifetime…who　seem　almost　to　suck　the　eyes　out　of　your　head。　These　rare　men　are　apt　to　possess　three　basic　attributes…their　physical　appearance　is　extraordinary；　they　have　a　quality　of　relaxation；　of　inner　certainty；　and　they　exude　a　powerful　animal　magnetism。　The　herd　has　always　recognized　the　other…worldliness　of　these　phenomena；　and　in　primitive　tribes　you　will　find　that　any　man　singled　out　by　nature　in　this　fashion　will　also　have　been　chosen　by　the　tribe　to　be　their　chief。　Certain　great　men　of　history；　perhaps　Genghis　Khan；　Alexander　the　Great；　Napoleon；　among　the　politicians；　have　had　these　qualities。　Perhaps　they　even　explain　the　hypnotic　sway　of　an　altogether　more　meager　individual；　the　otherwise　inexplicable　Adolf　Hitler；　over　eighty　million　of　the　most　gifted　nation　in　Europe。　Certainly；　No。　2　had　these　qualities　and　any　man　in　the　street　would　have　recognized　them…let　alone　these　twenty　chosen　men。　For　them；　despite　the　deep　cynicism　ingrained　in　their　respective　callings；　despite　their　basic　insensitivity　toward　the　human　race；　he　was；　however　reluctantly；　their　Supreme　mander…almost　their　god。
　
　This　man's　name　was　Ernst　Stavro　Blofeld　and　he　was　born　in　Gdynia　of　a　Polish　father　and　a　Greek　mother　on　May　28th；　1908。　After　matriculating　in　economics　and　political　history　at　the　University　of　Warsaw　he　studied　engineering　and　radionics　at　the　Warsaw　Technical　Institute　and　at　the　age　of　twenty…five　obtained　a　modest　post　in　the　central　administration　of　the　Ministry　of　Posts　and　Telegraphs。　This　would　seem　a　curious　choice　for　such　a　highly　gifted　youth；　but　Blofeld　had　e　to　an　interesting　conclusion　about　the　future　of　the　World。　He　had　decided　that　fast　and　accurate　munication　lay；　in　a　contracting　world；　at　the　very　heart　of　power。　Knowledge　of　the　truth　before　the　next　man；　in　peace　or　war；　lay；　he　thought；　behind　every　correct　decision　in　history　and　was　the　source　of　all　great　reputations。　He　was　doing　very　well　on　this　theory；　watching　the　cables　and　radiograms　that　passed　through　his　hands　at　the　Central　Post　Office　and　buying　or　selling　on　margin　on　the　Warsaw　Bourse…only　occasionally；　when　he　was　absolutely　certain；　but　then　very　big…when　the　basic　nature　of　the　postal　traffic　changed。　Now　Poland　was　mobilizing　for　war　and　a　spate　of　munition　orders　and　diplomatic　cables　poured　through　his　department。　Blofeld　changed　his　tactics。　This　was　valuable　stuff；　worth　nothing　to　him；　but　priceless　to　the　enemy。　Clumsily　at　first；　and　then　more　expertly；　he　contrived　to　take　copies　of　cables；　choosing；　for　the　ciphers　hid　their　contents　from　him；　only　those　prefixed　〃MOST　IMMEDIATE〃　or　〃MOST　SECRET。