Part 1 (1/2)

James Bond

Licence Renewed

John Gardner

Acknowledgements

I would like, especially, to thank the Board of Directors of Glidrose Publications Ltd, the owners of the Jaup where Mr Ian Fle 007 into the 1980s In particular, my thanks to Mr Dennis Joss and Mr Peter Janson-Sinal 'Go-Between'

We have becole the mind that I would like to point out to any unbelievers that all the 'hardware' used by Mr Bond in this story is genuine Everything provided by Q Branch and carried by Bond - even the modifications to Mr Bond's Saab - is obtainable on either the open, or clandestine,details about such equipment I am especially indebted to Communication Control Systems Ltd and, more particularly, to the delicious Ms Jo Ann O'Neill and the redoubtable Sidney

As for the inventions of Anton Murik, Laird of Murcaldy, only time will tell

1981, John Gardner

1

Passenger for flight 154

The ht hair, cut neatly to collar length Stocky, and around five feet three inches in height, he wore crumpled jeans, a T-shi+rt and sneakers A trained observer would have particularly noted the piercing light blue eyes, above which thin brows arched in long curves that almost met above the slim nose

The man's face was thin in comparison with his body, and the complexion a shade dark in contrast to the colour of the hair He carried a s the washroo carefully past a dungareed cleaner as h without enthusiasm

Once inside, the man slid the bolt and placed the suitcase on the lavatory seat, opening it to re to strip as far as his white undershorts

Before reers expertly below the hairline at his te to reveal close-cropped natural hair underneath

With a finger and thurasped the corner of his left eyebrow and pulled, as a nurse will quickly rip sticking plaster froether hat see black, untrimmed, thick lines of natural hair in their place

The h he was trying to beat a clock Fro it around his waist, pulling tightly at the lacing, giving the i the waistline, and an illusion of ht Within a few seconds the latter illusion was strengthened Carefully folding the jeans and T-shi+rt, the man pushed his socks into his abandoned sneakers, and pulled on a new pair of dark grey socks, followed by well-cut lightweight charcoal grey trousers and black slip-on shoes, into which were built what actors call 'lifts': adding a good two inches to his nor the mirror on the door, he now donned a white silk shi+rt, and knotted a pearl grey tie into place, before opening an oblong plastic box that had been lying - held in place by the shoes on either side-directly beneath the corset, socks, trousers and shi+rt, in the suitcase

The plastic box contained new components for the e those distinctive light blue eyes to a deep, almost jet, black Next, he inserted small, shaped foam rubber pads into his cheeks which fattened the face While they were in place he would not be able to eat or drink, but thatthe desired effect

The piece de resistance was a tailor-made short beard and moustache, sculpted froenuine bristles overhanging the flexible frame which, when he set it correctly in place on his chin and lower lip, gave the ie The beard had been made specially, in New York, by an expert who dubiously clainerian singer, Ludwig Leichner, inventor of theatrical greasepaint

Theback at hi the new picture with a pair of steel-fralass lensed, spectacles Leichner's unproven relative apart, the unrecognisable person looking out frouise artist in his own right It was part of his stock-intrade - probably the least lethal part - and he had studied under topale he had culled fro,the anony Up, by 'Haresfoot and Rouge', and the other standard works by Leerald

Now he closed the oblong box, removed a jacket, which matched the trousers, from the case, filled his pockets with an assortment of items-wallet, passport, travel docue and notes - and took a final look at hi with extreital watch around his left wrist and rehtly fitting cover, which, when slipped into place over the suitcase, gave it an outer skin: changing the colour frolossy black Lastly, he closed up, slid the new skin around the case, and spun the nu a final look around, the man checked his pockets and left the cubicle, conisable as the person who had entered He walked straight to the exit, then out, across the concourse, to the check-in desk

Inside the washroo the tiled floor, leaned his squeegee against the wall and left He also headed across the concourse, passing close to the check-in desk, and going to a door marked Private, which he unlocked with a personal key Inside the small room there was a table, chair and telephone

As the ht EI 154 fro cleaner was speaking rapidly into the telephone The tiht forty-five ahts in a Surrey Lane

Jaear, drifted the Saab 900 Turbo into a tight left-hand turn, clinging to the grass verge, then put on a fractionthe car out of the bend

He was driving through a complicated series of country lanes - backdoubles as London cabbies would call the fields and cathedral arches of trees threading the byways of Surrey It was a cross-country route that would, finally, take hiood roads, into London

Bond was travelling ital instruments, reflected in the windshi+eld of this personalised Saab, told hi seventy erous for this kind of secondary road The h a series of S-bends Gently common sense took over, and Bond applied a touch to the brakes, reducing speed to a ry

Already that evening he had made the same journey, in the opposite direction, to his recently acquired and newly decorated country cottage Now on this beautiful Friday evening in early June, he was driving at breakneck speed back to London

The week-end had been planned for some time, and, as the builders and decorators had just moved out, this was to have been his first free week-end at the cottage Further standing - an agile, superbly nubile blonde he had known - as Bill Tanner, M's Chief-of-Staff put it - 'on and off for years' The fact that she lived only six reatly influenced Bond's purchase On that Friday, he had co the office for lunch, so that he could get out of the hot chaos of London traffic in good tian

The countryside was at its best; theinto the car, bringing with it a sense of well-being and content rare for Bond these days

James Bond was not a superstitious , he had noticed there see and fluttering across the roads and lanes like black and white dice in a gae, 'One for sorroo for joy' There were a lot of single e, Bond put a bottle of Donificent or the ar he had ever tasted

He then went into the downstairs spare room, discarded the somewhat conservative business suit, and showered, first under a scalding spray, then with ice cold water, which see hih towel, Bond rubbed a sne into his skin before putting on a pair of lightweight worsted navy slacks, and a white Sea Island cotton shi+rt He slipped into co the old and valued gold Rolex Oyster Perpetual on to his wrist when the telephone rang

It wasThe red 'phone His heart sank Both here, at the cottage, and in his London flat off the King's Road, James Bond was required to have two telephones: one for norh unlisted; and a second, red instruled piece of equipment, without dial or number punches Called, in his trade, a 'wiretap trap', this secure, sterile, unbuggable 'phone was linked directly to the building overlooking Regent's Park, known as the headquarters of Transworld Export Ltd

Before he had even put a hand to the 'phone, Bond experienced his first flash of mild annoyance The only reason for a call froency: or a state of readiness created by M for Bond's benefit Bond's annoyance was, possibly, heightened by the fact that, of late,in a control or coh a co which ended with orders to abort the planned ed, and Bond did not like some of the political restraints placed on the Secret Service, for which he had worked with fidelity for longer than he cared to remember

He picked up the red 'phone

'James?' As Bond expected, it was Bill Tanner's voice on the line Bond grunted a surly affirmative 'M wants you here,' Tanner said, in a voice flat as a billiards table

'Now?'

'His actual words are not for the telephone, but he indicated that sooner than noould be ?' Bondquickly inside his head as he saw an idyllic week-end filtering away, like an excellent bottle of wine being poured down the drain

'Now,' repeated the Chief-of-Staff, closing the line

As he reached the Guildford by-pass, Bond reirl friend's voice when he had telephoned to say the week-end was off He supposed that should be some consolation - not that there was much to console Bond these days There had even been ti - to use the jargon, 'go private' Argot changes At one time the phrase would haveworld; changing tio, when breaking the news that the elite Double-O status - whichabolished 'Fools of politicians have no idea of our require'