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might be the eventual undoing of their unity as a team. He had tried to bring it up several times in an<br />
indirect way, but Trevor always evaded the issue with some sort of joke or conversational<br />
redirection.<br />
“Perhaps not in terms of the case, but in general it was a most informative afternoon,” Rayley<br />
finally said.<br />
“I have no doubt.”<br />
“Go ahead and laugh at me. I fear I am on the verge of becoming the fool of the force, but I<br />
assure you that whatever degree to which I entered into any alleged frolicking, it was only so Orlov<br />
and his men would accept me as a fellow.”<br />
“What tremendous sacrifices you make in the name of Queen and country,” Trevor said, his<br />
hand cupped around his cigar to keep it from extinguishing in the breeze. “Were you able to keep your<br />
wits about you well enough to observe the design of the place?”<br />
“Observe, yes. Comprehend, no. The long halls end in a snarl of passageways and small<br />
individual rooms which I would deem nearly impossible for any private guard to monitor, no matter<br />
how many men they employ.”<br />
“I suppose Orlov and his squad would tell us that the numerous halls work to the advantage of<br />
the protectors, not any invading force. After all, they presumably understand the design of the maze<br />
rather well whereas an outsider would become immediately confused.”<br />
“That’s what they would most certainly say, but damn it all, Welles, you didn’t see the place.<br />
Dark and labyrinthine, with business of every conceivable sort being conducted in every corner.”<br />
“I suppose you felt the need to brag of your own exploits,” Trevor said indulgently, digging for<br />
another match.<br />
Rayley had already tamped out his own cigar, for the steady wind over the water had almost<br />
immediately proven that smoking would be impossible. He supposed that was one of the key<br />
differences between Trevor and himself – Rayley conceded to the inevitable quickly, devising<br />
alternative plans within seconds of an initial failure, while Trevor charged on in the face of all<br />
obstacles, as if his very will was a battering ram which would eventually shatter any reality he found<br />
displeasing. Rayley was not at all sure which of them was the closest to right, but he did know one<br />
thing. It was their differences, not their similarities, which made them such a formidable team.<br />
“Yes, I told them of my American whore,” Rayley said. “But they were hardly impressed. I
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