Page 116 - double revenge 3.

THE BRICKLAYERS
TH
TUESDAY APRIL 28 1998
The babble did not quieten to a hush but it certainly took on an air of expectation as I entered the
Bricklayers.

Mex raised an arm towards Sylvie, which acted as the cue for a resumption of the chatter.

We both waited for Sylvie to deliver my pint.

‘OK. You go first.’ Mex instructed.

‘It’s an awful lot of whys, Mex.’

‘Ok shoot.’

‘Why did you set Gabriela up as Arnold Warner’s fiancée? Why did you set up the villa in Spain as
an URNG headquarters? Why did you have me tailed? Why did you give her a fake memo to give to
me? Why have you allowed a psychopathic special operations unit to commit four murders in
London and finally, why are you so interested in the so-called Guatemala memo?

Mex leant forward so that he could lower his voice.

‘Ok. Let me answer in no particular order as they say on award shows. There is an absolutely top-
secret operation in Guatemala. Chinese Commies running a country in South America for Chris’
sake? That has to elicit a response and not just from Washington. Everybody knows that must be so
but no one wants the proof. The proof, apparently, is in that memo, wherever it came from. It has
to be found and destroyed for everyone’s sakes. Langley had information that your wife may have
come by the memo. After her unfortunate accident the onus fell on you, had she given it to you,
were you keeping it out of sight because you didn’t know what to do with it? It wasn’t just us who

suspected that. Six must also have been thinking the same way, which is why they particularly
wanted you to find it. They thought you might just stick your hands up, “hey guys, it was in my
bedside cabinet all the time”.’

‘And Gabriela, presumably, was the honey pot who would wheedle out the truth from me?’

‘Hey no way! I would never do that to you. Sure, I wanted her to get close to you to see what she
could find out but if sex was involved then it was because she wanted it. She had no orders

whatsoever to get you in the sack. I repeat, if she wanted sex then that was her choice entirely. The
story about being Warner’s fiancé and the URNG thing was to keep you interested. Her flat being
emptied and the sob story about having to stop at a brothel in Bayswater was an extra to see if you
would take her in, not to sleep with her but to give her an opportunity to search your apartment.’

‘And I suppose going to Spain gave you an opportunity to fully search my apartment?’

Mex shrugged his shoulders and nodded agreement. ‘I am truly sorry, I am not proud of doing that
to a friend but you have to believe me, this memo is that important, it is the only justification. Look,