It was only the second time since Ruth had returned, that Harry had brought his team together. No longer communicating in the usual way, a coded message via Malcolm and nobody had been late arriving. That the meeting wasn't on the grid, only serving to remind them all, that their individual security was still at stake and that by being here, the remainder of the section were being excluded.
Never one to beat about the bush, Harry got straight to the point.
'What I'm about to tell you goes no further than this room. Not ever! Many years ago, the powers that be, came up with an idea that would give us the ultimate hold over our enemies. It's called Albany. A genetic weapon, that given the right tweaking, can wipe out all but a few ethnic groups,' he told them. A statement that caused an overall intake of breath and more than a few raised eyebrows. 'That we have it, has never been a secret. Why? Because it's the perfect deterrent, to keep the Russians, the Chinese and any other would be superpowers in check. At the risk of losing my job, what I shouldn't be telling you, but to avoid any misunderstanding, both now and in the future, is that Albany doesn't work. It's a fake, that up until now has done its job. Worryingly, based on the notes that Jo found at Vaughan's flat and Ruth has deciphered, is that we think that this is what Vaughan had been looking for. Why anyone would think that Vaughan could get his mucky paws on Albany is beyond me, but now that he's dead, we have to assume that whoever killed him, has gone into business on his or her own. Equally worrying, is that we don't yet know who the prospective buyers are, but in the current climate I'd put my money on the Chinese. That said, keeping Albany safe is imperative, whatever the cost to me personally. So whatever else you're working on, unless vital, will have to wait until this is resolved.'
'Is there anyone else who knows about this?' Asked Ros, who had been getting progressively more irritated because Malcolm appeared to have drifted off. When in fact had she given him the chance to explain, was thinking about a yet to be tested invention that he and Colin had worked on. A ring that they'd designed as a panic button, which if Harry turned on his finger, would send a warning to a phone of Harry's choice. In this case hers.
'Up until now, only the Home Secretary and me. Which means that you're going to have to talk to Towers,' Harry told her. 'At the time Albany was conceived there were a few others, but they're not likely to come calling. Ruth and I are going to do some more digging. The rest of you need to throw everything into finding out who Vaughan has been associating with over the last few weeks.'
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'At the risk of getting my head bitten off, wouldn't it be a good idea to move Albany to a new location?' suggested Malcolm. Having told the others that he needed to double check the security and he wouldn't be long, he'd waited until the front door had closed behind them and he and Harry were on their own. He'd been in Harry's confidence regarding Albany for years, in a just in case scenario that they'd never imagined would happen. Plus, as a backroom boy as he liked to think of himself, he'd been the most unlikely of people to find himself threatened, and as Harry had been very much a loner in those days, he'd almost certainly been his only confident on the grid. Now that Ruth was back as a permanent fixture, something that he knew because he'd been upstairs to check on the security and found that only of the beds had been slept in the previous night, a fact that had made him smile, the risk of her being targeted had sky rocketed. That and having watched them sitting side by side as they had been all morning, when his concern had shifted to the fact that Harry might be getting side tracked.
Equally worrying and something that he wanted to talk to Harry alone about, was that Lucas had called to see him the previous evening. Due to come permanently back onto the grid in less than a week, he'd wanted to know where Harry was staying? Staying, implying that he knew that Harry wasn't at home. Having been given a telephone when he'd arrived back from Russia, that contained all the essential numbers, his insistence that he'd lost it just hadn't rung true. That and something about his manner, that had sent alarms bells ringing in Malcolm's head. Lucas, having spent the last eight years in a Russian detention centre and survived, didn't necessarily mean that he'd returned as the firm patriot that Harry believed him to be. Connie James was a case in point and besides, if he was looking for Harry, why hadn't he just turned up at Thames House and asked to speak to him?
The chance to tell Harry on his own went straight out of the window, the moment that Ruth returned with their coffee and resumed her seat beside him. Given what he now knew, he could hardly suggest that she leave. Whether this was because she was their analyst, or because of the change in situation, his original reason for wanting to exclude her from the conversation, remained the same. Feisty or not, like him she was a desk spook and wouldn't be able to stand up to interrogation of any kind, never mind how hard she tried. Or maybe her being here with Harry, made her feel invisible to an assailant? Something that would change if they were manipulated into being separated. Not an easy thing to do, but if someone was determined enough and had the knowledge and the means to do so, would put Ruth into an unthinkable position.
'Lucas, never in a million years,' Harry, responded to Malcolm's concerns. Predictable in its ferocity, but something that Malcolm already had an answer to.
'You don't know him Harry, not after eight years, none of us do,' and Harry visibly bristled, until Ruth said that she'd leave them to it, sufficient for Harry to calm down. Her footsteps retreating back into the kitchen, suggesting that she recognised the need to make herself scarce for a while.
'Putting my reservations about Lucas to one side for a moment, I can see by your expression, that you know what's happened Malcolm,' Harry told him. 'But before you go all judgemental on me, you need to know that in no way did I take advantage of Ruth. The fact that it happened so quickly, or at all, was a mutual decision. I know how fond of Ruth you are and I understand your need to protect her Malcolm, but I assure you I have no intention of parading her around like a trophy, or chucking her to one side once this is over. I realise how this must look Malcolm, but for once in my life, I intend behaving like a gentleman. I can and I will protect Ruth, so let that be an end to it,' for once in his life, wasn't sufficient to stop Malcolm continuing.
'I never doubted your intentions Harry, but in terms of protecting her, none of us know what we're up against. As a friend, I'm pleading with you to take Ros into your confidence. She'll find out sooner or later, so for Ruth's sake, as well as yours, bring her onboard now. I've also dug this out and I'm suggesting you wear it,' he told him, producing the ring, before returning to the subject of Lucas and elaborating on the conversation that he'd had with him, and why it was worrying him so much.
Yes he'd been around when Lucas had gone to Moscow so Lucas knew him, but having been introduced to Ros when they'd brought him onto the grid and the fact that she lived in the centre of London, whereas he lived in the suburbs, had he been Lucas, then Ros would have been the one he'd have gone to see. That and his reaction to the lounge door opening and his Mum coming into the room, which had almost amounted to paranoia. Saying that he was still adjusting to being back and was constantly looking over his shoulder, just hadn't make sense in a private house. Something else that he thought Harry should ask Ruth to consider. Ruth not him, because she would be looking at the situation with new eyes and without 'bias,' a word that he didn't want to use in the circumstances, but felt he had too. Situations like this were always best investigated by a person that didn't know the person in question, and with Ruth's ability, who knows, she might even be able to prove him wrong.
As much as he might like to pretend that Malcolm was being over sensitive, and that his feelings for Ruth weren't clouding his judgement, Harry knew that his friend was right. How many times in the past had her warned his officers against having a close relationship, only to find out later that they'd ignored his warning and to their cost. He could count on one hand those that had got their happy ending, a statistic that was too terrifying to contemplate. That and with so many unknowns still out there, it made sense to take Ros into his confidence. Happy about it or not, for all her attitude, Ros would make a formidable ally in the current circumstances.
'Tell her to come round this evening. You as well Malcolm,' he told him.
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Despite knowing that it was the perfect plan and one that he would have jumped at, had it not been Ruth that Ros was suggesting should leave the safehouse to spend an entire evening with Lucas, Harry just stopped himself from saying an outright no and went for 'tell me more.'
The plan was a simple one, nothing would go wrong she assured him. Ruth would pose as a friend from their years together at Cambridge. Bored with her current job and with a boss that she didn't get on with, she was thinking about applying to join the service. She knew that Lucas worked with Ros, although she obviously didn't know the specifics. All she wanted, was a second opinion as to whether it would be a good career move and what, with her qualifications, she could expect to achieve.
At a location quieter than the George, where they could get something to eat, Ros was confident that Lucas would agree. Getting Ruth dressed up, sufficient that he'd be open to answering Ruth's questions, presumed that Lucas didn't have a girlfriend. Either way, everyone, including Harry, knew that Ruth was more than capable of analysing, not only Lucas's mood, but whether there was any mileage in what Malcolm suspected.
The reason that Ruth had agreed, was not only because it would seal her place in the team, but because Ros had promised her, that at the end of the evening she'd bring her back to Harry. Not to some other location where she'd mull over what had happened for hours. They'd aim for Thursday evening when the venue would be quieter. She and Ros would travel by taxi, far safer than using her own car. Malcolm having already arranged with Ros, that he'd spend the evening with Harry. Left on his own, they wouldn't mind betting that he'd turn up in person, or would be lurking about in the shadows outside.