Song winked at Max, but Kensy caught it too.
‘Oh no,’ the girl grimaced. ‘Uncle Rupert’s not in love with Tinsley or something is he? If Van Chalmers ends up being our cousin, I think I’ll be sick.’
‘Isn’t that a good thing?’ Max said, spooning some scrambled eggs onto his plate. ‘Technically if he was your cousin, then he couldn’t be your boyfriend because that would be totally weird and probably against the law.’
Kensy’s shoulders relaxed. ‘I didn’t think of that. Though I’m still not sure I’d want to be related to him. And I suppose he’d have to become part of our world and can you imagine what a massive ego he’d have thinking he was a junior James Bond.’ Kensy looked at Song who was flipping more pancakes on the stove. ‘It’s a pity things didn’t work out with your girlfriend, Song.’
‘Please, Miss Kensington. I do not wish to talk about it,’ the man replied. ‘The minute she criticised my dumplings I knew that was the end.’
The twins and their parents and Fitz roared with laughter. Poor Song had had a promising romance with a woman from New York, which he’d tried hard to keep secret, but Max caught him out. Then everyone had teased the man mercilessly, though they were all a bit sad when it ended. She was nice.
‘I’m sure there’ll be another one,’ Kensy said. ‘I’m always on the lookout for you. In fact, I was thinking about . . .’
Song shook his head and held the spatula aloft. ‘I have given up on finding true love. My life is full as it is. And besides, there are other more important things to think about at the present time. Like what sort of graphics I will have on my new snowboard.’
‘Seriously,’ Kensy almost choked on the much-too-large piece of pancake that she’d stuffed into her mouth. ‘You snowboard?’
Max was chuckling too, but when he thought about it, why wouldn’t Song be into snow sports? The man had incredible mixed martial arts skills and was fitter than most people he knew.
Song nodded. ‘There are a lot of things you still do not know about me, Miss Kensington.’
Ed rubbed his hands together. ‘Right – hurry up and finish breakfast then and we’ll get moving. No time to waste.’
Shopping turned out to be quite a different experience to what Kensy and Max had in mind.
Instead of heading to the village, Song ushered everyone into one of the storerooms that was actually a cleverly concealed lift leading to a basement containing racks of skis and boots, snowboards, helmets, stocks, gloves, goggles, hats, ski suits and just about anything else one might require for a day on the slopes.
‘Why the special security for this?’ Max asked.
Ed raised his eyebrows. ‘Surely you don’t think that Pharos-issue ski gear is the same as what everyone else has, do you?’
‘Cool!’ Kensy gasped, wondering what secret gadgets were about to be revealed.
Fitz picked up a pair of goggles. ‘These have an inbuilt recording device so you can send what you’re seeing in real time back to the mainframe computer.’
Ed held a pair of gloves aloft. ‘Whoever thought of this is a genius. You can tap Morse code messages with your finger and they will be transmitted like a text message. If they happen to fall into the wrong hands, quite literally, the gloves will fingerprint the wearer and alert one of us. We can send a message to release a small pin prick whereby the wearer will be rendered unconscious for a couple of hours.’
‘Wow!’ Max said.
‘And my own personal favourite,’ Song grabbed a pair of stocks. ‘The left one will release a net while the right will shoot a grappling hook.’
‘Oh, that’s disappointing,’ Kensy said.
Her mother looked at her with a frown.
‘I thought at least one of them would fire bullets,’ the girl said. ‘A stock gun is an awesome idea.’
‘Well, I for one am relieved that’s not the case,’ Anna said.
Ed decided that it probably wasn’t a good time to reveal that the adult stocks had that capability should it be needed. He didn’t want Anna to be any more upset about the mission than she already was.
Fitz held up a helmet. ‘GPS that will give you your exact location on the mountain via a screen in the corner of your goggles and will also let HQ know where you are.’
‘This is so awesome,’ Max said. He rushed around the room, investigating everything.
The family spent the next half an hour or so getting fitted while Fitz and Ed adjusted bindings and settings so that when they went out later in the day they would all be properly equipped. The children had skis and snowboards at the ready, given they were equally accomplished on both apparatus.
Once they’d got the sporting goods sorted the children tried on their ski suits. Kensy was thrilled with her orange parka and black pants and Max looked great in a lime green jacket and grey pants.
There were ski suits for the adults too though Anna baulked at the hot pink ensemble that had been chosen for her. Thankfully Song told her it was very flattering and she agreed to keep it. Max had been mortified when, on their way to the chalet yesterday, she’d pointed out a ghastly brown suit in a shop window telling him how much she liked it. This was far better.
Fitz glanced at his watch.
‘I should make a move. I’ll let you know where I am once the targets have been sighted.’
The family finished up, making sure that everyone had what they needed.
‘What are we doing now, Dad?’ Kensy asked.
‘I think a walk in the village – let’s get acquainted with the lay of the land,’ the man said.
‘Are you coming too, Song?’ Max looked at the man who was examining a black snowboard.
‘No, I am planning to add some graphics to this board.’ He held up a geometrical patterned stencil that resembled computer generated code.
‘That’s very fancy,’ Kensy said with a grin. ‘You’ll be the coolest old man shredder on the mountain.’
‘The graphics are actually a satellite transponder,’ Song said. ‘And once I am finished I will also keep an eye on the Van Leers’ chalet just in case there is anything to report.’
‘Thanks, Song. Come on, kids. Let’s get going,’ Ed said.
The family took their ski suits and some of their accessories upstairs then donned warm jackets, scarves, hats and boots for their walk to the village.
Kensy stuffed the little silver box into her jacket pocket and zipped it up – just in case she and Max had an opportunity to plant the devices.
It was a dazzling day with blue skies for miles and the snow glistening on the mountains. They tripped along beside the river and over the bridge to the Bahnhofstrasse where they headed in the direction of the train station, the sound of bells on horse-drawn carriages tinkling along with the clip clops of the horses’ hooves. They passed ski shops and upmarket boutiques, pharmacies and gift shops as well as expensive watch makers. The village catered to the shopping tastes and budgets of a wide range of guests.
Max had pulled his sister aside to find out if she had her latest gadget with her – he had some ideas about how they could use them too.
Ed felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He took it out and looked at the screen then glanced across at his wife and children. ‘And so it begins,’ he said and gave a nod.
Fitz had found them and the family’s reconnaissance was about to commence.
Anna took a deep breath. If this was her mother-in-law’s way of bringing her back into the family business she had already resolved that wasn’t going to happen. She’d do what she had to for now, but that was it. Once they returned to London her work for Pharos would be over and she wouldn’t get bossed into another mission whether her husband liked it or not.
Ed, Kensy, Max and Anna turned left into a laneway that led to a small sunny courtyard with the seating for a patisserie and cafe. Fitz gave a wave from a table in the far corner.
‘I’ve ordered some hot chocolates and pastries,’ the man said as the family sat down. ‘Did
you enjoy your shopping?’ Fitz winked at Kensy.
‘Yes!’ the girl said. ‘I love my parka – it’s really pretty.’
‘Since when have you cared about pretty?’ Max frowned.
Kensy shrugged while her brother gabbed on about his skis being so cool with blah blah bindings and the most comfortable boots he’d ever worn. For all intents and purposes, the group looked like any happy family on holiday. Except that they’d all spied their targets.
Fox Van Leer was sitting at the table beside them with Heike, Soren and Axel. Axel was much younger than his employers, with dark hair and olive skin. He hadn’t appeared to have fallen foul of the plastic surgeon’s knife yet.
Kensy had to stop herself laughing out loud when she realised that Fox and Heike were dressed in matching snow suits – white with a bold cobalt stripe down the legs and similar markings on their jackets. Heike’s lips were huge and her cheeks and brows puffed out with fillers. Even her bleached hair looked stressed. Kensy thought the woman wouldn’t want to stand too close to a naked flame. Fox’s hair had a horrible orange tint and almost seemed to levitate on the top of his head. His chin was so long his face had taken on an equine quality and he too appeared to be full of foreign materials. Soren, on the other hand, had that sort of boy-next-door look about him with fair hair and peachy skin and from where they were sitting he looked quite slender and tall.
Kensy unzipped her jacket pocket and felt about for the silver case she’d brought with her. She already had a plan about how she was going to use them on Fox and Heike but it would mean gaining access to either their ski helmets or beanies and that might not be as easy as she hoped.
Max pulled out his phone and leaned in close to his father. ‘Let’s get a selfie, Dad,’ the boy said except that the camera was facing forward, allowing him to snap several pictures of their targets.
Fox had just poured himself some tea from a pot and did the same for his wife. He glanced over at the mug in front of his son.
‘What’s that?’ he demanded. Soren replied that it was a low fat, vegan hot chocolate, which seemed to appease the man. Except that it wasn’t. The boy had quietly ordered the regular full fat variety (with a marshmallow that he’d quickly eaten) when he’d gone to the counter to arrange their drinks.
‘What are you doing for the rest of the day, Soren?’ Fox asked.
The boy shrugged. He would have loved to go up to the terrain park, but given he’d already been on the mountain with his parents at first light he didn’t hold much hope of that happening. His mother and father only exercised early in the morning and again in the evenings.
‘I thought maybe I could ski,’ the boy said.
‘Not without your mother and me. And Axel is busy too,’ Fox replied.
At the table beside the Van Leers the Spencer family was enjoying morning tea and an ebullient conversation, all the while eavesdropping on their neighbours.
Soren almost choked on his drink. He would rather have thrown himself off the Matterhorn than spend time alone with Axel.
‘I can go by myself,’ Soren said.
‘You will do no such thing,’ his father barked. ‘Besides, you have school work to do. Sylvie can help you.’
‘But Papa, I can catch up tonight,’ Soren protested.
‘No. You will study and then you can hit the gym. You haven’t logged any training for today,’ the man said. ‘You’re getting tardy, Soren. Your mother and I did one hundred push-ups before first tracks. You do not get bodies like ours without serious effort.’
Kensy leaned in and whispered to her brother, ‘I wonder exactly how you get a chin like that?’
Max bit his lip and nudged her to be quiet. At one stage the boy looked over and he and Soren caught each other’s gaze. Max smiled, but Soren didn’t react.
‘So what time are we heading up the mountain?’ Kensy asked loudly. ‘I’m dying to try out my new skis.’
Max and the others realised immediately what she was up to.
‘As soon as we go back to the lodge, I guess,’ the boy replied. ‘I wish we knew someone who could show us around.’
Kensy spied Soren’s ears prick up. She smiled at the lad too. But this time he acknowledged the girl, with the ever so slightest of grins.
Fox looked at his watch. ‘Where is Sylvie? She was meant to be here to take Soren back to the chalet.’
Just as the man stood up, a young woman rushed into the courtyard, a look of fear on her face. Her eyes darted around before she scurried to their table. ‘I am so sorry, sir,’ she said. ‘I had the wrong cafe. I apologise. You’re not late for your meeting, are you?’
‘We will be soon if we don’t get moving,’ the man replied. Axel and Heike stood up too. ‘We will be back by six, but you,’ he pointed his manicured forefinger at Soren, ‘you will go home with Sylvie and do your school work and two hours in the gym. No arguments.’
Soren Van Leer stared at the man. The twins were watching the lad’s reaction and in that moment the boy looked as if he hated his father with every fibre of his being.
‘I’d best get back and see if Song needs a hand with anything,’ Fitz said, standing up. He farewelled the group and followed the Van Leers and Axel from the courtyard, keeping his distance. The family had already decided ahead of time that Fitz would stay on Fox and Heike’s tail for the day and the Spencers would stick together and go up the mountain. Though after what they’d just heard it didn’t sound as if Soren would be heading there. Kensy and Max were both thinking about how they were going to introduce themselves, but it had to occur naturally.
At the table beside the Spencers, Sylvie looked at Soren and whispered conspiratorially. ‘Would you like something yummy to eat?’
The boy nodded. ‘Yes, please. But only if you’re not going to tell my parents.’
The woman gave him a wink. ‘Of course not. I won’t tell if you don’t.’
Sylvie walked into the cafe and returned a few minutes later with a horseshoe-shaped hazelnut pastry called a meitschibei, which she set down in front of him.
‘I thought we could share,’ she said. ‘Then we will only be in half as much trouble if your parents find out.’ They both knew that wasn’t true, but the pastry was too delicious to resist. A steaming cup of coffee was delivered by a waitress along with another hot chocolate for Soren. It was clear the pair was going to be staying for a while so Ed ordered another round of coffees and hot chocolates too.
Max had a perfect view of Sylvie from where he was sitting. According to the Pharos dossier she was thirty-three and had lived with the Van Leers since Soren was a toddler, working as a nanny and housekeeper. The boy was now fourteen. The woman had long fair hair tied back in a ponytail and a dimple in her left cheek. She actually looked as if she could be Soren’s older sister. Unlike her employers, Sylvie’s clothes were plain – black wool pants, sensible snow boots and a grey parka that looked at least a size too large.
Sylvie and Soren chatted away and the boy was clearly much more comfortable in her company than with his own parents.
Kensy nudged her father. She’d noticed that Soren and Sylvie had finished their drinks and the pastry and had an idea. ‘Let’s go, Dad,’ she whispered, widening her eyes slightly. ‘Now.’
He wondered what she was up to, but it was obvious she had something in mind.
‘I think we should make a move,’ Ed said loudly. ‘You kids must be gunning to get out there. What a day!’
With thick snow having fallen overnight and blue skies for miles, it was true the conditions were just about perfect.
The family exited, but not before Kensy left some bait on the table.
They’d walked a hundred metres or so back towards the chalet when Anna realised one of her daughter’s belongings was missing. Again.
‘Oh, Kensy, where’s your beanie?’ the woman berated her.
‘Oops. I must have accidentally-on-purpose left it on the table,’ she said then spotted Soren running towards her. The plan
had worked.
‘Excuse me, I think this is yours,’ the lad said as he thrust the cream hat with a pompom towards the girl.
Max suppressed a tickly smirk. That was good work from his sister.
‘Oh, thank you, I just realised, actually Mum realised and I was about to go back,’ Kensy said, taking the garment from him. She flashed the boy a smile and caught sight of Sylvie heading their way.
‘I’m so glad that Soren found you,’ Sylvie said. ‘I hate losing things, especially a lovely hat like that one.’
‘My sister loses things all the time,’ Max said with a grin.
Kensy jabbed his arm.
‘I’m Kensy.’ The girl offered her hand to the pair. ‘And this is my twin brother Max and these are our parents Ed and Anna.’
Soren introduced himself and Sylvie.
‘Are you here on holidays?’ Kensy asked.
‘Sort of,’ Soren replied. ‘My parents have a chalet so we come quite often.’
‘This is our first time. We just got our gear organised this morning,’ Kensy said.
‘It’s gorgeous today,’ Soren beamed.
‘Have you been up already?’ Max asked.
Soren nodded. ‘My parents are first tracks people.’
Ed shuddered. ‘That’s dedicated. We’re keener on the slow start, midday sunshine ourselves.’
‘That would suit me just fine too,’ the boy said.
‘You should come up with us,’ Kensy suggested. ‘It would be great to have a guide who knows the trails.’
Soren looked at Sylvie who shook her head.
‘Come on, Sylvie, please. I’ll be back before Mama and Papa. I promise.’
The woman bit her lip. It was clear that she wanted to say yes, but whether it was worth putting her job on the line was another thing altogether.
‘Soren is supposed to be doing his school work this afternoon,’ Sylvie said. ‘And his exercises.’
‘That’s a pity. The forecast says the weather won’t be this perfect every day,’ Max said. ‘And skiing is great exercise.’
‘Please,’ Soren begged, clenching his hands together and holding them out in front of him.
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