l said dryly. "I'll want a
complete list of your Soviet based agents and the necessary information
on how to contact them."

Lord Carrol stared at him. Finally sputtered, "Man, _why_? You're not
even a British national. This is--"

Paul, held up a hand. "We're co-operating with the Russian underground.
Co-operating isn't quite strong enough a word. We're going to _push_
them into activity if we can."

The British intelligence head looked down at the card before him. "Mr.
Smith," he read. He looked up. "John Smith, I assume."

Paul said, still dryly, "Is there any other?"

Lord Carrol said, "See here, you're really Paul Koslov, aren't you?"

Paul looked at him, said nothing.

Lord Carrol said impatiently, "What you ask is impossible. Our
operatives all have their own assignments, their own work. Why do you
need them?"

"This is the biggest job ever, overthrowing the Soviet State. We need as
many men as we can get on our team. Possibly I won't have to use them
but, if I do, I want them available."

The Britisher rapped, "You keep mentioning _our team_ but according to
the dossier we carry on you, Mr. Koslov, you are neither British nor
even a Yankee. And you ask me to turn over our complete Soviet
machinery."

Paul came to his feet and leaned over the desk, there was a paleness
immediately beneath his ears and along his jaw line. "Listen," he said
tightly, "if I'm not on this team, there just is no team. Just a
pretense of one. When there's a real team there has to be a certain
spirit. A team spirit. I don't care if you're playing cricket, football
or international cold war. If there's one thing that's important to me,
that I've based my whole life upon, it's this, understand? _I've_ got
team spirit. Perhaps no one else in the whole West has it, but _I_ do."

Inwardly, Lord Carrol was boiling. He snapped, "You're neither British
nor American. In other words, you are a mercenary. How do we know that
the Russians won't offer you double or triple what the Yankees pay for
your services?"

Paul sat down again and looked at his watch. "My time is limited," he
said. "I have to leave for Paris this afternoon and be in Bonn tomorrow.
I don't care what opinions you might have in regard to my mercenary
motives, Lord Carrol. I've just come from Downing Street. I suggest you
make a phone call there. At the request of Washington, your government
has given me carte blanche in this matter."

* * *