Cell by Colin Forbes Page B

The system worked well and made it very unlikely the target would have any idea he - or she - was being shadowed.
    Eva was standing up, putting on her smart expensive grey coat. She smiled when he came in and checked her watch. Then she went close to him, kissed him on both cheeks.
    'I have taken up too much of your time. Thank you so much for seeing me.'
    'Didn't give me much choice, did you,' he replied with a warm smile. 'Do you want to give me your address and phone number?'
    'Don't waste much time, do you?' she flashed back, smiling wickedly. 'But Paula has all my details.' She looked back at Paula. 'You take care. See you tonight at the Ivy.'
    Then she was gone. With her absence the buoyant temperature inside the office seemed to have dropped. Even Monica seemed more subdued.
    'What was all this business, Paula, about having dinner with her at the Ivy? You're developing expensive tastes,' Tweed remarked.
    'It was Eva's idea,' Paula explained. 'She said it would be nice for just us two girls to go out and compare notes. I'm wondering whether she wants to interrogate me. I'll' be careful. But, that apart, I like her. She's clever. That business about who planned the atrocity in New York.'
    'For weeks I have been wondering exactly the same thing myself. For similar reasons. Oh, I arranged for Pete and Harry to follow her.'
    'So you don't trust her?'
    'It's just that. As you know, I never take people at face value. Also I thought it curious that she never mentioned the disappearance of Mrs Warner. It has to be the main topic at Carpford.'
    The door opened and Marler strolled in. He leant against a wall and produced one of his long cigarettes.
    'Who was that devastating gorgeous woman I saw leav ing here? The one with a great mane of dark hair and very tall.'
    'You've just missed out,' Paula teased him. 'That was Eva Brand and Tweed has just sent Pete and Harry to shadow her. Now, if you had been here . . .'
    'I don't think I like you any more,' he commented.
    Paula had a point. Had Marler been available, Tweed would probably have sent him after her. An expert tracker, he always worked on his own and none of the targets he had followed had ever been aware of his presence. He lit his cigarette.
    'What was Glamour Puss doing here?'
    The phone rang and Monica looked surprised. She called out to Tweed. 'You'll never guess who is waiting to see you downstairs.'
    Tweed hammered a fist on his desk, part of his new physical vitality. 'I don't want to guess. I want to know who it is.'
    'Jules Beaurain.'

    Wearing a blue bird's-eye suit, Beaurain breezed in. Tweed introduced him to Newman and Marler. Holding a posy of fresh flowers, Beaurain then walked swiftly to Paula's desk, laid down the posy.
    'For an exceptionally intelligent and beautiful lady. It's a Belgian custom.'
    'Don't believe that last bit, Jules,' Paula replied. 'They're wonderful. I can't thank you enough.'
    'Then don't try.'
    He sat down in the armchair facing Newman, stared at him as though he was some strange species. 'You're the reporter. I've read all your articles. Sometimes they're very good,' he chaffed, smiling.
    'They're always good,' retorted Newman, returning the smile.
    'Enough of this chit-chat. What brings you haring back to London, Jules?' Tweed asked.
    'To give you information about Carpford I don't think you have yet. I phoned Buchanan. There are two more people up there you don't know about. You know where Margesson's house is?'
    'Yes.'
    Tweed had taken a large sheet of cartridge paper from his bottom drawer. Monica had earlier rushed to pick up the posy from Paula's desk, now she returned with a vase of water with the flowers carefully arranged. She placed them on Paula's desk. Paula extracted a rose, trimmed it with scissors, then went over to Beaurain. She inserted it in his lapel, using a safety pin to secure it. He looked up at her.
    'With such appreciation next time I'll buy the whole shop.'
    'Yes,' growled Tweed. He swivelled the sheet round.