if.goldfinger-第54章
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'Listen； shamus。 If you've got any plaints about the stage management you can tell them to the President。 He took personal mand of this operation and it's a honey。 There's a spotter plane overhead now。 They'll pick up the diesel and we'll have old Goldilocks in the hoosegow by midday。 How were we to know he was going to stay aboard the train？' He broke off and thumped Bond between the shoulderblades。 'Hell； I'm glad to see you。 These men and I were detailed off to give you protection。 We've been dodging around looking for you and getting shot at by both sides for our pains。' He turned to the soldiers。 'Ain't that right； men？'
They laughed。 'Sure is； Cap'n。'
Bond looked affectionately at the Texan with whom he had shared so many adventures。 He said seriously； 'Bless you； Felix。 You've always been good at saving my life。 It was darn nearly too late this time。 I'm afraid Tilly Masterton's had it。' He walked off up the train with Felix at his heels。 The little figure still lay sprawled where she had fallen。 Bond knelt beside her。 The broken…doll angle of the head was enough。 He felt for her pulse。 He got up。 He said softly； 'Poor little bitch。 She didn't think much of men。' He looked defensively at Leiter。 'Felix； I could have got her away if she'd only followed me。'
Leiter didn't understand。 He put his hand on Bond's arm and said； 'Sure kid。 Take it easy。' He turned to his men。 'Two of you carry the girl into the QM's office over there。 O'Brien； you go for the ambulance。 When you've done that； stop over at the mand post and give 'em the facts。 Say we've got mander Bond and I'll bring him right over。'
Bond stood and looked down at the little empty tangle of limbs and clothes。 He saw the bright； proud girl with the spotted handkerchief round her hair in the flying TR3。 Now she had gone。
High up over his head a whirling speck soared into the sky。 It reached the top of its flight and paused。 There came the sharp crack of the maroon。 It was the cease…fire。
CHAPTER TWENTY…TWO
THE LAST TRICK
IT WAS two days later。 Felix Leiter was weaving the black Studillac fast through the lanes of dawdling traffic on the Triborough bridge。 There was plenty of time to catch Bond's plane； the evening BOAC Monarch to London； but Leiter enjoyed shaking up Bond's low opinion of American cars。 Now the steel hook that he used for a right hand banged the gear lever into second and the low black car leapt for a narrow space between a giant refrigerator truck and a mooning Oldsmobile whose rear window was almost obscured by holiday stickers。
Bond's body jerked back with the kick of the 300 b。h。p。 and his teeth snapped shut。 When the manoeuvre was pleted； and the angry hooting had vanished behind them； Bond said mildly； 'It's time you graduated out of the Kiddi…car class and bought yourself an express carriage。 You want to get cracking。 This pedalling along ages one。 One of these days you'll stop moving altogether and when you stop moving is when you start to die。'
Leiter laughed。 He said； 'See that green light ahead？ Bet I can make it before it goes red。' The car leapt forward as if it had been kicked。 There was a brief hiatus in Bond's life； an impression of snipe…like flight and of a steel wall of cars that someone parted before the whiplash of Leiter's triple klaxons； a hundred yards when the speedometer touched ninety and they were across the lights and cruising genteelly along in the centre lane。
Bond said calmly； 'You meet the wrong traffic cop arid that Pinkerton card of yours won't be good enough。 It isn't so much that you drive slowly； it's holding back the cars behind they'll book you for。 The sort of car you need is a nice elderly Rolls Royce Silver Ghost with big plate…glass windows so you can enjoy the beauties of nature' … Bond gestured towards a huge automobile junk heap on their right。 'Maximum fifty and it can stop and even go backwards if you want to。 Bulb horn。 Suit your sedate style。 Matter of fact there should be one on the market soon … Goldfinger's。 And by the same token； what the hell's happened to Goldfinger？ Haven't they caught up with him yet？'
Leiter glanced at his watch and edged into the outside lane。 He brought the car down to forty。 He said seriously； 'Tell you the truth； we're all a bit worried。 The papers are needling us； or rather Edgar Hoover's crowd； like hell。 First they had a gripe at the security clamp…down on you。 We couldn't tell them that wasn't our fault and that someone in London； an old limey called M； had insisted on it。 So they're getting their own back。 Say we're dragging our feet and so forth。 And I'm telling you； James' … Leiter's voice was glum； apologetic … 'we just haven't a clue。 They caught up with the diesel。 Goldfinger had fixed the controls at thirty and had let it run on down the line。 Somewhere he and the Korean had got off and probably this Galore girl and the four hoods as well because they've vanished too。 We found his truck con voy； of course； waiting on the east…bound highway out of Elizabethville。 But never a driver； most probably scattered； but somewhere there's Goldfinger and a pretty tough team hiding up。 They didn't get to the Sverdlovsk cruiser at Norfolk。 We had a plain…clothes guard scattered round the docks and they report that she sailed to schedule without any strangers going aboard。 Not a cat's been near that warehouse on East River and no one's shown at Idlewild or the frontiers … Mexico and Canada。 For my money； that Jed Midnight has somehow got them out to Cuba。 If they'd taken two or three trucks from the convoy and driven like hell they could have got down to Florida； somewhere like Daytona Beach； by the early hours of D ＋ l。 And Midnight's darn well organized down there。 The Coast Guards and the Air Force have put out all they've got； but nothing's shown yet。 But they could have hidden up during the day and got over to Cuba during the night。 It's got everybody worried as hell and it's no help that the President's hopping mad。'
Bond had spent the previous day in Washington treading the thickest； richest red carpet。 There had been speeches at the Bureau of the Mint； a big brass lunch at the Pentagon； an embarrassing quarter of an hour with the President； and the rest of the day had been hard work with a team of stenographers in Edgar Hoover's suite of offices with a colleague of Bond's from Station A sitting in。 At the end of that； there had been a brisk quarter of an hour's talk with M on the Embassy transatlantic scrambler。 M had told him what had been happening on the European end of the case。 As Bond had expected； Goldfinger's cable to Universal Export had been treated as emergency。 The factories at Reculver and Coppet had been searched and extra evidence of the gold smuggling racket had been found。 The Indian Government had been warned about the Mecca plane that was already en route for Bombay and that end of the operation was on the way to being cleaned up。 The Swiss Special Brigade had quickly found Bond's car and had got on to the route by which Bond and the girl had been taken to America； but there； at Idlewild； the FBI had lost the scent。 M seemed pleased with the way Bond had handled Operation Grand Slam； but he said the Bank of England were worrying him about Goldfinger's twenty million pounds in gold。 Goldfinger had assembled all this at the Paragon Safe Deposit Co in
New York but had withdrawn it on D…l。 He and his men had driven it away in a covered truck。 The Bank of England had ready an Order in Council to impound the gold when it was found and there would then be a case to prove that it had been smuggled out of England； or at least that it was originally smuggled gold whose value had been increased by various doubtful means。 But this was now being handled by the US Treasury and the FBI and； since M had no jurisdiction in America； Bond had better e home at once and help tidy things up。 Oh yes … at the end of the conversation M's voice had sounded gruff … there had been a very kind request to the PM that Bond should be allowed to accept the American Medal of Merit。 Of course M had had to explain via the PM that the Service didn't go in for those sort of things…particularly from foreign countries； however friendly the
