She looked up to see George Hammond standing there, smiling.

“Very well, George,” she replied.

“I’m delighted to hear it. Marvin just loved the movie, and he is a very perceptive man. It’s good for you to know his thinking.”

“I expect so,” she replied.

“Well, I’ll let you get a nap in. I’ll ask your makeup girl to freshen you a bit before we disembark.”

“Thank you, George.” He went farther up the aisle.

Nathalie fired up her iPhone and tapped the calculator app. She wanted to know what two percent of twenty-five million dollars came to. She was pleasantly surprised.

34

Stone and Gala received Felicity Devonshire in the library on Friday evening. It was raining outside, and she entered shaking water from her luxuriant red hair.

“My goodness,” Felicity said, “you’d think we were in England.”

“I like England in the rain,” Stone said.

“Ah, that’s the secret for an American to feel at home in this country—he has to learn to enjoy the rainy days. Of course, it doesn’t matter if a man’s hair gets wet.”

“Your hair looks lovely,” Gala said. “Even wet.”

Geoffrey brought her a brandy and soda, she raised it to her hosts, and they all drank. “Now,” Felicity said, “more information has come my way about our recent lack of success in dealing with your Russian acquaintance.”

Gala looked at Stone. “I knew you were mixed up in that business, but, Felicity, I had no idea you were.”

“I was merely a supplier of commonly held information,” she replied. “Nothing that might fall under the Official Secrets Act.” She looked around. “Stone, are there any recording devices present in your home?”

“There are none,” Stone said firmly. “Neither audio nor visual.”

“Thank God for that,” she said. “I really should have inquired earlier, but I trusted you.”

“I hope you still do.”

“I do, and you, too, Gala, that’s why I can continue to speak about this without fear of disclosure. This information, if inference were taken to the extreme, would most certainly fall under the Act, and neither of you must ever say to anyone what I am about to say to you.”

“Understood,” Stone replied, and Gala nodded.

Geoffrey entered the room. “Dinner is ready to be served whenever you wish.”

“Give us a few minutes, please, Geoffrey.”

Geoffrey closed the door behind him.

Felicity waited a moment, then continued. “I now know how your Russian acquaintance wriggled out of his deportation order.”

“I would certainly be interested in knowing that,” Stone said.

“Information, from a source I cannot disclose, has made me aware that, earlier this week, a telephone conversation took place between himself and a very high Russian official.”

“I thought there was supposed to be an estrangement between them,” Stone said.

“Apparently, the relationship warmed just enough for your acquaintance to plead for the disappearance of the record of the charge against him.”

“Ah.”