| The captain raised the first glass and toasted the couple; he returned to the flight deck as
the old woman winked at her man, the wink wicked and filled with laughterIn moments, the
passengers began boarding the plane, a number of whom glancing appreciatively at the elderly
?man and wife? in the front rowFor the rumors had spread in the Air France loungeLe Grand Charles himself In the Alps he held off six hundred Boche?or was it a thousand?
As the enormous jet raced down the runway and with a thump lumbered off the ground into the
air, the old ?hero of France??whose only heroics he could recall from the R?sistance were based
on theft, survival, insults to his woman, and staying out of whatever army or labor force that might
draft him?reached into his pocket for his papersThe passport had his picture duly louis vuitton purses inserted, but
that was the only item he recognizedThe rest?name, date and place of birth, occupation?all
were unfamiliar, and the attached list of honors, well, they were formidableTotally out of
character, but in case anyone should ever refer to them, he had better restudy the ?facts? so he
could at least nod in self-effacing modestyHe had been assured that the individual originally
possessing the name and the achievements had no living relatives and few friends, and had
disappeared from his apartment in Marseilles supposedly on a world trip from which he presumably
would not return
The Jackal?s courier looked at the name?he must remember it and respond whenever it was
spokenIt should not be difficult, for it was such a common nameAnd so he repeated it silently to
himself over and over again
Jean Pierre Fontaine, omega constellation lady watch Jean Pierre Fontaine, Jean Pierre
A sound! Sharp, abrasiveIt was wrong, not normal, not part of a hotel?s routine noise of hollow
drumming at nightBourne grabbed the weapon by his pillow and rolled out of bed in his shorts,
steadying himself by the wallIt came again! A single, loud knock on the bedroom door of the
suiteHe shook his head trying to rememberAlex? I?ll knock onceJason lurched half in sleep to
the door, his ear against the wood
Robert Ludlum ?? THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
60
?Yes??
?Open this damn thing before somebody sees me!? came Conklin?s muffled voice from the
corridorBourne did so and the retired field officer limped quickly into the room, treating his cane
as if he loathed it?Boy, are you out of training!? he exclaimed as he sat on the foot of the bed
?I?ve been standing there tapping for at tiffany necklace least a couple of minutes
?Delta would have; Jason Bourne would have
?Give me another day and you won?t find David WebbI want you better than talk!?
?Then stop talking and tell me why you?re here?at whatever time it is
?When last I looked I met Casset on the road at three-twentyI had to gimp through a bunch of
woods and climb over a goddamned fence??
?What??
?You heard meTry it with your foot in cementYou know, I once won the fiftyyard
dash when I was in high school
?Cut the digressionWhat happened??
?Oh, I hear Webb again
?What happened? And while you?re at it, who the hell is this Casset you keep talking about??
?The only man I trust in Virginia
?Who??
?They?re analysts, but they?re straight
?What??
?Never mindJesus, there are times when I wish I could get pissed??
?Alex, why are you here??
Conklin gucci leather wallets looked up from the bed as he angrily gripped his cane?I?ve got the books on our
Philadelphians
?That?s why? Who are they??
?No, that?s not whyI mean it?s interesting, but it?s not why I?m here
?Then why?? asked Jason, crossing to a chair next to a window and sitting down, frowning,
perplexed?My erudite friend from Cambodia and beyond doesn?t climb over fences with his foot
in cement at three o?clock in the morning unless he thinks he has to
?Which tells me nothing
?What?s the soul??
?Not ?the,? DeSole
?He?s the keeper of the keys at LangleyNothing happens that he doesn?t know about and
nothing gets done in the area of research that he doesn?t pass on
?We?re in deep shit
?That doesn?t help me at all
?Would you rather I took a nerve out of your neck??
?All right, all right Conklin dropped his cane on the louis vuitton metallic bags ru |
| 