So how could I be in two places at once? Dillon asked. But never mind that. Weve got a funeral to go to.
He took Hannah down to the Mini, and they scrambled in. She said, What was that all about?
Its between me and my God, cousin, Dillon said, and drove away.
THE RAIN HAD STARTED at the house just as Tad, Larry, and Molly were about to be picked up by their limousine. A quick check indicated that there were sufficient umbrellas and waterproofs on board, so they moved on.
Youd think the Almighty could do better than this, Tad grumbled. The grave could flood.
Your mother would have said dont be blasphemous, Molly told him.
I cant help it, Tad. Lets get inside and do right by her, Larry said, and they got out quickly, pushing into the shelter of handheld umbrellas, making for the church door held open for them and moving in to find Dillon waiting. There was a good turnout, older people from another time who had known Eileen Magee well and remembered her kindly.
It was incredibly peaceful. Mary and the Christ Child in the chapel just inside the door, and as Hannah moved into that great hymn, Abide with Me, the undertakers started up the aisle to present the coffin to Starkey, Molly and the brothers keeping to the left, the bearded man who was Finbar Magee pacing them on the right.
Everyone sat as Starkey started the service. There was a hush as he extolled Eileens virtues and gave the blessing and the prayers for the dead, and then a wonderful thing happened. The organ started up, playing Danny Boy, and Hannahs voice rose with it, and not one person moved until her music died away.
Molly was crying and so were others as people made their way out. It was still raining, and the undertaker whispered to Tad, A bit of water in the grave, sir. Well take care of your mother tonight back at the Chapel of Rest and see what tomorrow brings.
Hannah had closed up the organ and came across. Best I could do.
And bloody marvelous, Larry said. Wasnt she, Tad?
You really are quite a girl, Hannah. Tad put an arm around her and kissed her cheek. Were very grateful, and please tell Molly to stop crying.
A voice echoed from the right, and they turned to see Finbar standing by the confessional boxes. And what about me, your father? I came to face the shame of it, didnt I, or doesnt that count?
You devious bastard, I dont believe you, Tad replied. Youre lucky I allow you to leave this place still walking. Never show your face here again.
Larry added, Get back to Ulster while you still can. Thats sound advice. Youre not wanted here and never will be.
Then damn the lot of you and go to hell, his father replied, pushing his way through the thickening crowd and disappearing.
Larry turned to Dillon and Hannah. Is there any chance we could have supper together?
Another time, Dillon said. But my masters call, and like a good boy, I obey. Sorry I cant explain.
Seriously? Were not supposed to know youve been working for British Intelligence for years now?
Okay, but weve got a real crisis facing us, believe me. Well see you when we can, but for the moment, its all hands to the pumps.
Which includes me, Hannah called, as she followed Dillon to the Mini, jumped in, and they drove away.
I like that girl, Larry said.
So do I. Tad nodded. A very special lady. He sighed. Lets get out of here. And he led the way to where Molly waited in the limousine.
DILLON TURNED INTO PARK LANE, driving toward Marble Arch, and Hannah said, When you were speaking at Holland Park about the Magees at Drumore, you said that the Maria Blanco was a big old launch tied up to the jetty and used by Cousin Eli to fish from. I get the feeling theres more to it than that. Why dont you tell me what all the fuss is about?
God help me, girl, why are women so persistent? You wont leave me alone until I do, will you?
Absolutely not.
Then shut up and listen. I was called to Belfast and told by the Army Council that I was needed in Algeria by the Gaddafi training camp to help with new recruits for the IRA. Id trained there myself, and so had my good friend after me, Daniel Holley, who youve not had a chance to meet.
Is he a Provo?
Oh, yes, but of a special kind. A Protestant.
Sweet Jesus. She was shocked. And what kind of a Provo would a damn Prod be?
The kind whose sweet young Catholic cousin was raped and murdered by UVF scum, so he executed the four who had done it. There was nowhere for him to go except to join the IRA after that.
Mother of God, she said.
But enough of his background. He works for Ferguson like the rest of us do, so youll be meeting him one of these days. Hes partner in a shipping line out of Algiers. Hes half Irish, and his mother is a decent Catholic woman from Crossmaglen, but never mind that. Do you want the rest of the Maria Blanco story?
Of course I do.
Hugh Tulley got word from an informer that one of the Belfast banks was sending twenty-five million pounds in gold bullion to Dublin concealed in a meat wagon that would be passing his way. A common enough trick in those days to avoid holdups.
So he decided to have a go? Hannah said.
You could say that. A brisk gunfight on a country road with night falling that left three policemen in plainclothes dead, Tulley wounded, and two of their own dead. The alarm was raised all over County Down, and the RUC swung into action.
So what happened next?
Tulley thought of Eli, on his own at Drumore, Finbar being in the Maze, and the answer to his problem seemed obvious. Get to Drumore as fast as possible, transfer the bullion to the Maria Blanco, and take to the seas.
And did that work? she asked.
With difficulty, because of peoples wounds, but they made Eli, a man of enormous strength, help them. They intended to sail away, but it became obvious that Tulley and one of the other men were close to death and they were all bleeding.
What did you do? Hannah asked.
Well, you have to remember that the RUC did not know where they were, so if they took Elis Land Rover, there was hope for them at the cottage hospital nearby, where the nuns were kind.
And come back for the bullion later? Hannah asked. That seems a thin chance to me. What about Eli? What was he up to?
Not much. They found some old-fashioned shackles in the boathouse hanging on a peg with two keys, which they were careful to take with them when they left him chained.
And Tulleys boys?
The first roadblock was enough, and they held their hands up.
And Eli?
The police found him, still shackled. He said he heard the boats engines and managed to peer through a crack in the wall planking and glimpsed a shadow in the wheelhouse as the Maria Blanco moved out to sea.
And Tulley and company?
He was crippled. They were in the Maze together with Finbar when the legend of the Maria Blanco and its cargo was born. Dillon shrugged. The RUC looked at every possibility, turned the criminal underworld in Ulster inside out, but never got a hint, and thats the way it is to this day.
I bet it is. So what happened to Eli?
Well, as hed been a victim, life went on, Finbar serving his time in the Maze for another year, obsessed with the knowledge of what had happened. I think it was the fact of it all having taken place in Drumore and, because of that, having it somehow slip through his fingers that got to him.
Hannah nodded. I can see that. She was frowning. Sean, I hope you dont mind my saying that you seem incredibly knowledgeable about the whole business. Did you by chance have anything to do with it?
Thank God I didnt, he said cheerfully. Booked out of Belfast on the afternoon plane to London Heathrow, which I left the following morning on the ten-thirty flight to Algiers.
You wouldnt lie to me? she said.
Of course not. You cant be in two places at the same time. So lets leave the mystery of the Maria Blanco to continue to torment Finbar.
Thats all very well, cousin, she replied. But I think it will continue to torment a lot of people, including me. Twenty-five million in bullion, how much will that be now?
I wouldnt think about that; it will ruin the rest of your day.
Dillon laughed and turned into the safe house at Holland Park to find Fergusons Daimler parked there, and as he and Hannah got out of the Mini, Ferguson, Cazalet, and Blake emerged from the main entrance.
Ferguson said, Everything go all right at the funeral?
Not really, Dillon said. The father turned up, drunk as usual, and distinctly not wanted.
Always bad news, Finbar, Ferguson said. But weve been having a further development here. The Masters on the phone again. Roper will fill you in. Henry Frankels returned to Downing Street, and were off to join him and the Prime Minister.
Is there anything I can do? Dillon asked.
Yes, actually. Since youre an old IRA hand, the Prime Minister may value your opinion on al-Qaeda and ISIS and the possibility of them hitting the streets of London. If you can spare us the time, that is?
Dillon, at his most Irish, said, God save you, General, for giving me the opportunity to serve.
Get in, damn you, Ferguson ordered, which Dillon did.
Ferguson turned, a smile on his face. Impossible man, but what can one do? Youd better go and report to Major Roper, Hannah.
He climbed in beside Doyle, the Daimler moved away, and Hannah turned and went in.
ROPER, SMOKING A CIGARETTE, a glass of whiskey in his hand, leaned back in his wheelchair, Sara sitting beside him enjoying a coffee.
Wheres Dillon? he asked.
The general decided he should accompany them to Downing Street and that Sean might be useful because of his IRA experience.
Well, Dillon could certainly write the book on that.
Hannah jumped to Dillons defense. He had reason enough. His father died in a firefight in Belfast, so he was fighting a just cause.
So was I, defusing bombs all over Belfast, the kind that murdered your parents and crippled you.
I thought he was your friend. Hannah was angry, face flushed.
But he is, Roper said. Also an enigma. Fought the revolution worldwide, found it just as easy to work for the Israelis as he did the PLO. Learned Arabic when the IRA sent him to one of the Gaddafi training camps and discovered he had a gift for languages, and now he speaks several.
She looked bewildered. I didnt know all of that.
And you probably dont know this, Roper said. His attempt to blow up the Prime Minister and the War Cabinet almost succeeded. That was during the Gulf War.
Hannah took a deep breath. Damn him, he even plays the best barroom piano I ever heard.
A lively lad.
They were on their way in to lunch, but they got no farther than the door when an alert call sounded. Hang on, Roper said. Ferguson wants a word.
Fergusons face came on the screen from his office on the third floor of the ministry. Hannah could see paneled walls, a picture or two, and a mahogany desk that somehow suited Fergusons personality. Henry Frankel and Dillon sat on either side of him.
Frankel said, Just to let you know that President Cazalet has made it clear he intends to honor his speaking commitment, so well need to keep the security high. Hes at Downing Street now with Blake Johnson, and Ill be joining them soon.
Sara said, I imagine the White House will be annoyed that hes not returning to the States.
Perhaps, Ferguson told her. But these are troubled times, and good friends need to stand together.
So what do we need to do? Its like were going to war.
Dillon cut in. Someone once said that in war all a soldier knows is his own small part of the front. Al-Qaeda may be all over the world, but this is our part of the front. Weve disposed of two Masters already, and now we have a third. Our battle is to give him what we gave them.
Well said, Sean, Ferguson said.
There you go, Dillon said. Calling me Sean again.
On your way, you rogue, Ferguson told him. And dont forget to check underneath your car for bombs.
As if I would, Dillon said, and the screen faded to black.
ANY QUESTIONS? Roper asked Sara, but it was Hannah who replied.
If were going to war, who exactly are we going to war with?
Youve got your studies, Sara told her. Nobodys suggesting you should get involved in this.
But I live with you, Hannah said. For four years. That was the deal. I think I managed to prove myself last year when the going got tough.
You have a point, Roper said. And I know you also break the law by carrying a gun in your pocket. But your primary responsibility is the Royal College of Music, and dont you forget it.
I wont, Hannah said. But to take care, I need to know who the enemy is.
All right, Roper said. Besides the new Master, our own small part of the front, as Sean put it, has to do with the Muslim Brotherhood and the rascals at the Pound Street mosque. They had a go at us when Imam Hamid Bey was in charge there. His death was none of our doinga car crashbut a new man has just moved in there. His name is Yousef Shah, an Oxford graduate and an unknown quantity. Were going to be keeping a very close eye on him.
If I meet him, Ill remember to give him Seans favorite greeting, Hannah said. God bless all here.
Roper laughed, and said to Sara, I think shell do just fine. But speaking of security, if were a target, then so are those close to us, probably. I think its time you checked in with your grandfather, Sara.
SHE DID, but it was Sadie Cohen, the housekeeper, who answered the phone. So youve finally remembered where you live.
Weve been really busy, love, Sara told her. Things arent looking too good at the moment. General Ferguson was wondering whether you and Grandad would care to move in with us for a while just in case anyone might show an unhealthy interest.
You could be offering the Dorchester, but it wouldnt do you any good. Hes on his way to Leeds. Some important person has taken ill, tickets sold out, could Professor Rabbi Nathan Gideon step in. He said hed call you.