Lammas Night by Katherine Kurtz Page A

here.”
    â€œGray, this is Wesley Ellis,” came the familiar voice, couched in an odd combination of formality and casual friendship—doubtless for the benefit of anyone listening in. “I believe. I have some information on that landing you wanted.”
    â€œI understand, brigadier. Go ahead.” Had Audrey picked up some further hint of Michael’s whereabouts?
    â€œThere’s been a change of plan,” the brigadier continued in a maddeningly offhand tone. “I think you’ll want to meet a minesweeper called the Lydd . That’s L-Y-double-D . Have you got that?”
    â€œ Lydd . Yes, sir!” Graham grinned and turned toward William, raising one thumb in the classic cockney sign of cheer.
    â€œJolly good,” came the glib reply. “I’m afraid there’s been a bit of damage, but nothing that can’t be mended. I think you’ll find that it meets all your needs—picture perfect, as it were. Was there anything else I can do for you?”
    Damage but mendable—and picture perfect. It meant that Michael was not seriously injured and that he had the film. Bless Audrey! She’d done a better job than he had—though he wondered whether she had picked up any of the frightening imagery he’d experienced. To find out, however, he was going to have to own up to having been on the Second Road alone and take hell from Alix. He could hardly do that now, with William waiting at his elbow, but he could at least give Ellis the opening to indicate whether anything else had gone amiss.
    â€œI can’t think of a thing, brigadier,” he replied, still smiling, though not quite so broadly. “I’ll get back to you if I do. Everything else is all right, then?”
    â€œYes, quite,” came the slightly puzzled reply.
    â€œThat’s welcome news—and thank you very much,” Graham said, breathing a faint sigh of relief.
    â€œNot at all. Glad to be of service. We old war horses like to keep our hands in, you know. Cheerio.”
    â€œGood-bye, sir.”
    He allowed himself a profound sigh as he cradled the receiver, suddenly very weary, then picked it up and began dialing the operations number.
    â€œThe pickup ship is the Lydd ?” William asked.
    â€œSo it would seem.”
    â€œHow did Ellis find out?”
    Graham raised an eyebrow and evaded with the absolute truth.
    â€œI don’t ask. Sometimes it’s better not to—hello? This is Colonel Graham. Put me through to Commander Collingwood right away, would you?”
    Covering the mouthpiece with his hand while he waited, he glanced at the prince again and smiled. “I was about to say that I don’t question Wesley’s sources of infor—hello, Coll? Graham here. I’ve just been informed that my chap may be aboard a minesweeper called the Lydd . Would you find out when she’s due to dock?”
    As he spelled the name for Collingwood, he was relieved to see that William seemed to have accepted his explanation.

C HAPTER 4
    Neither Graham nor William proved very good at waiting after the first hour, though they made halting stabs at conversation over fresh cups of tea while listening for the telephone. After another half hour, Graham gave up the pretense of sociability and occupied himself for a time with scanning the harbor and its approaches with a pair of field glasses.
    It was not only the waiting that made Graham ill at ease. Compounding his uneasiness was the fact that even though no particular physical symptoms remained to remind him of the episode beneath the bridge, the experience had shaken him more than he realized. He still did not know what had happened—except that the terror he had felt was still vivid in his mind. Only questioning Michael would enable him to distinguish fact from fearful fantasy.
    He sighed and raised the field glasses to his eyes again. Outside, the intermittent drizzle had mostly ceased since his