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Harry sat back down and began to concentrate If this , he’d better be wide awake

“Your brother-in-law once toldthat I found difficult to believe Perhaps you’d be kind enough to indulge ”

“Politicians do have a tendency to do that”

Sir Alan didn’t reply but sile sheet of paper, slid it across the table, and said, “Would you be kind enough to read that through slowly?”

Harry looked at aseveral place-names and details of troop movements in the Home Counties, with the ranks of all the senior officers involved He read the seven paragraphs as instructed, and when he’d finished, he looked up and nodded The cabinet secretary retrieved the piece of paper and replaced it on the table with a lined pad and a biro

“Would you now be kind enough to write out what you’ve just read?”

Harry decided to play the ga When he’d finished, he passed the pad to the cabinet secretary, who coinal

“So it’s true,” he said a few raphic h you made one mistake”

“Godal and not Godmanchester?” said Harry “Just wanted toattention”

A man as not easily impressed was impressed

“So are you hoping to recruit me for your pub quiz team?” asked Harry

Sir Alan

didn’t smile “No, I’m afraid it’s a little more serious than that, Mr Clifton In May you’ll be travelling to Moscow as the president of English PEN Our ambassador there, Sir Humphrey Trevelyan, has come into possession of a docu it in the diplomatic pouch”

“Can I ask its contents?”

“It’s a comprehensive list of the na in the UK Sir Hu it back in your head, ould be able to dismantle the entire Soviet spy network in this country, and as no docuer”