Page 54 of Echoes of Betrayal

CHAPTER 46

Tom stood in the doorway of her apartment, a sheepish smile on his face. ‘Good morning, Elizabeth. Sorry to call so early.’

The tension gradually left Lizzie’s body, and she stared at Tom, her heart still pumping. ‘Thank God it’s you,’ she whispered.

‘Why, who were you expecting?’

‘I’ll tell you all. Come in. Just give me a minute to get dressed.’

When Lizzie returned dressed for the office, she made tea and told Tom the saga of the apartment being tossed and her sleeping on the sofa, ready for another visitor.

‘Oh, my goodness, why didn’t you call me last night on the emergency contact number I gave you?’

Lizzie sipped her tea. ‘I didn’t think there was any reason to bother you. I thought it safer not to go out, and besides, the chances were slim they would return.’

Tom fixed her with a knowing stare. ‘Elizabeth Gale, you didn’t think I could protect you, did you? Me being just a lowly desk agent.’

Lizzie shrugged. ‘Well, I am trained for this sort of thing. Seemed pointless disturbing you to come and sleep in a chair when I was on guard, anyway.’

‘You make a good argument. My skills lie elsewhere, which brings me to the reason for my visit.’

‘Go on,’ Lizzie said. ‘Have you got my travel to London confirmed?’

‘That too, but first, you won’t believe what happened earlier. I couldn’t sleep as I was on edge with all this going on, and I wanted to check for an overnight message confirming your pickup. I was in the cipher room and sure enough, it had come in. Then I went out to the back garden like I do when the weather’s fine and I was smoking one of my secret cigarettes when I noticed a movement in the cipher room out the corner of my eye.’

Lizzie finished her tea. ‘Don’t tell me Voss’s men broke into the Legation too? Surely that would risk causing a major diplomatic incident, which is exactly what he’s trying so hard to avoid.’

‘No, not Voss’s men as such, but perhaps one of Voss’s men,’ Tom said, his tone cryptic.

‘Could you see what he was doing?’ Lizzie asked.

‘I edged close to the window and saw someone poking about behind the picture frames.’

Lizzie inhaled sharply. ‘Oh my God. Did he find the ledger copies?’

Tom nodded. ‘I watched as he removed both lots and stuck them in his pocket. Then I had to hide as he turned around and left the room.’

‘You didn’t try to stop him?’ Lizzie asked.

Tom raised one eyebrow and cast her a rueful glance. ‘I thought we established I’m not the violent kind. Anyway, I decided it was better to stand back and let him think he got away with it unseen.’

Lizzie nodded, contemplating the situation. ‘Yes, that was wise, actually. As long as I get the camera to London, we should have all we need. I was considering whether to risk taking the physical copies too, just in case there are any problems with developing the film, but that presents the considerable danger of me being searched at the border and someone discovering the documents.’

‘Your dilemma is no more, then, I’m afraid.’

‘Hold on, did you recognise the man?’ Lizzie asked.

Tom paused, then said, ‘That’s the really shocking bit. It was Pemberton.’

As Lizzie’s mouth gaped, she stared at Tom. ‘Pemberton! So, he’s been working with Voss all along?’

‘Seems so. You were onto him from the beginning, and I shrugged off your concerns. He always seemed like a superficial sort. I would never have suspected him of anything treasonous.’

Lizzie nodded as all the pieces of her early suspicions—the instinct to search his office and the way he was always entertaining Swiss bigwigs without taking his translator along—fell into place. ‘What a duplicitous bastard,’ she said.

‘He’s been in Bern for years, and no one suspected him until you arrived. No wonder he got in a panic when Voss told him you were poking about at Brunner & Cie. I bet he’s on the payroll of Swiss counterintelligence and his job is to smooth British and Swiss commerce along and not ask questions.’

‘He knew I was with SOE early on,’ Lizzie said, remembering their conversation.