johngardner.rollofhonor-第12章

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　〃I'll　get　a　couple　of　white　mice　to　drive　you　home　then。
　〃Seriously。　　I　can　manage　to　get　past　the　security　without　being　detected　until　about　four。　　They　change　shifts　then。〃
　〃We're　talking　of　getting　back　into　Endor　I　take　it？〃
　〃Of　course　we　re　talking　about　Endor。　　The　place　is　electronically　buttoned　like　Fort　Knox　…　you　remember　Fort　Knox？〃　Cindy　gave　a　small；　almost　mocking　smile。
　〃Well；　Endor　has　code　and　lock　binations　which　change　with　each　security　shift。　　I　have　to　go　back　during　the　current　phase；　otherwise　I　shall　be　right　up　the　proverbial　creek　without　a　paddle。〃　Bond　asked　if　she　did　this　often。
　〃In　the　mating　season；　yes。　　That's　why　I've　cultivated　a　certain　reputation　in　the　village。　　So　I　have　a　kind　of　alibi　if　I　ever　get　caught。　　But；　if　they　cop　me　with　these　stuffed　down　my　shirt。　　。　　。
　Well　…　…　…　〃　She　ran　a　finger　over　her　throat。　　〃So；　Mr。　Bond；　I'd　appreciate　it　if　you'd　copy　these　little　beauties。〃
　〃How　unconventional　are　they？〃　He　reached　out　to　take　the　disks；　feeling　as　though　something　irrevocable　would　happen　once　he　laid　hands　on　them。　Even　to　handle　the　things　implied　that　he　could　do　as　Cindy　asked。　　If　this　was　an　attempt　to　put　him　in　the　frame；　there　could　be　no　going　back。
　〃You'll　see。　　But　please　do　what　has　to　be　done　as　quickly　as　you　can。　I　have　no　way　of　copying　them　at　the　house。。
　〃You　can　borrow　them　but　not　take　copies？　　I　find　that　difficult　to　believe；　Miss　Chalmer。　　Your　boss　told　me；　not　long　ago；　that　you're　a　wizard　with　these　things。〃　She　made　an　irritated；　spluttering　noise　which　reminded　him　of　M　when　the　Head　of　Service　became　annoyed。
　〃Technically；　of　course　I　can　copy。　　But　it　would　be　far　too　dangerous　to　try　it　in　the　house。　　I'm　never　left　alone　long　enough　with　the　hardware。　　Either　the　great　man's　around；　or　the　Queen　of　the　Night　is　fussing　about。
　〃The　who？〃
　〃Queen　of。　　。　　。　　Oh；　Peter。　　That's　my　pet　name　for　him。
　I　think　he　may　well　be　trustworthy　…　he　certainly　loathes　the　boss　…　but　it's　not　worth　the　risk。　　Percy　wouldn't　hear　of　it。〃　Bond　smiled　inwardly。　　〃Cindy？〃　She　raised　her　eyes；　ready　for　any　question。
　〃How　well　do　you　know　this　Percy？〃
　〃You're　dreadfully　coy；　James。〃　They　now　slipped　easily　into　first　name　terms。
　〃No；　I'm　just　dreadfully　careful。〃
　〃I　know　her　quite　well。　　Have　done　for　the　past　what？　　Eight　years？〃
　〃Has　she　been　hospitalised　since　you've　known　her？
　Medical　operations　of　any　kind？〃
　〃A　nose　job。　　Spectacular。
　That's　all。〃
　〃And　you？〃
　〃I've　never　had　one。
　〃Background；　Cindy。　　What？　　Who？　　And　why？〃
　〃All　of　it？　　Okay。　　I　spent　eight　months　in　a　hospital　for　infectious　diseases　after　I　left　high　school。　　There　are　medical　records；　doctors　and　nurses　who　remember　me。
　I　know　because　Old　Bald　Eagle's　ferrets　checked　them　out。　　Only　I　wasn't　there。　　I　was　at　the　Farm；　being　trained。　　Then；　surprise；　I　won　a　scholarship　to　Cambridge；　here　in　England。　　From　then　on；　as　pure　as　the　driven。　　A　good；　hard…working　girl。　　I'm　untouchable；　fully　sanitized；　as　we　say。　　The　pany　kept　me　on　ice。　　I　worked　for　I。B。M　and　then　with　Apple；　before　I　applied　for　the　job　with　Jay　Autem　Holy。
　His　boys　checked；　double…checked　and　even　then　didn't　trust　me　for　eighteen　months。〃　Bond　gave　a　brisk　nod。　　There　were　no　real　options　left。
　Trust　between　him　and　the　girl　had　to　be　entered　into　quickly；　though　not　lightly。　　〃Okay；　just　tell　me　about　these　two　programs。
　〃Why　don't　you　take　a　look　for　yourself？　　Percy　told　me　you　had　the　means。
　〃You　tell　me；　Cindy。　　Concisely　as　you　can；　then　we'll　get　on　with　it。〃　She　talked　rapidly；　reducing　the　information；　telescoping　her　sentences　to　the　minimum。　　They　had　games　weekends　at　Endor　…　he　knew　about　that　…　and　some　very　strange　people　turned　up　along　with　the　usual；　dedicated　war　games　freaks。
　〃There　are　two　particular　characters　…　Balmer　and　Hopcraft；'　Cindy　went　on　after　pausing　to　gaze　intently　into　Bond's　eyes；　〃known　to　my　crowd　as　Tigerbalm　and　Happy。　　Tigerbalm's　about　as　balmy　as　a　force　ten　blizzard。　　Kill　you　quick　as　look　at　you；　and　Happy's　probably　only　that　way　when　he's　raping　or　pillaging。
　Happy　would　have　made　a　good　Viking　raider。〃　Cindy　explained　that　Gunfire　Weekends；　as　they　were　called　in　the　puter　magazines；　all　appeared　to　be　run　with　a　military　flavour。　　〃Strict　discipline。　　Order　Groups　at　09。00　hours；　Lights　Out　at　22。30；　and　all　that。　　It　was　what　happened　after　Lights　Out　that　became　interesting。
　〃The　oddballs　are　detailed　to　rooms　near　one　another；　and　always　near　Tigerbalm　and　Happy。　　The　weekends　cover　three　nights。　　The　oddballs　all　leave　looking　as　though　they've　been　awake　for　a　week。　　In　fact　they　get　very　little　sleep　because　around　midnight　every　night　they're　summoned　to　Old　Bald　Eagle's　private　den；　and　there　they　stay；　all　night；　working　on　their　own　little　games；　two　of　which　I'd　like　to　get　back　into　their　files　before　the　dawn's　early　light。〃　Bond　told　her　to　wait　in　his　room　while　he　went　quietly　down　to　the　car；　selected　the　equipment　he　needed　and　brought　it　back　to　the　room。　　It　took　time；　but　the　extra　minutes　spent　reconnoitering　the　car　park　seemed　well　spent。
　〃Crikey！〃　Cindy　looked　at　the　Terror　Twelve　with　undisguised　pleasure。　〃She　certainly　got　it　right。　　I　only　hope　the　circuit　diagrams　I　provided　were　accurate。〃　He'd　buy　that　…　Cindy　monitoring　the　technology　advances　at　Endor　and　providing　Percy　with　all　the　information　needed　to　build　a　puter　identical　to　Holy's。　　Maybe　he　was　but　a　part　of　this　operation；　only　there　to　get　the　latest　programs　out。　　After　that；　others　could　step　in　and　clean　out　the　stables；　armed　with　evidence　provided　by　himself；　Percy　and　Cindy。
　With　the　keyboard；　and　hard　laser　drives　plugged　in；　Bond　took　the　first　disk　and　booted　up。　　The　moment　the　first　menu　came　on　to　the　screen　he　knew　what　it　was　about：　in　a　series　of　flashing　green　letters　it　read：　Phase　One　…　Airport　to　Ken　High　Street　A。　　First　girl　driver　B。
　Second　girl　driver　C。　　Advance　car　D。　　Trail　car　He　accessed　the　First　girl　driver　and　the　screen　showed　him　to　be　in　heavy　traffic；　leaving　Heathrow　Airport　and　heading　in　to　London。　　Ahead　lay　the　small　convoy　of　police　and　security　vans。　　The　program　was　obvious；　and　Bond　flipped　through　the　phases　…　Turn　Off；　Kensington　High　Street：　Phase　One；　Kensington　High　Street：　Phase　Two；　Abort；　Kensington　High　Street。〃　Phase　Violet　Smoke；　and　on　to　the　getaway；　passing　options　such　as　Secun't；t　Teams　（Electrics）　and　Secunty　Teams　（Way　Out）。　　He　did　not　need　to　run　the　whole　simulation　to　know　that　the　disk；　currently　resting　in　his　top　drive；　was　a　training　program　for　the　Kruxator　robbery。
　Taking　a　virgin　disk；　Bond　began　to　go　through　the　careful　procedure　of　breaking　down　Jay　Autem　Holy's　protection　program　in　order　to　make　a　clean　second　copy　of　the　original。
　The　process　was　very　slow　as　Holy　had　used　not　only　the　regular；　easy　system　of　〃scribbling'　on　some　sectors　of　the　disk；　but　also　the　small　routine　Percy　had　shown　Bond。　　In　effect　this　was　a　program　in　itself；　designed　to　crash　the　disk；　making　it　pletely　useless；　if　anyone　even　attempted　to　copy　it。　　Following　Percy's　tuition　Bond　was　able　first　to　detect　the　routine　and　then　remove　it；　line　by　line。
　Then　he　matched　up　his　virgin　disk　in　a　format　to　copy　exactly　the　original。　　The　work　took　over　an　hour；　but　at　the　end　he　had　a　true　clone　of　Holy's　training　program　for　the　Kruxator　robbery。　　He　spent　a　further　twenty　minutes　returning　the　protect　program　to　the　original　disk。
　The　second　of　Cindy's　disks　was　a　similar　training　program；　this　time；　they　presumed；　for　the　hijacking　of　an　aircraft。　　As　in　fact　there　had　been　a　monumental　hijack　of　a　specially　chartered　freight　plane　carrying　newly　printed　money　from　the　Royal　Mint　printers　to　several　countries；　the　chances　were　that　this　was　the　blueprint　for　it。
　Once　more；　the　cloning　process　began；　but　this　time　with　more　urgency；　for　Cindy　had　bee　anxious　about　her　return。
　〃There　is　one　other　thing；'　she　said；　looking　tired　and　concerned。
　〃Yes？〃　Bond　grunted；　not　taking　his　eyes　off　the　screen。
　〃Something　very　big's　going　on　now。　　Not　a　robbery；　I'm　pretty　sure　of　that；　but　a　criminal；　probably　violent　operation。　　There　have　been　callers　in　the　night；　and　I've　heard　several　references　to　a　special　program。〃
　〃What　kind　of　special　program？〃
　〃I've　heard　the　name　only　…　they　call　it　the　Balloon　Game；　and　there　seem　to　be　specialists　involved。〃　Bond　was　concentrating；　writing　back　the　protect　program　on　to　the　hijack　simulation　original。　　〃They're　all　specialists；　Cindy。〃
　〃No；　I've　seen　some　of　these　guys。　　They're　not　all　hoods　and　heavies。
　Some　are　like　。　　。　　。　　are　like　pilots　and　parsons。
　〃Parsons？〃
　〃Well；　not　exactly。　　Doctors　and　dentists；　if　you　like。
　Upright。　　Professional。〃
　〃The　Balloon　Game？〃
　〃I　heard　Tigerbalm　use　the　expression；　and　one　of　the　others　…　talking　to　Old　Bald　Eagle。
　Will　you　report　it；　please？　　I　think　it's　something　nasty。〃　Bond　said　he　would　be　getting　the　copies　of　these　two　programs　to　London　quickly。
　He'd　mention　the　Balloon　Game　at　the　same　time。
　〃You　think　they're　using　it　now？　　Training　on　it？〃
　〃Positive。〃
　〃If　we　could　get　a　copy。
　〃Not　a　chance。　　Not　yet；　anyway。
　He　fell　silent；　finishing　off　the　job　in　hand。　　Presently　he　rattled　off　a　description　of　RollingJoe　Zwingli。　　〃Ever　see　anyone　like　him　around　Endor？〃　he　asked。
　〃General　Zwingli。　　I　recognise　the　description；　and　the　answer's　no。　　I　had　some　garbled　message　from　Percy　that　he's　alive。〃　She　paused；　adding　that　this　seemed　incredible。
　Bond　pleted　his　tasks　and　returned　the　original　disks　to　Cindy　and　asked　about　the　routine　at　the　house。
　Did　Jason　and　Dazzle　ever　go　out？　　Or　away？　　How　many　security　people　did　they　have　around？
　Yes；　he　went　away　for　a　couple　of　days　about　once　a　month。　　Always　left　and　returned　at　night。　　Never　left　the　house　during　the　day；　never　showed　his　face　in　the　village。　　Cindy　invariably　referred　to　Jay　Autem　as　the　Target；　or　Old　Bald　Eagle。
　〃Very　cagey；　our　Target。　　Dazzle's　out　and　about　a　great　deal　…　in　the　village；　over　to　Oxford；　London；　taking　trips　abroad。　　I　suspect　she's　the　liaison　officer。〃
　〃Where　abroad？〃
　〃Middle　East；　Europe。　　All　over。　　Percy's　got　the　list。　　I　try　to　keep　a　track；　mainly　from　hotel　book　matches　or　flight　labels。　　But　she's　cagey　as　well。　　Gets　rid　of　a　lot　of　stuff　before　she　es　home。〃　As　for　the　household；　there　was　one　Filipino　boy　and　four　security　men。　　〃He　has　six　genuine　sales　reps　who　wouldn't　suspect　a　thing。　　But　they're　on　the　outside。　　The　four　security　men　double　as　reps　and　staff。　　It's　very　good　cover。　　Would　have　had　me　fooled　if　I　hadn't　known　better。　　They're　all　quiet；　efficient　guys　…　two　cars　between　them；　out　and　about　a　lot；　managing　the　telephones；　taking　orders；　distributing　the　genuine　Gunfire　Simulations　packages。　　But　two　of　them　never　leave　the　house。　　They　work　on　the　security　in　a　strict　rota。　　The　electronics　are　highly　sophisticated。　　Breakable；　but　clever。　　I　mean；　you　have　to　know　the　system　to　fiddle　it。
　What's　more；　as　I've　already　told　you；　they　alter　the　codings　for　every　shift。　　You　can　only　get　in　and　out　if　you　know　the　numbers　for　a　particular　six…hour　pe