Allyson took her phone out of her pocket and checked the time. She’d been trapped under the debris for nearly half an hour. She raised her head and looked around the premises. Rain pattered against the waterproof fabric of her gray jacket. The fresh air felt good in her lungs. With two dead bodies inside the building and her competition getting away with Koenig, she didn’t have time to stand around and savor the rain’s sweet smell.
On the upside, Allyson knew exactly where the other two were going. Now she had to get there. Her phone buzzed as she was about to put it back in her pocket. Her heartbeat quickened.
“What have you got for me?” she said, putting the phone to her ear.
“Good to hear your voice again. Last time I heard it, you left me in a hotel somewhere in Hungary.”
“Sorry, had to go.”
“I understand. And I didn’t care if you left or stayed. I would have been fine either way.” The gruff American voice did have a certain sex appeal to it. That was only a small part, however, as to why Allyson had decided to spend the night with him.
He was one of the few people she trusted. Ironically, she didn’t know his real name. On the flip side, he did know hers and had kept it a secret. Why, she wasn’t sure. Maybe he didn’t see any profit in giving her up. Or maybe he had a crush on her. Either way, Allyson did not intend to give up on using him for his particular skill set: finding information.
She set off walking at a fast pace toward the road. She’d need to get out of the city, and soon. It would only be a matter of time before someone found the bodies. If the other woman dropped the professor off somewhere, he could easily pin her for the crime.
“Kind of in a hurry here, Jake. What do you have?”
“I have something that I think you’ll find very interesting.”
She sighed and rounded the gate, taking off down the sidewalk to the right. “You can stop teasing me now.”
He laughed. “You tease me all the time.”
“I haven’t spoken to you since Budapest, Jake. Remember?”
That much was true. She’d left him alone after their night together. Recalling how long ago that happened was more difficult than some of the other details. She felt like it was a year ago, but it could have been more. It was clear the time apart bothered him.
Jake was a loner, which made his attachment to her even more unnerving. On top of it all, she felt like he’d chosen the nickname Jake because it sounded cool or tough. In reality, he was neither. He was a computer geek that happened to have a great body. But tough? No. Clever? Absolutely.
“Okay, so maybe you don’t tease me all the time.”
“I don’t mean to be rude to you right now, but I’m kind of in a bind. Would you mind telling me what information you have for me? Tell me you’ve got something on the other girl.”
“Oh? You’re in trouble? Fine. I won’t ask what kind of trouble. I’m sure it’s nothing you can’t handle. Her name is Adriana Villa. I gotta say, this one covers her tracks really well. Finding information about her was like… it was like trying to find a ghost or something. Either she or her employer preferred to keep her identity completely unknown to most of the world. And whichever it was, they were very good at it.”
“Not good enough to keep you from figuring it out.” She passed him the flirty compliment that she knew would wrap him around her finger all over again.
“It wasn’t easy.”
Allyson knew where he was going with the statement. “And you will be well compensated for your efforts. I assure you.”
“I know.”
There was an awkward pause as she reached a street corner and looked in every direction, deciding which way she should go. She noticed a metro station a few blocks away on the right. Perfect.
Jake spoke up again. “I’d be careful with this woman if you’re somehow involved with her in something. Records on her are zero.”
“Zero?” Allyson asked, picking up her pace to a near jog.
“Yeah. There’s nothing on her. No criminal record. Just a few notes about where she went to college, where she’s from, birth date, that sort of thing.”
“So she shouldn’t be any trouble.”
“No. That’s my point. People with records this clean are either missionaries, or they’re so dangerous that their files have been wiped clean. This chick has no social media presence, no known associates, and get this… no physical address.”
“Where does she sleep at night, the street?”
“That’s just it. I could accept all of the other stuff. But no address is a huge red flag for me. It means she’s purposely hiding something. At least that’s what my experience tells me. It’s possible she rents a place off the books.”
Allyson considered the information. This Adriana character was most certainly dangerous. She’d managed to escape one of the most sinister drug cartels in the world, killing two of its leaders in the process. And from her personal encounters with the woman, Allyson knew she was a pro.
Jake interrupted her thoughts. “Any idea who she’s working for?”
She couldn’t say much on the subject given the circumstances of the mission with Frank. So she blew it off as unimportant and redirected the conversation. “I’m not worried about that right now. You said she had no known associates.”
“None that I could find. Mother died several years ago from cancer. She has a father, but I can’t find anything on him other than a name. His records are just as anonymous as the daughter.”
Allyson had heard enough for now. While she appreciated his efforts, and would still pay for them, Jake hadn’t really given her much other than a name. Still, she would keep him on the leash. “I’m about to get on a train so I’ll have to let you go. Let me know if you find anything else.”
“Will do.”
She ended the call and slid the phone back in her pocket. When she arrived at the metro station, she took a nonchalant look around to make sure no one was looking and then dropped her pistol, along with the suppressor, in the garbage can. For the moment, Allyson had to get out of the immediate area. She didn’t care where the train was going. Once out of the vicinity, she’d find transportation.
Sirens blared suddenly, startling her for a second as two police cars zoomed by. She let out a long sigh and stepped up to the ticket kiosk to buy a metro pass. Someone must have found the bodies. By the time the police arrived at the archives, she would be gone and on her way southwest to Baden-Baden.
6
“Would you mind telling me exactly what is going on? Why are we going to Baden-Baden?” Koenig blurted. He’d remained silent as Adriana steered his car through the busy city streets of Berlin. Once they reached the outskirts, however, he felt he could speak up. “Hello?”
Adriana guided the BMW onto the Autobahn and stepped on the gas. The throaty engine roared, and in seconds they were speeding down the road. She checked the speed limit signs and made sure she wasn’t exceeding it by too much. What an annoyance, she thought.
Years before, the Autobahns had been famous for their insanely high speed limits, or a complete lack thereof. Now, however, there were only pockets of high-speed roads. Cameras had been mounted on bridges to issue fines to drivers who drove exceedingly fast. Occasionally, there were even police monitoring road safety. For now, she was happy to be out of Berlin. The more distance she could put between them and Allyson, the better.
“Did you hear me?” Koenig asked, staring at her with a demanding expression.
She blinked and barely twisted her head to the right. “I heard you.”