Show CARIBBEAN 71 conspiracy CONRAD UK SO 90 as FAR ana anne beautha 2 tal a wealthy d N new x york ne aa paper publisher EM 1 to w out klco on Z n a 1 I lor her lather I 1 r alio OD tue liland lire pete wil cox a leporta OB her r biti etheri paper now 0 C V a army arms i iceie officer f vaie valera ft ew puerto to re the lutei whose e maw to te rt pe port to an inny ea camp were uy can celled a Rit ittin TI T Ti Hile I an 1 I stoc fees identity germin 1 cent 1 li pe but bid set oot att t proved and kiil per porter ar eo elir as and hl kite msue wonder b vie the 1 oi sin I 1 joan atine asse ha z ahe 1 li bi beant ft followed now ahe he ha just an met t hui hu I voters CHAPTER IX anne sighed sipped the cool frosted dai quin sub subtly blended with almond and ru rum that the waiter had put in front of them as soon as they sat down miguel I gu she said suddenly how strong a 13 the falange here her he glanced at her calmly its been disbanded why do you sit 1 I w was just wende wondering i was yaw ip father a member of if ita most t of the spanish people here were were you 1 I 1 in not spanish I 1 in puerto rican rian c an he said with a smile what would you like to eaf better get used to spanish food gradually what about so some me chicken soup and so an in e I 1 it dont ont want you to have nave a stomach mach ache or to get fat anne could not toll tell when she first became aware war of the woman in the th black d dress da a on the other side aide of th the street she was a standing ending I 1 in front of a shop window looking at them through the open arcade her eyes met anne a now ow and held them so an intently that there n er e was no possie possibility 11 lity of bei being unaware a war e of her any longer ing it iwas was not a hostile interest exactly but it was not friendly in any sense and most of the glances she d in met t on the street had been very friendly indeed heart warningly so as a matter of fee fact le the pep people of puerto rico are si extremely dremely 1 loyal I 1 to the united states miguel war was saying independence pen dence III t a burning issue not now statehood or some kind of dominion status t miguel she interrupted him abruptly who is fis that girl across the street sh she a re realized lazed at the same time slide th that at she he dian didn t want to know and the that it was too late he was turning around her b heart e a r died of slowly aly why c coulden couldn uld t she have been a woman of 1 the th a world or latin pete wilcox sat in the office ot of the assistant chief of staff G 2 at the general headquarters of the puerto rican department he wondered dered what the shades abde of the led mon monks iwho who had ad read their breviaries brevi breci aries and t told old their beads along the cool union interior n r galleries would think if they know knew it look much like a monastery now with the clerics clerical force trooping out and the staff officers and uniformed soldiers clodin closing g up for the day he looked at the clock he was waiting for colonel fletcher to get back 1 irom a me meeting ox ord in with the local rep representative r active of the g F B I 1 he talked to anne all day she was out the three times he it called th the I 1 message in front of him that she it meet him at the granada at seven was cold comfort but it was comfort all the same he couldn coulden t get h her or out cut of his head he lit a cigarette and opened me paper folder stamped SECRET 1 I there were two new items to so go in it A one was brought in at noon by a taxi driver river the other leter later leta lata by y a ragged c d urchin who sold papers and lottery tickets the whole thing we was a good collection for les less than three days pete thought grimly it if it for anne her face was there in m the folder looking up and a at him wide eyed and adful wilful and very cry precious im going bats he thought he picked up the two sheets of cheap tablet paper ile he was sick of all the spy spying ing ferrets slinking around reporting ev every move ve people made pop pete tate lit a ez cigarette matte he heard colonel fletcher a quick firm tread earning coming in along the gallery he put the cigarette cigarette down and started to get u up P Is sit t down 11 colonel fletcher said or bring that stuff and come came in m my Y office in H he 0 hung up his sun helmet and put out his swagger stick on the chair what abo about t a couple of weeks weak leave w while lid miss un heywood c it is here W wilcox arox 1 he said re he sat ent down at his desk and look looked d up pleasantly there are plenty of us to carry carry on 1 for an instant petes face brightened i as x if he were six and had been given a toy plane that flew then ten he shook his head thanks a lot sir air I 1 d amter rather wait wa till later if it a all right wi with you J just offhand he coulden couldn t remember be r when hed made a decision so on to his a own best beat interests opposed ed t totally t y apos ddn hadn t been for the it 1 IS t r 1 fat ader it m R his a hand had he wui w ui have made a it it it fit he we went nt a on to leave v h he we boum id be out of to touch uch wit with h what if he toyed stayed on the we as if 8 go going ing on ad fob b se yb e hed b be able his to soften often the he blow keep her may maybe be fro from getting colonel acke hurt fletcher looked at lum him he had the idea for a moment of ordering him to take it anyway y and giving a little sound advice while he wa was doing it he hesitated wilcox we was a pretty attractive chap and ad could id probably hold his own miguel valera was attractive to too of c course still W wilcox leas we was tough c enough ough to take I 1 it t suit yourself he said if y you on change your mind let me know what have you got there sit down do and have a cigarette pete lid put I 1 the two slips of paper on an the desk and sat eat down A translation had been typed at the bottom of each one miguel valera attended the meeting of the society of the spanish friends of the united states last 1 al night g ht I 1 do a not it know new of if my own knowledge w d abut but it is said that he has be been ed in new york undertaking to organize nationalist sentiment for puerto rican independence dependence to collaborate la with central and south american g groups P under european fascist domination don AN alvaro valera was not present nor was dirgo diego gan bongaro gal diego ango he has not at been bee aseen seen at any meeting since the toast at was drunk to the fall of france it was not signed and we was obviously written by an ed educated ted person on colonel fletcher looked at the second arid letter miguel valera visited the h house use of sebastian diaz ca caleta I 1 eta san juan at 11 25 and left at I 1 12 2 46 S sebastian diaz he aked ked what do we have on an him hima he 8 the brother in law of the guy that stole the dynamite fro from m laa isla grande pete said T they hey live 11 0 in n POW 6 4 ol 01 who is that girl across the street two rooms a in one of those old houses do down there he worked for a powder and explosive firm in new jersey hes an old employee of the V valera ale central too colonel fletcher took the folder and it ran through the other items filed in it its he closed it and leaned back in his chair you went cut to that meeting last night hill pete nodded he was there all right all ali th the old boys cheered him like mad H he was about the only one they did but he was the only one who didn dian t make a longwinded long winded h harangue ngue maybe that a why colonel fletcher smiled maybe he was silent for far a moment then he said what about your arted friend T taussig ig 1 I t thought bought called on off the hounds of hell pete said sardonically ca ll 11 y I 1 supposed you d keep one eye open colonel fletcher an answered swe r ed dryly it a a little it delicate I 1 1 te if he finds out we were on his trail there if 11 be a political up uproar rose it he did fird find it out at it we would lit practically pr prove bet it of c ourse course innocent people don an t know they z re cheing being watched then ive got an one unofficial cia green light pete asked it ed orange said colonel fletcher just before t the th a red one comes on an it may land you on fatigue duty somewhere in montana that a your problem I 1 want won t know anything about it okay oka okay Y sir am 11 pete got up then let s go and have a drink youre sure you like to take a couple of weeks leave in instead damned sure sir am anne settled comfortably down in the he front seat of P pet eta a car and took a long relaxed breath tui this h is a wonderful peter she said and it was it was the wa warm effortless fort less frelin feeling if she always had when 51 she a was with him she felt the same way when she came home after being away au all summer curling her feet up under her in frn t ol 01 1 a winter night in the country he g grinned gred red at he her and ad go gave her hand a little squeeze esquee what ha have e you been doing all day he be asked BS a soon as he could get his weal vocal cords card straightened out the way she got in a car and the way she be sat in the corner slightly facing him with her knees crossed as if she dian didn 1 on care re where they were going or if ff th they ey went any place at ell all was waa something he always we waited f ted tor or ive been sight seeing and 1 I wor went to the country club for a swim this afternoon moon H hows w the story coming wh what a t at story im the story hawley sent you down to write 1 anne looked up at him in our did he tell you yo no na you did pete grinned 1 I was pretty sure of it anyway youre a pig captain wilcox ara anne said aid As a matter of fact I 1 mm seem to have forgotten al all labout about it I 1 in glad you reminded in me tell me about the falange there ran t any and if there was it its been written 1 so many times inne its it s corny comy I 1 U H find you a story you spend your time at t the country club its cooler an and d pleasanter plea santer and you used to be so nice anne said wearily she paid any attention to where they were gain going g until pete turned down a narrow irta street t lined line d with cars the sidewalks full of people PI standing iticia aimlessly ly about she realized suddenly that she was going to Mallor quma quina again A sharp unhappy feeling of not warding wanting to go there with pete just then did something odd to her throat you 11 like this place pete said aid A man on an the sidewalk motioned him to an empty space and opened the door local I 1 touch eh tor for that old louse hawley alcy of f the new york chrom chronicle miss heywood pete remarked taking her arm you give these birds a nickel and they watch your car an all night if you dont they cut your tires bues or so I 1 in told they were back again where she old and miguel had been with the girl watch watching in g them from across the street the table sat at was empty anne passed it quickly and nd went to we one in the corner comer under der the tower towering g majolica vase she sat do down and gla glanced ced around so she wouldn sidn t have oto to speak for a moment it was funny how clear it had all 11 been clearer than the present momen moment t by far the nostalgic sentimental ballad a mexican girl was singing with the orchestra heightened it sharply for her the room mom was pleasantly crowded gay and noisy that seemed to heighten it too pete looked at her worried hed thought she would like it because he he did did lind and me ite t herself at all he watched her ees moving round around the room and sw saw them stop darkening an instant looked at n as they reached the bar he looked around A man in m a wrinkled white linen suit was standing there his back to them in the mirror pete caught a glimpse a of his face he had seen them too and turned to nod smiling iv at anne his mouth reminded pete of a barracuda thin and cruel and fishy white in the hard glare reflected from the spotlight on the chanteuse chantease chant euse his lit eye eyes were lost last behind the thick lenses of his spectacles your friend and shipmate the eminent plumber it ita he remarked sanitary engineer captain wilcox c ox anne retorted lightly and tourist extra extraordinary ordina she sipped her almond flavored dai daiquiri quiri I 1 what do we eat po boella ella ila pete said its everything th rag they y have in the sea with a shell on it mixed up with ruce rice and beans and stuff and a lobster cocktail this is the first place I 1 ve ever had all the lobster I 1 could eat what about maine 1 1 lve lever never ever been I 1 to mo maine mr taussig had moved around to the end of the bar and was watching them pete could see him reflected in the mirrored pillar under the clock tell me about taussig anne 1 he said 1 I thought you knew everything what you told me then she he due does know knew a something pete thought maybe it wout gasn wasn t valera after ft r all 11 I 1 saw your friend nd miguel at the me meeting t ing 1 last eat night he remarked he a said ld it casually to see how she d take it but he expected her to take it the way she did she looked at hina him blankly her IP lips parted arted a lf little tle the color receding 1 I fro from to ha her chic face SI she p put 1 her glass down miguel agu at the falange are you sur pete it it a not the falange h aard it s the e sociedad sociedade Socie dad del amigon del E estades estados aUn anidos unidos idos but you said last right night 11 1 I was just being fun funny ny 11 no you t bohe she betor retorted t ed the color had come back it into her fee face in two hot bright spots spin look pot pete ati youve got to tell me do aal yal I 1 anever never it think pete said placidly 1 I m in the army we to re not net a allowed to stop it P petel her S ip voice w was VZ low and ad tense lease she was leaning fo forward ward her eyes wide an and it getting dark and hot ive got ot art to know tl 4 TO son CONTINUED |