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The Eiffel Tower

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~ Hours later ~

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"This is so messed up! Aargh!" Ana exclaimed, while hitting the table so hard it hurt.

She was with Christian in their hotel room, but not just any hotel: no, it was Hôtel du Louvre, a five star hotel in Paris, located not far from the Louvre Museum. Their hotel room was amazing, but she couldn't enjoy any of it, because she was so on edge right now.

At the moment, Christian was in the bathroom changing clothes when he heard her outburst. He wasn't done yet, but immediately walked over to see what was up with her.

"Hey. What's wrong, sweetie?" he asked, in a calm manner.

She had both hands on her head, focusing on her laptop. Christian then stood next to her, and squeezed her upper arm lightly.

"Ana?"

But instead of looking up at him, she sighed aloud and began typing away at her laptop.

"Anastasia, look at me. Please?"

After a few moments though, she finally looked up at him. While her eyes landed on him, seeing Christian all shirtless with only his jeans on, Ana's throat suddenly felt dry-very dry... God, she so needed a tall glass of something to drink... now.

"What?" she said, and cleared her throat, trying her best not to leap at him and kiss him senseless." And Christian... please, will you stop walking around all shirtless? It's very distracting."

He smiled in response, and rested his hand on her upper arm, trying to sooth her with his thumb by caressing the bare skin there. As she felt the tender contact, Ana's eyes fluttered shut without her accord." Hmmm... that's nice. So nice, Christian"

"Are you alright now?" he asked lovingly.

Ana opened her eyes in response, and shook her head. "Nope!"

He rolled his eyes at her. "OK, what's going on? Why can't you figure it out?"

She huffed in response." That Leila woman is a real piece of work, you know. Let's look at the clues again, Christian. Shall we?"

He grabbed his phone, and read the clues aloud." The second bomb. Clue one: It is placed in one of the central landmarks in the city of Paris. Clue two: Near this building there are 5 star hotels. Clue three: Not far from this landmark, there is a school."

Ana thought so hard, for the dozenth time today, and yet she couldn't for the life of her figure out in which building that crazy bitch had planted the second bomb. CRAP.

Well, at one point Ana gave up, and let her head fall so her forehead would hit the table. However, Christian swiftly prevented it by tenderly placing his hand over her forehead, so she wouldn't harm herself like that.

With her eyes closed, she whispered, "Your hand is very warm... and thank you,"

He chuckled in response." Look at me, please?"

Ana exhaled and locked eyes with him again.

"Sweetie, but you almost have it, right?" he questioned, while giving her such a hopeful look.

"Yes, Christian... Want me to explain?"

He nodded in response.

"OK... here goes: The city of Paris is divided into 20 arrondissements A.K.A districts. But within these 20 districts, there are more than 20 landmarks. So with the 'help' of Leila's clues, I have narrowed it down." Ana explained, eyes locked onto his.

"OK, now you have already narrowed it down. That's great. Right?" he asked.

"That's just it! I've narrowed it down to two -not one, but two buildings, Christian! The Louvre museum and the Eiffel Tower."

"OK, that's fine... that's a start, right?" he told Ana, and grabbed her hand lovingly." We can work from there. We have to check only two buildings,"

"But how much time do we have, Christian? We do NOT know," She pointed out, giving him a very worried look." And which one will we check first? Huh? The museum or the Tower? I wouldn't know where to start. I have no idea really!"

"Ana, calm down, please..."

However, she was so stressed and kept on going." Both are huge buildings! The Eiffel Tower alone has three levels. Three levels, Christian!" she pointed out, while getting up from her seat, and pacing their hotel room." And I don't like it, when it's a close call like last time. What if you don't arrive on time to defuse the bomb, because I didn't figure it out sooner?! Huh? I couldn't live with myself knowing that it was ALL MY fault!"

At this point, she couldn't bear it any longer, her breathing uneven from panic, while she trembled heavily, tears pooling in her beautiful, blue eyes.

Christian closed the gap between them, and pulled her in a warm embrace. "Hey, you can do this. OK? I know you can," he said, and slowly rubbed her back lovingly, whispering to her that everything will be alright." Shhhh,"

As Ana closed her eyes for a few seconds, she whispered," Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out."

He smiled at hearing it, and asked. "What's that? What ya doing, sweetie?"

She opened her eyes in response, and looked at him." What do you mean?"

"Breathe in, breathe out?" he asked, repeating her phrase.

She shook her head in response." Oh, it's just something Taylor taught me, when you were injured and still at the hospital. No big deal."

"But it's a big help to you, isn't it?"

She nodded, and smiled. "Yes, it does help me," Ana told him, and carefully pulled away from their hug.

Then she took a seat in her chair once more, and began typing away at her laptop, brows furrowed per usual. "You know what?"

"What?" he asked.

Without looking at him, while typing on her computer, eyes locked on the monitor, Ana answered him. "I think you're purposely doing this,"

"Doing what?" he questioned.

"Being all shirtless, and showing off your... chiseled chest and... your uhmm, uhmm six-pack. I mean your ...body," she mumbled, eyes still locked on her laptop, typing very fast.

"What did you just say, Ana?" he asked with an amused look on his face." I didn't hear ya,"

"I didn't stutter, Mr. Grey," She replied coyly.

"But you mumbled, Miss Steele," He said, still smiling.

She then rolled her eyes at him, making him laugh wholeheartedly.

Ana smiled, and sighed softly." OK, but in all seriousness. Let's do this, Christian! I know we can beat that crazy woman, let's show her what we're capable of!"

He smiled in response, happy to see the fighter in her again." Agreed... let's do this, Ana." he replied, and lovingly gave her a kiss on the top of her head.

"Which one first? Which building?" she asked, while her cheeks had turned crimson red from Christian's kiss.

"The Eiffel Tower." he simply said.

"Are you sure?" she questioned, while biting her lip.

He nodded in response." Yes, I'm sure. I don't know her that well, but if I'm right, she'd choose a building that gets the most visitors."

Ana nodded at that. "Yes, approximately 12000 people visit the Louvre Museum daily. But the Eiffel Tower has over 18000 visitors per day. So, if that's how she's choosing her targets, she'll definitely pick the Eiffel Tower to place the bomb..."

"What time is it?" Christian asked.

"It's 10:30 PM. You should go now, because the Tower will close at eleven." Ana pointed out, sounding worried.

"You're right," he said, and walked back to the bathroom. Christian dressed quickly in a white T-shirt and his warm coat, before grabbing his bag that contained his black outfit, some handy gadgets, and small, but effective weapons.

"I'm ready," he said after a few minutes, and captured Ana's gaze.

"Be careful," she whispered, and gave him an encouraging look, although she was worried sick about him.

"I will, Ana... I will,"

His voice sounded calm, but she saw right through him. She could tell that Christian felt everything but calm, because at that moment, the existence of the Eiffel Tower and the people in it rested in his hands.

Ana knew how hard it was for him to carry the weight upon his shoulders like this. But despite it all, Christian did what he had to do without complaining. And that's why she admired him so much. He would do the things he had to without blinking, without thinking twice.

"Have you found any new leads?" he asked.

Ana shook her head in response. "No, but if I do, I WILL call you, Christian..."

"OK, I'll go to the Eiffel Tower now."

In response, Ana got up and closed the small gap between them. As he looked her deep in the eyes, he lovingly brushed a lock from her face.

"Be careful, please," She whispered.

"I will, always... you know me," He whispered back, and squeezed her hand lightly, then kissed her sweetly on the lips, before walking out the door.

.

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~ A few minutes later~

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."Ana, I just stepped into a cab. Has Mcneal arrived yet?" Christian asked over the phone.

"Yes, Mr. Grey... I'm here," Mcneal answered.

"How long is the drive from the hotel to the Eiffel Tower, Ana?"

"Let me check. Uhum, our hotel is near the Louvre Museum. So the distance between the Louvre to the Eiffel Tower is... 4.3 kilometers." she told him.

"Kilometers? Ana, really? How much is that in miles, sweetie?" he questioned.

"Oh, uhmmm... sorry. It's 2.58 miles. You'll be there in 13 minutes give or take, if... you take the Quai d'Orsay route." She advised him.

"The what route now?"

"Just tell your cab driver to take the Quai d'Orsay route! It's faster." she ordered, sounding a bit impatient.

"OK, OK. I'll tell him right away." he replied, and told the driver.

In the meantime, Ana checked her computers, if the search was done.

"OK, good. I'm on my way to the Eiffel Tower. Stand by, you two." she and Mcneal heard Christian say through the speakers.

"We will, Christian... I'll have your back, always." Ana replied, making his heart melt into a puddle.

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~ 13 minutes later ~

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"OK, Ana. Right now I'm stepping out of the cab. It's 11:09 PM, so that means that The Eiffel Tower is closed for the public." Christian said over the phone.

"OK. Let's do this." She responded, and clenched her hands into fists for a moment. She was so on edge.

"Have you found the bomb yet?" they heard Christian say through the phone. (They were on conference call)

Ana shook her head, feeing so drained. "No, we haven't, Christian. I have hacked into their security system, but my computer is still searching for it. We're done with the first level." she answered, heart pounding inside her chest, while nervously tapping on the table." Nothing's there though. It's going through the 2nd and 3rd level right now..."

"Don't break the table, Ana." he teased.

"Hey, I'm not that strong. Yet!" She countered.

"OK, I'm going into the building now. Gonna help me with it, Ana?" he asked gently.

After typing on her laptop, she said." Now, Christian. I've blocked the ground level. The security guards will see the same cam footage over and over again without realizing it. The alarm system is deactivated for a few minutes, and I've unlocked the entrance. Go!"

Christian was inside, and immediately changed into his all-black outfit. As he walked towards the elevator, his gadgets on his back and in hand, he cautiously looked around. "Ana,"

"I know... the elevator. Wait one moment. Ha! OK, you can step into it, Christian." She replied.

"Thank you. Have you found the bomb yet?" he asked again.

"Nope. Not yet. The search on the 2nd level is at 99 % , but still no sign of the bomb. It must be on the 3d level, Christian...Crap! That Leila girl is one insane, but clever gi..." Ana began, but stopped mid-sentence, the moment he had reached the first level.

His concern rose, as Christian heard her gasp aloud, and she let her phone fall to the ground. "Ana? What's wrong? Ana! Mcneal! What happened? "he shouted, both hands trembling in fear.

"Ana! You there?!" he tried once more.

If something bad had happened to her, he'd just go insane...

"Ana, talk to me, please!" he pleaded, his voice breaking at the end.

"Uhum... I'm still here." She replied, her voice very shaky.

"What happened?! You scared the hell out of me,"

"Sorry about that... Christian, uhmm, I just received the 4th clue from Leila," Ana said, her voice trembling, and eyes welling up.

"What's the clue, Ana? Tell me, please?!" he asked impatiently, his heart ramming against his rib-cage.

"We were wrong, Christian... the bomb isn't in the Eiffel Tower at all." She replied, while tears began to spill from her eyes.

"What's the 4th clue, Ana... tell me, please?" He repeated.

Christian was usually very calm, but in this case he couldn't hold himself back. His gut was telling him that the situation was about to spin out of control... and fast!

And then she told him." The 4th clue is: Her smile is worth... it's worth hundreds of...of millions of dollars."

As those words reached his ears, the hairs on the back of his neck instantly stood up, his eyes fluttering shut.

FUCK.

"The Mona Lisa." Christian and Ana both uttered in unison.

"That woman is such a tricky BITCH," he spat, feeling so defeated, almost wanting to give up right then.

Christian was looking for the bomb at the wrong location." Fuck!"

Note: Thank you for reading my work, and the wonderful feedback.

OH, NO... they picked the wrong building! :(

Reviews of support are much appreciated. :)

Till the next,

J