Chapter 35

 

LILIA RUBBED HER forehead as she searched, or hoped she was, through the filing system. She’d never learned German. She never thought she’d needed to but Frei had decided that she needed to file everything in a language only she could understand.

Great.

Lilia had found the paper copies and hidden them. That had been no problem. The computer operating system and language wasn’t proving as easy.

What was the German for CIG team files?

She looked down at the keyboard. It didn’t look like a US layout. She closed her eyes, hoping she could find a trace of Frei, then sighed as the computer crackled. Probably not a good idea to blow the electrics.

“Is there a problem?”

Lilia felt her shoulders tense up at Fleming’s voice. “More mine than yours.”

Fleming wandered in. Her sharp eyes tracked every inch of the office. She would have made an incredible investigator herself. Lilia had often thought about asking her to join when she’d been with Renee.

“Care to explain?” She smiled, a patient smile. “So far things are looking a bit . . . sketchy.”

Lilia laughed. “Doesn’t it just. I will happily admit that I don’t run the base, that’s Lead Agent Frei’s job.” She held up her hands. “You’ve discovered that I’m a terrible administrator.”

Fleming strolled over and looked down at the keyboard. “Well, not many people would be able to administrate in another language.”

“I forget that her parents spoke German.” She kept to the cover. She’d keep to the story about Detroit. If necessary, she’d make a quick call to Eli and have him find some parents for Frei. She had been impressed at just how many contacts he’d made. She felt her heart flutter at the thought of him. He was an amazing man.

“Luckily, I took it in college.” Fleming shrugged as Lilia stared up at her. “I liked the lecturer, long story.”

How could she argue with that? Lilia made way for Fleming who set about navigating Frei’s workspace. She only prayed that there was nothing telling on the computer.

“There.” Fleming pulled up the CIG files. She pressed print on Frei’s and then cocked her head at the screen. “Any relation?”

Lilia saw Aeron’s name and couldn’t help but smile. “My daughter.”

“Aeron?” Fleming scanned over her file. “Interesting name.”

Lilia chuckled. “Yes, if you asked her, she’d probably tell you that we wanted a boy so we changed her name.” She shook her head. “Eli, my husband, seemed to have given her that impression.”

She left out the fact that he hadn’t a clue why they’d named her Aeron, he’d left names to Lilia. If they’d had a boy, he might have demanded a name but she doubted it. Eli had been laid back to the point of sleeping when they were younger.

“He must be quite tall?” Fleming was more and more drawn into the file. Lilia didn’t much like her scrutiny but what could she say? She only hoped that the whole mistaken for a killer and locked up wasn’t on there.

“No, that’s from my side.” Lilia nodded as Fleming cast a glance over her. “My sister is a fraction taller, as were my uncles. My parents and I were the odd ones out.”

“It must be hard to see her in the field. I see she’s your protection officer now.” Fleming’s tone held a trace of longing and regret.

Lilia winced at it. “I feel that way about all my agents, Aeron and the others.”

Fleming scanned her face. “She’s your daughter and most of the agents up on the wall are in the protection team.”

“Aeron has great support. We learned from our mistakes.” She knew the look. It was her fault that Renee had been hurt by Yannick. She’d tried her best and fallen far short. The guilt would remain with her. Fleming could blame her but not as much as she blamed herself.

“Llys?” Fleming frowned, turning back to the screen. “Funny, Renee used to . . .”

Lilia tensed for it. Then Fleming waved her hand in front of her face and printed the files. She shut down the screen without looking any further.

“Sorry . . .” Fleming sighed, the tears bubbling in her eyes. “Silly that even now it gets to me.” She stood up. “I’d like to try explaining that to Martin.”

Lilia nodded, handing her a tissue from the box on the desk. They looked untouched. She couldn’t imagine Frei being a heart-to-heart kind of boss. “He knows about her?”

Fleming shook her head. “He knows I was engaged and . . .” She took a long breath. “He doesn’t need to know any more.”

“Not an agent?”

She laughed. “Oh no, never again. No, Martin teaches kindergarten.”

As far removed from Renee as possible. Interesting. “Did you find anything of use in Lead Agent Frei’s file?”

Fleming wandered over to the printer and tapped the pages. “Reading in German takes me a while longer. Do you have somewhere I can work?”

Lilia swallowed back her need to tear the files from Fleming’s grasp. “Of course, there’s a spare office along the hall.”

She led Fleming that way, resolving to either demand Frei use plain American English for everything, or enlisting herself in a German course. She smiled to herself. Knowing Frei, she would find the latter the easier option.