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“EXCUSE ME, SIR?” A rough voice spoke from my left side.
I transferred my weight in my seat so I could look up, giving the bad guy exactly what he wanted. With a full view of my face, he was able to identify me as his target. His arm lashed out, snatching me up by my collar and hauling me to my feet.
I let out a strangled cry, angry at myself for being caught unaware. Clark, however, suffered no such indignation. She launched herself into an attack without hesitation, peeling the guy’s fingers off my shirt before punching him in the face.
I lowered my center of gravity and plowed into our attacker, sending him sprawling in the middle of the aisle. Another person took over for him, launching himself across my back to get at Clark. She wasted no time, lifting a suitcase from the overhead rack to brain him with.
The couple opposite us screamed, the woman diving into her husband’s arms. They scooted away, inching from their seats until they were clear of the altercation before fleeing into the next car.
The train had stopped in a tiny village in the foothills of the Alps, many miles from our destination. I dug into my attacker’s back with my elbow, keeping him pinned to the ground. Clark hopped on the other person’s shoulders, hitting him repeatedly with the suitcase until his knees gave way and he came crashing down.
“Come on!” I shouted, climbing to my feet and holding out my hand.
She took one last look at the people who were trying to stop us before following my lead. Together, we surged toward the door, stepping over our assailants in our haste. No one other than the passengers immediately to our left were aware of what was going on. The security guards were somewhere else entirely, and the train wasn’t scheduled to remain in the station. We had mere seconds to reach the door before the locks shifted into place and we were trapped with the assassins.
I leapt onto the platform, holding out my hands to catch Clark as she did the same. She came crashing into my arms as the doors hissed shut behind her. The train whisked away, taking the unconscious bodies of our attackers with them.
We’d lost the opportunity to get to my safe house, but luckily, Clark was forward thinking enough to grab her bag. In it, I knew there were plenty of weapons and tools that would serve us well. We were stranded but not without recourse.
Standing up, I brushed the dust from the platform off my jacket. Clark remained seated for a moment, wanting to catch her breath. I retrieved her bag from where it had fallen beside us and slung it over my shoulder. Offering her a hand, I helped her up.
“Now what?” she demanded.
I sighed, looking up and down the tracks for another train. There was a schedule posted on the exterior wall of the station. The next train wasn’t due for another three hours. By that time, it would be night, and the thought of sitting around like decoys with targets on our backs was unappealing.
“I think we should walk,” I said.
She nodded her agreement, holding her hand out for the bag. I passed it over, understanding that she needed to feel in control. As close as we were, she wanted to be the one holding all the equipment. I didn’t blame her. In our line of work, you could never be too careful.
We set off down the road, having no idea where we would end up. The sun was going down, and the sky was a deep navy blue. It was cold in the mountains, and Clark hadn’t dressed well. She was wearing the burglary attire that allowed for maximum movement and limited visibility. But it wasn’t designed to keep a body warm.
I took off my jacket and handed it to her. She shook her head, more proof that she wanted to do things her own way. I shrugged, not interested in fighting with her. If she wanted it, I had to trust her to ask for it. At least the movement would keep our blood pumping and stave off any kind of ill effects of the frozen temperature.
We walked for miles until we came to the town center. It was quaint and friendly, a series of older stone houses each with lights on in the windows. A wide boulevard stretched between homes, eventually opening up into the shopping district.
A few bars and restaurants were open, music and laughter emanating out onto the streets. We paused at the entrance of one establishment. Above the bar, two stories of additional space looked promising. There was a sign outside that read “Inn,” reminiscent of the early days of travel.
We stepped inside, the electric heat wrapping itself around our bodies like a blanket. I realized only then how cold I really was and knew that if it was at all possible, we would be spending the night.
Clark and I went up to the bar together. After a quick conversation, the bartender pointed us toward a door in the back where the building opened up into the hotel lobby. A friendly receptionist took our fake names and passports and gave us a room key.
Walking up two flights of stairs, we turned left down an immaculate hall. The door opened with a simple brass tumbler, giving us peace of mind that no electronic trail was being established. We were free to come and go as we liked without having to hack into any security system.
There was only one bed, but it was large. The bathroom was small but had all the amenities, including a shower. We had no luggage apart from Clark’s bag of tricks, so there was nothing for us to unpack. I flopped down on the bed like an exhausted teenager, thrilled to have finally found a place to relax.
There was almost no place for an assailant to hide, and since we hadn’t planned to stay here and no one was aware of our presence, there was a very low probability that we were in danger. Still, I saw that Clark had a hard time sitting still. Instead of joining me on the bed, she sat down in a chair and began to go through her belongings.
My stomach grumbled, and I wanted a shower. I wasn’t sure which order to accomplish those things in, but it looked like I was on my own. I decided to take a shower and hope that by the time I was finished, Clark would have abandoned her meticulous scrutiny of her bag and be ready to go down for some dinner.
I turned the hot water up all the way and lathered up the complimentary soap bar to wash the day off my skin. Every once in a while, my job afforded me the opportunity to live like a normal person. I appreciated the anonymity of the inn and the security it afforded me, just as I had appreciated the silence of the train ride before it was interrupted.
Stepping out of the shower, I toweled off and reached for my clothes. I had no choice but to return to the things I had been wearing before. We hadn’t packed any additional items, and unless we wanted to crash another fashion boutique, I was stuck with what I had for the time being.
Stepping back into the room, I found Clark on her phone. There was a lot that could be done with a burner, although I was fairly confident that she was checking in with her handler. She put the phone down as soon as I arrived, making it clear that it was none of my business what she was up to.
“Are you going to check in?” she asked.
“I wasn’t going to,” I replied.
“If you don’t, your handler will think there is something suspicious,” Clark explained.
“That’s true,” I allowed. She was right on all counts. Regg might be working with the enemy, but he was still my boss. If I didn’t touch base, he was going to think something was off and possibly follow up with more assassins.
I sat down on the bed and reached for the burner phone. Dialing Regg’s number from memory, I waved at Clark to make sure she knew to stay quiet. She nodded at me, remaining completely still to avoid making any noise whatsoever.
“Hello?” Regg’s voice came through.
I knew he was seeing a strange number on his ID, but also that he was tracing the call. There was protocol involved in every phone call no matter how close the relationship. I had just a few minutes to relay the fact that I was fine, alone, and in no way suspicious before Regg would have everything he needed to send more trouble my way. And I had to make it seem like there was nothing wrong, and that I wasn’t trying to get off the phone.
I opted for the swift point of contact call that most agents make when they’re out in the field. I had taken the added precaution of bouncing my phone signal off a Canadian satellite to make it more difficult to trace. That simple misdirection should have been enough, as long as Regg wasn’t aware that I knew he was burning his candle at both ends.
“Regg, it’s me,” I said.
“Theo, where are you?” he demanded.
“I’m taking some time off,” I said, knowing that he would see Alberta on his screen. As long as he didn’t dig any deeper, I was okay.
“Is Clark with you?” Regg asked.
“I haven’t seen her,” I lied.
“I want you to get back to London ASAP,” Regg said.
“Will do,” I replied easily. “But it may take a few days.” I searched the ceiling for a viable excuse and picked the only one that came to me. “It’s my nephew’s birthday, and I need to put in an appearance.”
“Your nephew?” Regg asked. I could hear a hint of suspicion in his voice, but I pressed on anyway.
“Just a few days, Regg, then I’m back at headquarters ready to go.”
“What about Dark Sparrow?” Regg pressed.
“All indications are that it’s no longer a threat,” I replied.
“What indications?” he demanded. “I didn’t see any of those indications.”
“I can’t talk,” I said, hinting at a more professional reason for my absence. “I’m on to something here with regards to Dark Sparrow. I’ll know more soon.”
“Okay,” he relented, finally giving me the peace of mind I was looking for.
“I’m going silent,” I added.
“Okay,” he answered, swallowing the whole thing hook, line, and sinker.
I hung up the phone and looked at Clark. She burst into a smile, clapping her hands in celebration. I’d never tried to lie to my handler before, and wouldn’t you know, the less I told him, the more eager he was to buy it.
“Do you really have a nephew in Canada?” Clark asked, sitting down next to me.
“What do you think?” I responded.
“I think you’re a liar, liar, pants on fire,” she said, kissing me sweetly on the lips.
“My pants may be on fire,” I countered, pulling her close, “but it’s not from anything I said.”
“Mmm,” she answered, pressing down on me with her luxurious chest.
We succumbed to the lure of the king-sized mattress now that we’d bought ourselves a night of freedom. Unfortunately, by the time we came up for air, the dining room was almost closed. We raced downstairs to beat the clock, our shirts untucked and our hair in disarray.
The bartender knew exactly what we’d been up to and took pity on us. “I’m not going to fire up the grill, but we could make you some sandwiches and chips.”
“That would be great,” I responded enthusiastically.
Since they were closing down for the night, they didn’t offer to let us eat at the bar. But they packaged our dinner so that we could take it back to our room, and it was the best damned sandwich I had ever had.
Feeling clean and full and sexually satisfied, I stretched out on the bed with my lover beside me. It was these moments that made life bearable. I thought about all the nights I’d spent alone or in parked cars waiting for bad guys to make an appearance. None of them could hold a candle to this night. It was almost as if we were an ordinary couple on an ordinary vacation doing ordinary things.
