by Angus McLean
‘So is this your usual?’ she enquired, lifting the menu for an assessment.
Archer smiled to himself. She thinks I have ties to Berlin. The CIA want to know why the Germans seem to be favouring me.
‘Not really,’ he said, remaining non-committal. He took another pull on his beer. ‘I do like their pilsner though.’
The waiter brought her drink and she clinked steins with Archer before taking a long, appreciative drink.
‘Ahh,’ she purred, putting the stein down. ‘Fantastic.’ She licked her lips and glanced back to the menu. ‘So, what’re we having?’
‘Well, I was going to have a quiet meal and go to bed early,’ he replied, pointedly enough to make her pull a sad face.
‘Ohh, am I interrupting your quiet time?’ she mocked him. ‘I’m sorry, how rude of me. I thought you would like some company after your hard day at the office.’
Archer frowned. He didn’t like being mocked, and he didn’t appreciate her attitude. He was tired and hungry and had a million thoughts buzzing through his head. The last thing he wanted right now was someone else digging for information from him.
‘It’s not been what I would call a standard day at the office,’ he said stiffly, sounding more pissed off than he had intended.
Jessika grinned wickedly. ‘Well, you could still get to bed early if you wanted,’ she said, with a glint in her eye. He noticed again the greenness of her eyes; they were unnaturally light, so pale they were almost grey, as if she were wearing coloured contacts. It was unsettling to hold her gaze for too long.
Archer smiled tiredly. ‘Thanks,’ he said, ‘but I really just want to unwind and get my head down.’
There was an awkward silence and he could tell she was offended.
‘How’s your boss feeling now?’ he said, trying for a distraction. ‘He got a bit bruised today, didn’t he?’
Jessika pursed her lips. ‘Rawlins? He’s fine. He’s had worse from better than those guys.’ Her eyes met his. ‘Our kraut friends certainly seem to like you though, Craig. Especially that little bit of fluff. She’s got her eye on you, I know it.’
Archer gave a dismissive snort and picked up his stein. ‘I doubt it,’ he said. ‘They’re too busy for any of that sort of carry-on, I’d suggest.’
‘So what about you, Craig?’ She fixed him with a direct gaze, challenging.
‘What about me?’
‘Would you?’
He frowned. ‘Would I what?’
‘The little bit of kraut fluff. Would you?’
His frown turned to a scowl. ‘Would I bed her?’ he said irritably. ‘It’s none of your damn business if I would or not, Jessika.’
‘No no no.’ She leaned forward, her eyes still locked intensely on his. ‘Not would you bed her.’ She leaned closer still, lowering her voice. ‘Would you fuck her, Craig? Would you fuck her hard like you fucked me? Would you fuck that little kraut bitch, Craig?’
Archer was far from being a prude, but he was reviled by her crassness. He sat back to distance himself from her, his mind whirring. The only conclusion he could come to was that she had been drinking before she ever got to the restaurant.
‘I’ve had enough of this,’ he said firmly. ‘I don’t appreciate your comments, and I don’t have to explain myself to you. This is over.’
He went to stand but she beat him to it.
‘So that’s it?’ Jessika pouted, raising her voice. ‘Am I getting the brush-off now? So it was okay when you wanted something from me, and now I’m yesterday’s news?’
A few of the diners turned to look, and Archer felt his cheeks begin to burn. He was too tired for games and he resented her even being there. The waiter started to come towards them.
‘Well fuck you, buddy.’ Jessika snatched her stein off the table and hurled the contents of it at him.
Archer was too stunned to react in time and took the full load front-on. Cold beer ran down his face and he could taste it on his lips.
‘See how you like that, asshole.’ Jessika banged the heavy stein back onto the table and stormed out, crashing through the door and out to the footpath. He watched her stride away, barging past other pedestrians.
‘Sir?’ The waiter was hovering nervously nearby.
Archer turned to him, grabbing a napkin to wipe his face. ‘Sorry about that mate.’ He dug out his wallet and produced enough notes to cover the drinks plus a decent tip.
‘Danke, sir.’
Archer gave him a rueful smile and wiped at his shirtfront. ‘Frauleins, huh? Crazy.’
The waiter laughed nervously. ‘Ja, ja. Crazy.’
Archer made for the door. He had no idea what had set her off so suddenly, and didn’t really care. His hair and clothes were soaked. He needed to shower and change, and it would have to be room service for dinner instead.
So much for a quiet night.
Chapter 28
The hotel restaurant was busy with guests tucking in before checking out, but Archer managed to find himself a small table in the corner. From there he could watch the door and it was also handy to the beverages.
He filled a bowl with fruit and muesli, topped it with milk and yoghurt, poured himself a strong coffee and headed back to his table. His sleep had been broken, constantly interrupted by dreams of Jessika and her performance last night. The whole thing confused him and there was a constant prickle at the back of his mind. Something was there, niggling him like a faint itch that wouldn’t go away.
He shook his head and decided to focus on fuelling the engine for now. He’d worked out in his room this morning, a hard half hour of body-weight exercises and stretches that had left his heart pumping and his senses singing, and now his body was craving fuel.
As he started to sit he became aware of someone approaching the table. He paused, mentally bracing himself for another crazy onslaught from Jessika, but the new arrival was an entirely different proposal altogether.
Eva was wearing a sombre charcoal business suit over a snow-white blouse. The ruffled front opened just enough to hint at what lay beneath. She gave him a knowing smile as she slid into the other chair and put her bag down beside her. ‘Don’t worry,’ she said, ‘I will keep my drinks to myself.’
Archer smiled ruefully, not surprised that he’d been watched. He took the time to load his spoon before speaking. ‘All part of the service?’ he inquired. He took a mouthful of muesli and started to chew.
‘We like to ensure our guests are safe.’ Eva caught the eye of a lurking waitress and asked for a coffee.
‘Well, it was nothing a shower and a change of clothes couldn’t fix.’ He set his spoon down and waited while her coffee was delivered.
‘Danke.’ The waitress moved off again and Eva took a tentative sip. It seemed to meet with her approval, and she took a decent shot.
The wound dressing on her forehead had been replaced by well-applied concealer, leaving no hint of the injury she had received in the highway gunfight.
Archer noticed how her nose crinkled when she drank. She was certainly an attractive woman, and he wondered if this visit was purely business, or whether he wasn’t just kidding himself. A girl like this would have men fawning all over her. He sipped his own coffee. Best he keep things professional. For all he knew, the Increment guys had blabbed about his relationship with Sarah, and he would have questions to answer once this was all over.
‘So what’s the plan today then?’ he asked.
Eva put her cup down carefully and considered her response. ‘You will need to come to a briefing,’ she said. ‘This morning. There have been some developments which you need to be aware of.’
‘Okay.’ Archer finished his bowl and pushed it aside. ‘What time?’
‘Now.’ Eva checked her watch. ‘You will have time to return to your room and freshen up. I will wait for you in the lobby and take you there.’
Archer downed his coffee, the hot liquid shocking his teeth after the cold cereal. He glanced at her as he set the cu
p down. She looked amused.
‘What? Do I have food on my face?’
‘No, not at all. Have you had enough to eat? We can have a few minutes if you like.’
He paused, and she let out a short laugh. He felt his cheeks flush as she quickly suppressed her laugh.
‘I am sorry,’ she chuckled. ‘I was only kidding, but you were serious. You actually thought about it.’
Archer didn’t think it was that funny, but her amusement at her own joke appealed to him and he felt himself smiling. ‘Eating’s a serious business,’ he said. ‘I’m not here to fuck ducks.’
Eva paused mid-chortle and her brow creased quizzically. She looked at him with genuine confusion. ‘Why would you do that to a duck?’
He grinned self-consciously. ‘Sorry, it’s a colloquialism. It means you’re not here to muck around, to waste time.’
‘Oh.’ She nodded slowly, staring at him as if not quite convinced by the explanation. ‘So you don’t…you know…have…’
‘No,’ he said. ‘Absolutely not. Well…’ he paused, deadpan. ‘Not for a while.’
Eva hesitated, unsure whether to laugh or not. Archer grinned and stood. ‘I’ll see you in the lobby shortly.’
She let out a chuckle again and shook her head as she got out her phone. ‘You are a very unusual man, Mr Archer,’ she said.
‘You just need to get to know me.’
Eva arched an eyebrow at him. ‘Perhaps I do,’ she said.
Archer wondered if he should reconsider his earlier stance on professional relationships. Right now, it was time to get ready for another exciting day of briefings.
Archer and Eva were the last to arrive at the briefing, and he sensed an atmosphere as soon as he walked in.
Rawlins was in the same seat he’d had previously, but the chair beside him was empty. The next two on that side of the table were filled by the two SOG guys he’d met at LAX – EJ and Rico. Dieter and Ulrich were at the head of the table. All three intelligence men looked as if they were preparing for a funeral.
Eva shut the door and took a seat at Dieter’s end of the table. Archer exchanged nods with the two operators as he sat down across from them. They were still in casual hiking gear, tanned and bearded. It never seemed to bother the Yanks how obvious they looked. He wondered if they even knew.
‘Good morning everybody,’ Dieter began, ‘and thank you all for coming. We have some matters of extremely high importance to discuss today, and I fear the issues facing us are potentially… upsetting for some.’
Archer noted Rawlins’ look of distaste. His two sidekicks remained as impassive as ever.
‘The first point we need to acknowledge is that our friend Jessika is no longer with us,’ Dieter continued, looking at each of them in turn. ‘She has returned to the United States at, ahhh, short notice.’
There was a pregnant pause and Archer noted that the Germans all looked to Rawlins, as if expecting him to fill the void. He didn’t, and after a moment, Dieter moved on smoothly.
‘And so, I appreciate that time is important to all of us, so let us get straight to the point of our meeting today.’ He glanced down at his tablet and swiped up a head shot onto the big screen. It was another shot of Viktor Kozlowski, but an earlier image than the one Archer had previously seen. This was a US military ID photo, showing Kozlowski maybe twenty-odd years ago. He looked young, eager and hard. He had the dead eyes of a cold-blooded killer.
Dieter opened his mouth to speak, but Rawlins cut in.
‘Let me just jump in there, Dieter,’ he said. ‘The point of us meeting today is to lay some facts on the table. Facts already known to my organisation, facts you have just recently become aware of, and which I’m guessing you want to share with the group.’ His tone was harsh and patronising, and he clearly intended to bulldoze over whatever was coming. ‘I don’t believe this information needs to be spread any further than it already has been, and I take great issue with being ambushed like this.’
Dieter’s tone was calm and even, but carried with it an icy authority that left no room for misunderstandings.
‘Mr Rawlins, I appreciate your position, however this is not a matter for negotiation.’ Rawlins went to cut in again and Dieter held up a hand, silencing him like a child. ‘I will thank you to not interrupt. This intelligence is of extreme importance to the matter we are currently dealing with, and our colleagues need to know. If that causes inconvenience for you or your organisation, then I must apologise, however that is a side issue I cannot help with.’
Order restored, Rawlins looked like a dog that had been kicked. Archer could see he was raging inside but now knew better than to push it with the little German. He made eye contact across the table with EJ, who stared back at him blankly. It was impossible to tell whether he was smiling beneath the beard.
‘So, let us continue. As we know, Viktor Kozlowski has been a mercenary, arms supplier and trainer to various target groups over a long period of time. What we have only just learned, however, is that he has been, and I believe still is – please correct me if I am wrong, Mr Rawlins – a covert source for the CIA, also for a long period of time.’
Dieter paused and a stunned silence fell over the room. Archer bit his lip to prevent his mouth from falling open. Eva looked from Dieter to Rawlins to Archer, and he could see the shock in her eyes. This was as much news to her as it was to him.
Archer slowly turned and looked across at Rawlins. The CIA man stared back belligerently. A vein was pounding in his forehead.
‘A source,’ Archer said quietly.
Rawlins glared. ‘What?’ he barked. ‘You want me to apologise? Ain’t gonna happen, Archer. This had the highest clearance, way above your paygrade.’
‘I’m not looking for an apology,’ Archer replied evenly, ‘and I couldn’t care less who authorised it. That horse has bolted. The question is, what are you gunna do about it now?’
‘I don’t have to answer to you, son.’ Rawlins had obviously decided that the best form of defence right now was to bully his way out. ‘This has nothing to do with you.’
‘Nothing to do with me?’ Archer fought the urge to reach over and slap him. ‘I think it has everything to do with me, actually. Considering it was me and my team that prevented a hijacked plane being crashed into LAX and killing thousands, yeah, I think it has everything to do with me.’
He glanced sideways, registering the surprise on the Germans’ faces.
‘Yeah, don’t believe the spin from these clowns,’ he continued. ‘While they were busy funding and enabling the mastermind, we were busy saving lives for them. Of course, they were happy to take the credit afterwards.’
‘Time to step back, Archer,’ Rawlins snarled. ‘Hey, I admit Kozlowski appears to have gone off the reservation right now, but we can get him back. He’s been an extremely valuable source for us, and he will continue to be. The list of arms dealers and terrorists he’s helped us take down is more impressive than anything you’ll ever do in your goddamn life, son.’ He leaned forward so there was no misunderstanding. ‘So back the fuck off.’
Rawlins sat back again and looked to Dieter.
‘I apologise for that, Dieter, but some things need to be said. We will get this situation back under control by the end of the day, I can assure you of that.’
‘Where is your colleague Jessika?’ Ulrich rumbled, his hands folded in front of him as if he were praying. Perhaps he was. Divine intervention would have been quite welcome right about now.
‘She’s returned to the States, as the man said,’ Rawlins replied, indicating towards Dieter.
‘Why?’ Ulrich’s voice was deep and emotionless.
Rawlins didn’t bat an eyelid. ‘Operational requirements,’ he said easily.
‘She’s his handler, isn’t she?’ Archer interrupted. ‘You’ve sent her off to try and get a lead back on the dog.’
‘What my staff do is no concern of yours, Archer,’ Rawlins retorted. ‘But if it makes you feel any
better, she happens to be one of the best agent handlers in the business.’
‘I’m sure,’ Eva interjected. ‘She seems to have done a great job so far.’
Rawlins visibly held back, fighting to retain some semblance of control. ‘Like I say, the list of targets he has fed us is extremely impressive, and that’s all down to her good work.’
Archer shook his head in amazement and Rawlins looked at him, ready to flare up again. Archer didn’t keep him waiting; he wanted this all out in the open. The lying and secret-keeping was doing his head in.
‘Don't you get it? He's played you. You thought you were calling the shots, but you were never in control. He manipulated you guys from the start, pulling your strings and making you dance like a bunch of puppets. Everything he gave you was something he was happy to give up – this was never about patriotism for him; it was business. Plain and simple economics. You took out his competition for him.’
‘Of course we did,’ Rawlins growled, his face dark, ‘that's a pretty standard motivation for sources, Archer.’ He gave a derisive snort. ‘Maybe if you spent more time in the intelligence scene and less time playing fuckin' soldiers, you'd know these things.’
Archer eyed him coldly. ‘And maybe if you'd spent less time with your head up your arse, Rawlins, you'd see he's fucked you over. You guys have helped create one of the biggest terrorists in the world. I can't believe you don't see that.’
Rawlins fixed him with a steely glare. ‘Everything we do, son, is for the greater good. The intelligence that source has given us has helped take down bad guys the world over. You get me? Sometimes, you gotta lie down with dogs to get the job done.’
‘Yeah?’ Archer replied. ‘Well mate, you're waking up with fuckin' fleas. Clearly I'm not going to change your mind, so you do what you do, and I'll go do the right thing.’ He stood and turned towards the door. ‘Thanks for the invite, Dieter, but I don’t think we’re going to get anywhere here.’ His hand was on the door handle when Rawlins stopped him.
‘The right thing?’ the CIA man said. ‘And what exactly is that, son?’
