Throughout the two weeks since she had accepted her current mission, Kristen, with some assistance from a few others, monitored the off duty habits of Agent Bishop. Their collective reconnaissance provided Kristen with an angle which she felt could be exploited. She learned that her target was a man who regularly enjoyed a brisk run of several miles in the early mornings, and it was inconsequential to Kristen if Heath did so for the physical or mental health benefits which were derived from the effort. Kristen had also been running for several years, and from her point of view, having Heath see another person involved in the same activity could be an excellent method to create the chance encounter she required. Therefore she moved forward with the belief that once Heath had identified her as another passionate runner; he might initiate contact. If such an advance upon her were to transpire, then Kristen could begin the job of developing their introduction into a relationship.

Based on the distant and covert observations of Heath with binoculars and a stopwatch, Kristen noted the time intervals between certain landmarks that his typical pace established. Subsequent practice runs on her part, at times when she knew that he would not be present, had helped Kristen to establish her own required pace.

Then during the early morning of November seventeenth, Commander Calvin Foster, dressed in civilian attire, peered through binoculars while Kristen continued to stretch.

After spotting Agent Bishop in the distance, he turned toward her and said, “Alright, here he comes. I estimate that you have about twenty seconds if you still want to have a sizable lead on him.”

Standing upright to then slowly jog in place, Kristen replied, “Thanks. I’m ready when you give the word.”

Nodding in agreement, number twenty-nine returned his gaze to the target and said, “Ten seconds. Five, now get moving, and good luck Lieutenant.”

Dressed in the appropriate running attire which would enable her to be recognized as a serious exercise enthusiast, while also highlighting her well-toned physical form, Kristen moved onto the wide footpath which circled the Tidal Basin. She estimated that Agent Bishop would be approximately one-hundred yards behind her as she first set foot on the wide concrete walkway, and based on the curving portion of the path, would not have noticed when she did so. At the pace Kristen then set, it would take him at least a few minutes to close the distance. Unless there was some rogue person that she hadn’t seen during her observations of several early mornings, Kristen knew that she and Agent Bishop would both be setting faster paces than any of the other joggers. Therefore her hope was that when Heath got closer, he would be intrigued by how difficult it was to eventually overtake her.

The plan worked; as it was nearly five minutes before Kristen could clearly hear footsteps within twenty or thirty feet of her. She turned her head to the left with a somewhat amazed look on her face to make quick eye contact, but said nothing.

After a few more seconds she looked over her shoulder again, and said, “Wow, you’re really moving. I’m not accustomed to people closing on me while I run.”

Heath smiled and replied, “You set a quick pace as well. It wasn’t easy catching up with you.”

As Heath then drew even to her on the left side, Kristen said, “Thanks. I’ve been slowly building up to this pace for several months, but it feels really comfortable now.”

“That’s nice. I’m glad it’s working out for you.”

“Thanks, but I don’t think I can keep up with your pace. I still have a few miles to go, so I don’t want to risk an injury by going any faster right now.”

Before slowly pulling ahead, Heath said, “I understand. That’s a good strategy for the long haul. So have a nice run, and maybe I’ll see you again.”

A few minutes later when Heath had increased the gap to roughly fifty yards, he turned his head quickly to see if his new acquaintance was still there. Kristen revealed no emotion or facial expression as he did so, but inwardly she smiled. Then she thought to herself, after a couple more of these encounters, he will slow to match my pace.