Assassins Hunted

by Rachel Amphlett

  He blew across the top of his coffee before taking a tentative sip, and then settled back, balancing the mug on his knee. ‘You owe him the truth, after this.’

  ‘I know.’ Her eyes found the closed door that led through to the doctor’s treatment room. ‘Do you think he’ll be okay?’

  ‘I think he’s tougher than either of us have given him credit for.’

  ‘He was shielding Alex.’

  ‘It was an incredibly brave thing to do.’

  ‘He didn’t hesitate,’ said Eva. ‘I saw him. He took one look at those men rounding the corner and turned his back to make sure they couldn’t hit Alex.’

  ‘I know.’

  Eva fell silent. She knew the signs of shock well enough. She took a sip of the coffee, and nearly gagged at the amount of sugar Decker had heaped into it.

  ‘Drink it,’ he said. ‘The sugar will help.’

  She nodded, and took another sip. ‘Thanks.’ She sighed. ‘I should’ve foreseen this. I’ve become complacent.’

  ‘Don’t be so hard on yourself,’ said Decker. ‘You were busy looking after this one.’ His gaze softened as he glanced at Alex. ‘You’ve kept him alive for three years, Eva. They never found you in all that time.’

  ‘Shame I couldn’t shoot both of them. I’m out of practice.’

  His mouth quirked. ‘Those were good, clean shots you made.’ He jerked his head towards the door. ‘And your quick thinking has probably saved his life. Don’t beat yourself up.’

  ‘Three years ago, I would have gone to Scott armed to the teeth.’

  ‘Three years ago, you thought you could trust him.’

  ‘You think he was responsible for what happened tonight?’

  Decker shrugged. ‘I’m not sure. Bloody coincidence though, wasn’t it?’

  ‘Do you think he was telling the truth, about the Code One?’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  Eva handed him her empty mug and waited until he’d put it on the kitchen counter with his, and shifted Alex’s weight in her lap.

  ‘What if there’s someone else after us?’ she said when he returned. ‘What if this isn’t about the Section at all?’

  Decker rubbed his fingers over the stubble on his chin. ‘Go on.’

  ‘The deal Douglas was working on, when he died. I remember that last week he was alive, when we were hiding at my apartment, before the Section told us it was safe to go back to his house. He was on edge about something his contact had told him.’

  ‘Did he ever tell you what it was?’

  She shook her head. ‘That’s what I was looking for when you arrived this morning.’ Her eyes opened wide. ‘The files at the apartment—’

  ‘Don’t worry. They’re in the car.’

  ‘There’s something in there, Decker. I just haven’t found it yet.’

  ‘Well, when our analyst is well enough, maybe we can get him to help us, yes?’

  They both turned their heads at the sound of the door opening.

  The doctor appeared, drying his hands on a small towel. He looked tired, his brows knitted together as he approached.

  Eva and Decker stood as one, and she handed over the weight of the sleeping boy to Decker gratefully, noting how carefully he gathered Alex into his big arms and rested his head against his shoulder.

  Alex snuffled once, then fell asleep again.

  Eva turned her attention to the doctor. ‘Well?’

  ‘He’s going to live,’ said the doctor.

  Eva exhaled, and tried to ignore the shaking that had begun in her legs. ‘How bad was it?’

  ‘He lost quite a bit of blood,’ said the doctor. ‘But the bullet only grazed his shoulder – it didn’t penetrate any major arteries.’ His eyes found Decker’s. ‘With plenty of rest over the next week, he should recover just fine.’

  ‘He’ll be somewhere safe,’ Decker assured him. ‘I’ll make sure of that.’

  ‘Thank you so much,’ said Eva. ‘I can’t tell you how grateful I am.’

  ‘How much do we owe you?’ asked Decker.

  The doctor shrugged. ‘Nothing,’ he said. ‘You know how it is.’

  Decker reached out and grasped the man’s hand. ‘And you know where to find me, if you need me, yes?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Can we move him now?’ asked Eva. ‘We should go.’

  ‘She’s right,’ said Decker. ‘It’ll be light in five hours. I’d like to be a long way away from here by then.’

  ‘Bring the car round the back,’ said the doctor. ‘I’ve given him a shot of morphine. I’ll give you another dose you can give him in a couple of hours if he needs it.’

  ‘I’ll meet you round there,’ said Decker, and edged out the room to the front door, Alex in his arms.

  The doctor led Eva into the treatment room.

  The iron tang of fresh blood still hung in the air despite the freshly washed-out sink and trays. Her eyes found the prone figure on the bed in the corner, his chest bare, his shoulder bandaged.

  The doctor nudged her arm. In his hands, he held a folded blanket.

  ‘Take this to keep him warm,’ he said. ‘I had to cut away his shirt and jacket.’

  ‘Thank you,’ she murmured.

  They both jumped at a loud knock on the back door, before the doctor hurried across and peered through the spy hole set into its surface.

  ‘It’s okay, it’s him,’ he said.

  Between Decker and the doctor, Nathan was soon buckled into the back seat of the car, the blanket tucked up to his chin.

  Alex slept next to him, his thumb in his mouth.

  Eva glanced at the blood stain that covered the seat between them, and shuddered.

  ‘I’ll ditch the car, don’t worry,’ said Decker. ‘Come on. We need to move.’

  Eva leaned down, brushed Nathan’s hair out of the way, and kissed his forehead.

  ‘You saved Alex,’ she whispered. ‘I owe you.’

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Tuscany, Italy

  * * *

  Eva squinted in the sunlight after leaving the cool shade of the house, and dropped her sunglasses onto her nose.

  The afternoon was drawing to a close, the coppery ochre sky broken up here and there by clouds dusting the horizon beyond the slim cypress trees bordering the property.

  The terrace ran the length of the converted farmhouse, a building constructed from the strong limestone and sandstone that peppered the region.

  Olive trees spread out below her position, a tangled grove of gnarled and twisted branches that bore fruit rich for picking.

  ‘Come and eat.’

  She turned at the sound of Decker’s voice.

  He was standing next to a wrought-iron table laden with plates and bowls, wine glasses, and a bottle of the local red wine.

  Eva’s stomach rumbled. ‘I’m eating way too much,’ she said, her eyes roaming over the crusty bread, olive oil, cheeses, and vine-ripened tomatoes.

  He grinned. ‘You’re in Italy. No such thing.’

  Eva pulled out a chair, and beckoned to Alex to join them. The boy had already gained more colour in his face, the events of the past week put behind them. He’d spent most of the time trailing around after Decker, exploring the farm and sleeping well at night after all the fresh air.

  She loaded up a plate for him, passed him some water, then took the glass of wine Decker handed to her. ‘Thanks.’

  ‘Cheers.’

  They clinked glasses, and Eva leaned back with a sigh. ‘It’s so peaceful here.’

  ‘It is.’

  ‘Nathan!’

  Alex slid from his chair and tore across the terrace towards the figure that had appeared at the back door to the house. ‘You’re okay!’

  Eva stood. ‘Alex, careful – he’s not well.’

  She couldn’t help smiling at Nathan’s face as Alex hugged him. His hair dishevelled, he wore one of Decker’s shirts and a pair of jeans. His feet were bare.

  ‘Found the cloth
es, then?’ asked Decker as Nathan approached the table, Alex in tow.

  ‘Yes, thanks.’ His gaze drifted to Eva.

  ‘Hey, Sleeping Beauty,’ she said, keeping her tone light. ‘How are you feeling?’

  ‘Like I’ve been shot.’ His jaw dropped as he took in the landscape. ‘Wait – are we in Italy?’

  Eva smiled. ‘You slept most of the way.’

  ‘You snore,’ said Alex, before running off to play with a black and white cat that had appeared at the far end of the terrace.

  Eva covered her mouth with her hand, but couldn’t prevent the laugh that escaped her.

  Nathan’s eyes found hers once more, and she knew she’d have to tell him, soon. Decker was right – she owed him.

  ‘I need to thank you,’ she said, reaching across for his hand as he sat down. ‘For saving Alex.’

  He shrugged, then winced as the stitches in his shoulder pulled. ‘It’s okay,’ he murmured. ‘It was instinctive. I didn’t think.’

  Eva squeezed his hand, then let go. She could see if she made too much of a fuss, he’d begin to analyse the events too closely, and delayed shock might set in. She’d helped Decker dress his wounds when he’d been unconscious, and had been surprised how quickly he was healing.

  ‘He’s fit, for a nerd,’ Decker had said. ‘It’ll help him recover faster.’

  Now, Nathan waited until Decker had guided Alex away from the cat and back to his chair. ‘How long was I asleep for?’

  ‘Three days,’ said Decker.

  Nathan’s eyebrows shot up. ‘Three days?’

  ‘I gave you some extra morphine,’ explained Decker. ‘You needed to rest, to heal.’

  ‘Oh.’ He took a sip of the wine Eva poured for him. ‘Oh, that’s good. What happened? How did we get here?’

  Eva glanced at Decker, and he nodded. Maybe it wouldn’t do any harm to help fill in some of the gaps in his memory.

  ‘Decker knew someone on the outskirts of Prague who helped us. He patched you up, and we left soon after that.’

  ‘What is this place?’

  She shook her head. ‘I didn’t know about it. Decker brought us here.’

  ‘This is the first time anyone’s been here as a guest,’ said Decker. ‘I like my privacy.’

  ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to sound ungrateful,’ said Nathan. ‘I didn’t realise it was your home.’

  Decker shrugged. ‘No offence taken. We needed somewhere safe to hide. It made sense to come here.’

  He stood, walked over to the low wall that bordered the terrace and peered into the distance, squinting at the sunset that had begun to fill the horizon.

  ‘How do you know it’s safe here?’ asked Nathan.

  Decker used his wine glass to point at a cypress tree on top of a low hill halfway between the house and the road. ‘Because that’s as close as the last uninvited guest got.’

  Nathan’s eyes opened wide. ‘What happened to him?’

  ‘He’s buried under the tree,’ said Decker, before wandering back to the table. He drained his glass and reached for the bottle.

  Nathan spun to face Eva. ‘He’s kidding, right?’

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Decker topped up their glasses, checked over his shoulder that Alex was busy playing with the cat once more, then turned his attention back to Eva.

  ‘Now would be a good time to tell him.’

  ‘Tell me what?’

  Eva sighed. ‘I should’ve told you this at the beginning. I’m sorry. I thought because you were the one tasked with monitoring me and Alex, you’d know.’

  ‘Know what?’ Nathan’s brow furrowed and he leaned closer, his eyes full of concern.

  Decker cleared his throat, pushed away his chair, and sauntered over to the side of the house, returning with a broom with which he began to brush leaves away from the paving stones, camouflaging their voices further from Alex.

  Eva was struck by how quiet the terrace had become as the sun dropped over the horizon. She took a deep breath. There could be no turning back now.

  ‘Douglas wasn’t my fiancé,’ she said, then raised her gaze to meet Nathan’s eyes.

  He sat, a stunned expression crossing his face, before his mouth opened, then closed once more.

  ‘I’m sorry. I realise that’s probably come as a bit of a shock to you,’ said Eva. She reached out for Nathan’s hand, but he snatched it away.

  ‘I thought you trusted me,’ he said.

  ‘I do,’ said Eva. ‘Please believe me, I do, but I thought they would have told you everything when you were assigned to the case.’

  ‘No. They didn’t.’ Nathan leaned back, a hiss of breath escaping his lips as he closed his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair.

  He stayed that way for a moment, his fingers massaging his scalp.

  Eva swallowed. ‘I was assigned to Doug as his close protection officer,’ she said, her voice low. She sensed Decker moving behind her, and shook her head. ‘It’s okay.’

  Decker sank back into his chair and picked up his wine glass, his brown eyes unfathomable.

  ‘Anyway, like I was saying, I was assigned to the embassy to protect Doug,’ she said.

  ‘Miles told me you were an assassin,’ said Nathan, opening his eyes. He leaned forward. ‘Is that true?’

  ‘Yes.’ Eva began drawing circles with her forefinger across the table. ‘The last job I did for them was particularly… bad.’ She blinked to clear the memory. ‘So, Petersen – my handler at the Section – assigned me to the embassy. They needed one of their diplomats looking after, and I needed the break.’ She stopped drawing and peered across at Nathan through her fringe.

  ‘I’d only been at the embassy a month, but Doug and I, we – we just connected. One day we were working as usual, and — I don’t know, it was like we both realised at exactly the same time how we felt about each other.’ Eva looked down at her hands. ‘We couldn’t stop ourselves, even if we wanted to.’

  She sniffed, and wiped her eyes. ‘So, no, he wasn’t my fiancé,’ she said, waving away Decker’s offer of a handkerchief, ‘but we were very close. We tried to keep it a secret, but I think the Section knew something was going on, which is why they did what they did.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Douglas was working with the Section on something. At first I wasn’t made privy to what it was, but then things changed.’ She held up her hand to stop Nathan interrupting. ‘There was an engineer, a genius apparently, who had been working on a new bioweapon for a private contractor in Poland. The private contractor was supplying the Russian military with state-of-the-art technology, and the engineer began to get worried that the system was so advanced, there would be no stopping it if it was deployed.’

  ‘So, he decided to jump ship?’

  Eva nodded. ‘He approached Douglas at a software convention in Prague, completely out of the blue, on my watch. Douglas was there as one of the special guests. He was always keen on bringing like-minded people together, so the software convention was a perfect vehicle for him to invite brilliant minds from all over the European continent. The engineer was one of the guest speakers.’

  She leaned across the table, picked up a fresh glass and filled it from the jug of water. She swallowed half its contents without coming up for air, then refilled it.

  ‘The engineer requested a private audience with Doug, and when they were alone, told him about the weapon and that he wanted to defect,’ she said. ‘Of course, Doug alerted the UK intelligence services as soon as we got back to the embassy, and the Section took over from there, telling him how to make contact with the engineer at his hotel without arousing suspicion, and arranging to meet up with him again.’

  Nathan frowned. ‘They’d need proof that the bioweapon existed, wouldn’t they?’

  ‘Right,’ said Eva. ‘At first, the engineer refused – said it was too dangerous, but Doug persisted, and they arranged to meet the following day. I went with him.’

  ‘Di
d he get the proof?’

  ‘Yes. He turned up with a memory stick with photographs and a couple of design drawings,’ said Eva. ‘The problem was, he brought something else with him, too.’

  ‘What? A tail, you mean?’

  ‘No,’ said Eva. ‘Alex.’

  * * *

  Continue the story in Assassins: Vengeance…

  Eva’s story continues in Assassins Vengeance

  Find out more here