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.So that R Section could get the credit for turning the information over to the National Security Council.Everything, the Old Man said, had turned out well.Until two A.M.Monday morning, when the housekeeper of Blake House, phoning Hanley from the air terminal in London, explained that Devereaux had come, closed the house, burned all the secret documents, turned her out, and… turned out poor Mr.Green.He killed him? Hanley asked.No, the housekeeper said.He had merely chased Green away.And closed Blake House.It was nearly six before Hanley and the Old Man met again, this time in the latter’s office on the sixth floor of the Department of Agriculture building.“Bad news, Hanley,” the Old Man said.He was sipping coffee at his uncluttered desk.His face seemed more drawn in the cold fluorescent light.Beyond the window, the rest of Washington was sleeping in the pre-dawn darkness.“It is, sir,” said Hanley.He sat down in the designated chair.“We’ve been signaled, as you know.By the housekeeper.And now Devereaux and Green have flown.In addition, there was an attempt to eliminate this Elizabeth Campbell person by the competition.And she has flown as well.The three of them are out there.And, given the timing, I suspect that Devereaux now understands the deal we’ve entered into with the Langley firm.”“He understood your instructions,” frowned the Chief.“Yes.I’m afraid there’s no doubt about that.He—well, he did seem upset in his telephone report yesterday that we hadn’t moved to safeguard the woman.”“This Campbell person.”“Yes.”“Is this usual? I mean, this disobedience.I wasn’t really aware of it,” said Galloway.“No, sir.Not usual at all.He hasn’t made contact since last night.”The old man danced his fingers on the empty desk top.“What will Devereaux do?”“I don’t know.”“Will he contact the competition?”“No, sir.I’m sure not.I—”“Why not, Hanley? He’s disobeyed your instructions.He’s jeopardized the mission.He’s let a mole escape.”“There may be some plan, sir.I told you, he wasn’t satisfied with the information he had about this Lord Slough—”The Old Man banged his fist down on the desk.The noise was so unexpected that Hanley flinched involuntarily “The hell with Lord Slough.You sent Devereaux to get information.He got it.It was up to us to decide—”Hanley felt very brave in speaking up.“Sir, I did tell him that we intended to open an information bridge to British Intelligence—”“I don’t care, his mission is information, not policy.So you think Devereaux is extemporizing and developing his own scenario.Well, Hanley, I don’t like that.”“Neither do I.”“Goddammit.Devereaux stumbles on this Operation Mirror thing and for the first time in years, we’ve got the Langley firm boxed in.We can work out an accommodation with them.To hell with British Intelligence—bunch of Limey bastards.”“Sir.I think that if Devereaux has freed Green or stashed him or whatever, he intends to use him.”The angry moment had passed.The Old Man sat calmly again, sipping his black coffee.“For what?”“I don’t know.I suspect he doesn’t trust us.”“Why not?”Hanley knew why; he understood that much about Devereaux.“He promised this Campbell woman safety; we permitted her to be the target of another assassination attempt.That’s one.Second, he realizes we have reached an accommodation with Langley because Operation Mirror is suddenly quashed.That must be the reason he didn’t eliminate Green.Someone from the CIA warned Green that Mirror was blown and Green told Devereaux.So he knows that we’re… well, letting the CIA off the hook.”“And that’s none of his business.”“No, sir,” said Hanley doggedly.“He might think it is.Devereaux was a target of them, you know.And there’s something else.He’s sort of…”It was not usual for Hanley to fumble for words.The Old Man waited without prompting.When Hanley looked up, he seemed embarrassed.“Devereaux came in after… after Kennedy.After he was killed.”The Old Man knew that.He waited.“Well, sir.It’s difficult to say.He had some ideals then, though a lot’s gone by the board.But he understood why the Section was formed.As a check on the Langley firm.As an honest source of information, a fulcrum to move the other agencies to deal… sir, this sounds so foolish… but he really sees it all—”“Don’t tell me he has ideals.”“No, sir.I think he did once, but not now, sir.But he wouldn’t sell out, ever.And that means to the CIA.”There was silence.“Do you think we sold out, Hanley?” the old man asked.“No, sir.”“Do you think that’s any concern of a field agent?”“No, sir.”“Devereaux has become a dangerous man,” the Old Man said at last.“Send a chaser.”“But we don’t know where he is.…”“Send Lupowitz from Brussels and Bardinella from Berlin and Krepps from Barcelona.I want three top chasers in London before noon.I want them to find Devereaux, Green, and this Campbell woman.I want them eliminated.And I want you to contact Henderson at the Langley office and set their men on it.”“Sir—”“For whatever reasons, Devereaux has disobeyed his instructions.He may even be a danger not only to us but to the country.”Hanley spoke up again.He was surprised by the vehemence in his voice.“Devereaux would not betray us.”Galloway looked at him mildly.“Unless he thought we had betrayed him.”23LONDONDevereaux had been careful in closing Blake House.He had made sure Green and the housekeeper were gone before he began.He started, of course, with the scrambler box.He carefully removed the cover and took out the hidden tape transmitter.A micro-tape spool was on it.Green had shown him the other micro-tapes, secreted in the closet of his bedroom behind a movable partition.Devereaux burned the code books in the fireplace in the library.The ordinary papers were burned as well.Finally, Devereaux dismantled the scrambler box and destroyed it, ripping apart transistor boards and wiring.He had closed down safe houses before.There had been one in Hué which he had closed down during the Tet offensive; that had been difficult.And there was the safe house in Saigon, at the end.He knew what to do, how not to leave a trace; so he worked carefully and let his mind think of other things, the way a jogger does not think of running as he runs.Devereaux was surprised by the first traces of morning scattering gray light across the face of winter London.The light came so gradually that when he noticed it, the houses across the street were clearly visible.Time to leave.Still he had not solved the problem of Elizabeth or Green.Or himself.By now, the housekeeper would have reported to Hanley, probably from the air terminal.Devereaux had disobeyed instructions; Devereaux had let a mole escape with his life; Devereaux was a danger to the Section because he was playing a separate game.He knew what they would say.Where was Elizabeth?He decided he could not find her; logically, the world was large and time was short
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