The Intern Affair (68 page)

“Yes, yes, Samir! It’s the only way to stop this nightmare.” She wanted to get out.

“Please remember what I told you on that night, even if you disappeared right now, nothing will stop. It will never stop.”

“How can you and I even contemplate finding peace and happiness?”

“. . .
When
we go to
Conakry
where a part of you was destroyed.”

“No. I don’t need to remember what happened in
Conakry
—
” 

“But you do.” He lifted Talya’s chin so she would look at him.  “The shadows have to leave your mind for us to be happy. It is not because you have understood what love means at the thought of losing me that we will be happy.  It is much more than that. Love is all encompassing and selfless. I want to feel the manacles falling off your wrists, I want to sense that only my body touches yours, and I want to see your eyes void of images of the past.
I
need
you to remember, Talya.” 

The manacles falling off my wrists….
  A flash of memory passed before Talya’s eyes once again.

113

Aaron
Brightman
rose
and came round from behind his Directoire desk, looking as dapper as ever.  Had he been surprised at seeing Talya dressed in traditional apparel and wearing a veil, he didn’t show any sign of it; he had been informed and given every detail of their plan of action. 

“
Ms. Gilmore
, it is with pleasure and gratefulness that I welcome you once again at the consulate,”
he
said, shaking hands with Talya.

“Thank you, M
r.
Brightman
, and if the circumstances were different, I would share your pleasure at meeting with you today. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to accomplish the rest of my assignment with your able assistance.” 

Their host didn’t reply; he just smiled. Then he looked at Samir at her side. “
Your Highness
, I am sure I am expressing the sentiment of my fellow Canadians, when I say that you are very welcome in this house and that I am only at your service.”

“It is very kind and generous, M
r.
Brightman
, to open the door to me.  I am grateful for your help and for seeing
Ms. Gilmore
and me at this late hour of the day.”

“Not at all.  What you are doing calls for my assistance beyond any hour.”

Enough with the platitudes already.
And they want me to be part of this bunch of word mongers?

“
Ms. Gilmore
, won’t you sit down, I’ll get the paperwork ready for your signature,”
Christian
said from behind her. Their cat had been completely ignored throughout the lengthy introductory phase of their meeting. Talya did as he asked while the consul went to sit behind his desk.
Christian
then retreated
through
the door from which they had come in.  Samir sat beside her, where
Alhassan
had been sitting when they first learned of
Sergio Mendez’s
murder.  The latent emotions Talya felt for
Alhassan
re-emerged suddenly while her heart was going out to him. 
Please God, let him live,
she prayed silently.

“
Ms. Gilmore
, after several phone calls with
Sir Reginald
, we have decided that your cover should be complete.  So we’ve prepared a
n
alias passport with the name that will respond to your standing in the community during your travels.” 
What on earth is he talking about?
I am only going to
Conakry
to kill someone that’s all.  I don’t need another name to do that.
  Talya was hiding from herself behind the mask of amusing thoughts once again.

Directing his gaze to Samir, M
r.
Brightman
said, “But before I release the passport or tell you the name we have chosen, I will need to ask
Your Highness
’s permission to do so.  So please, if you don’t mind looking over the permit that I have drafted for your signature.  And this release is only temporary and valid for a period of six months, unless you instruct us to do otherwise.”  Aaron
Brightman
then handed a long sheet of paper, which Samir read, seemingly with some interest. 

After a moment,
he said,
“That will be fine, M
r.
Brightman
.”  The latter took his pen, and handed it to Samir, who signed and initialled the sheet. 

Talya wanted to read that document so badly that she was about to ask to be given a copy, when the door behind them opened and
Christian
re-appeared, carrying a folder containing what appeared to be several sheaf of papers. He then deposited the folder on the
c
onsul’s desk and said, “The passport is ready for printing now, Sir. The lady is expecting your authorization in the other room, and we can then proceed.”

“Good, I’ll see to it myself,” the consul said to
Christian.
”
Then to his guests, “Please, excuse me
;
I’ll be back in a moment.”  He got up and disappeared (with
Christian
in tow) through the opened door
,
taking the ‘famous’ document with him.

“Samir, please tell me what this is all about. I can’t stand the suspense. Why did he want to involve you in this? What was the document you’ve just signed? And why do I need another name?”

“Be patient, Talya. This is all part of very complex protective measures we’re taking for our safety, and to keep your name out of the Canadian Intelligence deed’s list. I’ll explain it all when we get back to the hotel, and please don’t fret when you see the name chosen; it’s only a temporary alias and you can revert to your name anytime you choose. Just remember the name will give you the freedom you need after this ordeal is over and it will not restrict your movements in any way.”

“What’s the name?”
Talya was getting edgy. She recalled how she felt the first time
Sir Reginald
tried to impose protective measures on her; they had amounted to naught. She was wondering if today’s measures were going to be more effective.

A few minutes later Aaron
Brightman
came back with
Christian.
He sat at his desk and
Christian
pulled up one of the spare chairs and sat down to Talya’s left. 

M
r.
Brightman
said, “I have here your diplomatic passport.  We have used one of the sets of photos you’ve made this afternoon picturing you without your veil. Although, you will be wearing a veil on this occasion, I expect that you may want to remove it at some future time.  Please accept this passport,
Ms. Gilmore
, with our gratitude.”

Aaron
Brightman
then handed her the passport that she would use for some weeks afterwards.

At the time, Talya had no idea that she would even want to use it after their trip to
Conakry
.  She opened it and read her alias:
Sarah Regia Virgo
Khalif Al-Intha
—
the name of Abraham’s wife and Regia Virgo—Latin for princess. The words failed her.

“I don’t really know
what to say. But does this mean
we are married?” Talya turned a quizzical gaze to Samir.

The consul was quick to reply, “For the purpose of this exercise, yes you are, Ms. Gilmore.”

“And did you mention that we would carry on
with
this travesty for six months, is that right?”

“The name His Highness has given you is to be used whenever the need arise in the next six months, yes.”

“This passport is also a gift from my family to you,” Samir added,
trying to s
m
ooth the edginess he sensed arising in Talya’s attitude
.

Ambivalence laced her thoughts
.
On the one hand, she had accepted readily to pass for Samir’s fiancée or even wife for the purpose of ensnaring a criminal and bringing him to justice, but, on the other, accepting to be officially Lady Sarah Khalif Al-Intha, as the passport confirmed her to be, was an entire different matter.

There is no marriage in the cards for me – officially or otherwise.

Seeing Talya’s utter embarrassment, the consul said, “The minute you cross this threshold you will need to remember that from now on, you are a member of a prestigious family.  Perhaps being at first embarrassing, it will be helpful when you enter a
new life
once this is over.”

“Again, gentlemen, I am at a loss for words. But if this is helpful to bring some justice to bear on the men who deserve punishment, I
’ll have to
accept
to play the part for a while
.”

“Thank you,
Ms. Gilmore
,” Aaron
Brightman
said, while opening the folder in front of him.  “And now I have some other matters that we need to discuss before you leave.  First, I will talk about our Guinean Consul’s involvement in this affair; his name is Edward Simmons. He will issue the three of you a beach pass that will be waiting at the reception desk of the Hotel de France, when you arrive tomorrow. This pass will open front and back gates of the consulate’s property and will give you access, undisturbed, to the beach beyond that. The beach, by the way, has been declared ‘Canadian Soil’ ten years ago, when access to it was denied to the public.”

So we were going to perpetrate an ‘authorized crime’ on Canadian Soil
, or so Talya thought. 

The consul was saying…
“Edward will not make contact with you during your stay. That measure is for his protection. Second, he has assigned another two men from our Canadian Security Intelligence Service to accompany the three of you.  The men will also
clean up
the site after you have accomplished your mission. Last, and this is most important for you to remember, once you have lured the criminal onto the beach, you are to leave the site immediately. Mr.
Sylvester
will carry out his assignment once you have returned to the car that will be waiting for you on the road. At no time should you or His Highness participate in any other action than the ones I have just described. CSIS will take full responsibility for any action perpetrated on the beach, if ever discovered, which is most unlikely.” Then, reclining in his chair, Aaron
Brightman
closed the folder and asked, “Do you have any question?”

“Yes I do, sir,” Talya said. “The first question relates to the car you’ve mentioned.  Will it be waiting for us at the airport?”

“Yes it will. The chauffeur will be a Canadian driver, who is usually assigned to the personalities visiting Guinée on behalf of our government. He will not be advised of the reasons for your visit in
Conakry
, which measure is not unusual.”

“That sounds fine.  My next question pertains to our freedom of movements.  I intend to go back to my school, which is located on the same road to Dubreka.  Will that be a problem?”

“I can’t see any problem in you doing that. Actually, it will give you an opportunity to pass by our consulate’s house that is located a couple miles before the school, I believe.”

“Is the school opened these days?”

“I don’t believe so. It has been closed down for many years. And the nearby apartment block, where you resided with your parents, has been transformed into low-cost housing and is currently fully occupied.”

“Do you know if the clinic, where my father worked, is still open?”

“Yes it is. It has been modernized and it serves the surrounding communities in the same way it did when your father worked there.”

“What about the fishing cove and village near Dubreka?  Is it still there?”

“That I don’t know,
Ms. Gilmore
.  The town is still very much alive and quite prosperous, I might add, but as for the village you mentioned, I couldn’t tell you.”

“Thank you for your patience, M
r.
Brightman
,” Talya said, smiling amiably at their
dear M
r.
Brightman
.
“If and when I come back to
Mali
, I will be sure to come and say hello.” The poor man had always tried to relax that stiff upper lip attitude of his, without much success however.

“It is I who thank you, Lady Sarah.” 
He had to say it, didn’t he?
Talya shot an understanding glance in his direction.  She had stopped trembling.  Somehow, she knew she was going to be all right.