I stared at the garish portrait for a long time. It wasn't registering;
I had a feeling of disorientation. There was too much to absorb.
"Now you will understand, Mr. Bayard, why we have brought you here,"
the general said, as I silently handed the picture back to him. "You
represent our hidden ace. But only if you consent to help us of your
own free will." He turned to Richthofen again.
"Manfred, will you outline our plan to Mr. Bayard?"
Richthofen cleared his throat. "Quite possibly," he said, "we
could succeed in disposing of the Dictator Bayard by bombing his
headquarters. This, however, would merely create a temporary diversion
until a new leader emerged. The organization of the enemy seems to be
such that no more than a very brief respite would be gained, if any at
all, before the attacks would be resumed; and we are not prepared to
sustain such onslaughts as these.
"No, it is far better for our purpose that Bayard remain the leader of
the National People's State--and that we control him." Here he looked
intently at me.
"A specially equipped TNL scout, operated by our best pilot technician,
could plant a man within the private apartment which occupies the top
floor of the dictator's palace at Algiers. We believe that a resolute
man introduced into the palace in this manner, armed with the most
effective hand weapons at our disposal, could succeed in locating
and entering the dictator's sleeping chamber, assassinating him, and
disposing of the body.
"If that man were you, Mr. Bayard, fortified by ten days' intensive
briefing and carrying a small net-communicator, we believe that you
could assume the identity of the dead man and rule as absolute dictator
over Bayard's twenty million fighting men."
"Do I have another double here," I said, "in your Imperium?"
Bernadotte shook his head. "No, you have remote cousins here, nothing
closer."
They all watched me. I could see that all three of them expected me to
act solemn and modest at the honor, and set out to do or die for the
fatherland. They were overlooking a few things, though. This wasn't my
fatherland; I'd been kidnapped and brought here. And oddly enough, I
could not see myself murdering anybody--especially, I had the grotesque
thought--myself. I didn't even like the idea of being dropped down in
the midst of a pack of torturers.
I was ready to tell them so in very definite terms, when my eye fell on
Bale. He was wearing a supercilious half-smile, and I could see that
this was just what he expected. His contempt for me was plain. I sensed
that he thought of me as the man who had killed his best agent in cold
blood, a cowardly blackguard. My mouth was open to speak; but under
that sneering expression, different words came out--temporizing words.
I wouldn't give Bale the satisfaction of being right.
"And after I'm in charge of B-I Two, what then?" I said.
"You will be in constant touch with Imperial Intelligence via
communicator," Richthofen said eagerly. "You'll receive detailed
instructions as to each move to make. We should be able to immobilize
B-I Two within six months. You'll then be returned here."
"I won't be returned home?"
"Mr. Bayard," Bernadotte said seriously, "you will never be able to
return to B-I Three. The Imperium will offer you any reward you wish
to name, except that. The consequences of revealing the existence of
the Imperium to your line at this time are far too serious to permit
consideration of the idea. However--"
All eyes were on Bernadotte. He looked as though what he was about to
say was important.
"I have been authorized by the Emergency Cabinet," he said with
gravity, "to offer you an Imperial commission in the rank of Major
General, Mr. Bayard. If you accept this commission, your first
assignment will be as we have outlined." Bernadotte handed a heavy
piece of parchment across the table to me. "You should know, Mr.
Bayard, that the Imperium does not award commissions, particularly that
of General Officer, lightly."
"It will be a most unusual rank," Goering said, smiling. "Normally
there is no such rank in the Imperium Service; Lieutenant General,
Colonel General, Major General. You will be unique."
"We adopted the rank from your own armed forces, as a special mark of
esteem, Mr. Bayard," Bernadotte said. "It is no less authentic for
being unusual."
It was a fancy sheet of paper. The Imperium was prepared to pay off
well for this job they needed done--anything I wanted. And doubtless,
they thought the strange look on my face was greed at the thought of
a general's two stars. Well, let them think it. I didn't want to give
them any more information which might be used against me.
"I'll think about it," I said. Bale looked disconcerted now. After
expecting me to back out, he had apparently then expected me to be
dazzled by the reward I was being offered. I'd let him worry about it.
Suddenly Bale bored me.
Bernadotte hesitated. "I'm going to take an unprecedented step, Mr.
Bayard," he said. "For the present, on my personal initiative as head
of State, I'm confirming you as Colonel in the Royal Army of Sweden
without condition. I do this to show my personal confidence in you,
as well as for more practical reasons." He rose and smiled ruefully,
as though unsure of my reaction. "Congratulations, Colonel," he said,
holding out his hand.
I stood up too. I noticed everyone had.
"You must have twenty-four hours to consider your decision, Colonel,"
he said. "I'll leave you in the excellent care of Graf von Richthofen
and Mr. Goering until then."
Richthofen turned to Winter, still standing silently by. "Won't you
join us, Chief Captain," he said.
"Delighted," Winter said.
"Congratulations, old boy, er, Sir," Winter said as soon as we were in
the hall. "You made quite a hit with the general." He seemed quite his
jaunty self again.
I eyed him. "You mean King Gustav?" I said.
Winter blinked. "But how did you know?" he said. "I mean dash it, how
the devil did you know?"
"But it must be," Goering said with enthusiasm, "that also he in your
home world is known, not so?"
"That's right, Mr. Goering," I said, "now you've dispelled my aura of
mystery."
Goering chuckled. "Please, Mr. Bayard, you must call me Hermann." He
gripped my arm in friendly fashion as we moved down the hall. "Now you
must tell us more about this intriguing world of yours."
Richthofen spoke up. "I suggest we go along to my summer villa at
Drottningholm and enjoy a dinner and a couple of good vintages while we
hear all about your home, Mr. Bayard; and we shall tell you of ours."