Dieter Schwarz
The entry team was crammed into two SUVs, large men squeezed three abreast in the seats, eight per car. They all still wore suits to conceal their handguns holstered under their arms or near their tailbones. While a team of men wearing black fatigues and carrying large rifles had not drawn attention in the American West, it might be remarked upon in Switzerland, so they went low-profile.
But they wore military-issue combat boots. That was non-negotiable.
Dieter sat next to Wulfram, who had barely blinked during the few minutes of the ride. Their arms pressed when the SUV rounded a corner, and neither of them shook with nerves. They both breathed slowly, methodically, dampening any adrenaline response.
At the hotel, the concierges had come through in less than ten minutes, getting information on where Wulf’s father Phillipp had taken rooms, confirming the presence of the black Touareg in question, and reviewing surveillance footage to determine that the vehicle had returned recently. A young woman had been struggling as they took her up the back stairs to the Prince’s suite.
Dieter had pinched his nose, disgusted that Phillipp’s team had been so sloppy with the hotel’s security cameras embedded in the ceilings, watching their every move. It was like they were trying to get caught, which was an excellent possibility. The Prince might be paying them, but few men wanted to commit actual crimes for their employer, especially kidnapping a kind, young woman to make her brother suffer on his wedding day, especially when many of those men may have known Flicka and Wulf since their childhoods.
If Phillipp fired his staff, Dieter might take them on, if they had left a purposeful trail rather than just having been careless.
The SUV hopped a bump as they sped toward the Prince’s hotel.
The concierge was supposed to be waiting for them in the parking garage below. Dieter had only minutes left to talk to Wulf.
Dieter cleared his throat. “So, one last operation for old time’s sake, Durchlaucht?”
Wulf flickered his blond eyebrows just a bit. “You could say that.”
“And this time, you will stay to the rear and enter the room only after we have secured the premises?”
Wulf’s lips tightened. “I heard her crying.”
“But this time?” Dieter pressed.
“I’ll stay back. I can’t believe that we’re doing this again, but it was folly to believe that my father would give in so easily.”