'Yes.'

'You weren't; I said, 'pushed or anything?'

'Oh no. I slipped.'

Egerton didn't turn his head. 'Why did you ask him that?'

'I don't know how deep he's got into things out there. He could have found out a bit too much,'

Merrick said. prissily: 'Those people are my friends.'

'Don't trust them. Don't walk too near the kerb. And the next time you keep a rendezvous with me make sure you're clean, is that a lot to ask?'

Gratuitous of course, telling him in front of his director, but I was suddenly fed up with his harping on people being his friends. One fine day he'd trust a friend too many and next time they'd make sure his head went right under the wheel.

Egerton asked: 'When did this happen?'

'This morning. We had to jump on a bus.'

Merrick was leaning forward. 'You mean we were being followed?'

'Just watch it, in Warsaw.',

Egerton said: 'You're quite certain, Longstreet?'

'Am I what?' He folded his gloved hands, accepting the rebuke. I said, 'The F.O.'s lousy with tags, always has been, they hang about like tarts.'

'Yes. Never mind, Merrick, you're only just out of training, after all.'

The bus in front got moving again and at Marble Arch we dropped him off, Egerton just saying he'd be kept informed. The poor little tick started looking behind him as soon as he'd got out.

'You mustn't expect too much, at this stage.'

'I don't expect anything. Now that you've seen him d'you still want me to take him out there?'

'They didn't have time to give him more than a token training, as I'm sure you — '

'It's not only that. He's the worst agent material I've ever set eyes on: idealistic, unstable and a bag of nerves. I suppose you know he's got asthma, do you?'

'It's in his report,' he said rather tartly. 'But there's no pollen out there in the winter months.'