Klara is grateful it’s just a quarter to four, so rush-hour traffic hasn’t started clogging the streets yet. She pulls George’s Audi out of its parking spot and manoeuvres it onto the Boulevard de Waterloo, then down the slope towards Rue Haute, where she and George have agreed to meet.
Just fifteen minutes to go, and she has to struggle to keep her breathing normal. She wishes she hadn’t let George go in her stead. She should be the one meeting Karl, like they’d planned from the beginning, since Karl was probably expecting a woman. But George insisted: if the Russians were in place, there was less risk he’d be recognized.
Slowly she turns up onto the narrow, one-way Rue Haute, past bakeries and dive bars, towards the antique district, which she often strolled through on weekends when she lived here. That really was another life.
Six minutes to go now.
What is the worst-case scenario? That Karl never shows up, but the Russians do? That Karl doesn’t know anything about what happened to Gabriella or why they’re being followed? What are they supposed to do then? They haven’t even discussed that.
Four minutes.
Klara’s almost at the square below the elevator now, and she allows the car to creep along the asphalt while she searches for somewhere to park. She can’t go all the way to the square without risking discovery, so the plan is for George to lead Karl here.
That’s when she sees it.
Just ten metres ahead of her, very close to the square, a black van with its engine idling. It has to be the Russians.
The lit clock on the dashboard says 4:00 as she takes out her phone and calls George.
He answers on the third ring with a concentrated, resolute tone in his voice. ‘I think I have him,’ he says.
Klara feels the stress tearing inside him, inside her. ‘They’re here,’ she says. ‘The Russians. You’ll see the van when you turn around the corner onto Rue Haute.’
‘Damn,’ he whispers. ‘Are you sure?’
‘No,’ she says. ‘Or yes. My gut is quite distinct on this point.’
She hears George take a deep breath.
‘Just take it easy,’ Klara says. ‘Continue walking towards the car like we agreed.’
‘How are we gonna get away from them?’ he says.
Klara feels her blood pumping and pounding through her body. What she’s about to suggest crosses all boundaries. But she didn’t choose to be involved in this. They, whoever they are, will have to suffer the consequences.
She sees George coming around the corner further down the street. ‘Wait,’ she says quietly. ‘Do you see the Russians’ van?’
She can see him searching along the street. ‘Yes,’ he says. ‘I see it.’
She takes a deep breath. ‘You brought the gun, right?’ she says as quietly as she can.