by Alex Just
~ Madrid ~
Time seemed to drag through the days, as if a huge parachute was stretched out behind each one as it attempted to roll onto the next. It did nothing to quell Stan’s anxiety, who expected the world to erupt at any second.
The TV had been switched on constantly and was tuned in to the news, in case a live update of any recent disaster could be linked to what Smith was planning.
‘It’s the 25th Stanley,’ Adrianna whispered gently, so that he wouldn’t get a shock when her alarm went off in a second. Her actions were in vain, the alarm buzzed angrily, getting louder and louder. With a start Stan woke up and immediately stifled a groan, his right hand reaching to his shoulder. Instant worry creased Adrianna’s face. She reached out a careful hand, resting it on Stan’s chest.
‘Are you alright? You want me to get you some more painkillers?’ the question held tender concern in every syllable, the alarm continued to blare obnoxiously, its waking call louder and louder, all but forgotten by Adrianna.
‘I should be fine. Thank you, though.’ Stan opened his eyes and looked into Adrianna’s beautiful face, her eyes peering into his searchingly.
‘If you’re sure, then I’ll go get that alarm and stop it from waking half the neighbourhood.’ Strategically placed, mused Stan, an alarm that wasn’t right next to the bed meant you had to get out of the comfort of the warm sheets and find the damned thing, switch it off and make your way back to your bed by which time you’d be so awake that sleep wouldn’t come.
If he was honest with himself, he thought with a smile, he’d over exaggerated his discomfort in his shoulder, luxuriating in the extra and undivided attention he was getting from Adrianna because of it. For the first time in his life he felt like he was finally home, watching Adrianna as she busied herself with the last preparations of their trip to Brisbane. Stan couldn’t help the warm feeling of pure happiness that bubbled up inside him. He was finally over the fact that he’d spent the past fifteen years in misery and depression because of Adrianna.
‘What are you staring it?’ Adrianna had stopped what she was doing and was looking at Stan with a slight frown tugging at her elegant features. ‘We have a lot to do you know.’
‘Nothing,’ Stan smiled, as he got up out of bed. ‘I was just thinking that I’m glad the way things turned out.’
Adrianna blushed and looked down. Not wanting to embarrass her further he got up and kissed her.
‘I’m going to call Ben, my partner. We need him to help us once we land in Brisbane with various things, and then I’ll have a shower.’
He made his way over to the hotel phone and dialled a number.
‘Hello?’ a hurried voice.
‘Ben. Everything alright?’
‘Oh thank God it’s you. I thought you’d died. Where have you been this whole time?’
‘Things turned sour in Paris. I had to duck out of sight.’
‘Where are you now?’
‘I’m in Madrid. Heading out to Brisbane in two hours.’ There was a brief silence on the phone.
‘Why Brisbane?’
‘Because there’s a cruise ship departing from there which heads past Smith’s private conservation island. I plan to jump ship at the closest point and head onto the island.’
‘You have no back up Stan, this is crazy. I think you should give up on this. Pull out. The Agency doubts you and me. They believe you’ve gone rogue.’
‘Keep feeding them lies if they won’t take the truth. Right until you hear from me with the evidence. There’s no way I’m going to pull out Ben, you of all people should know this. How long have we been partners now? Fifteen years! We’d be heading our own divisions in the FBI if it weren’t for what Smith had done.’
‘So there’s no dissuading you?’
‘No.’ Final.
‘OK. Well, with what can I help you?’ Ben sounded wary, almost hesitant.
‘I need the largest outboard you can get me, to be smuggled onto the Singing Pearl in Brisbane harbour. I also need a few weapons. Could that be arranged?’ Stan heard a heavy sigh on the other end.
‘It shouldn’t be a problem. I just want you to realise that I know this is a bad idea.’
‘Thanks Ben. You’ve always been there for me. I appreciate it.’
‘No problem. Look for a man named Brown when you’re there.’
‘Take care.’ Stan disconnected the phone and headed to the shower.
The days had passed agonisingly slowly, but in retrospect, he’d loved the time he got to spend with Anna, he thought, as the hot water pounded down on his body. Now it would be different, they were going into the unknown with no backup on standby which was insane in any normal circumstances, but these were far from normal. He’d do whatever it took to make sure that Anna came to no harm. He’d been tempted to go without her anyway, but he realised that now, when things were finally back on track and they were together, he’d ruin everything by doing just that. She was coming and that was final.
The hot water seemed to wash away the past few weeks of boredom, hardening him up for what was to come, his blue eyes suddenly burning with a passionate loathing for Smith and all the pain and hurt he’d caused. He would avenge Adrianna’s brother, Russell; make sure that justice was served. A quick succession of knocks interrupted his thoughts.
‘Are you going to spend forever in there, or do you want to miss the flight,’ she sounded cross. It was probably the nerves he figured.
‘I’ll be right out, don’t worry.’ He went to stop the flow of water and noticed that his fists were clenched tightly, the nails on his fingers biting into the flesh of his palms.
The taxi drove along the motorway towards the airport rapidly. Packing up the rest of the things had been easy and they were underway quickly. It wasn’t long from the hotel they’d been staying in, in Madrid before the taxi reached the five minute drop off zone. Stan was out of his seat in seconds and had their suitcase stacked up on the hard concrete footpath splattered with spots of chewing gum.
Sitting next to each other in lavish comfort, the wide leather seats of business class shining with glamour, eager to impress made conversation awkward. Sipping a glass of cool champagne Stan regarded Adrianna as if from miles away, he’d given up trying to say anything, she wasn’t in a talking mood it seemed, and he had to lean over every time he wanted to speak, so silence it was.
‘Ladies and Gentlemen…’ the usual pre-flight verbal diarrhoea played out for all passengers, alerting them to the best ways of surviving crashes and how to find emergency exists. Stan switched off and instead glanced out of his window at the tarmac as the plane rumbled towards the take-off strip. It turned and paused expectantly. No sooner had the safety videos and instructions finished playing out than the huge turbines of the jumbo roared magnificently and Stan felt himself pressed into the back of his seat as the enormous aircraft accelerated to speeds that no one would believe possible. It seemed like forever until the weightless sensation of lift grasped the plane in its powerful hold, shooting it into a cold sky. Glancing out of the window Stan watched as the land dropped away, sharpened to a crisp blur, he couldn’t help the bad feeling he had about what was going to happen, he just hoped it would swerve around Adrianna and himself. He returned the champagne flute to the airhostess with a cheerful wink which was rewarded with a hostile glare from Adrianna. He blew her a kiss and settled himself into his seat, pressing the buttons which turned his seat into a comfortable bed.
‘Wake me when we get there, I’m getting some sleep.’
With that he closed his eyes and entered a restless sleep filled with monsters that he could never identify and each one of them held Smith’s cold cruel voice, that mocked him, taunted him.
***
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