Trigger Page 15

  I felt my face flush a little because my mind came up with several very interesting, and less-than-ladylike possibilities.

  “Oh well, whatever it takes to get us through,” I said with a shrug.

  “Exactly,” Chase agreed.

  “Why do you think the border guard hasn’t seen our names and pictures on some sort of APB or something?” I asked.

  “He can only know as much as they decide to put out there,” Max replied.

  “Why wouldn’t they want that information out, if it helped find us?” I asked.

  “It could be anything. They may not want to scare off tourists with news of the mess in Monterosso. They could want to keep certain aspects of what happened confidential. It may be that they are just incredibly slow at disseminating information,” Max said.

  “Maybe they don’t know who they are looking for,” Chase offered. “If that is the case, the real question is what is Marcello doing?”

  “Why do you mean?” I was confused.

  “He is the only one who saw you fleeing the scene. At the very least, he knows that you’re a witness, and at worst, that you are somehow actually involved. If they aren’t looking specifically for us, or at least you, either he didn’t tell them what he saw, or they’re being very careful. Then, the actual question becomes why?” Chase was quiet while he thought it over.

  “I have no idea,” I said.

  “Most likely, he’s trying to protect you.”

  “Why would he try to protect me?”

  “You seem to have that effect on people.” Chase sounded anything but amused.

  Except for the music from the radio, the drive continued in silence. Max had switched to a French news station, so I didn’t understand much. Max and Chase were engrossed in whatever was being discussed, making it apparent that Chase spoke French as well as Italian. Of course he was fluent in multiple languages, I thought. That would make things easier in his line of work, as would sharp shooting, stealth ninja maneuvers, and the overall fearlessness he had already demonstrated. All these things made him intensely more attractive and also aggravating. Was there anything he couldn’t do?

  “Anything of interest?” I asked after a while.

  “Nothing, although it may be early for a news bulletin on it,” Max replied and they both went back to listening.

  “What time is the sleeper to Barcelona?” Chase asked Max.

  “12:50,” Max responded, not taking his eyes from the road.

  “We will have to find someplace to lay low for a bit,” Chase said.

  “Why not just wait in the car and avoid any complications?”

  “It’s going to be a long night on a train, it’d be nice to stretch out.” Chase flicked his eyes toward the back seat, indicating to Max the stop in a hotel would mostly be for our benefit.

  “You sure the overnight train is the best way to get to Barcelona?” Max asked.

  “This isn’t my first rodeo,” he said nonchalantly.

  Max didn’t attempt to argue. I hadn’t asked which of the two was in charge before, because it had been obvious from the beginning it was Chase. They began to make plans for when we reached Nice. They both spoke about the city with an intimate knowledge that indicated they had been there multiple times. A short time later, the centralized lights of a city appeared in front of us.

  “Monte Carlo?” I asked and received dual nods from both Chase and Max as we continued to speed along into the famous city. Nice was close to Monte Carlo, so I knew it wouldn’t be much longer once the lights of the principality started fading behind us.

  Reaching the outskirts of Nice, Max deftly wove in and out of traffic as he headed toward the center of the city. We made it downtown quickly where Max parked on a deserted side street. Chase explained that just around the corner was the entrance to a decent hotel and across the street was the main train terminal for the city, Gare de Nice Ville. We all got out of the car. Chase took a bag out of the truck before leading the way down the street toward the entrance to the hotel. Max also removed a bag from the car before he headed off in the opposite direction.

  “Where is Max going?” Anna wanted to know as she stretched her leg out tentatively to see if her ankle was any better.

  “He’ll be back,” Chase shot back over his shoulder as he walked briskly to the hotel with us on his heels.

  He approached the front desk and spoke to the clerk in French while Anna and I hung back, trying to look casual. I do not think we did a very good job of it. Chase wasn’t at the desk for very long before he had a key card and gestured for us to follow him to the elevator. Minutes later, we were in a room on the third floor overlooking the train station.

  I walked over to one of the queen-sized beds and collapsed gratefully. After the events of the day, it felt good to stretch out and completely relax my body. I hadn’t realized how on edge I was until right then. Anna sprawled face down on the other bed and didn’t move. I assumed she was also emotionally and physically drained. Meanwhile, Chase was busy setting up a small computer.

  A series of three sharp knocks at the door, followed by a cough, interrupted my thoughts and Chase’s search of the room. In an instant, Chase was standing next to the door with his gun in his hand. Alarmed, I pushed myself back from the edge of the bed to the wall to be further from the door. Chase peered out the peephole with a lightning-fast movement of his head before unlocking the door. Max came in with several bags. As soon as Max was in the room, Chase shut and locked the door. He checked the hallway through the peephole before putting his pistol away.

  Max dropped some packages onto the small table in the far corner and started to take out several containers of food. I sidled closer and so did Anna. He must have stopped at a deli and picked up whatever was handy. I didn’t care what it was other than that it was food. I dug in and so did everyone else. Max had also brought beer, so he passed around bottles to everyone. After shoving several forks full of food into my mouth, I took a long swallow of ice-cold beer.

  “Ahhhh…” My voice was thick with satisfaction. “That is borderline amazing.”

  After I had my fill of food, I excused myself to shower. The heat was blissful and I lingered longer than I had planned, letting the hot water soothe my tired muscles. I couldn’t loiter forever, though, so I got out and got dressed before leaving the bathroom. Anna eagerly jumped up and went in for her own shower. Max was not in the room anymore. Chase was sitting in a chair near the window working on a small computer that must have been in the bag he brought from the car. I toweled my hair dry as I walked over to one of the beds.

  “What are you doing?” I asked him, starting to sit down on the bed.

  I was not entirely focused on what I was doing so I didn’t see Anna’s backpack on the bed until I was almost sitting on it. Once I did see it, I tried to avoid landing directly on it by shifting to the left. What I failed to take into consideration was that it was right at the edge of the bed, so by trying to avoid sitting on it I missed the bed entirely. Instead, my backside slid along the foot of the bed on a collision course with the floor.

  By some miracle, I was able to recover before smacking the ground by pressing back up against the bed with my arms and legs. The bed was already jammed up against the wall, so it was able to support me. My towel went flying as I regained my balance. Poised in a low squatting position, I smoothly side-stepped the area where Anna’s bag was and carefully sat down. I glided back until I was almost in the center of the bed before snagging my pack and pulling it into my lap. In it, I found my travel-sized brush, using it to work on the tangles in my hair. I shot a discreet look at Chase who was still hunched over the computer. He either hadn’t noticed my near fall or had gone back to whatever he was doing.

  “I am trying to get a message to Niko to arrange a meeting.” He didn’t look up as he spoke.

  “You can’t just call him?”

  “He is way too paranoid for random phone calls.” He was typing away furiously.

  �
��Can’t email be tracked somehow?”

  He smirked. “I’m not just sending an open email to his home computer. This message is encrypted with a system Niko invented so only he has the key. It’ll be bounced around several servers in different countries and will eventually make its way to a place he can retrieve it in a protected manner. I should get an email back telling me what to do next. It’ll be sent back to me just as carefully.”

  “If it is totally secure, can’t you just ask him for what you need in the email?”

  “Niko works better face to face.” He was cryptic.

  “Whatever.” I took another beer and curled up on a corner of the bed, propped up by pillows.

  “Where is Max?” I asked after a few minutes of silence.

  “Recon.” Again he didn’t look up from the computer.

  “You want to be more specific?” I was annoyed.

  He closed the computer then sat on the bed in front of me. “What would you like to know?” His face and voice were composed.

  “What sort of recon is Max doing? Is it the train station?”

  “He’s scouting out the station to see how crowded it is and if anyone is waiting for us. He’s also buying the tickets.” He cocked one eyebrow at me to ask if I had any other questions.

  “What if someone is waiting for us?”

  “Then we decide whether we try to make it past them to the train undetected, provide a distraction, or…” he trailed off with a half shrug.

  “Do I get any say in what is the best way to handle things?” This question had been in the back of my mind for a while.

  He looked at me earnestly. “If there is a situation, there probably won’t be time to have a committee meeting to take votes. We will have to react immediately. You need to trust that I can keep you safe.” His voice was soft at the end. Intimate.

  With his fingertips, Chase traced from the top of my cheekbone down to my jawline and then the base of my neck where his hand came to a rest. Inundated with sensation from his touch, my heart kicked into overdrive. Before anything more could happen, the door to the bathroom flew open, letting out a billow of steam followed by Anna. Chase dropped his hand and returned to the computer.

  “So what time are we out of here?” Anna asked, seemingly oblivious to the emotional charge I could feel hanging in the room.

  “The train leaves at 12:50 AM. We should leave the room soon,” Chase answered.

  “I thought you didn’t want to get there too early?” Anna asked.

  “We will be taking indirect routes to get there.” He was still focused on the computer.

  “Routes?” I asked, catching the plural term.

  “Max and Anna will be going one way, we’ll be going another,” he stated carefully, looking as though he was preparing for an argument from me.

  “Why is that?” I tried not to sound panicked.

  “If the terminal is under surveillance, they will be looking for two girls together. They will probably have pictures of you as well. Two girls together will draw more attention than two couples coming from opposite directions.”

  While his explanation made sense, I didn’t like being separated from Anna. I could tell from the face she was making she didn’t like it either.

  “We’re going to meet back up on the train though, right?” Her voice sounded a little shaky.

  “Once we are on the train, we’ll meet up and be in the same coach,” he said before turning back to the computer.

  Anna sat down on the bed opposite me and gave me a hollow smile. “Where’s Max?”

  “Recon,” I answered.

  “I guess I better get ready.” Anna glanced at her watch.

  Chase abruptly crossed the room to the door. He waited to the side of it with his gun in his hand as Anna and I sat rooted in place. A series of short musical notes was whistled from the hallway. Chase dropped his guard a little, although he didn’t move from his position against the wall behind the door.

  The whistle must have been the new “all clear” from Max, who entered the room using a key card. Chase quickly shut the door behind him. Max didn’t react to the door swinging violently shut behind him, nor did he glance back at Chase. He simply continued on into the room.

  “Tell me,” Chase instructed.

  “You know the entrances already. Even at this hour, there is good lighting and some traffic. You can approach from several side streets and have a clear view of both main entries from a distance. There are no places to hide within fifty feet of the inside or outside of the doors. Our train is leaving from Track 1. There were two possible threats patrolling the area, and there were two gendarmes stationed near the main entrance. They looked bored.” He rattled all this off with barely a pause.

  “The threats?” Chase directed.

  “Big, dark clothes, short-cropped hair. Probably local thugs hired out. They are taking turns sitting on a bench near the main entrance and walking a loop.” Max looked almost excited. He must have been thinking about what could happen when he was face-to-face with one of the possible threats.

  Chase was thoughtful for a moment after Max was done. Without having to be asked, Max dug out the train tickets. He handed Chase two and stuffed the other two back in his own pocket. He looked expectantly at Chase, waiting for his orders.

  “You and Anna take the west route. Jordan and I will take the east. We leave in ten. . Get in, get on the train, and find our seats. I will set up some sort of distraction so no one is really paying attention to the train as it’s getting ready to leave.”

  I sprang up when he finished and threw the few things I had taken out of my bag back into it. I pulled my hair back and threw on my fleece. Anna retied the bandana over her hair to hide it and pulled on her jacket. Chase and Max were checking their weapons and other unknowns in their backpacks while talking quietly.

  I looked nervously at Anna with a growing feeling of dread that this might be the last time I was going to see her. We had been together almost constantly for weeks, so not having her around would be strange. That, along with the situation, heightened my separation anxiety. I told myself to knock it off because I was going to see her on the train to Barcelona in a little while.

  “I guess I will see you shortly.” I tried to sound assertive.

  “See you in a bit.” Her voice cracked like she was someone on the verge of hysteria.

  “No worries.” I held out my clenched fist with the backs of my knuckles facing up. She did the same and bumped her knuckles briefly against mine in solidarity.

  Turning to Chase I said, “Let’s go.”

  He gave a short nod and a wave of confidence washed over me. Together, I felt we could face anything.

  Max went to stand by Anna’s side. “You have further to go.” He gestured for us to head to the door.

  “Give us five before you head out,” Chase instructed.

  “We’ll be on the train when you get there,” Max said with a smile.

  “Just get there in one piece,” Chase instructed, moving to the doorway.

  Chase peered out the peephole before unlocking the door. He glanced both ways to make sure it was clear before stepping into the corridor. Without taking his eyes off the exit to the stairwell, he reached back to grasp my hand firmly in his own. He gave my hand a squeeze to signal that it was time. Together, we moved hastily down the hall through the door marked ‘Exit’ and down the stairs. On the bottom floor, he came to a halt at the exit to the street, rather than the door to the main lobby.

  Chase motioned for me to stay put before he vanished through the door. He was back in a flash, taking my hand as we stepped out onto the sidewalk. Even with all the baroque streetlights lining the road, it was dark out. Chase kept one hand in mine and the other in his pocket where his gun was. His eyes were on a constant swivel as we moved down the street at a brisk pace.

  Chase guided us to the street behind the hotel. We followed it a few blocks until we passed the road which would take us straight to the train t
erminal. On the next corner, Chase pulled me around to face him.

  “I want you to go down this street on your own. When you reach the corner, you should hear me call for you. Come straight to me. Be aware at all times. If anyone approaches you, avoid them. If anyone comes between us, head straight for the entrance to the station. Do not look back at me.” He was intense.

  I nodded that I understood

  His face softened. “I won’t be far. I have to make certain everyone has something to be watching other than us.”

  He turned sharply to walk back the way we had come. After a block, he took a left-hand turn down the street parallel to the one I was on.

  When he was out of sight, I leisurely walked toward the station with my heart pounding a nervous rhythm in my chest. At the next corner, I looked around as if I was searching for someone. To my right, Chase appeared. He was across the street directly in front of the station’s main entrance. He made his way past a line of cars parked at the curb. Looking up as though he was just noticing me, he called out something in French. I had no idea what he was saying, but knew I needed to play along with his charade. I waved back, glancing up and down the street to see if I could cross. When I looked back at him, he was bent over next to a small blue car. Standing up, he clutched his cell phone, which he must have dropped. For the first time, I looked at the two gendarmes who were standing to one side of the main doors. They did not appear to notice either of us. There weren’t any big guys dressed in dark clothes such as Max had described. This made me edgy because I knew they were there somewhere.

  Chase brushed his phone off, muttering to himself as he headed toward me. He waved at me to hurry. There were no cars approaching, so I jogged across the street to his side. He took my hand and guided me toward the nearest entrance to the station. When we were no more than twenty feet from the door, I heard a funny clicking noise behind us. It was followed by what sounded like a mini clap of thunder. I started to turn to look but Chase pulled me in front of him protectively.

  “Keep moving,” he growled.

  There was a second small boom followed by a loud whoosh and a crash. By this time we had made it to the entrance. While he stepped around me to go through first, I turned to look behind us. Flames covered the hood of the small blue car in front of the station. It had been blown upward so its back bumper was now resting up on car parked behind it.