'Very happy,' said Bond. 'The music is beautiful. Let's
hear the rest of it.'
Mathis grinned and switched the radio on again. 'Now to
business,' he said. 'You will be pleased with your assistant -
your Number Two. She is very beautiful, and she is also a
radio expert. We will pretend that she works with me. We're
both staying in the hotel. So my "assistant" will be near you.'
He smiled. 'Day ... or night.'
But Bond did not smile back at him.
'Why did they send me a woman?' he said, angrily. 'This
isn't a game!'
'Relax, James,' said Mathis. 'She's good at her job and
she speaks French very well. She will meet you at the Casino.
You are the rich son of a millionaire. It's normal for you to
find a pretty girl to ... uh ... share your winnings with.'
'Are there any other surprises?' asked Bond.
'Not really,' replied Mathis. 'Le Chiffre's villa is about
sixteen kilometres down the coast road. He has got two
guards with him. They speak to each other in Bulgarian.'
'Anything else?' asked Bond.
'Come to the Hermitage Bar before lunch,' said Mathis.
'And meet your Number Two. Ask her to dinner, then she
can come to the Casino with you tonight. I'll be there, but
you probably won't see me. Oh, and there's an American
called Felix Leiter. He's staying here. He's the CIA man.'
After Mathis left, Bond sat back at the window. He was
not happy. The Russians knew that he was here. They might
try to kill him.
And then there was the problem of the girl. Bond did
not like working with women.