“For years nobody’s been here but my mother, of course.”
Nobody else in the bedroom said a word; they were all straining their ears to pick up any clues from next door.
“So let’s have the girls down here and the boys upstairs. How about that?” Yannick was making a poor job of sounding cheerful. The only reactions he got were distracted grunts and nods.
Then Jimmy noticed Saffron sitting on the furthest bed, turned towards the window. She was the only person who wasn’t trying to listen to the argument on the other side of the wall.
“What’s going on?” Jimmy whispered. “Who is this guy, Uno Sto…whatever?”
Saffron glanced over to make sure nobody else was paying attention. “He’s a French Secret Service operative,” she explained. “They must have tracked us entering French airspace.”
“I know that,” Jimmy interrupted. “I mean, how come Chris knows him, and what are they arguing about?” Saffron sighed and avoided looking into Jimmy’s eyes.
“When Chris left NJ7 he needed to disappear. He hid in Kazakhstan for a while, but wanted to use what he knew about NJ7 to put a stop to Ares Hollingdale. So he went to the DGSE.” Her eyes scanned the room. Yannick and Jimmy’s mother were doing their best to stop Felix, Georgie and Eva pressing their ears up against the wall.
“And that’s when he met this Uno guy,” Jimmy chipped in, to keep Saffron on track.
“Uno Stovorsky,” Saffron whispered. “Remember his name. He could help us.” Jimmy nodded. “But Chris fell out with the DGSE too.”
“Why? What happened?” Jimmy implored. “What aren’t you telling me?”
Saffron stood up and pulled in a deep breath. “Jimmy, they’re arguing about me.”
Moments later the door opened again and Yannick’s mother entered. “Jimmy,” she grunted in a thick French accent.
He stepped forward, but so did his mother. “They can’t keep me in the dark,” she muttered.
Saffron glided out of the room after them, as elegant as ever, to join the discussion.
“Don’t forget anything, Jimmy,” Felix called out. Jimmy didn’t have to respond. Normally, Felix wouldn’t even have asked – Jimmy would always have filled him in. But the last few days had been far from normal and the information Jimmy would be sharing was bound to be extraordinary.
“So this is your amazing automatic assassin?” Uno Stovorsky’s eyes seemed to pierce Jimmy’s skin. Jimmy opened his mouth to introduce himself, but before he could speak Stovorsky leapt from his chair. Jimmy’s eyes snapped wide open, catching the glint of a knife in Stovorsky’s fist.
Jimmy didn’t have to think. With the minimum of movement, he swayed to one side and caught Stovorsky’s wrist. With the knife point millimetres from his face, he chopped his other hand into the agent’s stomach and threw him over his shoulder. Jimmy snatched the knife before it hit the floor, where Stovorsky lay gasping for air.
“Enough, Jimmy!” shouted Viggo. “He was just testing you.”
“I know,” Jimmy replied. “Why do you think he’s still alive?” Jimmy started at his own words. He hadn’t known what he was going to say. It seemed the urge to kill was still just below the surface. He pushed away the deep sickness in his gut and reminded himself to keep control at every moment.
“Uno,” continued Viggo, “in return for your help, we are prepared to offer you a full display of Jimmy’s abilities and an inventory of the technology Britain is developing for use against France.”
Jimmy shuddered. What did Viggo mean by ‘a full display of Jimmy’s abilities’? He wasn’t a scientific sample! For a second he wanted to protest, but he quickly calmed down. He had learned to trust Christopher Viggo.
Stovorsky was still picking himself up off the floor. His expression was grim. “This information is as useless now as it was when you came to me all those years ago,” he growled. Jimmy watched Viggo’s face betray a hint of helplessness.
“Let me draw you a picture,” Stovorsky went on. “Jimmy was designed in a test tube by scientists at NJ7. Dr Higgins was one of them and he’s still there. Ares Hollingdale was another, before he became Prime Minister. The new weapon was assigned to two agents, Ian and Helen Coates.”
“Excuse me,” interrupted Jimmy’s mother, “I’m right here.”
“I’m sorry, Mrs Coates, I didn’t realise it was you.” He bowed his head slightly and took her hand up to his lips.
“How do you know this?” Viggo cut in.
Stovorsky’s demeanour shifted again, back to the animal aggression he directed at his rival. “That’s not all we know. We know Jimmy is not the first. There is another assassin, two years older, but he went missing shortly after his parents were killed. NJ7 thinks they died in a car accident.”
Jimmy felt like each piece of new information was a brick being hurled at him. There was another genetically programmed assassin? Why had nobody told him? He was dumbfounded, though he made a point of trying not to show it. Fortunately, nobody noticed Jimmy’s furrowed brow. Helen Coates and Saffron Walden were sharing a moment of concern. Viggo and Stovorsky were caught up in their own rivalry.
“Do you think I’ve been sitting on my hands since we last met?” Stovorsky jeered.
“But—” Viggo started.
“We have our own sources in England. You can’t tell me anything I don’t already know. All I can offer is that we let you live here in France. We can’t protect you, and we certainly can’t help you in your personal campaign against Ares Hollingdale.” Viggo tried to interrupt again, but Stovorsky continued over him. “Hollingdale may be anti-democracy and he may be anti-France, but the DGSE can’t meddle with anyone unless they pose a direct threat to France.”
The reaction was silence. Jimmy’s heart ached. He so wanted to go back to Felix with some good news. But how could they get anywhere near Felix’s parents without the resources of a major international agency? How else could they sneak back into England?
“Don’t look so glum!” boomed Stovorsky suddenly. “I’m letting you stay in the country. I’ll make sure you’re not arrested and, if you stay on the move, the chances are NJ7 won’t find you.” He shook his head and sighed. “Honestly, you English. Don’t you recognise a lucky break? Did you really think I was going to help you overthrow the British Government?” He dusted off the shoulders of his overcoat and strode to the door, muttering under his breath in French.
“That’s not why we need help.” Helen’s voice stopped him. “Jimmy, get Felix in here.” Jimmy flung open the door to the next room. Eva, Georgie and Felix all pretended they hadn’t been trying to eavesdrop. Without a word Felix stepped forward.
“This is Felix Muzbeke,” Jimmy’s mother continued. “The Government is holding his parents illegally. We just want to bring them here to safety.” Felix put on his most winsome expression.
Only now did Stovorsky turn round. He glanced at Felix then quickly turned away.
“Do
