Webb was to approach him and say, “The flight... Webb was to approach him and say, “The flight was
very smooth If the man removed his cap and started the engine, David was to climb in the
backseatNothing more would be said
Nothing more was said, not between Webb and the driverHowever, the latter reached under the
dashboard, removed a microphone and spoke quietly but clearly“Our cargo’s on boardPlease
commence rotating vehicle cover
David thought that the exotic procedures bordered on the laughable, but since Alex Conklin had
traced him to the Rockwell jet’s departure area at Logan Airport, and, further, had reached him on
Director Peter Holland’s private override telephone, he assumed the two of them knew what they
were doingIt crossed Webb’s mind that it had something to do with Mo Panov’s call to him nine
hours agoIt was all but confirmed when Holland
prada replica handbags himself got on the phone insisting that he drive
down to Hartford and take a commercial flight out of Bradley to Washington, adding enigmatically
that he wanted no further telephone communication or private or government aircraft involved
This particular government-oriented car, however, wasted no time getting out of National
AirportIt seemed as if in only minutes they were rushing through the countryside and, only
minimally less rapidly, through the suburbs of VirginiaThey swung up to the private gate of an
expensive garden apartment complex, the sign reading VIENNA VILLAS, after the township in
which it was locatedThe guard obviously recognized the driver and waved him through as the
heavy bar across the entrance was raisedIt was only then that the driver spoke directly to Webb
“This place has five separate
tas hermes sections over as many acres, sirFour of them are legitimate
condominiums with regular owners, but the fifth, the one farthest from the gate, is an Agency
proprietary with its own road and securityYou couldn’t be healthier, sir
“I didn’t feel particularly sickYou’re DCI cargo and your health is very important to him
“That’s nice to know, but how do you know?”
“I’m part of the team, sir
“In that case, what’s your name?”
The driver was silent for a moment, and when he answered, David had the uneasy feeling that he
was being propelled back in time, to a time he knew he was reentering“We don’t have names, sir
You don’t and I don’t
“I understand,” said Webb The driver swung the car around a circular drive and stopped in front of a twostory
Colonial structure that looked as though the fluted white pillars might have been
dior rasta bag made of
Carrara marble“Excuse me, sir, I just noticedYou don’t have any luggage
“No, I don’t,” said David, opening the door
Robert Ludlum ?? THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
32
“How do you like my temporary digs?” asked Alex, waving his hand around the tastefully
appointed apartment
“Too neat and too clean for a cantankerous old bachelor,” replied David“And since when did
you go in for floral curtains with pink and yellow daisies?”
“Wait’ll you see the wallpaper in my bedroom
“I’m not sure I care to
“Your room has hyacinthsOf course, I wouldn’t know a hyacinth if it jumped up and choked
me, but that’s what the maid said
“The maid?”
“Late forties and black and built like a sumo wrestlerShe also carries two popguns under her
skirt and, rumor has it, several straight razors
“Some high-powered patrolShe doesn’t let a bar
chanel black tote bag of soap or a roll of toilet paper in here that
doesn’t come from LangleyYou know, she’s a pay-grade ten and some of these clowns leave her
tips
“Do they need any waiters?”
“That’s goodOur scholar, Webb the waiter
“Jason Bourne’s been one
Conklin paused, then spoke seriously“Let’s get to him,” he said, limping to an armchair“By
the way, you’ve had a rough day and it’s not even noon, so if you want a drink there’s a full bar
behind those puce shutters next to the windowDon’t look at me like that, our black Brunhilde
said they were puce
Webb laughed; it was a low, genuine laugh as he looked at his friend“It doesn’t bother you a
bit, does it, Alex?”
“Hell, no, you know thatHave you ever hid any liquor from me when I visited you and Marie?”
“There was never any stress—”
“Stress is irrelevant,” Conklin broke
cartier santos 100 in