"Will it work?" Harry asked as he approached the pods, keeping the laptop safe.
"Well, I'd like an extra two or three hours to make doubly sure and tighten everything up but its your best shot. It's the best that can be done by anyone in such a short time," Tariq said.
"Okay, thanks."
"Wear this," Tariq said giving Harry what looked like a stiff string of cotton. "Its made of natural fibres so it won't be picked up on any scanner and its got GPS so it will allow us to track you. Use it as an earpiece."
"You sure Lucas won't know?"
"Absolutely. These are brilliant prototypes and each one costs about a hundred thousand pounds a throw," he said eagerly.
"Glad you trust me with your new toy," Harry said lightly, determined not to focus on Ruth who had been taken from him. He stepped through the pods, closely followed by Beth and Dimitri who would stay three streets away from him at the very least.
He had just got in the car when Lucas called. "Any luck?" Lucas asked.
"Yeah, I have it. Where do you want me?"
Lucas disconnected the call as Harry was driving to the meet. He watched for a moment longer on the camera he'd fitted to the car Harry was driving, to make sure he was doing what he was supposed to be. Then he looked at Ruth and saw her eyes shining with tears. "He won't give it to you. He won't. I'm not worth that for anyone. Even him."
"Who are you trying to convince Ruth? Me or yourself?" Then Ruth saw it. Lucas had a needle in his hand.
"No!" she shouted, struggling away from him. But even one handed his grip was like iron. She kept saying no over and over again but it made no difference as she felt the sharp tip of the needle bury itself into the flesh of her arm. She saw the plunger go down and a few seconds later she felt her body react, feeling very sluggish. "What are you doing to me?" she demanded as she felt her movements slip out of her control.
"Stop fighting it," he replied as she collapsed, making jerky movements, even as she laid horizontally. He had misjudged it, because it hadn't been enough to knock her out. She was still twitching, her eyelids flickering. He gave her another shot of the drug and her eyes closed instantly. He quickly hooked her up to an anaesthetic IV, knowing that given a few hours it would kill her. He wiped everything down, wanting to be sure that his fingerprints wouldn't be anywhere, just in case. He took one last look at Ruth and felt sadness. None of this was her fault. He didn't intend for her to die, but she was his safety net. He hoped nothing would go wrong and he could leave the country without another death on his conscience.
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