Edge of Tomorrow

by Wolf Wootan

  “What’s the second thing you wanted to tell us?” asked Sara.

  Hatch took a swig of his drink and answered, “I talked to Bruno while I was out of the room. He’s not thrilled, but he would like to help us, and agrees his grandfather could probably solve the problem—if he wanted to. He’s going to talk to his mother and get back to me. He was not enthusiastic. I feel like a shit for even asking him.”

  Syd sipped her daiquiri as she pondered the situation.

  “We can always drop in on Lucchese the way you did on Bocca. Convince him to apply his focus elsewhere,” she finally said. “I would hate to leave Italy with this unresolved. Too dangerous for those who must stay here. We owe Angelina that.”

  “Let’s give Bruno some time. Then we’ll decide what to do,” replied Hatch.

  Syd spoke up again, a smile on her lips, “Then there’s no reason we can’t go out and party tonight, is there?”

  Hatch looked at her and smiled. He knew his feelings for her were way beyond what she thought they were. It was hard to not tell her, but he knew the time was not right.

  “No reason at all!” he grinned. “I know a place with strolling singers—with mandolins. Or there’s one with a piano and violins and an opera singer. What’s your choice?”

  Sara laughed, “Give me a mandolin player anytime.”

  Syd countered, “Let’s not be pikers. I’d like to do both!”

  Hatch looked from one to the other, then said, “Right! We’ll do both!”

  • • •

  Hatch held Syd in his arms, holding her body close to his as they danced to a slow song. Sara was playing the field with several Italian men and having a ball. Syd was aghast at where Sara let some of them put their hands while she danced with them. Syd wondered if Sara was going to cut one out of the herd and bed him before the night was over.

  Hatch felt his pager vibrate as the song ended. It was Bruno. He left Syd and Sara with two of Sara’s male harem and went to find a quiet place to call Bruno. The men knew better than to hit on Syd, but she did dance with one of them while Hatch was gone. She was having a hell of a good time, and the man kept his hands where they belonged!

  Hatch returned after fifteen minutes and sat down. He signaled the waiter for a fresh round of drinks before he said anything. Sara shooed her admirers away so Hatch could brief them on what Bruno had said.

  He said, “Bruno’s mother sees this as an opportunity to make peace with her father after all these years. She talked to her mother, Elene Tessitore, and her mother insists they come. She will handle the Don. Bruno’s mother needs to clear her appointment calendar. That will take a couple of days. I called Jane and she will relinquish her GS-IV to bring them here to Rome. We’ll plan the assault on Sicily when they get here.”

  “That’s great, Hatch!” laughed Sara. “I never thought this would work.”

  “I didn’t either. Of course, it hasn’t happened yet. Syd, how about one more dance, then let’s call it a night. Our driver and chopper pilot might want to get some shuteye. They are working stiffs,” chortled Hatch.

  “Sure, Hatch,” replied Syd, a wan smile on her lips. “Tell them to play a slow one so you can hold me close again.”

  “Er … Hatch,” interrupted Sara. “Is it OK if I stay in Rome tonight? I need …”

  “I know what you need, Sara,” laughed Hatch. “Do you think that’s wise?”

  “What? Being horny? Wise has nothing to do with it! I fucking haven’t been laid …”

  “Stop, Sara! I meant it’s not wise to stay here in Rome without backup,” said Hatch, laughing harder now.

  Sara continued, “… since we got here! Since before Istanbul, in fact!”

  “OK! OK! Look, why don’t you cut one of those studs out of the pack and bring him back with you? I don’t really like perfect strangers to stay at the castle, but I don’t feel right about leaving you here in Rome while this shit remains unresolved,” replied Hatch in a whisper.

  Syd wanted to laugh at their clandestine conversation. They were negotiating Sara’s sex life! Who, where, when, how many?

  Sara said finally, “OK, Hatch. I’ll go get the tall one. His name is Nicolo Nono—Nick. And he definitely won’t say ‘No, no.’ I hope he doesn’t have a three inch dick! If I had stayed here, I could have tried out them all! Picking one is like a fucking lottery!”

  Syd chipped in, “Go line them up and have them show you what they’ve got, Sara! Long straw wins!”

  Syd could not hold back her laughter any more, and Sara and Hatch joined in. Sara went to fetch Nick while Hatch and Syd went to the dance floor to dance their last dance of the night.

  • • •

  It was 2:30 A.M. when Hatch and Syd finally settled on the couch in the King’s Chambers, each with a snifter of cognac. Sara had hustled Nick off to her chambers like a little kid with a lollipop. Syd hoped her night would be as good as Sara imagined it was going to be. Syd had kicked off her shoes, removed her dress, and pulled her legs up under her as she got comfortable. Hatch soaked up her beauty as she sat next to him in her lacy, black underwear. He was getting very used to this intimacy with this incredible woman. He wondered if it was time to tell her how he really felt about her.

  Would I scare her off if I told her? I should probably give her more time. I don’t want to risk losing her!

  Syd took a sip of her brandy and said, “Thank you very much for tonight, Hatch. I really had fun! I especially enjoyed watching the Italian stallions fight for Sara’s attention.” She laughed. “I hope she picked the right one!”

  “When her hormones start kicking in—which is often—she becomes less selective,” he chortled. “She will be happy with Nick, I’m sure.”

  “I was surprised when you suggested she bring him here.”

  “It was the lesser of two evils, actually.”

  He kicked his shoes off and sipped his cognac, then arose and got a cigarette and lit it. He returned to his place next to Syd with an ashtray, which he put on the table in front of them. Syd was looking wistfully at her bracelet and feeling a closeness with Hatch she hardly understood. She did not ever want to be apart from him, even though she knew that was impossible.

  Hatch broke the silence and said, “Oh, before I forget. I have a dinner appointment in Athens tomorrow evening—this evening, to be exact. It’s one I made a month ago.”

  Syd felt her comfortable glow vanish and her stomach hit the floor. She even felt lightheaded.

  Shit! It’s finally happened! I knew this day would come! He has a date with a Greek goddess that he made before he even met me! But why is he bringing it up? He could have claimed he had a business trip. Why is he throwing this in my face?

  “Well,” she snapped, standing and walking to the side table where his pack of cigarettes was, “I suppose it’s much too important to cancel! I think it’s pretty tacky of you to bring me to Rome for the week, then run off to one of your other women before I’ve even left!”

  She got a cigarette and lit it, then blew a cloud of smoke at the ceiling. She was fuming, so she started to pace. She knew she was acting irrationally.

  “Syd! You didn’t let me finish!” exclaimed a mortified Hatch as he stood and went toward her. “I was about to ask you to come with me!”

  Syd took a drag from her cigarette and stifled a cough as she replied, “So! Am I to be part of a ménage à trois? I don’t think so!”

  “Syd! What’s the matter with you? You’ve never acted like this before! I don’t have a date with another woman! I would never do that to you! I have a date with my parents! I wanted you to meet them!”

  Syd stopped pacing and stared at Hatch in amazement. She wanted to crawl into a hole and die! She had been possessive and jealous! She had never felt this way before.

  Wow! she thought. I was jealous! I acted like a complete ass! How do I dig myself out of this one?

  “Hatch, I’m so sorry! I acted like an ass! I don’t know what got into me! Can you ever forgive me
?” she moaned as she went to him and put her arms around his neck, being careful not to burn him with her cigarette. He pulled her against him and ran his hand over her hair.

  “Did I detect a little jealousy there? I think that’s a good sign,” he whispered, a smile on his lips.

  “What could be good about the way I acted?” she sniffled, crying softly on his shoulder. An ash fell off her cigarette onto the carpet, but she didn’t notice. “I could just die!”

  “I agree you’re not acting like yourself. My God! You’re not pregnant are you?”

  “No! I couldn’t be! You know I went on the pill after that first night. It’s not even time for my period yet!” she whimpered as she began to realize what the problem was.

  Hatch said, “Here, let’s go sit down and have a slug of cognac.” Hatch’s eyes got moist as he thought of Syd—the former Anna Klein, deadly assassin—crying. He had to control himself to keep from joining her.

  Syd put her cigarette in the ashtray next to his and swallowed a big gulp of her drink. It burned all the way down. Definitely not the way to drink cognac! He handed her his handkerchief and she wiped her eyes and blew her nose. He also took a swig of his drink as he wondered what to say to her to calm her down.

  Before he could say anything, she sniffled, “You never mentioned your parents before. I didn’t even know whether they were still alive or not. Are you sure you want me to meet them after the way I acted?”

  “That was my plan—still is. They’re on an around-the-world cruise and the ship’s port-of-call this evening is Athens —Piraeus, actually. I told them when they left that I would meet them for dinner there if I possibly could. It’s their 50th wedding anniversary. I can cancel if you’re not up to it,” he replied softly.

  “Sure! Make me feel even shittier than I already do! I’d love to meet your parents! Tell me about them.”

  “My father is a retired Air Force four-star general. He retired in 1992 after forty years in the service. General Lawrence Lincoln and my mother Carrie. My mother is what you would expect: an Air Force wife all of her life. The General is still the General.”

  “That doesn’t sound like too flattering of a description.”

  “Fairly accurate, however. You’ll like my mother. It takes some effort to get close to my father, though,” mused Hatch as he slipped his arm around her and began fondling her breast.

  “Don’t you two get along?”

  “Oh, yes, in our own way. He’s been pissed at me ever since I left the Air Force for the CIA. I was supposed to follow in his footsteps. What he doesn’t know is that I never had that choice. The CIA ran my life even while I was in the Air Force. So called ‘Joint Missions.’”

  He paused, took a drag off his cigarette, and played with her silk-covered breast some more. She leaned closer to him.

  “Do you have any siblings?” she asked, covering his hand with hers and pushing it against her breast.

  “One brother. He’s a black sheep to the General, too. He rebelled and went into the Marines,” laughed Hatch. “His name is Vernon Lincoln and he has a wife and two kids, so at least he gave them grandchildren. That helped his cause immensely, especially with my mother. My brother now runs a big detective agency in L.A.—Investigations International.”

  “You guys are really into Is, aren’t you?”

  Syd realized how little she really knew about Hatch and how much she wanted to know more. She wanted to know everything about him!

  “Have you taken a woman with you before when you have dinner with your parents?” Syd asked, the jealousy still not quite gone. The feeling was ebbing, however.

  “Sometimes. Not often. I hate to put anyone through the undeserved grilling they get from my father,” he laughed as he pulled her bra strap down so he could get his hand inside her bra.

  “But you’ll put me through it though?” she giggled.

  “You’ll be able to handle it. Besides, this is a special anniversary. Maybe he’ll behave.”

  Syd turned and looked at him and said, “Can I ask you something else personal?”

  “Sure. Anything.”

  “Tell me about Kat.”

  This question was not what he had expected. He had already told her everything there was to tell about Kat. The question confused him.

  “I’ve told you all about her already. What else do you want to know?”

  “I mean, tell me about how you knew you loved her after only a couple of days, even though she was technically your enemy. Tell me about love at first sight.”

  He thought a moment, trying to collect his thoughts, thinking back to Berlin and the first time he saw Kat and what happened afterwards. He removed his hand from her breast and lit another cigarette.

  “That’s a hard one, Syd, because if I say it out loud it won’t make any sense—it certainly won’t be logical. To someone who is a good logician—like you, even me—the whole process sounds ludicrous.”

  “Try me. I’m not feeling very logical right now. What are the symptoms?” she urged as she lit herself another cigarette.

  “Well, when I first saw her, I had this ‘feeling’ that she was different, special; but I convinced myself that I just wanted to see if I could bed her. That was my usual MO. After two or three days, everything changed. Don’t ask me how or why. I got extremely jealous when she dated other men, even though it was part of her spy job. I felt antsy and restless when I wasn’t with her, even irritable at times. All I did was think about when I could see her again. I couldn’t imagine how I could go on without her.”

  He paused and sipped his drink.

  “And this was before you knew her family, her value system …”

  “Yes. I told you it can’t be explained. Love seems to have its own rules. I know she made me want to be a better person.”

  “All this before you even … had sex with her?”

  “Yes. Sex was just icing on the cake,” he whispered, smoking again.

  Syd took a drag off her own cigarette and a sip of cognac, then said, “I’m sorry I put you through that again, but I had to know something. I’m afraid you are going to be very angry with me for what I’m about to say, but I have to say it.”

  “You never make me angry, Syd.”

  “This will be tough on you, though. I’ve only known you for a little over two weeks, so I’ve been fighting this, but you told me to be honest with you, so I will. I have all those symptoms you just described. I’m afraid I’m in love with you, Hatch! God, I got it out!” Syd exclaimed.

  Hatch could not believe his ears! He thought he had misunderstood her. The look of disbelief on his face scared Syd.

  “Could you say that again, please?” he whispered.

  Syd drained her glass, looked into his eyes and said, “I said I love you! I know it’s crazy, and I know it will fuck up the good thing we have going, but …”

  Hatch put his finger up to her lips and murmured, “Shush! I wasn’t sure I heard you right! I still can’t believe it! I was willing to wait for as long as it took to make you love me! You silly, sweet woman! I’ve loved you since Istanbul! Maybe before that, I don’t know! I’m so happy—I don’t know what to say!”

  He drew her into his arms and kissed her, a kiss which seemed different than all those that had come before this. They broke for air and just held each other in silence, sharing each other’s warmth.

  Syd asked, “You love me? I don’t believe what’s happening!”

  “With all my being. I can’t bear it when you’re out of my sight, but I had to force myself to be apart from you so you wouldn’t find me out. I didn’t want you to think I was crazy!” he whispered in her ear, nibbling on it.

  “I thought you would think I was just some gold digger after your money,” she said. “Nobody falls in love in such a short time!”

  “It seems we both did. I guess we’re both crazy!” he replied as he kissed her again. “Do you remember we mentioned ‘fate’ when we first met? It seems fate has had its way wit
h us.”

  Syd straightened up and arose, then put another splash of brandy in their snifters. Her heart ached and she was trembling with happiness. She had never felt this way before. She never had thought that being in love—and being loved—could give you a feeling that was so close to pain. She took several deep breaths to calm herself.

  She finally said, “This can screw up our perfectly good relationship, dear. I can call you ‘dear’ now, can’t I?”

  “Yes, sweetheart, call me anything you want, but you’re not making sense. We love each other. It’s a better relationship. It is the relationship. What more could either of us possibly want?” queried Hatch.

  Syd sat back down next to him and snuffed her cigarette out and took another sip of her cognac.

  “Well, I’m too happy right now to dwell on how complicated our future will get. My brain is locked up. At this moment, I want you to take me to bed and make love to me like never before.”

  “My thoughts exactly, dear Syd!”

  • • •

  Hatch and Syd both considered the next two hours of sex the best they had ever had together. Not just physically—they had always had outstanding sex—but also psychologically. Syd had never made love before with anyone telling her how much she was loved. She had heard, “You’re good, Syd!”, “You are superb, Syd!”, and things of that ilk, but never, “I love you, Syd!” She, also, had never told anyone she loved them before. It was all Hatch could do to keep from asking her to marry him, but he wanted to wait and ask her in a romantic setting—not blurt it out in the heat of coupling. He would try and plan something for Greece that evening.

  At 10:30 A.M., Syd awoke and found herself on her right side, her back against Hatch’s back. As the situation hit her with a rush, she began to cry silently, tears running down her face.

  This wasn’t supposed to happen! What am I going to do? I have to be in Miami no later than September 10th and teach for four months! But I can’t bear the thought of not being with him, and he can’t hang around Miami for that long! How can I be so happy and so miserable at the same time?