The 9 by Madalyn Morgan (tools of titans ebook .txt) 📕

eliminate him from our enquires.’ Ena looked from the commander to Mr Silcott. The commander’s lips were twitching, and her boss was doing his utmost to look serious.

‘Seriously, my dear, there is only one person who I am sure did not sabotage your work – and that is you,’ Commander Dalton said. ‘Your blood and urine tests showed traces of a rare sleeping draught that’s used by veterinary surgeons to put animals to sleep. I was told it is difficult to administer, so it is added to treats. An incorrect dosage could have been fatal.’

Ena felt a wave of heat surge through her. ‘Fatal?’ She thought for a moment, hardly able to take in what the commander had said. ‘You mean I could have died?’

‘But you didn’t, my dear. Thank goodness, you didn’t,’ Herbert Silcott said, patting Ena’s arm.

‘If you don’t mind me saying, Mr Silcott, that isn’t the point. I could have…’ Ena shuddered. Herbert Silcott opened his mouth to speak but she didn’t give him the chance. ‘I’m sorry, Mr Silcott, but some damn spy almost beat you to death, and nearly killed me! The only reason I’m here today is because of my good luck and his bad judgement. One or two grains more of whatever it was he gave me and I’d be dead.’ Tears pricked at the back of Ena’s eyes, but she was damned if she was going to weaken and cry. She turned to Commander Dalton and looked him squarely in the eyes. ‘What do you want me to do, sir?’

‘Nothing for now. Just be yourself. Go about your business as normal. Stick to your routine. Don’t make any changes to the plans you’ve already made, especially not to plans that involve other people. Whatever you were going to do here today, or somewhere else later, do it.’ The commander leaned forward and resting his elbows on his desk, made a steeple of his fingers. ‘And while you are being yourself, be vigilant. Keep your eyes and ears open. Watch and listen to everyone. You’re a pretty young woman, if a man smiles at you, smile back.’ Ena was about to react to his suggestion, but thought better of it.

Dalton sat up, put his hand in his jacket pocket and pulled out a ten-shilling note. ‘Take this,’ he said, pushing it across the table to Ena. ‘Ask him, or her, but preferably him. Women carry handbags, so are more likely to have the change in them. Men on the other hand only have pockets, so are less likely to carry a lot of change around.’

Ena was baffled. Thinking she had missed something, she said, ‘What is the money for?’

‘The telephone. Ask for change for the telephone! Ten shillings in change would be too much to carry about, so chances are a man will be chivalrous and give you a few coppers.’ Ena felt a dull ache behind her eyes from frowning. She blinked a couple of times and shook out her hair. ‘Then, the next time you see that person, you give them what they lent you back.’ The commander looked pleased with himself. ‘It’s a good way to meet people.’

‘Get to know the people here, join in their conversations. Listen for anything you think irregular, out of the ordinary. I can’t tell you who to listen to or what to look for, but if you see anything you think is unusual, questionable, out of character, however small or insignificant you think it is, I want to know about it. All right?’ Ena nodded. ‘Make mental notes of anything that doesn’t ring true. Especially if it is something done by someone you have recently met. Someone who has befriended you. Practice on your young American. I believe he is taking you to tea today?’ The commander looked at his watch, ‘In an hour.’

‘Excuse me?’ Ena was furious that Ben had been dragged into this. ‘I can assure you that my American, as you call him, has nothing to do with any of this. It’s immaterial anyway,’ she said tersely, ‘I wrote and cancelled our appointment.’

‘He didn’t get the letter, I’m afraid.’

‘How do you know?’

‘How I know is not important. What is important is that Mr Johnson will be waiting for you in the station buffet as arranged. He probably came to England at the beginning of ’42, so you could use Pearl Harbor as an opening.’ Ena felt anger boiling up inside her. ‘I really don’t care how you do it, just find out as much as you can about him. I’d like to know exactly what he does at the Ministry of Defence, if indeed he works there at all.’

‘You intercepted my letter to him, so you know he works there.’ The commander raised his eyebrows but didn’t speak.

Exasperated, Ena said, ‘Why would he tell me to write to him at the MoD in Whitehall if he didn’t work there? What would be the point? He wouldn’t get my letters. He wouldn’t have got the letter telling him I was coming to Bletchley today if he didn’t work at the ministry, but you said he did. So how can you doubt that he works there?’

The commander looked at Ena, his eyes hard and unflinching. ‘Because no one by the name of Benjamin F. Johnson works for the Ministry of Defence in London.’ Ena’s mouth fell open with shock. ‘What I am about to tell you stays in this room, Miss Dudley, is that clear?’

‘Yes,’ Ena said, looking from the commander to Mr Silcott and back again.

‘Your friend could be with American Intelligence. The Office of Strategic Services are working with our Military Intelligence, which could explain why he isn’t listed as working for the MoD. However, until we know that for sure, we must assume he is a threat to British security and find out as much as we can about him. That is