The Old Enemy by Henry Porter (read with me .TXT) 📕

Samson reversed out and moved off without hurry. ‘What the hell were you doing in there, Cuth? You made yourself pretty comfortable.’

‘She was there when we got back so there was no escaping.’

‘Did you get anything?’

‘They’ve got politicians flying in for a big do on Saturday. And they’ve got someone coming today. She announced that before she saw me. There seemed to be something up, if you know what I mean. All hands on deck, and so forth. And she’s in Washington the first half of next week.’ He winked. ‘That’s what we call intelligence work, Samson.’

‘Anything else?’

‘Terrible breath. Smells like roadkill,’ he said, wiping his face with a folded red-spotted handkerchief. He glanced at Samson. ‘She’s a real bad’un. Wicked beyond words. We’ve got to fix those two,’ he concluded with a fierce look.

‘We certainly do,’ said Samson quietly.

Chapter 33

Angel

Anastasia sat with Denis for most of the day and the evening. She talked to him, but stopped when she ran out of things to say or felt she might be boring him. What could be worse than having to listen to someone when you wanted to sleep or be with your own thoughts and being able to do nothing to stop them talking? She held his hand and stroked his forehead and spoke about the solar-powered calculator, showing it to him in the hope of a response. When the nurse came in – a less frequent event now, which she read as resignation on the part of the medical staff – she slipped the calculator into the inside pocket of a light jacket she wore in the particular chill of the air conditioning in the room.

When the police guard shift changed in the afternoon she noticed that had been reduced too. Now there was just one uniformed officer by the elevator and he was playing a game on his phone whenever she passed. She went to the canteen twice for coffee and to keep in touch with Naji, and Samson, who was on his way back from Pennsylvania with news. But there was no word from Jim Tulliver. He had indicated that everything was okay in the morning but hadn’t been in touch since. That worried her.

At seven the doctor appeared, but he said little. She again asked what could be done. He looked blank. The scan had shown no abnormalities whatsoever. For the moment they had no option but to make sure Denis was comfortable and wait for signs that he was emerging from the trance. He asked her if he slept. No, he hardly ever closed his eyes.

She did, though. When the doctor had gone she napped for half an hour. She was woken by a nurse with the news that Mr Angel from New York was waiting to see her. She went out and found Angel in the hallway with a bag. ‘Angel, how nice of you to come.’

‘Mrs Hisami, we need to speak.’ He looked around. ‘In private.’

‘Okay, why don’t you come and see Denis? We can talk in his room, and I think it would be good for him to hear another voice. Would you mind that? He’s really not well, so prepare yourself.’

‘First, I need to tell you that Mr Tulliver is in hospital.’

‘Jesus, what with?’

‘He was attacked last night in the street outside the apartment.’

‘Come to the room – we’ll talk there.’

Tulliver had left the apartment before Angel. They had agreed to meet up near a sports bar half an hour later so that Angel could hand over the computer, but Tulliver never showed. Angel waited at the bar. He tried calling him, but there was no answer. In the morning he realised he had been using the wrong number. He tried several times more before the police broke into the phone and called him. Tulliver had been badly beaten and was unconscious in New York-Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital. Angel understood that Tulliver’s attacker thought he was carrying the computer, or was in possession of some valuable knowledge, so he’d decided to catch the train straight away and bring the computer to her personally. He felt it was best not to call her.

‘Do you know how Jim is?’

‘I called from the train station but they wouldn’t tell me because I’m not a relative.’

Angel gave her the direct line for the ward where Tulliver was being treated and eventually Anastasia persuaded a duty doctor to give her an update. Tulliver had been beaten unconscious and had suffered brain swelling. He was still in a coma. He had three fractured ribs, a broken hand and contusions all over his back and sides. The police reports said there were two men and they had used baseball bats. If they hadn’t been disturbed, he would probably not have survived the battering. The doctor said they were anxious to trace his next of kin. Anastasia knew Jim had a sister in Kentucky named Hope. She called Denis’s office in LA and left that task with them.

While she was speaking, Angel had sat down by Denis and had started talking to him normally, as though nothing were wrong. Anastasia noticed that Denis’s eyes had shifted to focus on Angel and, moreover, they were engaged and he appeared to be listening.

‘Tell him about Jim,’ she said. ‘It’s really important that he knows what’s going on.’ Angel looked doubtful. ‘Go ahead. And don’t hide anything from him – he’s still your boss and he wants to know.’ She leaned over and squeezed Denis’s hand. ‘We’re going to win,’ she said. ‘I promise we are going to win.’

She mimed to Angel that she was stepping outside to make some calls. He nodded and picked up the hand she’d just held. She’d be surprised if there was anyone on the planet more empathetic than Angel Oliviera.

They were both convinced they had been followed from Seneca Ridge – not an aggressive pursuit, by any means, but a definite weight on their tail which they both sensed. When they hit DC, the Bird suggested that