Chapter Seven

Yassen Gregorovich stared impassively at the man known as The Crimson Mongoose, although to Yassen he looked more like a meerkat, as the younger male angrily threw a potted plant at the wall. Their host would not be pleased about the mess, but he wasn't there at the moment.

"You let her escape!" The Crimson Mongoose berated the third man in the room. Well, boy, really. The young scientist flinched as a heavy paper weight flew past his face.

"It wasn't my fault!" Ben Hope said, angrily. "You didn't tell me she was a trained agent! Who would ever believe a teenage girl would be a spy!"

Yassen nearly rolled his eyes. He knew it was a possibility. Alex wasn't an anomaly. Surely other agencies would see the advantage of using teenagers. After they'd captured the girl, Yassen had known those two boys with Alex most definitely worked for someone, probably the same agency as the girl. Their covers were impeccable, but Yassen had contacts all over the world. He'd find out who they really were.

"I warned you she was a threat!" the Crimson Mongoose responded.

"How was I supposed to know she could pick a lock?" the other boy growled. "Besides, she can't have gotten far. She was already showing signs of infection. Without the antidote, she won't be any use to anyone."

Yassen gritted his teeth when the Crimson Mongoose turned to look at him. He was grateful the terrorist had no idea about Alex Rider, or that he'd escaped Yassen. Alex was his to deal with, no one else's. "Find the girl and make certain she doesn't speak to anyone! I want nothing to interfere with the plan!"

Yassen nodded at the younger man, and slipped away.

…

"Adios, mamma!" Simon called out as he pulled on his coat Thursday night.

"You're not going to eat before you go, mi amore?"

He shook his head. "I need to go now if I don't want to be late to Rosh's game. It's the last game before the playoffs."

"Okay, sweetheart, wish her luck for me!"

"I will, mamma," he said, and kissed her cheek before he left. He hadn't gone far before his phone chirped an incoming message.

Wilhelm: Why aren't you coming to the rowing practice?

Simon was surprised by the message. He typed back a reply as he continued walking.

Simon: A friend's got a game. I promised I would go.

After a moment's thought, he added;

Simon: Tag along if you dare.

He was a bit disappointed by the reply.

Wilhelm: August would flip out if I leave.

Simon stopped walking and bit his lip as he considered the situation. Someone might be after Wille, and he could be in danger if he left school grounds. But then again, whoever it was that wanted to harm him would expect him to be on school grounds. They wouldn't be looking for him in Bjarstad.

Simon: I get it, you're too scared.

There was no reply, and after a moment, Simon continued walking. He understood why Wille wouldn't want to risk getting caught leaving campus. He didn't know why he had taunted him like that. Wille would be safer at the school, with Alex and his friends looking after him, anyway.

He stopped walking again when his phone signaled another incoming message a few moments later.

Wilhelm: I'll be there.

Simon smiled, and sent him the directions to meet him at the bus stop closest to the football field. He glanced at the time on his phone before pocketing it again. He would be a few minutes late, but Rosh wouldn't mind as long as he showed up.

…

Elle circled the other two young women on the mat, trying to keep her eyes on both of them at once. Darcy was usually the more aggressive of the two, but Tara could be sneaky, too. If this were one on one, Elle would have the advantage on either of them, but with it being two on one, it was much more of a challenge for her.

Darcy advanced with a feint to the right before swerving left, and going for a tackle, which Elle just barely dodged, only to be knocked forward on to her knees by a sidekick from Tara. Elle took advantage of the position to kick out at Darcy, sweeping her feet out from under her, before rolling to the side to avoid Tara's next attack, grabbing the girl by the wrist while planting her foot in her midriff, and throwing her over her head.

They called an end to the exercise at that point, all already winded from the exertion. Elle took a long drink of water.

"So," Tara said, "There's no sign of Ben Hope anywhere in London?"

Elle sighed, shaking her head no. When Charlie had told them he suspected Ben was the one who had stolen his research, she had immediately sent agents to his home, but his father had told them that Ben had gone to some kind of science symposium, and would be gone through the weekend.

"I had someone check into that symposium. Surprise, it was phony. You yourself tried pinging his cellphone, with no luck. He's disappeared, and covered his tracks well."

Tara nodded, frowning. "I've known Ben Hope since primary school. He's always been something of a creep, but he's also a creature of habit. Wherever he is, it will be someplace elegant and comfortable, most likely with people to cater to his whims. He likes feeling special, to have people like him and flatter him."

Elle frowned. Something was trying to niggle its way into her brain, but they were interrupted by one of Tara's communications associates.

"Ma'am," he said, nodding at Tara, and then turning to Elle. "Madame Director, we've received a coded message from our operative in the Swedish palace." He held out a sheet of paper towards the taller girl.

"Thank you, Sai," Elle said, taking the paper and reading it. "Crap!" She said, rushing from the room with Tara and Darcy on her heels.

…

Alex swore under his breath when he spotted Prince Wilhelm sneaking out of his dorm and leaving the school buildings. He followed the young royal to the bus stop and jumped on just before it pulled away. He took a seat near the front of the bus, and kept an eye on Wilhelm in the reflective window.

When the prince got off, Alex slipped off as well, keeping at a distance. He was only minorly relieved when he spotted Simon waiting for Wilhelm at the gas station. He was going to have to have a talk with the boy about this.

He followed them to a football field nearby and watched them from the stands. He kept a close eye on Wilhelm when he went to the snackbar alone. Alex's stomach growled at the sight of the hot dogs, reminding him that he hadn't eaten since breakfast. He'd been too distracted trying to figure out what role Gregorovich played in all of this, other than providing the Nucliec acid. The man was an assassin, not a thief.

Granted, Gregorovich did occasionally break and enter, and he had stolen things before, but that almost always involved an assassination. And while it did appear one of the two princes was an assassination target, Gregorovich wasn't the bioweapon type. He preferred making things look like an accident, when a quick bullet to the head wasn't feasible.

That thought hit a bit too close to home for Alex as he recalled his uncle's death. He threw the memories off with a shake of his head.

So what was Gregorovich's part in all of this? Alex could only think of two possibilities; security or clean up. It was possible he was just the muscle behind the plot, a hired gun brought in just in case. Or he could be there to take out loose ends, such as the scientist and anyone else the leader deems unnecessary once the job is complete.

That thought made Alex frown even more.

…

Kurt let out a sigh of appreciation as Blaine's fingers worked out the knot in his neck. He was tense from a lack of action so far, and the fact that there had been no word from Siren since her last transmission was weighing heavily on him. He had been the one who had recruited her, who had trained her. He felt responsible for her, and with each day that passed without hearing from her, he felt more and more helpless.

He reached for his coffee, but before he could take a sip, the monitor on the wall chirped, signaling an incoming message from London. Elle's image appeared when he hit the spacebar on his laptop.

"Kurt, Blaine," the woman said, and Kurt could hear the agitation in her voice. "Our eyes in the palace has news on Siren. It seems the Crown Prince visited a regional hospital early this morning. Our man was with him, and saw a patient being brought in that was listed as Jane Doe, and he's positive it's Siren."

Kurt clenched his fist. "What was her condition?"

"She was unconscious, with injuries consistent with a fall, but she also appears to be running a fever and shows signs of being ill. Wes is making arrangements for her to be picked up and brought to the isolation ward at the Swedish headquarters in Stockholm.

"What really concerns me is where she was found. It's in the same area where Alex was taken to."

"Fuck," Kurt said. "I want to see her as soon as she is brought in. Blaine can cover for me until I get back. I'll take Charlie with me."

Elle nodded and sent him the information. He packed an overnight bag, and gave Blaine a quick kiss before he rushed out.

…

Yassen swore in six different languages. They'd been so close to the girl, and didn't even realize it until much too late. They could have snatched her from the hospital so easily if they had known she was there, but by the time he had located her, some government official had arranged her transfer, and he couldn't find where they'd taken her.

He began swearing again when he learned who had authorized the transfer. The Crown Prince of Denmark was staying with the Swedish Royal family, and had apparently signed off on the transfer. Why the Danish prince had gotten involved Gregorovich didn't know, but he could guess.

A teen spy would be perfectly unobtrusive. A royal teen spy? That would be completely unbelievable.

It was fortunate that stage one of the plan had gone off without a hitch, and the royal spy wasn't even aware of the danger he was in.

…

Wille had slept so soundly that night, he almost overslept Friday morning. Hanging out with Simon and his friends had almost made him feel like a normal teenager for a few hours. It had been worth the lecture August had given him when the older boy caught him sneaking back in. For the first time in his life, he was just a kid supporting the local football club, and it had been so freeing.

He'd been a bit nervous when Simon and Ayub had covered their faces with hoodies and begun throwing mushy grapes and bits of over ripe bananas at the opposing team's supporters, but had been coaxed into joining in, and couldn't stop laughing when the crowd had started throwing the fruit back at the three boys.

He was still confused by his feelings for the other boy, but he liked the way Simon treated him, as if he wasn't the spare heir. Simon wasn't afraid to call him out or speak his mind. It was like a breath of fresh air around the other boy. He wanted to have a real conversation with Simon, just the two of them. He wanted to get to know him, to try and understand his feelings for the Latino boy.

Unfortunately they couldn't really talk freely during the day, during classes, or during lunch, with so many people around, and August eyeing him like a hawk.

It wasn't until they'd all gathered in the Manor House's entertainment room, spread out around on the floor, did Wille really have the chance to speak to Simon, but even that hadn't been as open and free as it had the night before, with Simon's sister and Felice sitting so close to them, and all the others around them packed in close enough to overhear them. They'd only managed some meaningless chatter before the movie began.

It wasn't even halfway through the movie when August had started acting like a jerk, disturbing everyone with his loud complaints about how dumb the movie was. Wille glanced back at him in annoyance, as did several others, and wasn't prepared when the woman on the screen screamed, causing several people to jump. Wille patted the girl to his right on the arm in apology for accidentally bumping her with his knee, even as August made another snide comment, and received several angry replies to shut up and fuck off.

Wille tried to relax and watch the rest of the film, not really noticing when he rested his hand on his knee that he was brushing against Simon's knee as well. He became aware of it when he felt the other boy slide his hand over his, lightly toying with his fingers. It caused his heart to skip a beat, and he knew he was blushing, but it felt nice, and a smile slipped across his lips, as he looked at the other boy, who was also smiling. Then he realized Simon's sister was watching them.

Panic began to well up inside him. Shit. He hadn't thought this through! What if someone else saw them? What would people say? What would his mother say if she found out?

He was finding it difficult to breathe, and he knew a panic attack was just moments away. He quickly disentangled his hand and fled.

…

Simon sat there for a few minutes, silently berating himself, and feeling overwhelmed with self doubt. Had he misread the situation? It had been Wille who had approached him first that day at lunch. It was Wille that had followed Simon out the building at the party, and who had looked like he had wanted to kiss Simon when August and his friend had been looking for the prince. And it had been Wille who had texted Simon the previous night. Granted, Simon had taunted him into coming into Bjarstad for the game, but Wille could have said no.

Then Simon thought about the threat to Wille, and the fact that he hadn't placed any of Alex's cameras in here, and he didn't think anyone observing the building from outside could see the prince. Maybe he should just go check on him.

As nonchalantly as he could, he slipped out of the room. He wasn't unnoticed, however.

He found Wille sitting in a window, with his head hanging out as he dragged in deep gulps of air. He moved closer just as the other boy turned and spotted him.

"Hey," Wille said, and Simon could tell he was trying to hide his panic.

"Hi," Simon replie, nerves overtaking him, causing him to stutter slightly as he continued to speak. "Are you…are you okay?"

The fact that Wille didn't look at him when he replied told Simon he understood what he was asking, but deliberately chose to misinterpret it.

"Yeah. It got so damn hot in there, I thought I'd get some fresh air. Now my toe is cramping up as well." It took him another moment to make eye contact with Simon. "How about you?"

Simon decided not to call him out on it, and simply replied, "I'm fine."

There was a prolonged silence, neither of them really looking at each other except in quick, nervous glances. Then Simon moved closer, and Wille focused on him, unable to look away. And then, before his courage fled, Simon leaned in and pressed a quick, slightly awkward kiss to Wille's lips, before pulling away just as quickly. When the prince didn't react, Simon leaned in again, more slowly, and kissed him again, a little more firmly, only to jump back when the sounds from the movie reached them.

Simon took a shaky breath, fighting back a nervous giggle. And then Wille spoke, and Simon felt his courage start to wane.

"Well, I'm not…" The prince had to stop and clear his throat, but Simon wasn't sure he wanted to hear what came next, and turned to flee, but Wille stopped him. "I'm not…Stop! Wait, wait, wait!" He reached out and grabbed Simon's wrist, but let go once the dark haired boy turned back to face him. "Oh fuck," Simon heard him mutter under his breath. "I'm not…Sorry. I'm not…" he seemed to be lost for words.

After a brief pause, Wille reached out again and snagged the edge of his shirt, slowly pulling him closer. Simon moved stiffly, afraid to get his hopes up, even as Wille rested his forehead against Simon's. They were breathing each other in for a moment, and then Wille was kissing him.

Wille was kissing him! Simon thought his heart would pound out of his chest. For several minutes it felt like they were the only people in the world as the kiss grew deeper. They barely flinched as another scream came from the other room, but it was enough to slowly pull them apart, leaving them to stare into each other's eyes, reading each other's thoughts in the expressions revealed there.

Simon could see the wonder and the hint of fear in Wille's eyes, and he knew Wille could read the awe and shock in his own. He knew they should talk, but they knew it wouldn't be long until the movie ended and people would be dispersing. It would be suspicious if they were both missing.

"I should go back to the movie, before Sara comes looking for me."

Wille just nodded. Simon paused, then gave him one last quick kiss before slipping away.

…

Kurt watched as Charlie examined the girl with raven's wing hair. Her fever was holding steady at one hundred and three point six. She had IVs in both arms, keeping her hydrated and pumping her full of mega doses of antibiotics. The younger boy collected a blood sample from her before turning to Kurt.

"She's stable for now. As long as we can keep her fever from spiking any higher and she gets plenty of fluids, she should be okay until I can make an antidote. I need to get these samples back to the lab and get started."

Kurt just nodded as Charlie left. Kurt continued to study the young woman through the glass partition in the isolation ward.

"Come on, Satan, hang in there. You can't die on me. Who else will be the annoying bitch who keeps me on my toes?"