@@@@@Gun fire, my old comradeThose involved
@@@@@Gun fire, my
old comradeThose involved escaped believing they had killed me! Say nothing, do nothing
Leave these people alone
“You are incomprehensible—”
“And you are a foolIf for any reason whatsoever there is the slightest possibility that even one
of those killers is ordered to return here, there can be no impediments
“Now you are inscrutable
“Not at all,” protested Bernardine as the firemen hosed down the flames of the van, their efforts
augmented by giant extinguishers“Send your people into each building, inquiring if everything is
all right, explaining that the authorities have determined the terrible events on the boulevard were
criminally orientedThe crisis has passed; there is no further alarm
“But is that true?”
“It’s what we want them to believe An ambulance stormed into the street followed by two
additional patrol cars, all the sirens at maximum volumeFrom the rue d’Alésia, apartment dwellers
had gathered at both corners, many in hastily pulled—on street attire—trousers and undershirts—
while others were in night clothes—frayed bathrobes and worn slippersNoting that the Jackal’s
van was now a smoldering mass of twisted steel and shattered glass, Bernardine continued: “Give
the crowds time to satisfy their morbid viewing, then send men to disperse themIn an hour or so,
when the rubble is under control and the bodies carted away, proclaim loudly to your police
detachment that the emergency is over, ordering all but one man back to the precinctThat man is
to remain here on duty until the debris is cleared from the boulevardHe is also to be instructed not
to interfere with anyone leaving the buildings, is that clear?”
“Not for a momentYou said that someone might be hiding—”
“I know what I said,” pressed the former Deuxième consultant
“You will stay here, then?”
Robert Ludlum ?? THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
274
“YesI will move slowly, inconspicuously, around the areaWhat about the police report? And my report?”
“Use some of the truth, not all of it, of courseWord was passed to you—informer’s name
withheld—that an act of violence related to the Bureau’s narcotics division was to take place on the
boulevard Lefebvre at precisely this hourYou commandeered a police contingent and found
nothing, but shortly thereafter your highly professional instincts sent you back beyond the time
span, unfortunately too late to stop the carnage
“I might even be commended,” said the associate, suddenly frowning, wary“And your report?”
he asked quietl