“What about Swayne’s master sergeant? He can...
“What about Swayne’s master sergeant? He can handle them, can’t he?”
“They don’t like him much,” offered the guard named Willie, “but they obey himThey’re better
with the general’s wife, the horny bastards
“What about the general?” asked Bourne
“He pisses bright yeller at the sight of ’em,” replied Jim-Bob
“Thanks for the informationGo on now, get down the road a piece before you start hitchhiking
My superiors are coming from the other direction
“You know,” said the second guard, squinting in the moonlight at Jason, “this is the craziest
fuckin’ night I ever expect to seeYou get in here dressed like some gawddamn terrorist, but you
talk and act like a shit-kickin’ army officerYou keep mentioning these ‘soopeeriors’ of yours; you
drug the pups and pay us three hundred bucks to get outI don’t understand nothin’!”
“You’re not supposed toOn the omega automatic seamaster watch other hand, if I was really a terrorist, you’d probably be dead,
wouldn’t you?”
“He’s right, Jim-BobLet’s get outta here!”
“What the hell are we supposed to say?”
“Tell anyone who asks you the truthDescribe what happened tonightAlso, you can add that
the code name is Cobra
“My Gawd!” yelled Willie as both men fled into the roadBourne secured the gate and walked
back to the patrol cart certain in the knowledge that whatever happened during the next hours, an
appendage of Medusa had been thrown into a state of further anxietyQuestions would be asked
feverishly—questions for which there were no answers
He climbed into the cart, shifted gears and started for the cabin at the end of the graveled road
that branched off from the immaculate circular drive
?? ?? ??
He stood by the window peering inside, his face at the edge of the glassThe huge, fine jewelry tiffany overweight
master sergeant was sitting in a large leather armchair, his feet on an ottoman, watching television
From the sounds penetrating the window, specifically the rapid, high-pitched speech of an
announcer, the general’s aide was engrossed in a baseball gameJason scanned the room as best he
Robert Ludlum ?? THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
98
could; it was typically rustic, a profusion of browns and reds, from dark furniture to checkered
curtains, comfortable and masculine, a man’s cabin in the countryHowever, there were no
weapons in sight, not even the accepted antique rifle over the fireplace, and no general-issue 5
automatic either on the sergeant’s person or on the table beside the chairThe aide had no concerns
for his immediate safety and why should he? The estate of General Norman Swayne was totally
secure—fence, gates, patrols and louis vuitton metallic bags disciplined roving attack dogs at all points of entryBourne stared
through the glass at the strong jowled face of the master sergeantWhat secrets did that large head
hold? He would find outMedusa’s Delta One would find out if he had to carve that skull apart
Jason pushed himself away from the window and walked around the cabin to the front doorHe
knocked twice with the knuckles of his left hand; in his right was the untraceable automatic
supplied by Alexander Conklin, the crown prince of dark operations
“It’s open, Rachel!” yelled the rasping voice from within
Bourne twisted the knob and shoved the door back; it swung slowly on its hinges and made
contact with the wall
“Jesus Christ!” roared the master sergeant, his heavy legs plunging off the ottoman as he
wriggled his massive body out of the chairYou’re a goddamned ghost! You’re dead!”
“Try again,” balenciaga le dix motorcycle bag black said Delta of Medusa“The name’s Flannagan, isn’t it? That’s what comes to
mind
“You’re dead!” repeated the general’s aide, screaming, his eyes bulging in panic“You bought it
in Hong Kong! You were killed in Hong Kong four, five years ago!”
“You kept tabs—”
“We know I know!”
“You’ve got connections in the right places, then
“You’re Bourne!”
“Obviously born again, you might say
“I don’t believe this!”
“Believe, FlannaganIt’s the ‘we’ we’re going to talk aboutSnake Lady, to be precise
“You’re the one—the one Swayne called ‘Cobra’!”
“It’s a snake
“I don’t get it—”
“It’s confusing
“You’re one of us!”
“I wasI snaked back in, as it were
The sergeant frantically looked at the door, then the windows“How’d you get in here? Where
are the guards, the dogs? Jesus! Where are they?”
“The dogs are asleep in the kennels, so I gave the guards the night chanel quilted bag knock off o