Delta: A Spy Novel

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Decrioux – Cloying – looked rather pleased with himself, running a hand through his hair as he looked at us to see our reactions. I kept my face studiously blank, and eventually he opened his mouth once more.

“I had the world at my feet. At last my plan could be carried through – and the world would change forever. My first step? Finding a loyal army. For that, I went to Portugal and discovered a guerilla unit that has proved quite useful to me.”

Jay’s story was true then, at least partially. I couldn’t help glancing at him as I thought this, watching his eyes avoid me as if he was ashamed of it. Why had he joined then? He must have known I would think of him like this.

“And then I found what I consider perhaps my greatest addition.” The smile on Cloying’s face was positively canine. “Mr. Nicholson here. An ex-Delta agent! What could possibly be more useful?”

But useful for what?

I threw Jay the dirtiest look I could muster, which probably ended up looking more desperate than anything. Feeling Charlie tense beside me, I hoped he wouldn’t say anything, wouldn’t lose his temper at the mention of Jay. I could only imagine what Pierre was thinking – he still didn’t understand who Jay was.

“And so now I could put my plan into motion. Unfortunately, it seemed some agencies were rather suspicious of me. Drug dealer, can you imagine?” Cloying laughed, a cold, harsh sound that made me suppress a shiver. “As if my motives weren’t entirely the opposite…luckily I had my own Delta agent as a – what do you Americans say? – a Benedict Arnold.”

“A what?” Pierre didn’t seem to be able to help himself. Apparently the notion of someone making fun of his country, albeit inaccurately, was beyond what he could handle. I was almost amused.

Cloying waved a dismissive hand. “It matters not.”

Well, that might not have mattered, but the fact that I was completely lost did. I glanced at the others to make sure I hadn’t missed something. So Cloying wasn’t actually a drug dealer? Then why did Delta think he was? I mean, Delta was hardly an agency to get their facts wrong…which made me wonder if perhaps what Jay had done was real. But if they hadn’t known that Cloying wasn’t actually a drug dealer…

Cloying’s voice was sickly sweet. “What matters is that I have the master weapon against whatever your agency or any other intelligence service can throw at me. Now my plan is ready to put into motion – all I need is you three exterminated.”

“Excuse me,” Charlie interrupted, his voice rising above Cloying’s in a boorish tone that almost made me smile. “But what plan are you talking about?”

With a mysterious smile, Cloying began that irritating pacing back and forth again, for so long this time that I nearly gnawed through my lip in agonized impatience. What was going through Jay’s mind? Was he regretting joining Cloying and his mad motives, whatever they were? Or was that all an act?

Cloying was still pacing. I was about ready to kill the man then and there, when his abrupt halt caught me off-balance as he turned to face us, his dark eyes glimmering with a strange light as he spoke softly.