itself.’
She looked at him with an expression of affectionate mockery that reminded him of the old Laura. ‘OK, calm down. I know the Greeks are your special pets.’
‘I love Greece. I love the country and I love its history. And it sickens me to think of what is going on there now. But there’s something else …’ He fell silent as he took in the possible implications. If EOKA was rearing its ugly head again, this news could only encourage it. He took the plate that Laura held out to him. ‘Come on. We need to talk. There’s something I want to tell you.’
Two days later Stephen presented himself at the address on Warrender’s card, which turned out to be an anonymous office block just off the Strand. A board in the foyer directed him to the fourth floor and a secretary in an outer office ushered him through to the inner room. Inside the door, Stephen came to an abrupt halt. Suddenly everything was becoming clearer. Warrender was standing by the window but it was the man who rose from behind the desk who jolted Stephen back twenty years.
‘Major Henshaw!’ It was all he could do not to come to attention.
Henshaw came round the desk smiling, his hand extended. ‘Not major any more. I left the service years ago. Good to see you, Stephen.’
‘How are you, sir?’ Stephen asked as they shook hands, struggling for the right social tone.
‘Pretty well, all things considered. And you?’
‘Not bad – all things considered.’
‘Have a seat.’ Henshaw waved him to an easy chair near the window and took one opposite him. ‘You’ve met Matthew, of course. Have a drink. Scotch?’
‘No, thank you.’
‘Ah, no, of course not. Something else? Tea? Coffee?’
‘Coffee would be good.’
Henshaw signed to Warrender, who busied himself at a side table where a coffee machine stood beside a collection of bottles. Henshaw leaned back in his chair, a glass of whisky in his hand.
‘Well, you’ll be wondering what all this is about. The fact is, we think you may be able to help us.’
‘Why me?’ Stephen asked. ‘How did you know where I was?’
‘You won’t realize it, of course, but we’ve been keeping a fatherly eye on you ever since you left the army.’
‘Why? What on earth for?’
‘Your activities in Cyprus gave us cause for concern, for a start. You allowed yourself to become involved with a family that was in the forefront of the EOKA terrorist organization, while ostensibly working for British Military Intelligence.’
‘I had no idea they were terrorists! My only interest was in –’
‘In the young lady concerned. Yes, we came to that conclusion in the end. Your efforts to track her down when you were finally demobbed convinced us.’
‘You knew about that?’
‘We knew that you went straight back to Cyprus and then to Athens. We even knew that you paid a private detective to track her down – but to no avail.’
‘Her father had married her off to some family friend. I didn’t even know her married name.’
‘Probably the best outcome, under the circumstances. Anyway, we lost sight of you for a while after that, until we started to read articles by you in some of the quality papers. It was obvious that you had a knack of turning up wherever there was trouble brewing and worming your way into the confidence of the people involved. We were particularly impressed by your despatches from Vietnam, for example. You have a way of getting to the heart of matters. It’s a great pity that you finally succumbed to the trap that ensnares so many foreign correspondents, stuck in hotel rooms far from home.’ Henshaw held up his glass so that the evening sunlight coming through the window turned its contents to liquid gold.
‘That’s all in the past,’ Stephen said sharply. ‘I’ve been clean for five years now.’
‘We know that, and I applaud you for your strength of mind. And for finding a new career. But,’ Henshaw leaned forward, holding the glass between his
She looked at him with an expression of affectionate mockery that reminded him of the old Laura. ‘OK, calm down. I know the Greeks are your special pets.’
‘I love Greece. I love the country and I love its history. And it sickens me to think of what is going on there now. But there’s something else …’ He fell silent as he took in the possible implications. If EOKA was rearing its ugly head again, this news could only encourage it. He took the plate that Laura held out to him. ‘Come on. We need to talk. There’s something I want to tell you.’
Two days later Stephen presented himself at the address on Warrender’s card, which turned out to be an anonymous office block just off the Strand. A board in the foyer directed him to the fourth floor and a secretary in an outer office ushered him through to the inner room. Inside the door, Stephen came to an abrupt halt. Suddenly everything was becoming clearer. Warrender was standing by the window but it was the man who rose from behind the desk who jolted Stephen back twenty years.
‘Major Henshaw!’ It was all he could do not to come to attention.
Henshaw came round the desk smiling, his hand extended. ‘Not major any more. I left the service years ago. Good to see you, Stephen.’
‘How are you, sir?’ Stephen asked as they shook hands, struggling for the right social tone.
‘Pretty well, all things considered. And you?’
‘Not bad – all things considered.’
‘Have a seat.’ Henshaw waved him to an easy chair near the window and took one opposite him. ‘You’ve met Matthew, of course. Have a drink. Scotch?’
‘No, thank you.’
‘Ah, no, of course not. Something else? Tea? Coffee?’
‘Coffee would be good.’
Henshaw signed to Warrender, who busied himself at a side table where a coffee machine stood beside a collection of bottles. Henshaw leaned back in his chair, a glass of whisky in his hand.
‘Well, you’ll be wondering what all this is about. The fact is, we think you may be able to help us.’
‘Why me?’ Stephen asked. ‘How did you know where I was?’
‘You won’t realize it, of course, but we’ve been keeping a fatherly eye on you ever since you left the army.’
‘Why? What on earth for?’
‘Your activities in Cyprus gave us cause for concern, for a start. You allowed yourself to become involved with a family that was in the forefront of the EOKA terrorist organization, while ostensibly working for British Military Intelligence.’
‘I had no idea they were terrorists! My only interest was in –’
‘In the young lady concerned. Yes, we came to that conclusion in the end. Your efforts to track her down when you were finally demobbed convinced us.’
‘You knew about that?’
‘We knew that you went straight back to Cyprus and then to Athens. We even knew that you paid a private detective to track her down – but to no avail.’
‘Her father had married her off to some family friend. I didn’t even know her married name.’
‘Probably the best outcome, under the circumstances. Anyway, we lost sight of you for a while after that, until we started to read articles by you in some of the quality papers. It was obvious that you had a knack of turning up wherever there was trouble brewing and worming your way into the confidence of the people involved. We were particularly impressed by your despatches from Vietnam, for example. You have a way of getting to the heart of matters. It’s a great pity that you finally succumbed to the trap that ensnares so many foreign correspondents, stuck in hotel rooms far from home.’ Henshaw held up his glass so that the evening sunlight coming through the window turned its contents to liquid gold.
‘That’s all in the past,’ Stephen said sharply. ‘I’ve been clean for five years now.’
‘We know that, and I applaud you for your strength of mind. And for finding a new career. But,’ Henshaw leaned forward, holding the glass between his
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