“Thanks, I’ve got my own,” García said.
He took out a Delicado. The colonel accepted a cigarette and lit it with a gold lighter. García used a match. The man smiled again, his eyes cold and hard:
“Maybe you are the right man for the job, Mr. García. I’ll admit, it’s extremely important. If we bungle this, there could be serious international repercussions and disagreeable consequences, to say the least, for Mexico. Not that I actually believe anything is going to happen. As usual in such a case, we have only rumors, suspicions. But we must act, we must find out the truth. And only the colonel and I can know what you discover, Mr. García. Nobody else. Understood?”
“That’s an order,” the colonel said.
García nodded. The man continued talking:
“I’m going to write down a telephone number. Call it if you have anything urgent to report. I’m the only one who answers that phone. If I don’t, or if the situation requires it, call the colonel and let him know you want to talk to me. He’ll put us in touch. Here’s the number.”
García took the card. It was blank except for a typewritten phone number. He looked at it for a few moments, then held it over the ashtray and lit a match to it. The man smiled, satisfied.
“The problem is as follows: as you probably know, in three days’ time, the president of the United States will arrive in Mexico. He will be here in the capital for three days. If you want to see his schedule, you can get it from the colonel. It’s already been made public. In any case, I don’t think you’ll need it. Protecting both presidents, the visiting president and our own, is the responsibility of the Mexican police and the United States Secret Service. You’ll have nothing to do with that; it is a routine assignment — for specialists, we could say. They are taking all the necessary precautions, and all individuals we believe might pose any danger have been identified and are under surveillance.”
The man paused to stub out his cigarette. He seemed to be looking for the exact words to explain the situation and having a hard time finding them. The colonel looked at him impassively.
“A visit like this is always a heavy responsibility for the government hosting a foreign president. We mustn’t forget, in addition, that if there is an attack, our president would also be in danger. And there’s something else: world peace is at risk. This would not be the first war started by the assassination of a chief of state. Plus, we have the precedent of Dallas. You can see, Mr. García, why, even if it’s only a rumor, we have to follow up on it. . We cannot take any risks. What we’ve heard is very serious.”
He paused, as if to let his words sink in deeply. García sat without moving, his eyes half closed.
“I repeat, Mr. García, it is only a rumor. Which is why we must proceed with discretion. If there’s nothing to it, all will be forgotten and that will be the end of it. The press will have found out nothing and we will not have offended a country with which we have, if not yet diplomatic relations, at least a budding commercial relationship. That’s why discretion is absolutely essential. Is that understood?”
“Understood.”
The man seemed to keep doubting his own words. He gave the impression that he didn’t really want to reveal his secret. He lit another cigarette.
“First of all, we have to find out what, if anything, is true, and if there is some truth to it, we must act quickly to avoid a disaster. Or a scandal, which wouldn’t do us any good, either. That’s one of the reasons I’ve agreed to give you the assignment. You do not seek publicity for what you do.”
“It’s not newsworthy.”
“Right. This isn’t, either. I see we understand each other.”
“As I told you, sir, García is the right man for the job,” the colonel said.
The man seemed not to have heard.
“Here’s the situation. A highly placed official at the Soviet embassy came to us and told us a strange story. Just to let you know, the Russians do not usually tell us anything, strange or not. Which is why we listened carefully. According to the embassy, about three weeks ago, right around the time the president of the United States announced his visit to Mexico, the Soviet Secret Service learned that in Communist China, that is, in the People’s Republic of China, there were plans afoot to assassinate him during his visit here. They told us they first picked up this rumor in Outer Mongolia. Then, about ten days ago, they heard it again in Hong Kong, and it was learned, apparently from reliable sources, that three terrorists working for China had passed through there on their way to America. You will notice I said working for China, not Chinese. According to the Russian police, one of them might be a North American defector and the other two are from Central Europe. We don’t know what passports they’re carrying. In Hong Kong, you can get whatever passports you want. Needless to say, we’ve already beefed up our border security, but we don’t know if they’ve already entered Mexico or if they are going to show up with tourist visas and false passports. As I said, we have placed under surveillance any foreigners and any Mexicans who might pose a threat because of their criminal records or their ideologies. Many of them, during the visit, will take a short trip. . on us. But about three thousand tourists enter Mexico every single day. It would be utterly impossible to keep tabs on all of them, so our only option seems to be added protection for the two presidents, with armored vehicles and all the rest.”
The expression on the man’s face turned sad, as if it disgusted him to have to take such measures. He put out the cigarette that he had barely smoked and continued:
“This morning, the Russians gave us some more information. It seems the terrorists have been instructed to contact a Chinese man here in Mexico, an agent of the government of Mao Tse Tung. He will supply them with the weapons — it would be too dangerous to carry them over the border. Are you following me?”
“I’m following.”
“Very well, Mr. García. We need to know if this Chinese man is here in Mexico and if this rumor about a conspiracy is true, and we have three days to find out.”
“Understood.”
“That is your assignment. You are going to spend time among the Chinese, you are going to listen for any word of recent arrivals or new activity among them.”
“What if the rumor is true and I find the terrorists?”
“In that case, you will act as you see fit.”
“I see.”
“Above all, with discretion. If. . if you must take violent action, do everything possible to conceal the source of the violence.”
“Understood.”
It seemed like the man had finished talking. He was about to stand up, then remembered something else:
“One more thing. With the Russians’ permission, we informed the American embassy, and they insist that you work with an FBI agent.”
“Okay.”
“The Russians also want one of their agents, someone who knows a lot about the case, to work with you.”
“You want me to cooperate with them?”
“Only in as much as discretion allows, Mr. García. Only if it is convenient. The American agent’s name is Richard P. Graves. Tomorrow morning at ten sharp he will be at the cigarette counter at the entrance to Sanborns on Lafragua. At that precise time, he will ask to buy a pack of Lucky Strikes. You will greet him with a hug, as if you were old friends.”
“Understood.”
“The Russian is named Ivan M. Laski, and he will be at Café Paris on Cinco de Mayo at two o’clock, sitting at the back end of the bar, drinking a glass of milk. Understood?
“Understood.”
“You three will have to figure out how you’re going to work together. Don’t forget to update me on the progress of your investigation. I repeat: we have only three days, and in that time, everything must be cleared up.”