“How much?” asked Sabena. Her eyes bore into Zack’s, drilling into his psyche with an unnatural intensity. Zack swallowed uncomfortably. His employer’s profile had been right; Sabena certainly did have a psychotic streak.
“I’m authorized to sanction one million dollars per transaction.”
Zack maintained his stare-out game against Sabena. Without showing any sign of responding to the amount offered, Sabena stared at him, motionless and not blinking, for a full minute. Such was the silence between them, Zack wondered whether she’d heard him.
“So what do you say? Is it a deal?”
“Put a zero on the end and I will be your humble servant.” Sabena’s voice had descended to a whisper. Within a beat, she laughed so loud that Zack felt dizzy by her sudden mood change. She was brilliant. But she was also deeply unstable. Zack was hesitated to continue.
“So what do you say, Zacky-baby? Do we have a deal?”
Zack flipped opened his mobile and spoke to someone, detailing the new offer from Sabena. He heard the instruction, muttered a succinct, “Yes, sir,” and closed the phone.
“We have a deal.” Sabena whooped loudly. But Zack grabbed hold of her shoulders and shook her roughly. “On one condition, Beanie-Baby. The transaction can be anything.”
“It’s a deal.” Sabena’s beautiful eyes grabbed his, drilling into his brain. “But if you screw me over, it will take a microbiologist to identify your remains.”
Zack knew Sabena wasn’t joking.
It hadn’t been immediate, but eventually, having proved her worth in fourteen high-level assassinations, ten multi-agency double-crosses and countless missions involving maiming, torturing and killing at will, Sabena discovered who had been behind her appointment.
In the Buena Vista Cafe, San Francisco, Sabena sat drinking an Irish coffee and savoring the atmosphere. Her career had brought excessive wealth, and with it, the accoutrements of success: a private jet on stand-by, an armor-plated Merc waiting with her driver outside, international designers making one-offs for her alone, and bodyguards by the bucket load. Of course, with her capability, she really didn’t need them; they were just another trinket.
There was a tap on her shoulder.
Sabena bristled at the touch and sniffed the air. A single scent brought it all back. Her eyes lit up.
“And here we are again, babe!”
Sabena already knew. As hands turned her around roughly, she reached up. His lips were on hers instantly, his tongue pushing down her throat, almost choking her. Her bodyguards sat by and watched. Releasing her, and allowing her to breathe, Salim smiled.
“How?” started Sabena. Then she realized what a fool she’d been. “For how long?”
“Long enough to know I’ve made the right decision.” Salim smoothed down her hair.
“On what?”
“You. Congratulations! You’re my second in command.”
“I never expected anything less.”
Sabena lifted the Irish coffee, licked the froth off the top, and laughed as Salim moved in for a second round of breathlessness. Remembering that moment, Sabena smiled again. Love and hate in equal measure. But she couldn’t deny he brought out the best in her. From her seat high in the clouds, she looked down on the world. It was the position she had been born to take.
Chapter 76
Ellie was hard and defiant, but listening to her words, Sam knew she was also very naïve. Yes, she was a good businesswoman. Yes, she was witty, sharp and clever. But she was a baby when it came to the intelligence business. Unless he could prove with real, physical evidence that MI6 had acted incongruously towards him, he could do nothing. He just had to accept it, take it on the chin, and continue with his job.
He’d been in MI6 for over a decade, but never before had he encountered such blatant abuse of power against him. He’d stepped over the line a million times. He’d done things no man should ever have to do. But he’d done it all in the name of his country, to keep Britain safe from hostile warriors, fanaticals and mercenary opportunists. Sam had never given them cause for concern, and certainly not cause for putting him under surveillance.
He’d considered the possibility initially that it was because he’d mentioned Piccadilly to Maide. Was Maide really that paranoid? Did Maide really believe he was going to break? Ready to blow all their secrets? Was that why they’d put him under the lens?
Sam couldn’t work it out. It wasn’t a first for Maide and him to argue. Sam tolerated the yes sir/no sir politics of the job, but he also gave as good as he got. Maide always knew Sam was a maverick who went by his own rules. Since he’d recruited him, Sam had taken his own chances and was answerable only to himself. It was a package Maide had signed up to without complaint.
It didn’t make sense that now, after one sharp disagreement, with a few choice words on both sides, that Maide felt the need to put Sam under surveillance.
Didn’t Maide know he’d never reveal Snowdrop outside the quartet. He wasn’t into committing suicide. It would be as much the end for him, as it would be for MI6 and the UK government. Despite what they’d achieved with Operation Snowdrop, those lives that had been taken at Piccadilly would be brought into question, Sam, Maide and Ashton, they’d all face trial if they were lucky. Or just be executed as traitors of the state, if they weren’t. Whatever way, their lives would be over.
Maide must realize he’d never be that crazy.
But surveilling him meant that his loyalty and allegiance was in question. His confession to Ellie wasn’t going to make matters any easier.
“Well, Sam? What are you going to do about it?”
Sam had been quiet whilst he recollected his thoughts. Ellie stared impatiently at him, her anger overflowing. She had her honor at stake. She expected her husband to do the chivalrous thing and demand the tape back from MI6.
“Well?”
“I can’t do anything about it.”
Ellie’s jaw dropped. “Excuse me? You’re going to do nothing about it? The great Dr. Sam Noor, Foreign Office Golden Boy and MI6 Super Spy, is going to do nothing about it?”
“Oh for fuck’s sake, Ellie. Get real,” Sam snapped, his anger rising at his wife’s lack of understanding. “Why do you think I scanned the flat? I needed evidence. They’ve taken it. Of course. They wouldn’t have said anything if the bugs had still been here.”
“God, they must have been quick. I went to the gym about quarter to two. Your meeting was quarter past, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah.” Sam nodded. “The meeting wouldn’t even have begun, and the bugs would have been out.”
“What would have happened if I hadn’t gone out?”
“Nothing. They wouldn’t have risked it.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“I can’t do anything. I needed the devices. Without them, everything’s hearsay, nothing more. My word against theirs. They’ll say I’m paranoid, and they’ll have me under psyche-eval before you can say the word liability. All I can do is just do my job. Better than ever, in fact, to prove that I’m not breaking or losing it, as they obviously think I am.”
“That’s it then? I’m the Kim Kardashian of the spy set.”
“It doesn’t work like that. It’ll just be part of a security dossier on me. It’ll be logged and filed.”
“You really think?”
“I know how this works. You’re safe.”
“But they won’t like me knowing.”
“No, they won’t.”
“What’s going to happen?”
Sam looked at his wife. What could he tell her? He didn’t know the truth to that question.
“I don’t know. But you mustn’t ever tell anyone about me. You understand?”
Sam’s strict, hard voice sounded alien to Ellie. She nodded, but once again, she was frightened. Sam looked at Ellie. All the anger and indignation erased from her face, leaving a timid child trapped in a woman’s body.
“I’m scared,” she whispered.
>
“There’s nothing to worry about. You’re safe.”
Sam pulled Ellie close to him.
“You’re safe,” he echoed, as if the repetition might help him believe his own words.
Chapter 77
On answering her phone, Sabena was uncharacteristically polite. Her usually curt tone was replaced with a soft, seductive and breathy lilt. This sudden change in Sabena did not mean she’d finally seen the error of her ways. It was that the caller was Salim Al Douri, a man she loathed and loved in equal measure.
“The tests have confirmed the capability. The power is now with us.” Salim’s voice was calm and calculating. Sabena imagined the voice as that of an accountant explaining a tax return. It was bland to the point of being boring. She was amazed, considering the wonderful news.
“Is everything…” Sabena started the sentence hesitantly, but Salim chewed up her words before she could finish.
“No, it’s not! You should not have employed the second level. It was too early!”
Salim was referring to Kinley’s assassination that morning.
“But I thought you wanted to send them a message. Let them know that we’re still the leaders in the game. Despite that motherfucker Kinley. We still make the rules. I thought second level would be the right approach. It was what we had agreed,” explained Sabena, her originally defensive posturing descending into crawling.
“We never agreed on second level deployment. It’s still too early. There’s too many cracks. Frequencies need to be cleared up. Better masking needs to be employed.”
“I apologize, Salim. I really thought it was an action you’d have wanted taken.”
“The action, yes. The execution of it, no.” Salim paused before the final volley. “You may be brilliant, Sabena, but sometimes you can be a fucking idiot!”
Sabena flushed red with embarrassment, and was grateful he hadn’t used the video satcomm to call. She still couldn’t see what she’d done wrong. The experiments had been thoroughly checked and second level deployment of the new nano-bomb was absolutely locked down where frequencies were concerned. No one would be able to intercept. Salim was being totally unreasonable.
“I don’t think-”
“No, you don’t. That’s your problem. Did you check with your assets? Did you know they had invoked sign-off? It was just a matter of time. It needed no intervention at all, just a delay tactic.”
Sabena was ashamed. She’d been so eager to use the second level nano-bomb on that double-crossing fucker Kinley she hadn’t realized MI6 had him down for assassination.
“Another stunt like the one pulled this morning…”
She didn’t need to hear the rest. “I understand, Salim. No more stunts.”
“Now.” A happier tone slithered into Salim’s voice. “It’s time to congratulate ourselves. How does First Lady of the World sound to you?”
Chapter 78
The restaurant was typically Italian. There was little light except for the Chianti-bottled candles on the tables. The mood was intimate and romantic. Sam stretched his hands over the small table and clasped Ellie’s. Her skin was soft and silken. He brought one of her hands up to his lips and kissed it. Raising his head, he looked at Ellie. Her eyes sparkled in the candlelight. Ellie reached over and kissed him. He wished it could always be like this.
Sam had made the decision to eat out. Neither felt like spending much time in the flat. Although Sam claimed no devices were there, he could see in Ellie’s eyes the deep hurt. Her privacy and her life had been ruthlessly violated for no clear reason.
Sam wanted to be feel alive. Kinley’s death reinforced the fact he could be easily next on Salim’s shopping list. He needed to spend as much time with Ellie as he possibly could.
To know, just for a moment, what real happiness could feel like.
Before dinner, they took a walk by the riverside. Ellie’s hand encased in his; he tightened it. Keeping her close. Since his confession to working in Six, he’d started to hate himself. What had possessed him to take such risks for so long. When she’d been ignorant, somehow it had all been ok. It was like he’d been living a lie himself. One he’d convinced himself was true.
He’d not wanted to face the truth. Ellie trusted him. And he’d betrayed her. He could have died, and she’d never have known, and that’s what ripped him apart inside. Yes, he was patriot. Yes, he loved his country. He wanted to protect and serve, and had done so for over a decade.
But at what cost?
Sam stopped abruptly. He turned Ellie around to face him. Her eyes widened, expectant and filled with love, despite what he’d put her through. It was turning dusk. The early evening was cool. But the nights were starting to draw out, welcoming the summer. Overcome with emotions, the Kinley bombing, Ellie’s unexplained scream, his confession and the bugging, it all came crashing down upon him.
He needed Ellie, like he needed oxygen to breathe. He needed her completely. Suppressing the pain inside him, Sam pushed Ellie against the railings and kissed her hard. Out in the open, he felt freer than inside their apartment.
Under his lips he noticed Ellie quiver, and she opened her mouth letting his tongue caress and intertwine with hers. His arms slipped around her waist and Sam pulled Ellie closer to him.
“You know I love you, don’t you sweetness?”
Ellie’s eyes glittered as he spoke. She nodded but didn’t return with her usual ‘love you too sweetness’.
Sam swallowed, and his hand drifted up to touch her face.
Ellie’s hand gripped his and pulled his hand down. Her expression unreadable to Sam. A feat he couldn’t help but wonder about, as Ellie took his hand in hers and made to walk along the riverside.
“We’d better get going.” Ellie had said, glancing at her Longines watch. “We don’t want them to let the table go.”
“They won’t,” Sam muttered, kissing behind her ear. He detected a slight stiffening, but he put it down to the chill of the evening air.
“They will. It’s almost nine o’clock.”
“Oh, come on then.”
Sam had resigned to Ellie’s nagging, dropped his arm around her shoulder, and they walked towards the restaurant. The table had been perfect, secluded and out of the way of others. Sam and Ellie kissed, cuddled and fondled like newlyweds. In the candlelight, they could forget everything. They could be the Sam and Ellie that existed before unwanted knowledge almost pushed them both over the edge.
As Sam kissed Ellie, he wanted to make the moment last forever.
Chapter 79
In the heart of the Cambridgeshire countryside, Sabena’s sleek Gulfstream III landed silently on the tarmac strip, off radar thanks to their cloaking technology. Sometimes, she felt Al Nadir had taken the fun out of the hunt. Those poor intel guys didn’t even get a sniff. They couldn’t see anything at all.
The area showed itself as a food processing plant with lorries running back and forth. But walking inside through the dull double-doors, Sabena saw a different scene. Sophisticated laboratories spawning nano-chaos, communications centers constantly buzzing with encrypted messages and operatives being trained into keen and willing killers were all housed within the boring brickwork and corrugated roofing.
Sabena strode through the corridors. With every step, people stopped what they were doing and immediately looked to the floor. They didn’t salute her; that would have given her military status, which Sabena hated. She knew she was far greater than all that regimental bullshit. No, instead, they averted their eyes through fear and respect. Sabena was terrorist royalty. Everyone knew the code and heeded the way.
Sabena’s second in command and occasional lover, Pedro Russo, stood patiently at her side as she entered her command station. She took to her leather chair and flicked a switch to broadcast on an internal comms channel.
“Is the Stealth Runner ready?”
“Yes, ma’am. The Runner is ready and charged. Transparency at maximum capacity.”
Sabena l
istened to her engineering manager’s account and smiled.
“Excellent!” She switched off the comms and turned to Russo. “Evacuation measures?”
“All in operation. We’ve already evacuated all but essential personnel. All other cells have assured one hundred percent evacuation to their pre-assigned destinations. Essential personnel evacuate Q-Day plus 3.”
“Again, excellent! Well, it seems all is in order.”
Sabena turned to the screen behind her to contact Salim with the details of progress.
“Excuse me, ma’am. There is something you should know,” said Russo.
Sabena turned. “What is it? What should I know?”
“We’ve been listening in on the communiqués, you know, the grid chatter and so forth-”
“Yes, I know,” interrupted Sabena.
“It seems London may be changed. It may no longer be the venue for the UN Peace Summit.”
“Our assets, what do they say?”
“To them, no change. But certain wavelengths are discussing change strategies.”
“Your take on this?” asked Sabena, her eyes steely and cold as they absorbed his every gesture.
Russo felt she had the ability to pull into those dark eyes his very being. Unsettled, he shifted from one foot to the other before replying.
“I believe we have to be ready for any contingency. We can’t risk a wrong move at this stage.”
“I agree. So what do you suggest?”
“Perhaps absolute confirmation as to exactly where the location will be.”
“Exactly what I was thinking, Russo.”
Sabena scanned in her mind, and decided that Godley would be the best asset to use in the British government.
Chapter 80
They were walking home along the road to their apartment when it happened.
Ellie had been talking loudly about what they were going to do tomorrow.
“…and the weather forecast looks good, so maybe we could go down south, stop in Charmouth. We haven’t done that in ages…”
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