xx Smiley.
Chapter 3
Swallowing heavily, Zina glanced down at her watch and did her best not to look like she was in a hurry to be anywhere.
Maybe this was a mistake. A huge, terrible mistake.
She wouldn’t have done it, though, if she hadn’t been absolutely desperate and completely flat out of options. She’d known right from the start of this that Hargreaves would be utterly ruthless in tracking her down – not to mention her own workplace would be hot on her tail as well.
Or maybe that should beformerworkplace. I doubt I’ll be welcomed back with open arms after this.
Zina sighed inwardly and hitched her bag a little closer to her chest, doing her best to tune back in to the tour guide’s lecture. She’d joined this tour group because it was safter than being alone – the tour guide was keeping close tabs on everyone to make sure no one had gone astray – and because if anyone pegged her as not being a local, then she’d stick out less amongst a bunch of other obvious travelers.
Almost everyone in this group was a tourist, mostly middle-aged, casually dressed, and hiding from the sun beneath large hats, so she didn’t stick out too much with her own hat and sunglasses. The fact that theyalsohid a lot of her face was a bonus, of course, since she’d run out of ways to change her hair: it’d been pink when she’d been buying a new car for cash after she’d absconded from Hargreaves; she’d scorched it blonde with bleach in the world’s seediest motel when she’d still been on the run back in America; finally, she’d hacked it all off in an airport bathroom when she’d arrived here.
Don’t know if it did any good, though,Zina thought, eyes on the two men who’d been loitering at the edge of the park ever since the tour group had arrived, keeping their distance but still fairly obviously following them.
Or rather, followingher.
Or, maybe, they’re just two guys looking for a nice place to picnic.
Either way, even as exhausted as she was after all this running, Zina wasn’t about to let her guard down.
Not now, not when she was so close.
Well. Provided Trent Bowman had understood the text messages she’d been sending him, anyway, and there was no guarantee of that.
“And so, this impressive bronze statue portrays Colonel William Light, pointing out across the area that he planned to be the site of Adelaide, all the way back in 1836…” the tour guide went on, gesturing up, voice loud in the quiet of the morning.
Zina glanced up at the statue – a huge bronze thing of a man, his finger thrust dramatically out in front of him, pointing over the parklands they’d just walked through as part of this guided tour of Adelaide. She’d known about it beforehand, of course, and that was why she’d sent the text she had a few days ago –I guess I’m kind of new in town, so I’m looking for someone who can give me a pointer.
She’d been a secret agent for long enough now that her fingers didn’t shake when she was nervous. But nonetheless, she’d hesitated for just a moment before she’d hitsend, andhopedthat the recipient would know what she meant. Being any more specific was way too risky. She simply couldn’t be sure that the people on her tail hadn’t already started tracking her phone.
It had been ahugegamble. But then, everything about this had been a gamble. Well – not really a gamble, she supposed, since she’d never really expected to come out of it alive.
But as long as I can make sure they’re safe…
She pulled her bag, with its precious contents, a little closer to her chest.
That, really, was all that mattered.
And even if I can’t trust him for anything else, I think I can trust him for that.
Zina honestly wasn’t sure why, after all this time, she’d thought of him.
She’d managed, through a bit of diligent hacking, to find out Tony Landers’ real name of Trent Bowman. She’d found out who he really worked for. And she’d made the decision – maybe thestupiddecision – that if she wanted to achieve her goal, she’d have to trust him.
So she’d sent her texts, sending him a message that – she hoped – only he would understand. She’d used the dumb nickname he’d given her during their run-in in London. She’d referenced the advice he’d jokingly given her about where he’d go to lay low, if he ever had to.
Maybe he wouldn’t remember it, and the texts would seem meaningless to him. Or maybe hedidremember, and the first thing he’d done was go straight to his bosses to tell them where to find her.
She could only hope that wasn’t the case.
Though it’s not like I had any other options, really.
Zina had always known her options would be limited, if she really went through with what she’d planned. She couldn’t contact any of her known associates – they’d be the first people who’d be under surveillance. No one from Hargreaves. No matter how many years she’d spent undercover there, or what friendships she might have made during her mission, that would just be like putting her own head in a noose. She’d hoped she might’ve had just alittlemore time to sort out what she’d do after she’d walked out on her mission with what she’d stolen. A little more time to think and plan. But things had gone faster than she’d anticipated. And soon, she’d realized she was completely out of options, and there weren’t many places she could run.
But for some reason, as she’d sorted through her options and realized they totaledabsolutely zero,her mind had kept coming back to the agent who’d allowed her to walk away with the USB she’d been sent to recover, all those years ago. Agents had it drilled into them from the first day of training:always complete your mission, no matter what.And yet, he’d given up his own success, just to make sure she had hers.
