2012 The Secret Teachings of the Next Door Neighbour
Page 13
Elodie indicated and pulled out of the stream of traffic. She bumped her Harley up the kerb and cut the engine.
The border crossing at Heerenberg had gone smoothly but it had been a long hard cold night’s ride through the industrial sprawl of Northern Germany. She felt frozen stiff and tired, never before having realized quite how demanding on the body riding a bike could be. She’d have to get warmer clothing but first things first, right now she needed to top up her frequency block and get on-line.
Elodie’s gaze flicked up and down the street for signs of danger. She removed her helmet and pulled a U-lock through the frame of her bike. She clicked it closed and scrambled the digits of the combination.
The Bahnhofstrasse in the centre of Frankfurt was a busy road at any time of day, and this morning was no exception.
Elodie strode through the throng of shop keepers, secretaries and office workers, pleased at the way a leather jacket and bike helmet afforded her a certain wary respect as people hurriedly stepped from her path.
Time was everything and Elodie was acutely aware she didn’t have that much left as she swung open the doors of yet another internet cafe and strode straight through to the toilets at the back.
Once locked in a cubicle, Elodie removed a wrap of opium from her inside pocket and scraped the sticky, brown lump onto a folded piece of tinfoil.
She sighed to herself as she placed a rolled up 20 Euro note in her mouth and held a cigarette lighter under the foil. She didn’t like doing it but if that was what it would take to stay hidden from their radar, that’s what she’d have to do.
After all, she had got this far without detection, so her strategy must have some merit. With the rest of the society stuck behind bars and so much dependent on her, now was not the moment to falter. As long as Paul was free and in possession of the crystal, the possibility of success still existed.
The opium was soon bubbling and releasing its thick, heady smoke, which she sucked deeply into her lungs.
As she exhaled she felt the now familiar numbness spread its tentacles through her brain, her limbs flopping lethargically at her sides. It wasn’t easy to function on opium and to keep her mind sharp she’d now had to substitute amphetamines for caffeine.
Elodie heaved herself up and out the cubicle, knocking a couple of tiny, white pills back with a mouthful of water from the sink tap.
She stared at her reflection a moment in the mirror, hardly recognizing the scruffy, pale skinned girl who stared back at her.
If and when this was all over, she was looking forward to a good detox and the pleasures of a clear, focused mind again.
There were only two available computers and Elodie chose the one in the corner of the cafe that afforded the maximum privacy.
Poking a couple of coins into the slot she logged on, rapidly typing her password into the box and waited for the web-site window to appear in front of her on the screen.
Paul: December 19th 4 p.m..