EXTRACTS: The Modesty Blaise Companion Expanded Edition © 2018 The Book Palace (425 PAGES in Full edition)

T H E M O D E S T Y B L A I S E C O M P A N I O N STORY 14A DRAWN BY JIM HOLDAWAY THIS STORY APPEARED IN THE EVENING CITIZEN PUBLISHED IN GLASGOW START DATE OF STORY 7th October 1968 (Monday) END DATE OF STORY 16th November 1968 (Saturday) Modesty and Willie Garvin awake to find themselves in the cabin of a small fishing boat. They are handcuffed and Willie is in full evening dress. They have been kidnapped. They are taken before Bellman, a vicious criminal they once chased across the world when smashing his drug rackets. Because of them he has served five years in the Peruvian mines and is dying. His last desire is for revenge and he has brought them to an uninhabited island in the Orkneys where they are themselves to be hunted to death by experts. Bellman has put a price on each of their heads. Charlie Brightstar, a Choctaw Indian, Opperman, a big game hunter and Dempster, a mercenary, are to be their hunters. Modesty is given a gun, Willie a knife and for them both, a bottle of water. They are put ashore and given two hours start. Hiding in a cave they quickly discover that the water is salt and the gun useless. They watch the hunters come ashore and each of them take a prearranged section of the island to search. Opperman has the section they are in. He has a small direction finder and makes straight for their hideout. They realise that the knife must contain a transmitter and they use it as a decoy to capture him. He is made to reveal the overall plan of the hunt. Again using the knife/transmitter as a lure, they place it on the border between Brightstar’s and Dempster’s sections, drawing them together. Modesty and Willie split up. Modesty takes on Brightstar but he outwits her and takes her prisoner. He wants both of them and in his eagerness, comes too close to Modesty and she knocks him out. Willie easily captures Dempster so now they have all the hunter’s guns. Without showing themselves they signal the fishing boat and the Captain tells Bellman it is all over. A boat is sent ashore and when it arrives Willie forces the sailors out, they are left on the island and he and Modesty board and capture the fishing boat. The Captain tells them that soon after he heard from the shore that they were dead, Bellman had a heart attack and died. On the ship’s radio they call Weng in London and he arrives the next morning in a helicopter to collect them. Weng considers Mr. Garvin’s attire to be unusual for the time of day. I I 220