The Rainbow Affair - McDaniel David (книги хорошем качестве бесплатно без регистрации .txt) 📗

Rainbow paused, and looked thoughtful. Above and behind the seated Thrush, Napoleon and Illya I at each other and wondered. But finally he shook his head.

"I'm afraid your offer, though attractive, will not be able to tempt me. I have my own uses for these men."

The Thrush shifted his weight uneasily. "The local satrap wants these men," he said, "and will therefore have them."

Johnnie Rainbow rose and looked down at him. "These men are my personal prisoners, and mine to be done with as I please. I am not pleased to give them over to you."

The man in the gray suit allowed the trace of an edge to appear in his voice. "Mr. Rainbow, please sit down." The command was voiced in such a way that when Johnnie gradually sank to his chair it seemed as though he was obeying. His visitor continued. "We have invested quite a fair amount in you. Many of our most advanced devices were given to you for field testing, and you have made considerable profit through them. You owe us a debt for this, and the time has come for payment. Give us the U.N.C.L.E. agents."

Rainbow was recovering his aplomb. "Why are you suddenly so anxious to have them? Surely you have had better opportunities than now."

"They have acquired great strategic importance; how, does not concern you."

"I'm sorry. As my prisoners, they are my responsibility. And I could not hand control of their fate over to you. Although my dark career sometimes involves the crime of stealing,'" he quoted, "I do prefer to draw the line at cold murder."

The Thrush paused and looked at him. "Come now, Mr. Rainbow. I can think of no fewer than ... twenty-seven in which your organization has been involved."

Rainbow leaned forward, and his face was dark. "Falsehood, sir!" he said. "In five years, only six killings have been the direct result of my operations, and those were accidental and regrettable. My work is robbery, sir - not murder."

"Nevertheless, it must happen from time to time. You should know what lengths are necessary for survival, let alone success. You have the ability, the character, and the talents an organization like Thrush needs. You have a high level of competence, and would rise far in our Hierarchy. This little island of England is nothing, compared to the area you could control. With us behind you, your network could expand over all of Europe. And we would be able to apply your powers to what ever problems faced us."

The man in the gray suit looked around the room. "This little hole in the rock is like Robin Hood's cave. How far do you think you can go, with your center of operations out here in the wilderness? Join our efforts, and this little island of Donzerly will be only a crude starting place. All England and as much of the rest of the world as you could command, when we have achieved our goal."

This took several seconds to recover from. Rainbow cleared his throat and his moustache fluttered. "Perhaps we have missed an understanding," he said slowly. "Power, per se, has no especial attraction for me. I'm not in this business for power - I'm in it for money. And the challenge." He smiled suddenly. "It's the greatest game in the world. And you people are being too bloody serious about it." He stood up again and held out his hand. "I'm afraid you can't have the U.N.C.L.E. agents, my good man. I hope you have enjoyed your trip out here, because you will have no other satisfaction to take back with you. Good afternoon."

The man in the gray suit rose slowly to his feet. Napoleon and Illya could not see his face, but his voice was tightly controlled. "We have indeed missed an understanding. We will have those men from you one way or another, and you may never control Europe if you persist in your stubbornness."

"I have no desire to control Europe. They probably deserve whatever troubles they have, and I'd rather let them fight. England holds all I shall ever want or need." He smiled. "The Bank of England, the Crown Jewels, the British Museum... I am satisfied with much less than the whole world, but I will not part with what I have."

The Thrush picked up his bowler and his briefcase. "If you are not willing to work with us, Mr. Rainbow, you certainly cannot be allowed to continue working at cross-purposes. We are a worldwide organization, and for a local operation to interfere with our larger plans is unheard of. If this sounds like a threat, please accept it as such."

Rainbow stood firmly, but his face clouded again. "Damme, sir, if I will give over to a bunch of heaven-forsaken foreigners. The finest police force in the world has been unable to run me to earth - you found me only by a stroke of fortune. You could not stop me and my men if it were to be an all-out war. My men are of the people, and can move among them at will. You will find few good men willing to join your organization in this country."

The visitor remained unmoved. "You will contact us as you have been instructed within the next twelve hours," he said. "Four-thirty tomorrow morning. Before that time you will have agreed to a price for these men. There is no alternative."

He turned and left. A messenger closed the door, and Johnnie Rainbow sank slowly into his seat. After several seconds he spoke again in a normal voice. "Mr. Solo - Mr. Kuryakin. Come down to the office again, please."

They descended the narrow stairs and rejoined their host. He looked up as they entered, and a trace of strain showed around his eyes.

"I give you my word, gentlemen, that this was not prearranged. Thrush is indeed pecking at my heels." He gestured them back to their seats, and continued. "It was by no means altruistic that I withheld you from their grasp. My ancestry is Scots, and wanton wastefulness is alien to my nature. I believe Thrush merely wanted to establish mastery over me. But I will not give way to them. I consider them not only melodramatic to the point of foolishness, but far too enamored of simple violence for my tastes. I have reached a point, gentlemen, where I need no longer take orders from men whom I do not respect.

"Thrush may be able to defeat me - they have the power, certainly, but I question their ability." He smiled briefly. "I expect to take a lot of killing. At this moment, since this is apparently to be a war, I must do all I can to inflict damage on my enemy before his impending attack. I have an advantage over him because of the extreme amorphousness of my operation. I have less than thirty people working for me full-time; all my labor is contracted out to independents who know nothing beyond their assignment. Thrush, on the other hand, has a fairly large central organization with a number of local semi-autonomous things -"

"Satraps," said Illya. "Although the correct term is 'satrapy' for the local group, and 'satrap' being the individual in charge. The meaning has slipped askew in three or four thousand years."

"Thrush Central is large," agreed Napoleon, "but highly mobile. It seems to be able to be anywhere in the world, but it doesn't stay there, but it doesn't move. We hope to get a little more data on this sometime. The satrapies are in constant communication with Central, where the Ultimate Computer is located."

Rainbow nodded. "They keep in touch by means of a miniaturized satellite computer on a random time sharing basis. The satrap has a small computer-combined-with-multiplex-transceiver. The whole thing can travel in a large suitcase or a small trunk. It is tied into the Master, which in this case is the Ultimate Computer, and is used for most secure messages, instant access to all data anywhere within the organization, daily orders, and all record storage. A Thrush-backed small business with a satellite computer can edge out its competition because it will not have to buy time on a computer or maintain one."