"Higgins, Jack - Sheba" - читать интересную книгу автора (Higgins Jack)

She was a small, graceful girl of twenty-five and the soft contours of her body were accentuated by the jodhpurs and khaki bush-shirt she was wearing. Her hair was black, an inheritance from her Arab mother, as were the wide, almond-shaped eyes and rather full mouth.

The rest of her was pure French, and she smiled gaily and flung herself down into a chair. 'How are you, Gavin? What a wonderful night. I've just been for a ride.'

Kane grinned and offered her a cigarette. When he had given her a light, she leaned back in her chair. 'Did everything go all right in Mukalla?'

He took a letter from his inside pocket and handed it across. 'Sorry, I was forgetting. I saw your agent there yesterday. He gave me that for you.'

As she read it, he watched her covertly, marvelling at the change of expression on her face, cold, businesslike and purposeful. Since the death of her father when she was only twenty, she had ruled Perret and Company too with a rod of iron. From the Red Sea to the Pacific her name was a legend. Scrupulously honest, but shrewder than any bazaar trader.

She frowned slightly and called, 'Ahmed - here a moment!'

A heavily built, grey-haired Arab came out onto the terrace. He wore European clothes and held a pen in one hand as though disturbed from some important work. He was the general manager of the firm and an old and trusted friend of her father's.

He smiled and nodded to Kane, and Marie handed him the letter. 'Read that, will you? Gavin has brought it from Mukalla. Laval says he can take all the sesame oil he can get. If we move fast we can buy up all available stocks.'

Ahmed nodded and was about to go back inside when Kane said, 'Just a moment, Ahmed. Perhaps you can help me.'

Ahmed turned with a smile and said in perfect English, 'What is it, Gavin?'

'There's a Mrs Cunningham in town at the moment. She's looking for her husband. When she last heard of him he was supposed to be coming to Dahrein, but no one seems to know anything about him."

Ahmed frowned for a moment and then nodded. 'Cunningham - John Cunningham. Yes, I remember him. He wanted to go up-country to Shabwa.'

'When was this?' Kane demanded.

The Arab shrugged. 'About two months ago.' He turned to Marie and explained. 'It was when you were in Bombay. This Englishman landed from the boat and visited me at the office. He wanted to go to Shabwa. I warned him of the dangers but he wouldn't listen. We had a convoy of four trucks taking equipment to Jordan. I let him go with them.'

'And when did he return?' Marie said.

Ahmed shrugged. 'I'm afraid I have no knowledge on that point. As far as I remember he paid to be taken to Bir el Madani - the nearest Arab village to Shabwa. What happened to him after that I do not know.'

He turned to Kane. 'I'm sorry I can't be more helpful, Gavin.'

Kane shook h;s head. 'You've been a lot of help. At least I know this guy got as far as Bir el Madani. Before that I couldn't even prove he'd landed in Dahrein.'

Ahmed smiled. 'Well, if you'll excuse me. I've got a lot of work on my hands.'

After he had gone back into the house, Marie said, 'What on earth could this man Cunningham be doing in the Shabwa area?'

Kane shrugged. 'He was an archaeologist. Probably looking for rock carvings.'

'On his own?' she said incredulously. 'Surely not. Only a fool would attempt to travel in that area alone.'

'Or a man who was looking for something really important,' Kane said.

As soon as the words were out of his mouth he regretted them, but it was too late. She leaned across, a slight frown on her face and said, 'You're holding something back, aren't you? Hadn't you better tell me what it's all about?'

He sighed and got to his feet. 'I suppose I had. For one thing, you might be able to help. For another, now that you've scented a mystery, you won't rest content until you've wormed it out of me.'