When he went up in the lift towards another routine day, the bitter taste of the midnight hours was still with him.
After Meyer had scuttled4 thankfully off to bed, Bond had taken the two packs of cards out of the pockets of his coat and had put them on the table in front of Basildon and M. One was the blue pack that Drax had cut to him and that he had pocketed, substituting instead, under cover of his handkerchief, the stacked blue pack in his right-hand pocket. The other was the stacked red pack in his left-hand pocket which had not been needed.
He fanned the red pack out on the table and showed M. and Basildon that it would have produced the same freak grand slam that had defeated Drax.
"It's a famous Culbertson hand," he explained. "He used it to spoof5 his own quick-trick conventions. I had to doctor a red and a blue pack. Couldn't know which colour I would be dealing6 with."
"Well, it certainly went with a bang," said Basildon gratefully. "I expect he'll put two and two together and either stay away or play straight in future. Expensive evening for him. Don't let's have any arguments about your winnings," he added. "You've done everyone-and particularly Drax-a good turn tonight. Things might have gone wrong. Then it would have been your fingers that would have got burned. Cheque will reach you on Saturday."
They had said good-night and Bond, in a mood of anticlimax7, had gone off to bed. He had taken a mild sleeping pill to try and clear his mind of the bizarre events of the evening and prepare himself for the morning and the office. Before he slept he reflected, as he had often reflected in other moments of triumph at the card table, that the gain to the winner is, in some odd way, always less than the loss to the loser.
When he closed the door behind him Loelia Ponsonby looked curiously8 at the dark shadows under his eyes. He noticed the glance, as she had intended.
He grinned. "Partly work and partly play," he explained. "In strictly9 masculine company," he added. "And thanks very much for the benzedrine. It really was badly needed. Hope I didn't interfere10 with your evening?"
"Of course not," she said, thinking of the dinner and the library book she had abandoned when Bond telephoned. She looked down at her shorthand pad. "The Chief of Staff telephoned half an hour ago. He said that M. would be wanting you today. He couldn't say when. I told him that you've got Unarmed Combat at three and he said to cancel it. That's all, except the dockets left over from yesterday."
"Thank heavens," said Bond. "I couldn't have stood being thrown about by that dam' Commando chap today. Any news of 008?"
"Yes," she said. "They say he's all right. He's been moved to the military hospital at Wahnerheide. Apparently11 it's only shock."
Bond knew what 'shock' might mean in his profession. "Good," he said without conviction. He smiled at her and went into his office and closed the door.
He walked decisively round his desk to the chair, sat down, and pulled the top file towards him. Monday was gone. This was Tuesday. A new day. Closing his mind to his headache and to thoughts about the night, he lit a cigarette and opened the brown folder12 with the Top Secret red star on it. It was a memorandum13 from the Office of the Chief Preventive Officer of the United States Customs Branch and it was headed The Inspectoscope.
He focused his eyes.
'The Inspectoscope,' he read, 'is an instrument using fluoroscopic principles for the detection of contraband14. It is manufactured by the Sicular Inspectoscope Company of San Francisco and is widely used in American prisons for the secret detection of metal objects concealed15 in the clothing or on the person of criminals and prison visitors. It is also used in the detection of IDE (Illicit Diamond Buying) and diamond smuggling16 in the diamond fields of Africa and Brazil. The instrument costs seven thousand dollars, is approximately eight feet long by seven feet high and weighs nearly three tons. It requires two trained operators. Experiments have been made with this instrument in the customs hall of the International Airport at Idlewild with the following results…'
Bond skipped two pages containing details of a number of petty smuggling cases and studied the 'Summary of Conclusions' from which he deduced, with some irritation17, that he would have to think of some place other than his armpit for carrying his .25 Beretta the next time he travelled abroad. He made a mental note to discuss the problem with the Technical Devices Section.
He ticked and initialled the distribution slip and automatically reached for the next folder entitled Philopon. A Japanese murder-drug.
'Philopon', his mind was trying to wander and he dragged it sharply back to the typewritten pages.
'Philopon is the chief factor in the increase in crime in Japan. According to the Welfare Ministry18 there are now 1,500,000 addicts20 in the country, of whom one million are under the age of 20, and the Tokyo Metropolitan21 Police attribute 70 per cent of juvenile22 crime to the influences of the drug.
'Addiction23, as in the case of marijuana in the United States, begins with one "shot". The effect is "stimulating24" and the drug is habit-forming. It is also cheap-about ten yen25 (sixpence) a shot-and the addict19 rapidly increases his shots to the neighbourhood of one hundred a day. In these quantities the addiction becomes expensive and the victim automatically turns to crime to pay for the drug. That the crime often includes physical assault and murder is due to a peculiar26 property of the drug. It induces an acute persecution27 complex in the addict who becomes prey28 to the illusion that people want to kill him and that he is always being followed with harmful intent. He will turn with his feet and fists, or with a razor, on a stranger in the streets who he thinks has scrutinized29 him offensively. Less advanced addicts tend to avoid an old friend who has reached the one hundred shots a day dosage, and this of course merely increases his feeling of persecution.
'In this way murder becomes an act of self-defence, virtuous30 and justified31, and it will readily be seen what a dangerous weapon it can become in the handling and direction of organized crime by a "master-mind".
Thilopon has been traced as the motive32 power behind the notorious Bar Mecca murder case and as a result of that unpleasant affair the police rounded up more than 5000 purveyors of the drug in a matter of weeks.
'As usual Korean nationals are being blamed…"
Suddenly Bond rebelled. What the hell was he doing reading all this stuff? When would he conceivably require to know about a Japanese murder-drug called Philopon?
Inattentively he skimmed through the remaining pages, ticked himself off the distribution slip, and threw the docket into his out-tray.
His headache was still sitting over his right eye as if it had been nailed there. He opened one of the drawers of his desk and took out a bottle of Phensic. He considered asking his secretary for a glass of water, but he disliked being cossetted. With distaste he crunched33 two tablets between his teeth and swallowed down the harsh powder.
Then he lit a cigarette and got up and stood by the window. He looked across the green panorama34 far below him and, without seeing it, let his eyes wander aimlessly along the jagged horizon of London while his mind focused on the strange events of the night before.
And the more he thought about it, the stranger it all seemed.
Why should Drax, a millionaire, a public hero, a man with a unique position in the country, why should this remarkable35 man cheat at cards? What could he achieve by it? What could he prove to himself? Did he think that he was so much a law unto himself, so far above the common herd36 and their puny37 canons of behaviour that he could spit in the face of public opinion?
Bond's mind paused. Spit in their faces. That just about described his manner at Blades. The combination of superiority and scorn. As if he was dealing with human muck so far beneath contempt that there was no need to put up even a pretence38 of decent behaviour in its company.
Presumably Drax enjoyed gambling39. Perhaps it eased the tensions in him, the tensions that showed in his harsh voice, his nail-biting, the constant sweating. But he mustn't lose. It would be contemptible40 to lose to these inferior people. So, at whatever risk, he must cheat his way to victory. As for the possibility of detection, presumably he thought that he could bluster41 his way out of any corner. If he thought about it at all. And people with obsessions43, reflected Bond, were blind to danger. They even courted it in a perverse44 way. Kleptomaniacs45 would try to steal more and more difficult objects. Sex maniacs46 would parade their importunities as if they were longing48 to be arrested. Pyromaniacs49 often made no attempt to avoid being linked with their fire-raising.
But what obsession42 was it that was consuming this man? What was the origin of the compulsive urge that was driving him down the steep hill into the sea?
All the signs pointed50 to paranoia51. Delusions52 of grandeur53 and, behind that, of persecution. The contempt in his face. The bullying54 voice. The expression of secret triumph with which he had met defeat after a moment of bitter collapse55. . The triumph of the maniac47 who knows that whatever the facts may say he is right. Whoever may try to thwart56 him he can overcome. For him there is no defeat because of his secret power. He knows how to make gold. He can fly like a bird. He is almighty-the man in the padded cell who is God. Yes, thought Bond, gazing blindly out over Regent's Park. That is the solution. Sir Hugo Drax is a raving57 paranoiac58. That is the power which has driven him on, by devious59 routes, to make his millions. That is the mainspring of the gift to England of this giant rocket that will annihilate60 our enemies. Thanks to the all-powerful Drax.
But who can tell how near to breaking-point this man is? Who has penetrated61 behind that bluster, behind all that red hair on his face, who has read the signs as more than the effect of his humble62 origins or of sensitivity about his war wounds?
Apparently no one. Then was he, Bond, right in his analysis? What was it based on? Was this glimpse through a shuttered window into a man's soul sufficient evidence? Perhaps others had caught such a glimpse. Perhaps there had been other moments of supreme63 tension in Singapore, Hong Kong, Nigeria, Tangier, when some merchant sitting across a table from Drax had noticed the sweat and the bitten nails and the red blaze of the eyes in the face from which all the blood had suddenly been drained.
If one had time, thought Bond, one ought to seek those people out, if they existed, and really find out about this man, perhaps get him in the killing-bottle before it was too late.
Too late? Bond smiled to himself. What was he being so dramatic about? What had this man done to him? Made him a present of ?15,000. Bond shrugged64. It was none of his business anyway. But that last remark of his, 'Spend it quickly, Commander Bond.' What had he meant by that? It must be those words, Bond reflected, that had stayed in the back of his mind and made him ponder so carefully over the problem of Drax.
Bond turned brusquely away from the window. To hell with it, he thought. I'm getting obsessed65 myself. Now then. Fifteen thousand pounds. A miraculous66 windfall. All right then, he would spend it quickly. He sat down at his desk and picked up a pencil. He thought for a moment and then wrote carefully on a memorandum pad headed 'Top Secret':
(1) Rolls-Bentley Convertible67, say ?5000.
(2) Three diamond clips at ?250 each, ?750.
He paused. That still left nearly ?10,000. Some clothes, paint the flat, a set of the new Henry Cotton irons, a few dozen of the Taittinger champagne. But those could wait. He would go that afternoon and buy the clips and talk to Bentleys. Put all the rest into gold shares. Make a fortune. Retire.
In angry protest the red telephone splintered the silence "Can you come up? M. wants you." It was the Chief of Staff, speaking urgently.
"Coming," said Bond, suddenly alert. "Any clue?"
"Search me," said the Chief of Staff. "Hasn't touched his signals yet. Been over at the Yard and the Ministry of Supply all the morning."
He rang off.
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1
acidity
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| n.酸度，酸性 | |
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champagne
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| n.香槟酒；微黄色 | |
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melancholy
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| n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的 | |
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scuttled
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| v.使船沉没( scuttle的过去式和过去分词 )；快跑，急走 | |
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spoof
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| n.诳骗，愚弄，戏弄 | |
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dealing
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| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
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anticlimax
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| n.令人扫兴的结局；突降法 | |
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curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 | |
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strictly
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| adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地 | |
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interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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folder
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| n.纸夹，文件夹 | |
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memorandum
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| n.备忘录，便笺 | |
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contraband
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| n.违禁品，走私品 | |
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concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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smuggling
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| n.走私 | |
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irritation
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| n.激怒，恼怒，生气 | |
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18
ministry
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| n.(政府的)部；牧师 | |
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addict
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| v.使沉溺；使上瘾；n.沉溺于不良嗜好的人 | |
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addicts
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| 有…瘾的人( addict的名词复数 )； 入迷的人 | |
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metropolitan
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| adj.大城市的，大都会的 | |
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juvenile
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| n.青少年，少年读物；adj.青少年的，幼稚的 | |
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addiction
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| n.上瘾入迷，嗜好 | |
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stimulating
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| adj.有启发性的，能激发人思考的 | |
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yen
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| n. 日元；热望 | |
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peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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persecution
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| n. 迫害,烦扰 | |
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prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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scrutinized
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| v.仔细检查，详审( scrutinize的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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virtuous
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| adj.有品德的，善良的，贞洁的，有效力的 | |
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justified
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| a.正当的，有理的 | |
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motive
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| n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的 | |
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crunched
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| v.嘎吱嘎吱地咬嚼( crunch的过去式和过去分词 )；嘎吱作响；（快速大量地）处理信息；数字捣弄 | |
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panorama
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| n.全景，全景画，全景摄影，全景照片[装置] | |
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remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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herd
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| n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起 | |
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puny
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| adj.微不足道的，弱小的 | |
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pretence
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| n.假装，作假；借口，口实；虚伪；虚饰 | |
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gambling
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| n.赌博；投机 | |
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contemptible
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| adj.可鄙的，可轻视的，卑劣的 | |
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bluster
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| v.猛刮；怒冲冲的说；n.吓唬，怒号；狂风声 | |
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42
obsession
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| n.困扰，无法摆脱的思想(或情感) | |
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obsessions
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| n.使人痴迷的人（或物）( obsession的名词复数 )；着魔；困扰 | |
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perverse
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| adj.刚愎的；坚持错误的，行为反常的 | |
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kleptomaniacs
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| n.患偷窃狂者，有偷窃癖者( kleptomaniac的名词复数 ) | |
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maniacs
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| n.疯子（maniac的复数形式） | |
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maniac
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| n.精神癫狂的人；疯子 | |
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longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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pyromaniacs
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| n.放火狂( pyromaniac的名词复数 ) | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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paranoia
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| n.妄想狂，偏执狂；多疑症 | |
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delusions
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| n.欺骗( delusion的名词复数 )；谬见；错觉；妄想 | |
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53
grandeur
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| n.伟大，崇高，宏伟，庄严，豪华 | |
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54
bullying
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| v.恐吓，威逼( bully的现在分词 )；豪；跋扈 | |
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55
collapse
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| vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷 | |
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56
thwart
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| v.阻挠，妨碍，反对；adj.横(断的) | |
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raving
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| adj.说胡话的；疯狂的，怒吼的；非常漂亮的；令人醉心[痴心]的v.胡言乱语(rave的现在分词)n.胡话；疯话adv.胡言乱语地；疯狂地 | |
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58
paranoiac
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| n.偏执狂患者 | |
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59
devious
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| adj.不坦率的，狡猾的；迂回的，曲折的 | |
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annihilate
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| v.使无效；毁灭；取消 | |
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61
penetrated
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| adj. 击穿的，鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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62
humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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64
shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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obsessed
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| adj.心神不宁的,鬼迷心窍的,沉迷的 | |
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66
miraculous
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| adj.像奇迹一样的，不可思议的 | |
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convertible
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| adj.可改变的，可交换，同意义的；n.有活动摺篷的汽车 | |
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