This United State Part 30

'You seem to have thought of everything.'

'I believed so - until you made your remark about your loudhailer. I expect this to be a straightforward operation. We shall arrest everyone on board, saying we have been tipped off that the barge is carrying drugs. They'll wave their diplomatic pa.s.sports, particularly if Ronstadt is aboard. I'll say I think they are producing phoney doc.u.mentation and have to check with their authorities. Ronstadt will think I mean their Berne Emba.s.sy, but in due course I'll contact Washington. Meantime we interrogate the pa.s.sengers.'

'You've thought it out well. Have you had a complaint from the Berne Emba.s.sy?'

'Not a cheep, as I think you sometimes say. Obviously he was bluffing. Rather a giveaway.'

'It's after 4 pm,' Tweed said. 'If they stick to their timetable the Minotaur Minotaur is coming.' is coming.'

'And here we are at the landing stage.'

27.

They were transported in unmarked police cars from headquarters to the far side of the river. The route took them over the bridge Tweed could see when he looked right - upstream - from his bedroom window. Beck drove the first car with Tweed sitting next to him, nursing the canvas holdall in his lap. In the rear sat Paula and Newman. The others were in a similar car following behind them.

'The Minotaur Minotaur will come downriver on this side,' Beck explained. 'I've had a report from my officer watching the vessel that a number of people in cars drove into the yard, then when they came out they only had the driver in each vehicle. So the party is aboard.' will come downriver on this side,' Beck explained. 'I've had a report from my officer watching the vessel that a number of people in cars drove into the yard, then when they came out they only had the driver in each vehicle. So the party is aboard.'

'Did your officer wait - to see if those cars returned?' Tweed asked.

'No, he didn't. Why would the cars return so quickly?'

'I just wondered.'

A strong wind had blown up suddenly. Crossing the bridge, Paula noticed wavelets ruffling the surface of the Rhine. She hoped the tablet she had given Tweed would work. It was likely to be choppy aboard a launch. Added to the wind, an army of low dark clouds swept over the city, creating a heavy pall. Beck had driven into the city on the other hank and then turned right along a course parallel to the river.

'You have your own launch, as requested,' he told Tweed. 'I am in the big one brought out of the boat shed. There will be three other launches, packed with my men. One of them has boarding equipment - just in case we meet resistance when I order the Minotaur Minotaur to heave to. I shall do that further downriver, near the harbour.' to heave to. I shall do that further downriver, near the harbour.'

'I have a loudhailer here. If I order all launches to speed away from the barge they must do so very quickly.'

'What would cause you to do that?' Beck asked in surprise.

'An emergency. A dangerous one.'

'If you say so. You usually know what you're doing.

All launches have wireless communication, but the skipper of each one also has a mobile phone, as I have.'

'If it comes to it, use the mobile. It will be quicker.'

'I should have checked earlier. You do have someone experienced in handling a high-powered launch?'.

'Two,' Tweed replied. 'Newman and Marler.'

'We have cordoned off a section of the riverfront with police tape,' Beck went on. 'To keep the public away from where our launches are a.s.sembled.'

'You seem to have thought of everything.'

'I believed so - until you made your remark about your loudhailer. I expect this to be a straightforward operation. We shall arrest everyone on board, saying we have been tipped off that the barge is carrying drugs. They'll wave their diplomatic pa.s.sports, particularly if Ronstadt is aboard. I'll say I think they are producing phoney doc.u.mentation and have to check with their authorities. Ronstadt will think I mean their Berne Emba.s.sy, but in due course I'll contact Washington. Meantime we interrogate the pa.s.sengers.'

, 'You've thought it out well. Have you had a complaint from the Berne Emba.s.sy?'

'Not a cheep, as I think you sometimes say. Obviously he was bluffing. Rather a giveaway.'

'It's after 4 pm,' Tweed said. 'If they stick to their timetable the Minotaur Minotaur is coming.' is coming.'

'And here we are at the landing stage.'

To Paula's surprise Tweed hurried aboard the large launch allocated to them. He then made his way to the bow, one hand holding on to the gunwale, the other gripping the loudhailer.

Even while berthed at the landing stage the launch was swaying. The motion seemed to have no effect on him. He gazed back upriver for his first sight of the barge. The other four launches, crammed with police, were waiting to take off.

Beck's very large launch had a bridge at a higher level. The word Polizei Polizei appeared on its sides and stern. Above the bridge was mounted a large searchlight and a prominent horn. Beck came back from his vessel to Tweed's launch. appeared on its sides and stern. Above the bridge was mounted a large searchlight and a prominent horn. Beck came back from his vessel to Tweed's launch.

'The plan is to let the Minotaur Minotaur pa.s.s us, then we go after it when it has gone under the bridge. The current is flowing strongly, so you may be surprised how quickly it will reach the bridge. Good luck...' pa.s.s us, then we go after it when it has gone under the bridge. The current is flowing strongly, so you may be surprised how quickly it will reach the bridge. Good luck...'

The wind cut through Paula's coat like a knife. She was hoping the barge would appear soon. Then one of the policemen from Beck's launch appeared, carrying an armful of oilskins. Handing them to Newman, who had been experimenting with the engine, he called out above the wind.

'All of you put these on. Extra warmth. Stop you getting soaked.'

'Thanks a lot,' said Newman.

'This is better,' said Paula, putting the oilskin over her coat.

Tweed sat down to put on his oilskin, then immediately stood up again. There were no other craft on the Rhine and no public to gawk at them from behind the distant tape. The weather had kept them indoors.

'Here she comes,' Tweed called out.

Round a bend in the river a ma.s.sive barge loomed into view. The conversion to a pa.s.senger craft had been extensive. Huge portholes like giant eyes had been cut out of the hull. Tweed noticed that curtains were closed across all of them. Behind each one a light glowed.

'They've got music,' he called out.

'Didn't expect this,' Paula responded.

'Well, it's supposed to be a pleasure craft,' Newman remarked as he turned off the engine.

He had been surprised at the power it generated. These launches could really move, he decided. The strains of the 'Blue Danube' waltz grew louder. Hardly appropriate for the Rhine, Paula was thinking. There was no sign of anyone on board, but she wouldn't expect pa.s.sengers to be flaunting themselves on deck in weather like this.

'I can see the helmsman,' Tweed called out. 'In the cabin at the stern.'

'Appears to be by himself,' Marler commented.

'Only takes one man to hold the wheel,' Newman told him.

None of the launches had started their engines. Tweed guessed that Beck had ordered them to maintain silence until the huge barge had pa.s.sed them. He wouldn't want to alert the people on board to his flotilla waiting to pounce.

Even though she was wearing her gloves Paula's hands were beginning to chill. Butler and Nield, standing up, were slapping their arms vigorously round their bodies. Despite the cold, Paula sensed an air of tension, of suppressed excitement aboard their launch. They were within a few minutes of rounding up the whole American gang which had descended on Basel.

Coining closer and closer, the barge seemed even more enormous than she had expected. Its bow wave swept out like a minor tidal wave, causing their launches to rock madly when it reached them. Tweed remained standing up, still gripping the gunwale, staring fixedly at the monster.

As far as Paula could tell, he seemed focused on the shadowy silhouette of the burly helmsman inside his cabin. He was standing stock-still, his hands moving the wheel slightly for a moment. He never glanced to port or starboard. His whole concentration was ahead, on the bridge where he would soon pa.s.s through one of the large arches.

Beck, inside his own bridge, was equally motionless. He did not give the barge a glance as its immense hull started to sweep past. The Minotaur Minotaur was so long it seemed to take ages to pa.s.s them, even though travelling at speed with the current. There were a number of dinghies, powered by outboard motors, on the main deck. A poor subst.i.tute for lifeboats, Paula was thinking. was so long it seemed to take ages to pa.s.s them, even though travelling at speed with the current. There were a number of dinghies, powered by outboard motors, on the main deck. A poor subst.i.tute for lifeboats, Paula was thinking.

Eventually the stern of the Minotaur Minotaur loomed above them and the vessel approached the arch under the bridge. Paula saw Tweed had put his loudhailer down at his feet, and was now using a pair of binoculars to scan the barge. As far as she could tell, he was focused on the cabin and the helmsman inside. loomed above them and the vessel approached the arch under the bridge. Paula saw Tweed had put his loudhailer down at his feet, and was now using a pair of binoculars to scan the barge. As far as she could tell, he was focused on the cabin and the helmsman inside.

The barge pa.s.sed under the bridge, was now opposite the Three Kings. It struck her that anyone sitting by the windows at the rear of the lobby would have a ringside view. Beck was still erect and still as a statue, his eyes glued to the receding barge. Once he glanced at his watch. Paula guessed he had estimated the barge's speed, was waiting for it to reach a certain point on the river.

Looking back onsh.o.r.e, she noticed the cars which had brought them had disappeared. She wondered where they would eventually land. Then she remembered Beck had said something about ordering the barge to heave to further downriver, near the harbour. Maybe the cars had been driven there, waiting to pick them up as pa.s.sengers again.

The stern of the barge had vanished from sight. Surely Beck was cutting the timing a bit fine? As though he had read her mind, he raised his right hand, held it aloft, staring at his wrist.w.a.tch. The engines of the launches burst into action, but remained at the landing stage. Then Beck dropped his hand.

The launch he was aboard moved off when one of his men freed the rope holding it to a bollard. Marler unleashed them in the same way and they sped out on to the Rhine. Paula noticed that the strong current was giving them extra speed. Tweed, the binoculars dropped from a loop round his neck, the loudhailer gripped in his hand, turned to shout at Newman, who was gripping the wheel.

'Bob! Get ahead of Beck. Get this d.a.m.ned launch moving!'

'Doesn't expect much, does he?' Newman said to Marler.

He opened full throttle and the launch soared forward while Tweed gripped the gunwale with both hands. They were skimming over the waves as Beck pa.s.sed under the bridge. Newman was still behind him as their launch sped through the arch under the bridge. In the distance Paula could see the Minotaur Minotaur again. The barge was about to pa.s.s under another bridge. Tweed again turned round to shout a fresh order at Newman. again. The barge was about to pa.s.s under another bridge. Tweed again turned round to shout a fresh order at Newman.

'Keep us as close to the sh.o.r.e as you safely can. Do get a move on!'

'What does he think I'm doing!' Newman snapped to Marler. 'Paddling across the Serpentine?'

He changed course to obey Tweed's command. Paula couldn't understand what Tweed was up to. Beck's craft was in the middle of the Rhine - or as close as he could be without leaving the official channel for vessels moving downstream. Paula was so intent on watching what was happening ahead she forgot to glance at the Three Kings as they pa.s.sed it.

Newman was coaxing an extra burst of speed out of his engine after changing course, which had lost him a few seconds. Seated, as everyone else was, except Tweed and Newman, Paula looked back quickly. The other police launches were racing close behind them. It was then that she remembered Newman had once taken part in a powerboat race off Cannes. Up against some well-known names, he had won the race.

Beck's launch pa.s.sed under the second bridge. Newman, with a determined look on his face, roared through the arch, was now almost alongside Beck with a safe distance between the two craft. Beck was waving him back but Newman thundered on, inched his way ahead. Paula, who had been gazing back at Newman, turned to face the way they were going and was taken aback when she saw how close they were to the Minotaur Minotaur, pa.s.sing a well-known pharmaceutical firm's headquarters on the opposite bank.

Now they were a short distance ahead of Beck. In the bow Tweed was hanging on to the gunwale with one hand. With the other he had the binoculars pressed against his eyes. He saw the helmsman leave his cabin, throw overboard a dinghy attached to the barge with a tow rope. ' He followed this by throwing over the side a rope ladder, was starting to descend it when Tweed dropped his binoculars, s.n.a.t.c.hed up the loudhailer.

'Everyone get away from that barge. Move away at top speed as far as you can. MOVE!'

'Flee for your lives...'

To Paula, his thunderous commands reminded her of recordings she had heard of Churchill speaking. The moment he began his warning she saw Beck using his mobile. The helmsman from the barge had landed in his dinghy, cut the rope linking him to the barge, started his outboard, moving towards the sh.o.r.e.

'Hang on like grim death!' shouted Newman.

Paula, one hand already holding the gunwale, used the other to grip the underside of the plank she was sitting on. She leaned back. Newman swung his wheel hard over. The launch swung in a violent U-turn, so fast, so suddenly, Paula knew they were going to capsize. For the first time Tweed had sat down, had both hands gripping the gunwale.

The launch swung over at an angle of almost forty-five degrees. Vaguely, as in a film speeded up, Paula saw Beck's craft heading back upstream. The other police launches were also swinging round, speeding away. She shook her head to clear her vision, looked back, froze, still looking back.

The Minotaur Minotaur exploded like a giant bomb. The exploded like a giant bomb. The boom! boom! echoed down the Rhine. A huge piece of the hull rocketed across the water, struck a large craft anch.o.r.ed to a buoy near the opposite sh.o.r.e. The craft, fortunately empty, disappeared altogether. Another section of the hull broke off, elevated high above the river, then plunged downwards, landing in the river at the very point where Newman's launch had been. It plunged below the surface. Half the stern broke away, skidded across the water, dived out of sight where Beck's launch had been a few seconds earlier. echoed down the Rhine. A huge piece of the hull rocketed across the water, struck a large craft anch.o.r.ed to a buoy near the opposite sh.o.r.e. The craft, fortunately empty, disappeared altogether. Another section of the hull broke off, elevated high above the river, then plunged downwards, landing in the river at the very point where Newman's launch had been. It plunged below the surface. Half the stern broke away, skidded across the water, dived out of sight where Beck's launch had been a few seconds earlier.

Newman, had just successfully completed his manoeuvre, was racing upriver in the wrong channel, when the shock wave from the explosion hit them. Like a blast of hot air from a furnace it hit their launch when it had just stabilized. They were rocked from side to side but Newman continued speeding them away from the inferno. The other police launches had escaped certain destruction.

Paula's teeth were chattering - whether from fright or the cold she wasn't sure. Then Beck's calm voice was carried over the water through his loudhailer.

'Everyone follow me. I'm taking you in to a landing stage.'

'I could do with a bit of terra firma terra firma under my feet,' called out Tweed, his voice as calm as Beck's. under my feet,' called out Tweed, his voice as calm as Beck's.

When they climbed, stiff-legged, out of the. launch, Beck's craft was already moored to the other side. As he walked across to speak to Tweed Paula looked back down the Rhine. From what remained of the wrecked barge flames were blazing upwards, a glare in the near- dark. Fire-boats, which had appeared from nowhere, were directing great jets of water from hoses onto the fire.

'What about the pa.s.sengers?' she asked.

'There weren't any,' Tweed told her. 'Otherwise we'd have seen at least a few of them on deck. Only the helmsman was aboard. I think he fixed the wheel to keep the barge on course before he escaped in his outboard. I caught a glimpse of him diving into a waiting car after he'd reached the sh.o.r.e. The bomb, I feel sure, was detonated from a distance by radio - once the helmsman got clear.'

'You expected something like this?' demanded Beck grimly.

'I didn't know what to expect - whether, in fact, to expect anything. I was just suspicious of the way the information reached us.'

'You can see your cars have arrived. I called them on my mobile. We'll drive you back to your hotel. Paula, are you in shock?'

'No. But thank you for asking. What I do need is a cup of something hot to drink.'

'You'll get that at the hotel. Tweed, I'll want to talk to you later,' Beck snapped.

28.

Arriving back at the Three Kings, they climbed out of the two unmarked police cars. Tweed bent down to speak to Beck, behind the wheel, through his open window. The second car deposited Marler, Butler and Nield, who waited.

'Thank you for the lift,' Tweed said. 'I'm sorry it turned out to be such a grim fiasco.'

'We'll talk later,' Beck replied abruptly.

Newman was the last to enter the hotel. He had hung around outside, on the lookout for hostile watchers. There didn't seem to be any. He went inside and b.u.mped into Basil Windermere, as always smartly turned out. He wore a new camel-hair coat.

'How are you, Bob?' he began. 'Just the chap I was hoping to meet. Tell you what, we'll go into the bar, have a drink and a chin-wag.'

It was on the tip of Newman's tongue to refuse. But he was startled to see Windermere in Basel. Tweed had not had time to tell him of the presence of Rupert and Windermere. He decided he'd better find out what was going on. Reluctantly, he agreed. They took off their coats on the way to the bar, which was beyond two restaurants adjoining each other.