Free The Titanic Secret by Jack Steel Page B

brass bell and rang it sharply. ‘Just remember, by the way,’ he added, ‘that this woman is your wife in name alone. She’s a fellow agent and her job is to support you, to help you in situations where two pairs of eyes or hands will be better than one. I am not sending her with you for your entertainment or pleasure.’
    Before Tremayne could reply there was a brisk double knock at the door. Then it opened and a woman walked into the office.
    ‘This,’ said Mansfield Cumming, with the air of a conjurer producing a rabbit from a top hat, ‘is Maria Weston. Maria, meet Alex Tremayne.’
    Tremayne had stood up as the woman entered the office, and now he stared at the new arrival. She was tall for a woman, probably five feet seven or eight, and wearing a tailored blue suit, the skirt ending a little above her ankles. Her dark hair was parted in the middle and, in defiance of the prevailing styles, worn long and neither curled nor waved. Intelligent grey eyes framed a short, pert nose, and her wide and generous mouth had a hint of a smile playing over it as she stepped forward to greet him.
    ‘Mister Tremayne,’ she said, her voice low and husky, the New England accent unmistakable. ‘I’m pleased to meet you. Captain Cumming has told me a lot about you.’
    ‘Miss Weston,’ Tremayne replied, having noted the absence of a ring on her left hand. ‘You shouldn’t believe everything you’re told, and especially not by former officers in the Royal Navy. They’re notorious liars.’
    The smile blossomed. ‘That’s a shame. He was really quite complimentary.’
    ‘You’re American,’ Tremayne said, stating the obvious.
    Maria nodded. ‘Mansfield said you were observant, and I can see that he was absolutely right.’
    The sarcasm was apparent. Tremayne looked over at Cumming. ‘A word, Mansfield, if I may.’
    Cumming shook his head. ‘No, Alex. Let me explain, because this is really quite simple. This plot that Gunther Voss has conceived is designed to force America into an alliance that it doesn’t want, an alliance with Germany. If that alliance came to fruition, then the probability is that Britain and America would be at war with each other within months. I’ve discussed this with my opposite number in America, with the head of the new Bureau of Investigation, and he has assigned Maria here to work with us. It’s in the interests of both our countries.’
    For a few moments, both Tremayne and Maria Weston remained looking at each other. Maria appeared amused while the expression on Tremayne’s face remained unreadable.
    ‘Sit down, both of you,’ Mansfield Cumming ordered. ‘Now, I’ve already explained to Tremayne what the situation is, and you, Maria, have been working with me for the last week, so you know as much about this as I do.’
    ‘I’m still not sure that it’s necessary to place Miss Weston in this position,’ Tremayne protested. ‘I’m perfectly happy to undertake this operation by myself.’
    ‘You may be happy, Tremayne, but I’m not,’ Cumming snapped, ‘and that’s the end of it as far as I’m concerned. This matter is far too important to be left to just one man, no matter how competent he may be.’
    ‘Just a minute,’ Tremayne said, as a thought struck him. ‘Miss Weston has been here a week?’
    Maria nodded. ‘I’ve been here a lot longer than that, working at our embassy here in London. As soon as my boss heard rumours about this plot from Mansfield, he instructed me to act as his liaison officer. He thought that having one of his own people in the loop was a good idea.’
    ‘Now,’ Cumming went on, as soon as the other two had taken their seats in front of his desk, ‘we already know that Voss will be crossing the Atlantic on board ship, but we don’t yet know whether the other two men who are involved will be on the same vessel. Their names are Jonas Bauer and Lenz Kortig, and they’re both wealthy bankers and, just like Voss, although they’ve