Drake stood with her. “Bloody hell, Alicia, do not tell me you’ve shagged him.”
“Well…”
“That’s a long list to sift through,” Mai said. “Give her a few days.”
“I’d remember,” Alicia said. “I’m sure I’d remember a man like that. Does he have a—”
Drake quickly tuned her out, knowing from experience that she was about to get even more explicit. Crouch’s reply: “how the hell should I know?” confirmed it. He wandered over to Dahl and met the Swede’s eyes.
“You happy with all this?”
“Egypt? I think we have to. We’re trusting Crouch’s judgment but he hasn’t steered us wrong before. Lauren will be on the inside in a day or two. I guess we should try to stay off this Luther’s radar as long as we can.”
“You scared of him?” Drake leaned in, playing a little mischief.
“Me?” Dahl protested. “I’m not even sure what the word means, pal.”
Drake thought he was probably telling the truth. “You’d impress me more if you were at least a little scared.”
“Fuck off, Drake.”
Crouch motioned that they should get packing. The team split and then met up again ten minutes later, backpacks ready and faces set. Hayden led them out into the cold and toward the vehicles, most of them taking a last look around what had become, for them at least, the only quiet safe haven they’d known in years.
On the run we find peace, Drake thought with twisted irony. What kind of soldiers have we become?
A valley fell away before them, across which a brisk wind blew, bringing with it the scent of flower-strewn earth. Drake took it all in, and then they were inside the cars, fiddling with the heating and the satnav, settling in for a short drive during in which they were unable to relax.
Some time later they were in the air, not sad to leave Transylvania but unsettled as to what may happen next. As if the splinter group hadn’t disturbed their lives enough there was now the threat of a supposed caveman called Luther. The plane rushed them all to Egypt, landing in an early darkness which couldn’t have been planned better. Under the cover of night, they exited and ran down an empty runway to a quiet hangar.
Crouch called in for the car, which met them ten minutes later and transported them to a hotel in Cairo. Busy, hazardous and loud, the city streets were a harsh reminder of life after the tranquil peace they had experienced this last few days.
“A few hours’ sleep,” Crouch said, “and then we need to prep for tomorrow night. For the gala. Planning and research will be everything because, as we know, it’s not just the whole world watching.”
“It’s Big Brother himself,” Drake nodded, “in all his meanest guises.”
“If anyone can do it, we can,” Hayden said. “We’re the best.”
“Used to be,” Smyth said. “Don’t forget we’re skating lightly now.”
“That’s one way of putting it,” Alicia said. “And here’s another — let’s all fuck off to bed ’cause tomorrow’s a bitch and to ride her properly, we’re gonna need every ounce of energy.” She turned away. “Night all.”
Drake stared at the floor. “I have to sleep with that.”
Alicia looked back. “We could always stick Yorgi down the middle.”
The Russian looked terrified and quickly left the room. Drake fought to come to terms with the change of environment and the mounting pressure surrounding tomorrow night. Just like that, in an instant, they had to be at the top of their game.
This team, now more than ever, needed each other. Mentally as well as physically. In truth, he saw the upcoming gala as an interesting distraction provided they could fathom a foolproof escape. The team would gel, work for each other; they always did.
He watched Hayden and Kinimaka skirting around each other; Dahl and Kenzie strangely at odds whilst clicking; Smyth more worried and irascible than ever; Mai looking lonely as she wandered toward the stairs, cellphone in hand; Alicia still looking back at him and then surveying the room too.
“We’ll be all right,” she said. “All of us.”
“I know that,” Drake said quickly. “I know that.”
He wished he felt as sure as he sounded.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Drake had been interested to see how the Egyptians would pull this off — a glitzy, high-profile show originating from a tomb with its contents in-situ, fortunately not too far from Cairo and the Giza plateau. It reminded him of the initial Odin show that the city of York had hosted, back when he was between careers. It reminded him of the danger-laden, ever-winding path his life had taken since.
The tomb entrance had been draped with enormous, velvet-red curtains, a stage erected outside and five steps constructed to lead up to that stage. A band played to one side, dressed in their finest suits, and high-profile glamorous guests mingled to the other, all pretending that the spotlights following their every move didn’t exist. At the base of the stage stood rows of cameras and then a roped-off enclosure where members of the press and public were allowed to stand. A red carpet led straight through the middle.
Around the outside, the desert surroundings were untouched, dark and vast, but the television cameras wouldn’t be focusing there. Behind the curtains, Drake saw nothing. The big unveiling was still a while away.
The team were hardly recognizable in their fashionable outfits. From suits in gray, black and deep blue for the men that fitted well and felt intensely uncomfortable, to gowns for the women that fitted even better but offered little freedom of movement. Crouch had begged them all to fit in with the general vogue tonight so as not to blow the op, but the sacrifices were large, as Alicia constantly reminded him.
They used the time before the event to vet the area and the gathering, splitting up into several groups to appear less conspicuous and achieve a better lay of the land. Drake and Alicia followed Dahl and Kenzie for a time, listening to the banter between them and wondering where the two were really at. For the Swede especially, the course of his life hung in the balance. Kenzie had already adjusted immensely, and tried harder every day. The dynamic between them was fluid and incredibly charged.
Hayden grabbed Kinimaka, much to the Hawaiian’s surprise, and led the big man into the extravagant throng. Smyth, Mai and Yorgi took the outskirts, scanning for unwanted surprises.
“I’m seeing all the usual suspects,” Alicia said to Drake. The team weren’t using comms tonight for obvious reasons. “I see mercs, squeezed into their tight little jackets—” she paused for a second “—and trousers. Hello! A bit inappropriate, don’t you think…”
Drake tried not to look. “C’mon, Alicia. Let’s keep it professional.”
Alicia gave him an innocent look. “When did we start that then?”
Just ahead, Kenzie and Dahl were having a similar conversation. “Three mercs right there,” the Israeli said.
“Don’t stare too hard,” Dahl said.
“Why not? They’ll assume I want to join them for ten minutes behind my boyfriend’s back. That’s all.”
“That’s all? Why would you think that?” Dahl hadn’t even considered the option.
Kenzie laughed. “Because they’re mercs, dummy.”
“Ah, yes. I see now. Good point.”
“I know them well. Their aspirations; goals; needs.”
Dahl remembered Kenzie had commanded her own group of mercenaries for many years. “All the same?”
“No,” Kenzie said. “Most wanted money, power and carnage but a few… there were a few that were different. Others just wanted to be led.”
Dahl looked over. “And you were good at that?”