The Cutout (63 page)
Authors: Francine Mathews
“Frequently described by the admiring epithet
of bitch.
Roughly translated: she has committed all the sins available to a woman in a man’s world. Restless, impatient, ruthless, and ambitious. Sole weakness a reckless streak
you could drive a semi through. Two hundred years ago, she’d have been burned at the stake as a heretic and a witch. The girl has intelligence, of course, and courage; but if she has a soul, nobody’s saying. I do
not,”
he added sternly, “consider charm to be evidence of a soul.”
“Thank you,” she murmured.
“Point the Second: Stefani Fogg rumored to have turned down the chairmanship of FundMarket International last year, when it was offered her on a plate. Pundits confused.
“Point the Third: Stefani Fogg supposedly in play for CFO of at least three major multinationals, none of which succeeded in bagging her. Pundits agog.
“Point the Fourth:
Galileo Emerging Tech
—the fund Stefani Fogg manages at FundMarket—has lost nearly sixty-seven percent of its high-market value over the past three weeks. Rumors flying within FundMarket and without: Fogg is slipping, Fogg is asleep at the wheel, Fogg may be out on her arse next Tuesday. Pundits immensely gratified.”
He sat back in his seat and stared at her with satisfaction. “Missed anything?”
“Just my soul. I keep it beneath the floor of a warehouse off Canal Street.” She toyed with the Screaming Eagle. “About
Galileo
—The tech market’s volatile, Charlie. You want big returns, you run major risk. Sometimes that means short-term loss.”
“And you’ve generally defied the odds, haven’t you? So what’s gone wrong this month?”
She didn’t answer.
“I have a theory, old thing. I won’t bother to ask whether you’d like to hear it.”
“Well, you
did
give me lunch. I can spare you a few more minutes.”
“Stefani Fogg is bored off her nut and desperate for fun,” he suggested.
“Galileo
is sinking because she no longer gives a diddly I could offer the girl a spot of larceny or a fast plane
to a desert island, and she’d snatch them both out of my moist little palm. Any sort of diversion would do, provided it were dangerous enough. She’s toyed with electronic fraud, with faking her own death, with ripping off Tiffany’s in a cat suit at midnight—but the payoff is never quite worth the risk. Our Stef has her reservations. She knows that crime, however enchanting, however
séduisante
, can rather get one’s hair mussed. Crime carries with it a measure of annoyance. There’s the enforcement chappies, of course; there are turf battles between kingpins she doesn’t even know, potentates she could easily offend. There’s the possibility of maiming or a sordid public death. Our Stef refuses to pay the earth for a casual fling. She’s looking for bigger game. Something with staying power. A challenge to match her peculiar wits. Am I right, dear heart? Have I hit the target bang-on?”
She went very still, watching him. He was a mild-looking man in his late forties: slim, loosely tailored in medium gray wool, his fair hair clipped short over the temples and rakishly long at the brow. The tortoise-shell glasses partially concealed intense, caramel-colored eyes. Altogether a sleek kind of cat, his tail practically twitching as he surveyed her. He
had
done his homework.
“So you have the antidote to boredom, Charlie. What could you possibly offer that I need or want?”
“Fun, intrigue, and high jinks on six continents,” he replied promptly. “A floating bank account accessible at all times for expenses that would never be questioned. Counsel from the main office whenever you want it, but no handcuffs or second-guesses or attempts to drive your car from the rear. An unwritten brief. A handful of clients. Stimulation. A direct line to my desk, night or day. Gut decisions. Unlimited spa time in exotic places.
Power
.”
“To do what, exactly?”
“Beat crooks at their own game. Much more exciting than joining them, I always think. You could spy and
seduce and manipulate empires—all in the name of defending commerce. With your talent and brains, Stef, you could write your dossier.”
“But why
me
, Charlie? Why the bitch with the lousy returns?”
“Because they’ll never see you coming, darling,” he answered softly. “You’re a bloody great gold mine. Smart and chic and too damn bored with your own wealth to be corruptible. You’ll have your teeth sunk into their necks before they even catch your scent.” Charlie’s tawny eyes flicked across her face with brutal candor. “And there’s the added advantage that I can
deny
you, ducks. As far as the world of High Finance is concerned, we’ve never even traded so much as an air kiss. I’m not offering you a title and a desk with a plastic nameplate. I don’t want you in New York. I want you bumming around the world on extended holiday.”
“Anonymity and carte blanche,” she mused. “A high-wire act without a safety net. If I fail, I fail alone.”
“Of course. Where would the challenge be, otherwise?”
A silence fell between them.
“Don’t refuse me before you’ve had ages to think,” Charlie suggested soothingly. “It wouldn’t be the first time a woman’s done that, I grant you—but for Stefani Fogg, I’m willing to wait.”
“Until
Galileo
craters?”
What had he said? Charm was no evidence of a soul?
He smiled, and pressed a small button under the table. A waiter appeared within seconds, on soundless feet.
“You’ve had the glamorous turn, old thing.” Charlie’s voice was like a croon. “You’ve had the usual stiffs in the Wall Street clubs with their fast cars and limp members. Now you want to run with the wolves. Don’t you?
Confess
it.”
Cutout
definition from
The Encyclopedia of Espionage
THE CUTOUT
A Bantam Book
PUBLISHING HISTORY
All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2001 by Francine Mathews.
Maps by Jeffrey L. Ward.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 00–31651.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
For information address: Bantam Books.
eISBN: 978-0-307-56732-1
Bantam Books are published by Bantam Books, a division of Random House, Inc. Its trademark, consisting of the words “Bantam Books” and the portrayal of a rooster, is Registered in U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and in other countries. Marca Registrada. Bantam Books, 1540 Broadway, New York, New York 10036.
v3.0
Table of Contents
Chapter One - Berlin, 12:03 P.M.
Chapter Two - Arlington,7 A.M.
Chapter Three - Langley, 8:23 A.M.
Chapter Four - Langley, 8:40 A.M.
Chapter Five - Langley, 9:30 A.M.
Chapter Six - On the Czech-German Border, 3 P.M.
Chapter Seven - Langley, 11 A.M.
Chapter Eight - Langley, 11:53 A.M.
Chapter Nine - Prague, 5:52 P.M.
Chapter Ten - Washington, 2:31 P.M.
Chapter Eleven - Prague, 8:15 P.M.
Chapter Twelve - Washington, 3:30 P.M.
Chapter Thirteen - Dulles International Airport, 10:15 P.M.
Part II - Wednesday, November 10
Chapter One - Pristina, 3:45 A.M.
Chapter Two - Georgetown, 4:13 A.M.
Chapter Three - The Night Sky, 3:47 A.M.
Chapter Four - Berlin, 8:30 A.M.
Chapter Five - Bratislava, 10:15 A.M.
Chapter Six - Berlin, 12:06 P.M.
Chapter Seven - Berlin, 1 P.M.
Chapter Eight - Pristina, 2:13 P.M.
Chapter Nine - Bratislava, 3 P.M.
Chapter Ten - Berlin, 5:07 P.M.
Chapter Eleven - Bratislava, 6:37 P.M.
Chapter Twelve - Bratislava, 6:45 P.M.
Chapter Thirteen - Berlin, 9:17 P.M.
Part III - Thursday, November 11
Chapter One - Budapest, 3:14 A.M.
Chapter Two - Berlin, 7:30 A.M.
Chapter Three - Budapest, 9 A.M.
Chapter Four - Berlin, 9:27 A.M.
Chapter Five - Berlin, 10:15 A.M.
Chapter Six - Budapest, 10:30 A.M.
Chapter Seven - Berlin, 1:19 P.M.
Chapter Eight - Berlin, 2:45 P.M.
Chapter Nine - Budapest, 3:15 P.M.
Chapter Ten - Pristina, 4:30 P.M.
Chapter Eleven - Berlin, 7:15 P.M.
Chapter Twelve - The Night Sky, 8:12 P.M.
Chapter Thirteen - Budapest, 9:30 P.M.
Chapter Fourteen - Budapest, 10:53 P.M.
Chapter Fifteen - Budapest, 11:40 P.M.
Chapter One - Berlin, 2 A.M.
Chapter Two - Budapest, 1:23 A.M.
Chapter Three - Budapest, 2:15 A.M.
Chapter Four - Budapest, 7:30 A.M.
Chapter Five - The Danube Bend, 10:03 A.M.
Chapter Six - Budapest, 10 A.M.
Chapter Seven - Budapest, 1:03 P.M.
Chapter Eight - Budapest, 3:13 P.M.
Chapter Nine - Budapest, 6 P.M.
Chapter Ten - Ziv Zakopan, 9:30 P.M.
Chapter Eleven - Langley, 2:46 P.M.
Chapter Twelve - Sarajevo, 11:43 P.M.
Part V - Saturday, November 13
Chapter One - Sarajevo, 12:33 A.M.
Chapter Two - Ziv Zakopan, 1:23 A.M.
Chapter Three - Ziv Zakopan, 2:52 A.M.
Chapter Four - The White House, 12:34 A.M.