The Golden Gate (28 page)

'But I digress. He defected because he feared for his life. He defected because Branson had suggested to him that he and Van Effen share the ransom money equally. The rest could go to hell and, presumably, prison. Apart from the fact that Van Effen does appear to be possessed of a belief in honesty between thieves, he was only too well aware that if he went along with this the next back to feel the blade of a knife - literally - would be his own. Van Effen feels strongly that his ex-comrades should be made aware of what lies in store for them. He has, he tells me, already persuaded four of Branson's men to defect along with him and we expect them shortly. When they arrive we shall show them on the screen. If you can at all, I suggest you don't stray too far from your television sets.'
O'Hare said: 'Jesus! Talk about sowing seeds of dissension. How's Branson going to cope with this, recover from this? Brilliant. As the Veep says, who's going to trust him now among his own men. This your idea, Revson?'
'I wish it were. But even I am not as crafty, evil and devious as that. The unmistakable hand of Hagenbach.'
'I never thought that Van Effen -'
'Whatever you're about to say, he didn't. Hagenbach made sure that there were no close-ups of Van Effen. Had there been, even a layman would have seen that Van Effen was doped to the eyes."
'Doped? If he defected-'
'An involuntary defection. I gassed him and lowered him down to an - ah - passing submarine.'
'Of course. What else? An - ah - passing submarine.' O'Hare favoured him with the look of a psychiatrist who finds himself with an intractable case on his hands.
'Dear, dear. You don't believe me.'
'But of course, old boy.'
'You're under stress again,' Revson said kindly. Talking English English.' He parted the base of his camera. 'How do you think I got hold of a brand-new radio transceiver in the middle of the night?'
O'Hare stared at him. He said with an effort: 'And the four other promised defectors. Submariners all?'
'Hell, no. Forcible abduction, all within the past half hour.' O'Hare got back to his staring.
In the Mount Tamalpais radar station, Parker, until lately Giscard's number two, looked away from the TV set and at the four men gathered around him. He said: 'Sold down the river.'
From the silence that met this observation, it was clear that the others agreed with him. But it could hardly have been called an agreeable silence.
Richards was trying hard to show that he was not actively enjoying himself. He said into his microphone: 'I can see that the fog is going to pass over the bridge so you won't be able to see me in a couple of minutes. Don't suppose it will last long, though. When it clears, we'll show you your four other faithful henchmen who have defected from you. I will leave you with one last observation. Your money's guaranteed, but watch how you go: I understand it takes exactly six minutes to block the major runways at Havana Airport.'
Branson, his face quite without expression, rose and walked to the rear coach, Giscard following. It was noticeable that his own men either looked at him with puzzlement or thought-fulness or just averted their eyes. After entering the coach, Giscard went to the back and returned with scotch and two glasses. He poured two large drinks and said: 'I'm against drinking in the morning, too.'
Branson, most uncharacteristically, drained half his glass in one gulp. He said: "How does your back feel, Giscard?'
'With eleven years working for you and a seven figure bank balance, my back feels okay. I suggest we cut the comedy, Mr Branson. This could be damned serious. With the exception of Van Effen, Yonnie and myself, none of your men has known you for even as long as a year. I forgot Chrysler. But the rest-did you watch their faces as we came here?'
Branson shook his head slowly. They just didn't know what to think. Blame them?'
'No. Blame Van Effen?'
'If I believed the sun wasn't going to set tonight, I'd believe he defected. He didn't. Notice that the camera showed no close-up, and that be wasn't invited to speak?' He broke off as Chrysler appeared at the doorway.
Branson said: 'It's all right. Come in. You look unhappy.'
'1 am unhappy. I heard what Giscard just said. They let Van Effen stay in the background because he was drugged. I'll bet he told them his life story without realizing one word of what he was saying. Van Effen defect? Never. And there's another thing I'm unhappy about. Bartlett and Boyard should have been back by this time. They haven't even appeared at the south tower. What's more, they're not going to. I know who the next four so-called defectors are going to be.'
Branson said: 'Drugs. No defection. Coercion. We're all agreed on that. But - how did Van Effen leave the bridge?'
Giscard said: 'God knows. I wasn't here. Could it have been during one of the two black-outs you had that night?'
Branson said: 'He was with me on both occasions. Any ideas, Chrysler?'
'None. It's as I said, Mr Branson. There's a rotten apple in the barrel somewhere.' He looked out moodily at the fog drifting over the bridge. 'It's getting so that I don't like this bridge much any more.'
Carmody removed the last of the detonators from the second strap of explosives and gingerly rejoined Rogers on the top of the south tower. He picked up the walkie-talkie. 'General Carter please.' There was a few seconds' delay then Carter came through. Carmody said: 'We've got them, sir. Shall Rogers and I take a stroll across to the other side? Branson, I believe, has promised another show at eleven. It'll be the west cable, this time, and we quite like our job of being a reception committee.'
'It's a sensible precaution although I somehow don't think that Branson is going to risk any more of his men in the south tower.'
'Ah! Our four friends made it to terra firma, sir?'
'With me now. Pity you haven't a TV up there, you and Rogers. Some splendid shows on today.'
There'll be repeats. We must leave, sir. Fog's thinning quickly down below.'
The fog, in fact, moved into the bay in less than five minutes leaving the bridge brilliant in the bright sunshine. Branson, pacing up and down a short section of the bridge, stopped as Chrysler approached.
'Hagenbach on the phone. Mr Branson. He says to switch on the television in two minutes' time.'
Branson nodded. 'We all know what this is going to be.'
This time Hagenbach was the master of ceremonies. He hadn't prepared his lines as well as the Vice-President but he made his point with considerable impact.
'It does look as if Branson's criminal empire, if not at least crumbling, is showing signs of coming apart at the seams. The Vice-President promised you that more defectors would appear. That Van Effen had talked four more into deserting the sinking ship. Well, they have just so done as you can see for yourselves.'
Another camera picked up a table with four men sitting around it, each with a glass in his hand. A bottle stood on the middle of the table. They could hardly be described as a gay and happy group but then they had no reason to be.
Hagenbach moved into camera range. There they are then, ladies and gentlemen. Left to right, Messrs Reston, Harrison, Bartlett and Boyard. Incidentally, one of Branson's top men is in hospital with a fractured skull. One does wonder what will happen next Thank you for your kind attention.'
The cameras had just stopped turning when a policeman came running up to Hagenbach. Telephone for you, sir. It's Mount Tamalpais.'
Ten seconds later Hagenbach was inside the communications wagon, listening intently. He replaced the receiver and looked at Hendrix, Newson and Carter. 'How long would it take to provide two helicopters, one with a TV camera and crew, the other with armed police?'
Carter said: Ten minutes. Twelve at the most.'
Giscard said bitterly. 'Attrition, attrition, attrition. Pin-pricks and more pin-pricks. A steady undermining of confidence in those of us who are left. And not a thing in the world you can do about it, nothing to justify any violent retaliatory action against the hostages. They're just using the TV to play you at your own game. Mr Branson.' 'Yes, they are.' Branson didn't seem unduly disturbed: what he'd seen had come neither as shock nor surprise to him. 'One has to admit that they're quite good at it.' He looked at Giscard and Chrysler. 'Well, gentlemen, I've made up my mind. Your thoughts?'
Giscard and Chrysler looked briefly at each other. It was not in character with Branson that he should ask anyone's opinion.
'We've got our hostages trapped here,' Chrysler said. 'Now I'm the one who's beginning to feel trapped on this damned bridge. We've no freedom of movement.'
Giscard said: 'But we would have in the Presidential Boeing. And it has the finest communications system in the world.'
'So we make orderly preparations for, if need be, an emergency take-off. I am in agreement They shall pay for this. Just to show them I mean what I say, I'm still going to bring down their damned bridge. Now, I hardly think it would be wise to wrap the remaining two explosive devices round the west cable at the top of the north tower.'
'Not,' Giscard said, 'unless you want to have another couple of involuntary defectors.'
'So we wrap them round the cable just where we are here. At the lowest point, between the two helicopters. That should do satisfactorily enough, I think.'
Some half hour later, shortly after the last two of the explosive straps had been secured to the west cable, Chrysler came up to Branson. 'Hagenbach. He says there'll be an interesting programme coming on in just two minutes. Five minutes after the programme he's going to call you. He says two very important messages are coming through from the east.'
'I wonder what that conniving old devil is up to now?' Branson went and took his accustomed viewing place. Automatically, the seats beside and behind him filled up. The screen came to life.
It portrayed something that looked like an enormous white golf ball - one of the Mount Tamalpais radar scanners. Then the camera zoomed in on a group of about ten men, policemen hi then' shirt sleeves, all armed with submachine-guns. Slightly in front of them stood Hendrix, a microphone in his hand. The camera followed as Hendrix moved forwards towards an opening door. Five men emerged, all with their hands high. The leading man of the five stopped when he was within three feet of Hendrix.
Hendrix said: 'You're Parker?'
'Yes.'
'I'm Hendrix. Chief of Police, San Francisco. Do you men surrender voluntarily?'
'Yes.'
'Why?'
'Better than being hunted and gunned down by you-or stabbed in the back by that bastard Branson.'
'You're under arrest Get into the van.' Hendrix watched them go then spoke again into the microphone. 'When it comes to making speeches, I'm afraid I'm not in the same league as the Vice-President or Mr Hagenbach, so I won't even try. All I can say, with due modesty on the part of all of us, is that ten defectors is not a bad morning's bag. And the morning is not over yet Incidentally, there will be no more broadcasts from us for at least an hour.'
Revson stood up and glanced round casually. In the space of only two seconds he caught the eye of both General Cartland and Grafton. Slowly, casually, the newsmen and the hostages began to drift off to their separate coaches, the former presumably to write up their dispatches or refill cameras, the later, almost certainly, in the pursuit of refreshments - the President looked particularly thirsty. Besides, the comfort of an air-conditioned coach was vastly to be preferred to the already uncomfortable heat out on the bridge.
Giscard said in anger: The fool, the fool, the bloody fool! Why did he have to let himself be duped so easily?'
There was just a trace of weary acceptance in Branson's voice. 'Because he had no Giscard there beside him, that's why.'
'He could have phoned you. He could have phoned me.'
'What might have been. No older phrase in any language. I don't really blame him.'
Chrysler said: 'Has it occurred to you, Mr Branson, that when you've received your ransom money and returned the hostages, they might want most if not all of it back if you want their prisoners freed? They're no fools and they know damned well that you wouldn't let your men down.'
There'll be no deal. I admit it's going to make things a bit more tricky, but there'll be no deal. Well, I suppose I'd better go and see what friend Hagenbach wants.' Branson rose and walked towards the rear coach, his head bent in thought
Mack, the guard, waited until the last of his illustrious hostages had entered the Presidential coach, locked the door and pocketed the key. His machine-pistol was dangling from one hand. He turned round to see Cartland's little pistol not three feet from him.
Cartland said: 'Don't try anything, I beg you. Try to lift and fire that gun and it is the last thing you ever do.' Cart-land's calm impersonal voice carried immense conviction. 'Gentlemen, I ask you to bear witness to -'
That funny little pop-gun?' Mack was openly contemptuous. 'You couldn't even hurt me with that thing, but I'd still cut you to pieces.'
'Bear witness to the fact that I warned this man that this "pop-gun" is loaded with cyanide-tipped bullets. Just has to break the skin and you won't even feel it. You'll be a dead man before you hit the floor.'
'In my country,' the King observed, 'he'd already be dead.'
With the possible exception of Yonnie, none of Branson's men was a fool. Mack was no fool. He handed over his gun. Cartland marched him to the rear of the coach, pushed him into the washroom, extracted the inside key and locked the door from the outside.
The President said: 'Well?'
Cartland said: There's going to be some rather/violent unpleasantness outside in a minute or two. I don't want to risk any of you at this late date. I want this door kept sealed and locked because our friends ashore are going to use a special and very lethal bomb which sucks oxygen from the atmosphere and leaves you very dead. Thirdly, Branson is going to come around very quickly with the intention of shooting up one or two of you if the nastiness doesn't stop. But if the door's locked and he can't get in he can fire ail day at this bullet-proof glass and make no impression. Fourthly, although we now have two guns, we're not going to use them when we do leave here as we must eventually. I don't want a gun-fight at the OK corral. We'll be loaded into a helicopter but the helicopter isn't going any place.'
The President said: 'Where did you get all this information from"''
'A well-informed source. Fellow who gave me this gun.
'Revson. How does he tie in? Don't know the chap.' 'You will. He's stated as Hagenbach's successor in the FBI.' The President was plaintive. 'It's like I always say: no one ever tells me anything.'