“Khorosho. Ochen khorosho.” Dobrynin chuckled. “‘Excellent,’ I should say, but you know some of my speech, so you will understand. This team will land in Los Angeles Wednesday. They fly on to Hawaii on Hawaiian Airlines flight 286, leaving Los Angeles International Airport at nine forty-five p.m. that day. You can be on that flight with them?”

“Yes, I can do that. I will do that.” Jerry repeated the flight information back and wrote it down.

“Very good. A ticket on that flight will be reserved in your name,” Dobrynin said. He coughed once or twice. “The major did not discuss this with you, but we of course will pay you to work on this project. Tell me what the CIA gave you.”

“Two thousand nine hundred and thirty-three dollars a month,” Jerry answered automatically. He guessed he’d remember that figure as long as he lived.

“This is also what I understood before,” the ambassador said, and Jerry realized he’d passed an honesty test. Dobrynin went on, “We will raise this by fifty dollars. We want no one in the world to accuse us of being tightfisted. And you live in a capitalist society. Money is to you more important than in a socialist society of workers and peasants.”

“Uh, thank you very much.” Jerry had the bad feeling he’d be making six or eight times as much as his fellow Soviet team members. He hoped to God they never found out about that. Socialist society of workers and peasants or not, they’d hate his guts. In their shoes, he would hate somebody like him, too.

“It is a pleasure to be of service to someone who has been of service to all mankind,” Anatoly Dobrynin said. Again, he didn’t mention the USSR: not overtly, anyhow. “May your investigations bear fruit for the whole human race. Good luck go with you. Good-bye.”

“Good-bye,” Jerry managed. The ambassador hung up. So did he.

Anna came in. She still looked astonished. “What was that all about?” she asked. Jerry told her. “Wednesday?” she said. “Damn! I was just starting to get used to having you around.”

“I was just starting to get used to being around,” Jerry said. “The cat’ll forget who I am again by the time I get back.”

“The cat? What about me?” Anna said.

He hoped she was kidding. When he reached for her in an experimental way, he found she was. That was nice, even if the King of Siam got insulted when they chased him off the bed. Didn’t they understand they were there to do what he wanted? Not well enough, not right then.