فصل 02

CHAPTER TWO

Two weeks later, James Bond was sitting in the Casino at Royale-les-Eaux. It was three in the morning and the air was filled with cigarette smoke. Le Chiffre was still playing - and still winning. Bond watched him for some minutes. Then he collected his winnings from the cashier and left the Casino. He walked across the road and through the gardens of the Hotel Splendide.

The concierge gave him his key for room 45 and a cable. The cable was from Jamaica. It read:

KINGSTON JAMAICA

BOND SPLENDIDE ROYALE-LES-EAUX

HAVANA CIGAR CUBAN FACTORIES PRODUCTION

THE NUMBER YOU NEED IS TEN MILLION

Earlier that afternoon, Bond had asked his headquarters in London for more money. The cable was a sort of code. It meant that his headquarters were sending him ten million francs.

Bond was pretending to be the son of a Jamaican millionaire. That was his ‘cover’.

He wrote a reply to the cable:

THANKS. INFORMATION SHOULD BE ENOUGH - BONO

Bond gave the reply to the concierge and said goodnight. Then he walked upstairs to the door of his room. He took out a gun from under his jacket. Then he opened the door quickly and switched on the light. There was nobody in the room but Bond did not feel stupid. He had to be very careful in his job.

Bond undressed and had a cold shower. Then he lit a cigarette. He had arrived at Royale-les-Eaux two days before. The last two afternoons and nights he had played roulette at the Casino. He had watched Le Chiffre at the tables. The Russian was a clever and lucky gambler.

So far, Bond had won three million francs. He had started with ten million. Now London was sending him another ten. So he had twenty-three million francs to gamble with. Bond put the money under his pillow and climbed into bed.

For ten minutes, he thought about everything that bad happened that day. Then he slept.

The next morning Bond had a cold shower. Then he ate his breakfast at a table in front of the window. He was looking at the sea when the telephone rang. It was the concierge.

‘A man from Radio Stentor is here with the radio that you ordered, monsieur,’ the concierge said.

‘Send him up,’ said Bond.

When Mathis came in, Bond smiled.

‘I’ve just arrived from Paris, monsieur,’ said Mathis. ‘Here is the radio.’ He put the radio on the floor and switched it on. The sound of loud music filled the room. Mathis walked across to Bond and shook his hand.

Bond smiled. ‘Now, why –,’ he began.

‘My dear friend,’ said Mathis. ‘Your cover has been spoilt! The Russians know who you are.’

Mathis looked up at the ceiling. Then he pointed to the chimney.

‘A few centimetres up the chimney is a radio microphone,’ he explained. ‘Its wires go up to the room above. They can hear everything.’ Then Mathis smiled. ‘Now for some more play-acting,’ he said. He walked over to the radio and switched it off.

‘Are you happy, monsieur,’ he asked.

‘Very happy,’ said Bond. ‘The music is beautiful. Let’s hear the rest of it.’

Mathis grinned and switched the radio on again. ‘Now to business,’ he said. ‘You will be pleased with your assistant your Number Two. She is very beautiful, and she is also a radio expert. We will pretend that she works with me. We’re both staying in the hotel. So my “assistant” will he near you.’ He smiled. ‘Day – or night.’

But Bond did not smile back at him.

‘Why did they send me a woman,’ he said, angrily. ‘This isn’t a game!’

‘Relax, James,’ said Mathis. ‘She’s good at her job and she speaks French very well. She will meet you at the Casino. You are the rich son of a millionaire. It’s normal for you to find a pretty girl to – uh – share your winnings with.’

‘Are there any other surprises,’ asked Bond.

‘Not really,’ replied Mathis. ‘Le Chiffre’s villa is about sixteen kilometres down the coast road. He has got two guards with him. They speak to each other in Bulgarian.’

‘Anything else,’ asked Bond.

‘Come to the Hermitage Bar before lunch,’ said Mathis. ‘And meet your Number Two. Ask her to dinner, then she can come to the Casino with you tonight. I’ll be there, but you probably won’t see me. Oh, and there’s an American called Felix Leiter. He’s staying here. He’s the CIA man.’

After Mathis left, Bond sat back at the window. He was not happy. The Russians knew that he was here. They might try to kill him.

And then there was the problem of the girl. Bond did not like working with women.