“Something fucking heavy. A towel rack, I think.”
Wally just grunted. “So what do you think? Robbery? Target of opportunity?”
“No way.” Nate shook his head. “This guy was trained. A few more seconds and he would have had me.”
“Well, that doesn’t mean anything,” Wally said, grinning. “Maybe you’re just a shit fighter.”
“Fuck off.” Nate sighed and Wally laughed. “The way he bolted. It was like he had a plan.”
“There’s a lot of good thieves out there. I’ll bet a lot of them plan ahead.” Wally finished applying antiseptic and a butterfly bandage to the cut on Nate’s head before moving down to examine the forearm.
Nate was silent for a full minute. “Do you still leave tells on your door, Wally?”
“Naturally.”
“I left two. He wouldn’t have been able to replace the exterior one, and those are fifty-fifty at best anyhow. But he either replaced the interior one, or scaled the outside of the building to specifically get into my room.”
Wally stopped what he was doing and thought about it for a moment. “Well, that is fucking strange. I think we’re starting to build enough data points to leave the realm of coincidence behind.”
“Right?” Nate shook his head again, confused. Wally seemed to read his thoughts.
“Alright, then. Let’s think about it logically. Why attack you? I mean, you’re a fucking nobody, no offense.”
“None taken,” Nate agreed. “And you’re right. I’m not in the army anymore. I don’t have a long list of international enemies. I’m a graduate student doing research on a fabled city thousands of years old that may or may not have even existed!”
“So you don’t think it exists, then? Guess you’re wasting my time too.” Nate looked up and saw Wally smiling.
“You know what I mean. Of course it exists. I just don’t get it. Why attack me?”
As they mulled it over, a chilling thought came to him. “Isn’t it odd that Richter didn’t show up today?”
Wally caught his drift. “The receptionist did say that it was unlike him.”
“I need my laptop.” He started to stand and Wally stopped him with a hand on his chest before retrieving it for him.
Nate booted up the computer and went to work. The majority of useful information in the world wasn’t classified, but rather out in the open for anyone to find. It was where the term OSINT came from, which simply stood for open-source intelligence. One just needed to know where to look, and fortunately that was a task Nate was highly skilled at after years of targeting bad guys on a Special Forces team. Within twenty minutes he had Richter’s home address.
“Got it,” he said. “Richter’s house is in town, not too far from here.”
“So when do you want to go? First thing after breakfast?”
Nate shook his head. “Now.”
“Now?” Wally asked incredulously. “It’s the middle of the bloody night. Piss this guy off and he may never give you what you need.”
“If I’m right, and there’s a connection between my research and my attacker,” Nate said, “then tomorrow might be too late.”
The walk to Richter’s house was less than a mile. As they moved along the generally empty streets, both men were on high alert. The same heavy foliage and charming neighborhoods that Nate had enjoyed earlier in the day now seemed menacing in the dark.
Of course it was highly unlikely they would be attacked again. The police were on alert as to what had happened, and if it was in fact a loneactor then the odds were now numerically stacked in their favor. Still, it didn’t hurt to be cautious, so they traveled mostly in silence, wary of any perceived threats. Before long they turned onto Burbacher Strasse. The long and narrow street featured few offshoots, which meant fewer chances for escape should something go wrong.
They eventually reached the house of Gilbert Richter. It was dark, with no interior lights visible from the windows. Nate glanced briefly at the face of his Omega watch, the hash marks for time illuminated in the darkness as the smooth automatic movement caused the second hand to glide over them in an effortless manner. It was nearly midnight.
“Maybe he’s sleeping,” Wally whispered.
“Yeah,” Nate grumbled, “maybe.” He moved forward and rang the bell. Nothing. He rang again, and they waited several minutes. Again, there was no movement. He pounded on the door.
“Could have gone away on a last-minute trip,” Wally suggested.
