Immortal Espionage

by Debbie Behan

  ‘Oh my god! Is there nothing you haven’t got shares in, or own?’

  ‘Not everything. I didn’t know about your company or we’d have met many years ago.’

  ‘Why a resort? Not your normal investment. I’m guessing the upkeep swallows up more than it earns.’

  ‘The chef is world renowned. His wife is Amelia, the manager. You see the previous managers abused her in front of me. So I bought the place, sacked them and put Amelia in charge.’

  ‘I’m shocked. You’re a friend to her and yet so cool to her.’

  ‘That’s for her sake and only in front of the staff. Amelia and her husband will meet us later on the slopes tonight for a ski. I hope you get to see what a wonderful couple they are.’

  ‘A private night ski sounds fun.’

  ‘Better believe it, I’ve organised the far mountain. That way there won’t be a chance of Jay spotting us, well, not from up there anyway.’

  Alina smiled, but her intuition told her that nothing was ever that simple. She could ask to stay in, only the thrill of danger excited her as much as it did him.

  ~ Chapter Twenty Five ~

  Brave Enough

  Jay looked across at Kev. Always a good sleeper, he breathed heavily and hadn’t moved.

  When they first arrived at the resort they had looked forward to night skiing only weariness from the trip had them take a nap first.

  Jay threw his leg over the bed and shivered when his feet hit the icy floor tiles. Kev’s warmth and the electric blanket made him forget how chilly it was here at night. To keep warm he dressed in a padded jacket and pants before opening the door and peeking outside. He heard noises. Someone’s having a night ski.

  The wind blew bitterly cold but this didn’t deter his inquisitive nature. Carefully he closed the door, then wondered if this was a great idea after all. The wind howled around him as he trudged towards the fully-lit, far mountain. Four silhouettes at the top put on ski’s and Jay was chuffed that their room was nearest to the mountains, and thus close enough to watch people make fools of themselves. Intrigued as to why they stood at the top and hadn’t started their descent yet, he went and dragged Kev out of bed. ‘They might be movie stars or something.’ He pulled at Kev who yawned but pulled on warm clothing and followed.

  ‘Damn it but you can be pushy Jay.’ Kev showed his usual grumpy side when woken.

  ‘Stop bitching princess. If something was to happen and you missed it, well, you know how you get. This will be fun, I promise. They must be someone to have monopoly over the entire slope.’

  Kev held Jay’s hand tightly to stop him slipping. The sub-zero temperature woke him more thoroughly and, becoming alert, he pulled the beanie over his ears. ‘They may be rock-stars and we can score a signature to keep our mouths shut.’

  Jay pushed him. ‘Stuff the rock bands—I want to see them fall on their faces.’ He turned back to the mountain. ‘Check out the edge on that cliff-hanger! There’s no way they’ll land on their feet after that drop. Let’s get closer.’

  They ran in snow that became knee deep.

  ‘Here!’ Jay called, finding a flat form of snow. Closer to him, Jay pulled Kev out of the sinking snow to where he stood.

  ‘I’m freezing.’ Kev shivered.

  ‘Just another couple of minutes. Look, they have pushed off.’

  One of them moved like a professional, but the smaller person hit something, wobbled, regained footing and hurried to catch the big one.

  Kev’s voice shivered as he talked. ‘If I didn’t know better I’d say Alina and Ricco have followed us.’

  Jay strained his eyes to look closer. ‘Alina and Ricco. No! Not possible–it better not be!’ Now that Kev had mentioned it, Jay’s suspicion went into overdrive.

  They gracefully glided at full speed towards the overhanging cliff and it propelled them both high in the air. They looked at each other and Jay heard them laugh before letting out a ‘yahoo!’ They grabbed at each other’s hand and let go just before they landed, without a wobble.

  Jay’s temper rose. ‘Who else is crazy enough to take such risks? They show no fear. It has to be them.’

  ‘I’m sure now too.’ Kev peered through frozen lashes.

  ‘That rotten, untrustworthy sod! This is for sure his idea. Alina’s not that devious.’ Jay turned and stomped away.

  ‘We can’t be sure Jay, wait until they get closer.’ Kev reached out and pulled him to a stop.

  ‘I don’t need to see their faces to know it’s them–bastards!’

  Just at that moment as Jay turned to walk away from him, he spotted heavy lights from the sky and flung Kev to the ground. The noise of the helicopter put a stop to Jay’s mood. Fright took over. ‘Is it us or them they followed?’ Jay whispered.

  ‘Maybe when we fooled around before we broke one of our voice devices.’

  Luck had them fall into soft snow and both sank deep. They kept their faces up so they could breathe and see.

  The ice turned to slush against their warm bodies and the liquid penetrated their padded clothes. Both knew to be caught wasn’t an option so they pressed in tightly together to keep their chests warm and hearts beating. When the light went down, they sat up to watch. Trucks pulled up as the two helicopters landed and a team of what looked like commandos busted into their room. Jay glanced back at the couple skiing. They had stopped and watched too.

  ‘If that is Ricco, seeing us not dragged from a room will indicate to him that we are here somewhere.’ Jay spoke as quietly as he could.

  ‘Do you think he can see us?’ Kev barely breathed.

  ‘I don’t want to sit up any higher in case they see us too.’ Jay sighed. ‘What a mess.’

  ‘Where did he just put Alina? She’s gone!’ Kev turned back to Jay, his eyes wide.

  ‘There must be an underground tunnel. He suggested this place. Now I know why.’ Jay put his finger to Kev’s lips. ‘Shush, we’ve got to be quiet while he works out what to do. He will know where we are now.’

  ‘And so will everyone else,’ Kev muttered through Jay’s fingers but knew they had to keep up the conversation until the prince located them. They waited for his powerful sense of sound to seek them out.

  Jay knew too and when he saw Ricco turn in their direction he felt confident and stopped the chatter. Suddenly the lights went out on the mountains. The only glow came from the trucks, which had arrived with the helicopters. It was an army, sent to snatch them from their sleep. How dangerous did they think he and Kev were? Jay blinked in amazement.

  ‘Who turned out the lights? Someone is protecting Ricco and Alina for sure.’

  ‘At least we should be safe here in the dark,’ Jay whispered to Kev. ‘Let’s head for where Alina was.’ The both stood shakily. The ice had soaked right through their clothing and the weight and freezing material held them almost motionless.

  ‘Shit, the light. It’s heading towards us.’ Jay snatched at Kev’s arm and yanked him back into the snow with him. Had they been spotted? Both held their breaths to prevent any movement in the snow as the light went over them.

  Baffled, Jay went over the security measure he had been given. He was sure the boxes were ticked and they should have remained safe. Now not so smug and confident, he was glad Ricco hadn’t trusted him to stay out of danger. His brain had started to freeze. It had become difficult to think, to work out how they were going to escape. He was frozen and knew Kev couldn’t take much more either.

  ‘We have to make a run for it,’ Jay said, as the light came back around towards them a second time. ‘As soon as it passes this time, we go, Kev. Follow me towards where we saw Alina. I’m not staying here a minute longer.’

  ‘Agree.’ Kev’s teeth chattered as he spoke.

  The light moved on and in the darkness both pulled out of the deathly cold snow and began to will their frozen legs to move. Neither could do so. Capture entered their thought as neither was prepared to lie back in that icy mush. The light moved over the mountain,
searching, and as they watched it their bodies were plucked suddenly from the ice. Traveling along at lightning speed, jiggling wildly about, both knew who had them.

  ‘Déjà vu.’ They both said it together. Their voices oddly quivered from the cold and the speed.

  They were in Ricco’s hands. This they knew from the scenery that passed in a blur. Jay had never been so happy to see the prince and forgave him instantly for interfering with their holiday.

  Ricco stopped dead, opened a latch and they slid below ground just before the light would have hit them. Alina flew into Jay’s arms and hugged tight.

  ‘I can’t breathe,’ he complained.

  Alina let go and put her two fingers to her lips and shushed him. Kev and Ricco huddled in and the four of them sat quiet, listening, knowing how dangerous it was to make a sound at this stage.

  Helicopters flew above them as they crouched below, huddled like rats in a drainpipe. The noise moved away and, bringing up his foot, Ricco smashed his size 14s through a grid that allowed them access to another section of the drain. In silence they scrambled through it.

  ‘I think they went down here,’ a searcher called out.

  A light shone behind them as they scrambled on their hands and knees. Water under them unexpectedly had them slide into a larger drain where they got to their feet and ran. They were not moving fast enough, so Ricco took over and with Alina on his back he ran past Jay and Kev, scooping them in either arm. The speed picked up as the tunnel straightened. The boys were jostled about roughly, which caused Kev to throw up. Jay figured it wasn’t so much that, but the shock of being chased.

  Gunfire sounded around them as they passed an overhead drain, not hitting them, but a tinkling sound had Ricco swear and move even faster as something exploded behind them. He stopped suddenly at a join, enabling him to partly shield them from the flames.

  As he took the impact, his body burned and quivered in pain.

  Alina got to work healing him. The burns restored fast as she drew power from the adrenalin that pumped through her body. With Ricco well again, an exhausted Alina climbed on his back, and Jay and Kev ran beside them to the next outlet. They climbed through to the next tunnel, glad to be out of the heat and smoke from the last one. They were even more pleased when they realised it led them away from the noise and the bombs that exploded still in the main drain.

  In the end, to climb was the only way out. They could see the lights and explosions far away from them so they pulled themselves out and ran in the opposite direction, back towards the resort.

  Alina saw Jay shake his head and freak out. ‘It’s okay, he owns the resort. They will help us,’ she said breathlessly. Her eyes were like saucers as they scanned the darkness, alert and watchful.

  Ricco hid them under the back of the restaurant, then left to find help. Even though he was gone for only seconds, the fear of what might happen next made it feel so much longer. Jay knew capture was inevitable. Freedom didn’t look possible. If they made a run for it they might freeze in the dropping temperatures. When Ricco got back he said the army had the staff sitting on the floor and were interrogating them. ‘They looked awfully scared. I think they’re close to breaking point,’ he told Jay.

  ‘Detective Berry wants me, Ricco. He doesn’t even know you’re here. Let me give myself up and you guys escape. I’ll tell him Kev left earlier. That we had a fight.’

  ‘What will you say when he asks where you’ve been? They have rounded everyone up,’ Ricco asked.

  ‘I’ll say I don’t know who his men were chasing, but I’d been here all the time. Let’s face it, if they were after you guys, your room would have been hit first, or the mountain. Let the detective’s men take me. Come to my rescue when it isn’t so hopeless. We’ll freeze if we try running across the mountains.’

  Alina started to cry, disagreeing.

  Jay held Ricco’s gaze. ‘You know where they will take me and you have my voice recognition in the computer back at home base. I trust you to find me. Get the others to safety, please. This is the only way.’

  Ricco nodded, his face showing a hundred thoughts but every one of them no good in this situation. He knew Jay had to save Alina and Kev.

  Jay didn’t feel brave, yet stood firm against Kev and Alina’s pleas. Terrified they might torture him, sweat beads lined his lip that had turned blue from the cold. But as scared as he was, he’d sooner it be him than them. Stubborn to the end, he knew without them life was not worth living.

  Kev sobbed as he hugged Jay. Ricco held Alina. She had become hysterical so he had to hold her mouth to keep her quiet. Tears wet her cheeks and her eyes were still glazed from crying as Jay kissed her forehead goodbye. Ricco knew this was the only way. They were out of options. Jay just hoped that his assumptions of Detective Berry proved right, and that he’d try to befriend him to get to Alina. Otherwise he was in for a world of pain.

  Hell! He shook to the core as he turned and walked towards the lights.

  ~ Chapter Twenty Six ~

  Never Give Them Up

  Ricco’s words gave Jay strength. ‘I’ll find you Jay, hang in there.’

  One last glance at the only people in the world that made life worth living and Jay left so they could escape. Fear set in as he made his way around the trucks that lined the driveway to his room. Alone now, he straightened his shoulders, took a deep breath and with all the cool he was able to muster, walked towards his room.

  ‘Hey you, stop! Who are you?’ a man dressed in army greens called out.

  ‘Who’s asking?’ Jay replied sarcastically.

  The response drew attention from a second soldier that came up the other side of him. The oversized Neanderthal shoved Jay into the side of the truck beside him.

  ‘Shit! Watch it buddy–learn to walk straight will you.’ Jay rubbed at his shoulder and tried to shrug out of the bully’s grip.

  ‘Detective, we have a smart mouth here.’ The soldier held Jay against the truck.

  As soon as his face came into view Jay recognised him. The pale blue eyes and the salt and pepper beard were unmistakable. It was the one and only Detective Berry who rounded the truck.

  ‘What the hell’s going on?’ Jay’s tone was unimpressed. ‘Paid good money to be here so tell your goon here to nick off or I’ll complain to management. I don’t care about this stupid drill or whatever this is you’re doing here.’

  ‘Jay Webber, I have a few questions for you my boy.’ Berry sounded calm but hatred lined his words.

  ‘Well, they can wait. I’m wet and cold from being out in the snow. Hey! You didn’t see someone with red hair on your way here did you? Fought with my other half and have been searching half the night.’

  As he got close the detective’s eyes hazed strangely. Was Berry unsure what to do with him now they were face to face? There were so many witnesses. Still alive and his confidence back he continued. ‘Anyway! What is this? Are you guys on a training exercise or something? Looks pretty real. Surely this isn’t all for me, a mere desk clerk.’ Jay even mustered a grin.

  Detective Berry’s expression was still weird as he spoke. ‘This is for you my boy. We tracked you over in the drains earlier, so you should have kept running.’

  Something wasn’t right. Had Berry recognised him from somewhere else? The words that came from his mouth did not match the alertness in those eyes. What was Berry up to? Was he talking tough for the men that had started to gather around them?

  Jay glanced over towards the gully Berry spoke of where the lights and soldiers still searched. ‘Not sure who you’ve been scaring the pants off over there, but it wasn’t me. Look mate, there’s nothing wrong with admitting you were wrong. The only thing I’m guilty of is fighting with my partner. In fact I’m so ticked off at the minute I could do with a little of what you guys are smoking. Can’t understand how you came to the conclusion I’m dangerous enough to need this much muscle. So here’s my solution. I can see that the detective here needs to get something off his ches
t. How about you send your boys back to base, I get out of these wet clothes and under house security we chat–alone.’

  Jay walked off and was surprised when the detective followed him to his room. He was expecting to be in handcuffs for being so disrespectful. The mixed signals from him had Jay confused.

  ‘Stay out here!’ Berry left his men outside and closed the door behind him.

  This made Jay a little nervous, but if it kept him alive and out of trouble until Ricco saved him, he’d play along.

  Gun in his hand and resting on his lap, the detective sat in the chair in full view of whichever room Jay walked into. Okay there’s no escaping through a window if he’s able to see my every move. With a sigh that felt like a trapped animal, he undressed, uneasy that sleazy Berry didn’t take his eyes off him for a second. As he pulled on pants and buttoned up a shirt, he made small talk. He silently prayed the detective might like him enough not to torture him. He shuddered. He wondered how it got so crazy and wished he was back in lockdown with Kev and the others. His strategy was weak but it was all he had; to be friendly. ‘Still peeved my partner ran off because I wouldn’t say the L word. Shit!’

  Sweat dripped from the detective’s brow and it was at that moment Jay knew there was more to Berry’s search for him. Now he assumed this was about the two of them. What was his secret? What was he holding back? He was unsure if this was even about Alina and Ricco at all, but what else could it be? Jay breathed out heavily. This had become weird as well as scary.

  Berry stood up, and his hands toyed with the gun. He seemed edgy as if he wanted to get going. ‘Stop stalling, boy! I know how manipulative you can be. Get your shoes. We’re going where we can have a proper chat or do I need to call in the guards in to hurry you long?’

  ‘Sure you don’t want to go get a drink together instead, and have a private chat?’

  ‘Jay, quit it. You know who I am–now stop the games. I’ve been more than patient.’

  ‘You might recognise me, but I have never met you before in my life.’ Well, he wasn’t really lying.