condensed master

The Reluctant Agent
A Compelling Story of Espionage
"No, should I?"
"I'll jog your memory. Do you remember a skirmish you had with someone in
the boardroom of a ship during the last war?"
Henderson's eyes opened wide and he took a step backwards. "Will
Brenner?"
Will waited for the next reaction but what he received was totally unexpected.
Henderson swung the rake and Will felt the impact of the prongs across his left
shoulder. He grabbed the handle and pushed hard and in seconds they were both
rolling amongst the leaves on the ground - a replay of the incident those many
years ago.
Will had the upper hand, his knees hard down on Henderson's chest. He was
puffing and wheezing like a steam engine with a faulty valve, but he was not
resisting. His face had turned blue, his tongue was out and he was making a
croaking noise. My God, he was having a heart attack!
Will pulled him up into the sitting position with his back against a tree as a
woman wearing an apron ran across the lawn towards them. "Are you alright Bob,
will I call the police?"
Henderson shook his head and mumbled through his heavy breathing. "Get
me back to the house, I need to take a pill."
Will watched as Henderson settled himself back into an easy chair after taking
his medicine. His blue face was already beginning to return to normal flesh tones.
The two men stared at one another for sometime. Will shook his head. "You
bloody fool! I didn't come here to harm you, I wanted your help."
Henderson's wife had been watching her husband intently, never taking her
eyes off him for one second, a look of concern on her face. She turned in Will's
direction. "What's this all about? Who are you? Do you know my husband?"
"It's a long story, it can wait until he feels better."
Settling back on the settee Will tried to relax, he was lucky that Henderson
had not died out there. It would have meant double trouble, the magnitude of
which defied belief.
Looking across at Henderson he dearly wanted to hate this man. He had
instigated a life of uncertainty for him that had sometimes resulted in the difference
between life and death. His family had survived involvement but that too had
carried a strong element of risk, depending on the occasion. The feeling of revenge
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