At last the two hundred sweaty hands were shaken, and the procession swung crisply out of the foyer and up the stairs on its way to meet a typical Research Assistant (Grade One) in the Political Department. Nunn broke off at this point, and struggled back through the whole company, who were now in broken order heaving and pushing their way on to the stairs to follow the leaders on the tour of inspection.

‘Jolly good,’ he cried, shoving past dowdy departmental wives like a rugby forward, until he had reached the switchboard booth.

‘Zinnia,’ he said. ‘Any more calls – whoever they’re from and whoever they’re for – put them through to me. Personally.’

He went outside again into the almost empty foyer. The last stragglers of the advancing army were just disappearing from the field of battle. Everything was under control – under his control. He had fought against overwhelming odds, and snatched victory from the teeth of defeat. He had undoubtedly won the day. He could not help feeling rather pleased with himself.

‘Jolly, jolly, jolly good,’ he said.

35

35

It took Goldwasser some time to realise that the door was locked. Being a sane and intelligent man, he did not waste his time in examining preposterous hypotheses, but assumed when the door refused to open that it was jammed. He heaved on it, panic rising in him. He shook it. He set his foot against the wall beside the door and heaved again. The door remained fast.

He looked round, saw the door communicating with Chiddingfold’s office, and ran to it. He pulled it. It would not budge. Naturally, he thought in his clear logical way, it is unused and therefore locked. He ran to the window and looked out, but there was no possible way of escape there. He rushed back to the main door and shook the handle with great violence, until the strain on his arms made him stop. He looked at his watch. It was three o’clock. There was no point in getting out now; he could not go down after the Queen had arrived anyway.

He flopped down in a chair. More than anything else he felt a fool. How like him to get the door jammed at a moment like this! He could hear everybody else saying the same thing, too. How typical of old Goldwasser! What a clown old Goldwasser was!

No one would think of blaming Nunn, of course. Though it was at least as much Nunn’s fault as his. What a damn’ silly time to choose to start recruiting assistance! Why couldn’t he have approached him earlier and given him time to prepare himself for action?