It was a question which disconcerted me in more ways than one. In a secret service agent, suspicion becomes second nature. I caught myself asking whether all that had gone before was not merely intended to lead up to this one question, and I cursed myself for the doubt.
“My duty to my present employer comes first, of course,” I admitted. “But as soon as I am free again——”
“If you are still alive,” she put in significantly.
“Ah! You mean?”
“I mean that when they find out that I am not to be depended on, they will not have far to look for others.”
“It is strange that they should have chosen you in the first place,” I said thoughtfully. “You said they could not ask you.”
“They did not offer me this mission. I volunteered.”
“You volunteered!”
She shook herself impatiently.
“Surely you understand? I heard them deciding on your death. And so I undertook the task.”