Chase Me Faster
Catherine Gale and John Steed and Emma Peel
THE AVENGERS
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by Caroline Miniscule
Chapter One: The Pawn - Page 3 III
Morris Drummond chuckled and clapped his hands. ''Magnificent. Magnificent.'' Frederick, who had just reported the result of the end of the Target Run to his superior, looked at Drummond sourly. ''It's going to cost a lot of money to fix. She blew a lot of circuitry with that little stunt.'' ''I'm sure she did. And then walked right down the heart of Main Street and over the finish line. Marvelous.'' ''Yes. Fortunately the power in the locker rooms wasn't affected. She's in the showers now, cleaning herself up.'' Drummond nodded. ''Well, I can't say I'm not pleased.'' ''So you're not sending her back to Space HQ?'' Frederick said tightly. ''Oh, yes, eventually...but I have a plan for her first.'' ''A plan?'' ''Your mentioning Tara King a while ago brought it to my mind. I've been spending the last few hours thinking of John Steed.'' ''Steed? But he's gone!'' ''Yes....but I happen to know one of his early partners...Mrs. Catherine Gale.''
Frederick Smith froze, and felt the palms of his hands grow damp. Catherine Gale. An old woman with knowledge of great use to his masters...his real masters, that was to say. He'd been wracking his brain for many weeks trying to figure out a way to approach her safely. "You won't have heard of her,'' Drummond continued, ''I believe she set no records in training. She was an amateur, worked with Steed out of a sense of duty, and perhaps even for the fun of it. Retired from our line of work a long time ago now, dropped it completely. Retired now from various civilian positions,of course, but she keeps herself busy.'' Frederick forced himself to speak. ''I don't believe I understand what you're driving at, sir.'' ''Simply this. Ms. Miniscule must go back to Space HQ. But I want her to go back there carrying the knowledge, the tricks of the trade, the ...panache...of Mrs. Gale. To do that I want her to work with Mrs. Gale for a few weeks.'' ''Will Mrs. Gale cooperate?'' ''I shall put it to her that Ms. Miniscule is documenting early Department S cases, for use in training of new field agents. She will assist Mrs. Gale in writing her memoirs, so to speak. And that's as near the truth as makes no matter. We should have those cases documented by the agents themselves, in any event. Yes, I think this is a splendid idea.'' This opportunity couldn't be falling into his lap so easily. Frederick said carefully, ''So you're going to call Mrs. Gale and put this to her?'' ''Yes, as I said we're old friends. I won't go into all that. But I shall call her tonight, and set it up for Ms. Miniscule to visit her tomorrow. We'll arrange a three week visit. That should be enough to get on with.'' ''Very good, sir. Shall I brief Ms. Miniscule?'' ''Yes, do that. Once she's done with her ablutions call her in and give her the good news. Tell her she's going on special assignment before being returned to Space HQ. I'll have Mrs. Pennypacker arrange for money and transport and various other things. Have Ms. Miniscule report to her tomorrow to pick up the packet before she goes on her way.'' ''Yes, sir.'' IV Frederick Smith greeted Caroline Miniscule at the door of his office and shook her hand warmly. ''Ah, Ms. Miniscule, you turned quite a few heads around here. The Target range will never be the same again, I'm sure.'' ''Thank you,'' Caroline said, a trifle nervously. ''But I'm sure you'll appreciate that it was too little, too late.'' ''Yes, I know,'' Caroline said ruefully, rubbing her chest with one hand. ''And,'' Frederick continued with a jovial smile, ''I'm sure you won't be disappointed to learn that you are being sent back to Space HQ.'' Caroline sat up straight, joy illuminating her face. ''Yes, sir. That is where I belong, sir.'' Frederick nodded. ''Just so. Well, you shall have the weekend off, and then you will report to Space HQ as usual, and get back to your normal training. I'll be letting Sir Hugo know of your return later on today.'' ''Yes, sir! Thank you sir!'' Frederick rose to his feet and Caroline popped to hers excitedly. She shook Smith's hand, and then he watched her stride down the corridor as if she had been released from prison. He could not help the little smile that played around his lips. Then, he closed the door of his office and returned to his desk, leaning back in his leather chair and propping his feet up on the mahogany. He pulled a cellphone from an inside pocket, a rather bulkier cellphone which had lots of nice features which made it safe to use inside this bastion of British security. ''Yes?'' came a woman's voice. ''Janus here. I have a job for you, Ms. Hobson.'' ''Yes?'' ''You're going to the north of England to interview a little old lady. The task might take some weeks. We will meet tonight at The Three Vikings and I will give you the details.'' ''Yes, sir.'' There was a pause, then Ms. Hobson said, ''A little old lady? Doesn't sound like a very exciting assignment.'' ''Properly conducted assignments shouldn't be exciting, Ms. Hobson. Excitement is not the name of this game. This old woman knows things that we must know. You must find out from her various pieces of information. One way- or another. Physically and intellectually she should be no match for you at the worst of times - but this is the best of times. She'll actually be expecting you. You should have no trouble.'' And Frederick Smith disconnected and put the phone back in his inside pocket very slowly. Then he turned to the folders on his table and was soon engrossed in other things. |
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