Part 11 (1/2)
”What lady?”
”At the hotel, one of the guests, she ca's plane She knew your na She wants to see you I told her I would see you tonight and give you the e”
”What is she like?” I asked Marion with interest ”She's beautiful, Mister Harry Such a lady too”
”Sounds like reed], and ordered a pint for Marion
”Aren't you going to see her now? ” With you beside me, Marion, all the beautiful ladies of the world can wait until tomorrow”
”Oh, Mister Harry, you are a real devil led a little closer
”Harry,” said Chubby onto tell you nohat I never told you before” He took a long s fro in his eyes ”Harry, I love you, man I love you better than my own brother”
I went up to the Hilton a few h from her cubicle behind the reception desk She still had her earphones around her neck
”She's waiting for you on the terrace” She pointed across the vast reception area with its emaz Hawaiian decor ”The blonde lady in the yellow bikini”
She was reading asun couches, and she had her back to me so my first impression was of masses of blonde hair, thick and shi+ny, teased up like the olden cascade
She heard lanced around, pushed her sunglasses up on top of her head, then she stood up to faceto reach not her than my chest The bikini also was tiny and showed a flat shtly tanned, ss had lovely lines and her neat little feet were thrust into open sandals, the nails painted clear red to ernails Her hands as she pushed at her hair were small and shapely
She wore heavy make-up, but wore it with rare skill, so that her skin had a soft pearly lustre and colour glowed subtly on her cheeks and lips Her eyes had long dark artificial lashes, and the eyelids were touched with colour and line to give the deep inside , and I almost obeyed I knew this type well, there had been others like her - sly feline - I had scars to prove it, scars both physical and spiritual However, one thing nobody can say about old Harry is that he runs for cover when the knickers are down
Courageously I stepped forward, crinkling rin that usually dynamites them
”hello I said, ”I' at aze lingered speculatively and she pouted her lower lip
”hello,” she answered, her voice was husky, breathlesssounding - and carefully rehearsed ”I'm Sherry North, Jimmy North's sister”
We were on the veranda of the shack in the evening It was cool and the Wspectacular sunset was a display of pyrotechnics that fla a Pimms No I filled with fruit and ice one of ht floating stuff through which her body showed in shadowy outline as she stood against the rail backlit by the sunset I could not be certain as to whether or not she wore anything beneath the kaftan - this and the tinkle of ice in her glass distractedShe had showed it to me as part of her credentials It was a letter fronized the handwriting and the turn of phrase was typical of that bright and eager lad As I read on, I forgot the sister's presence in theletter, written as though to a loving friend, with veiled references to the mission and its successful outcome, the prohter and all good things
I felt a pang of regret and personal loss for the boy in his lonely sea grave, for the lost drea seaweed
Then suddenly e at h-looking, all scarred and beat up like an old toht But under it, I swear he is really a softy He seeives me fatherly advice!-” There was more in the same vein that embarrassed me so that my throat closed up and I took a shisky, which made my eyes water and the words shile I finished the letter and refolded it
I handed it to Sherry, and walked away to the end of the veranda
I stood there for a while looking out over the bay
The sun slid below the horizon and suddenly it was dark and chill
I went back and lit the lalare did not fall in our eyes She watched me in silence until I had poured another Scotch and settled in my cane, backed chair
”Okay,” I said, ”you're” Jimmy's sister You've come to St Mary's to see me Why?”
”You liked him, didn't you?” she asked, as she left the rail and came to sit beside me
”I like a lot of people It's a weakness of mine” ”Did he die - I mean, was it like they said in the newspapers?” ”Yes” I said ”It was like that”
”Did he ever tell you what they were doing out here?”
I shook ey - and I don't ask questions”
She was silent then, dipping long tapered fingers into her glass to pick out a slice of pineapple, nibbling at the fruit with sue like that of a cat
”Because Jimmy liked and trusted you, and because I think you know more than you've told anyone, also because I need your help, I a to tell you a story - okay?”
”I love stories,” I said
”Have you heard of the ”pogo, stick'T she asked ,, it's a child's toy”
”It's also the code name for an American naval experimental vertical take-off all-weather strike aircraft”
”Oh yes, I reazine Questions in the Senate I forget the details”
”There was opposition to the fifty million developo, on the 16th August to be precise, a prototype ”pogo stick” took off from Rawano airforce base in the Indian Ocean it was armed with four air-to-surface ”killer whale” missiles, each of them equipped with tactical nuclear warheads----”
”That e”
She nodded ”The ”killer whale” is designed as an entirely new concept in missiles It is an anti-subed naval craft It can kill an aircraft carrier or it can change its eleo down a thousand fathoms to destroy enemy submarines”I said, and took a littleheady stuff now
”Do you recall the 16th August that year - were you here?”
”I was here, but that's a long tio Refresh my memory”
”Cyclone Cynthia,”she said
”God, of course” It had co across the island, winds of 150away the roof of the shack and als in Grand Harbour These cyclones were not uncoo stick!” took off from Rawano a few minutes before the typhoon struck Twelve minutes later the pilot ejected and the aircraft went into the sea with her four nuclear ht recorder still aboard Rawano radar was blanked out by the typhoon They were not tracking”
it was starting to make some sort of sense at last ”How does Jiesture ”Wait,” she said, then went on