Wednesday 27th January 2016
Monte Carlo, Monaco
Adam Fraser may not be as fast on his feet as Ricky’s former cage fighting security guard. However, his military service did teach him how to operate behind enemy lines, making him reasonably confident about his ability to tail someone without risk of being detected. Especially in the dark.
Following their brief moment of eye contact, Adam is happy to let Vladek believe that he is continuing on his way back to the villa. He finds a gap in the traffic and sprints across the busy road before heading around a corner by a supermarket and into a side street. Now out of direct line of sight of anyone who might have been behind him, Adam hurriedly makes a wide loop back on himself, sprinting through narrow alleyways before picking up Vladek’s trail a few minutes later. What has helped is that both Emms and Beef are no longer running, a change that causes the Slav to slow his own pace in order to follow a safe distance in their wake. Adam shadows all three to a nondescript apartment building sandwiched between a pharmacy and a patisserie. Hiding in a darkened storefront several metres from Vladek, he watches as Emms and Beef enter the apartment building. Vladek waits for the pair to take the lift then rushes across the street, pressing his nose against the glass window.
When Vladek takes off soon after, presumably on his way back to the villa, Adam decides that he urgently needs to warn Emma. There is a procedure they have agreed, for use in dire emergencies only. He takes out his phone and texts ‘999’ to his maiden Aunt Fiona. Twenty seconds later the phone buzzes, an incoming call from a number he doesn’t recognise.
“Emms?”
“No.” The Ghanaian’s voice is instantly recognisable. “What’s up?”
Adam explains about Vladek having followed the pair of them to the apartment on Rue Grimaldi. This receives a simple grunt from Beef. Before Adam can say anything further, he finds himself speaking to Emma.
“Are you all right?” she asks, urgency in her tone. “I was in the shower.”
“Can I come up?”
“No you can’t. Where are you? Back at the villa?”
“No,” Adam replies and explains about Vladek following them back to their apartment.
“Shit!”
“I love it when you talk dirty. Can I come up?”
“No you can’t! I’m heading for the airport. I’m cutting it fine as it is.”
“You’re no longer safe where you are, now that Vladek knows the location.”
“Great!”
“You should have been more careful.”
“I was worrying too much about you, to be honest.”
“Me you too. Why do you think I circled back to make sure you were safe? Just as well I did. Can Beef stay behind and clear the apartment?”
“Looks as if he’s going to have to.”
“When are you back?”
“Tomorrow late morning. I am planning on meeting Miss Bateson, as you call her, later this evening. Then I’m back out here on the first flight tomorrow morning.”
“Haven’t you heard of telephones? Why not simply give her a call? That would be much easier, surely? Cheaper too.”
“I know, I know, I completely agree. However, she’s paranoid about not using telephones to discuss operational details. This is all meant to be below the radar. You and I definitely shouldn’t be talking like this either.”
“So call me. Please? The moment you land tomorrow morning. Xandra’s not back until the evening at the earliest. We can head off somewhere. Just the two of us. Call it operational planning, or whatever makes Miss Bateson happy. Leave Beef and it can be just you and I. What do you say?”
There is a moment’s hesitation. Adam imagines her biting that bottom lip once again. He imagines her taking this call wrapped in an undersized bath sheet, the towel only just held together at the front. One tug, that is all it would take. One tug.
“I’ve got to run. Let me think about it. For now, just stay out of trouble, promise? No sudden trips to Baghdad. Is that a deal?”
“Only if you call me, as soon as you’re back. On this number. I’ll be waiting.”
Then, to his surprise, she lowers her guard. Just momentarily. It is sufficient to send his hopes soaring.
“Me too. À demain!” and the line goes dead.