A/N: Thank you again for your reviews and kind words. A big thank you once again to r4ven3 for helping to whip this story (and me) into shape.
Chapter Seven
Late Monday evening, 8 October
Ruth and Zaf settled into their cabin on the shipping vessel Speranza. Ruth took comfort in the fact that Speranza meant 'hope' in Italian and tried to have faith that she could get Zaf safely back to England and not expose herself to the wrong people in the process.
Giovanni had hesitated when Ruth asked for her and Zaf to share a cabin, but when she explained that Zaf was recovering from an illness and that she and Zaf were just good friends who would do nothing to offend his Catholic faith, he relented. The cabin was small with bunk beds but included a port hole to allow fresh air and neither Zaf nor Ruth could complain.
'How long did he say it would take to get to Italy?' Zaf asked as he settled on his bunk. His backpack sat at the foot of the bed, his few belongings not yet unpacked.
'About a week. The ship has a lighter load than expected due to a shipment from Cyprus not being ready to leave, so the journey may go faster. The crew has incentive to get there early because it will mean extra shore time for them,' Ruth replied as she stowed her gear.
In the days leading up to the departure for Limassol, Ruth and Zaf had developed a cover story for why they needed to get Zaf out of Cyprus undetected and without a passport. Giovanni knew Ruth as Katherine, a woman who escaped from an abusive relationship, the same story she'd told George. They built upon that story and hoped that it was plausible enough to get them on to Giovanni's ship and off the island.
The drive from the hotel to the port was quiet. Giovanni hadn't demanded an explanation immediately for the cloak and dagger routine, for which Ruth and Zaf were thankful. While Ruth trusted Giovanni, his driver was unknown to them both and the fewer people who knew their situation, the better. They would soon be off Cyprus and as far as they could tell, their departure remained undetected.
Marcos was feeling frustrated. He tried to call Josef, to tell him to follow the dark sedan, but the call wouldn't connect due to his location in the parking garage. He couldn't see the car registration number because he was facing the side of the car and trying to stay out of sight. He heard the older man and woman greet one another, using the names Giovanni and Katherine, though he and his associates had been told her name was Ruth. Most importantly, Zafar was with them, alive and well.
Tuesday morning, 9 October
'My apologies for my absence last evening. There are always many last minute issues before we leave port,' Giovanni stated as he entered the dining area. 'Signorina Katherine, I am so happy to have you on my ship once again,' he said as he greeted Ruth with an embrace and a kiss on each cheek.
'It is good to see you as well. Once again, you have come to my rescue,' she said, which made Giovanni laugh.
'My mamma, bless her soul, raised me to be good to women. My babbo, he tell me to listen to Mamma. It has not yet steered me wrong,' he said and Ruth smiled at his story.
'Signore Jamal, welcome aboard the Speranza. The cabin is acceptable?' he inquired, extending his hand to Zaf's in greeting.
Zaf shook his hand. 'The cabin is wonderful and I slept well. Thank you again for your help.'
Giovanni clapped his hands together then gestured to the table. 'Sit! Let us eat and you can tell me about this grand adventure you are on.'
Over breakfast, Ruth and Zaf told Giovanni a little more about the events that led them to be aboard his ship. He knew that Ruth (as Katherine) had left an abusive relationship in London. She explained that Jamal was a friend from London, one who had helped her leave the city. He worked for Scotland Yard, tracking stolen Iraqi artifacts that had turned up in London for sale, and in the course of his work, was abducted. That they crossed paths in Polis was purely a coincidence and Jamal had asked Katherine for help in getting back to London.
'The men who abducted me told him that they had people within Scotland Yard and everywhere on Cyprus, even the British Embassy. They tortured me for information and I'm terrified, for myself or worse, for Katherine, to fall into their control. I fear even a phone call to my supervisor could lead to trouble. I have a good friend in Sicily; he and Katherine will see that I make it to the Embassy in Rome.'
The ship was to sail direct from Limassol to Palermo on the north Sicilian coast. Zaf's trusted contact from his days at Six lived on the other side of Sicily and while still at Ruth's flat, he'd sent him an encrypted note asking for his help. Matteo's response was swift and offered whatever assistance he could provide to help Zaf.
Ruth asked if there was a way off the ship that didn't involve customs, given that Jamal didn't have a passport. She knew that Giovanni was a highly-principled man and she didn't want to offend his sense of right and wrong.
'We can get you off the ship quietly in Palermo. Then you hire a car and drive to see your friend.'
Ruth glanced at Zaf, who's barely perceptible nod showed his agreement with Giovanni's suggestion.
'How far of a drive is it to the other side of the island from Palermo?' Zaf asked.
Giovanni finished his coffee before answering. 'A few hundred kilometers? You could be there in a few hours.'
'That sounds good,' said Ruth.
Giovanni excused himself shortly thereafter to attend to ship's business. Ruth and Zaf took a slow stroll on deck, enjoying the sunshine. After making it about halfway around the ship, Zaf suggested that he return to their room, saying he wanted to lie down and rest.
Ruth helped him to their room and once Zaf was settled, she grabbed a book and made her way to the observation room. It was empty this time of day, the sailors busy with duties, but it allowed her to enjoy the view of the Mediterranean Sea and to read a book.
She returned to the room a couple of hours later to find Zaf awake.
'You okay,' she asked?
He nodded.
'Do you want to talk about what you went through with them?' She looked down at her hands. 'I understand if you don't, but I'm willing to listen if you need to tell someone about what happened.'
Zaf was quiet for a few moments, and Ruth decided to abandon the question.
'They did horrible, horrible things to me, Ruth. I know that I need to talk about my experience but I don't want to burden you with that knowledge,' he said quietly.
'It's all right. I can't imagine what you've been through, but I will listen to whatever you feel comfortable telling with me, whenever you feel ready to talk,' she said. 'In the meantime, should we discuss what our plans are once we make it to Matteo's? And, not that I'm saying we can't trust your friend, but we should have an alternate plan of where to go and who to try and contact if we can't make it to Catania.'
Zaf nodded in agreement. 'We need to be flexible in our plans, and we should try and map our route back to London. We'll also each need passports. You have just the one you've not yet used?'
'Yes. I used one name until I arrived in Greece, then shredded and burned that passport and began using Katherine Miller. Once I settled in Cyprus, I started going by my middle name but it allowed all my official documents to be in the name of Katherine Miller. And the third one I've never used; it was my last option if anything went wrong.'
'Well, I should have a couple to use as well and we should get you at least one more. It might be a good idea to have a set of documents with the same last name, so we can travel as a married couple if needed,' Zaf suggested.
Ruth raised her eyebrows. 'Is that your way of getting fresh with me?' she asked, the side of her mouth twitching.
'Whatever it takes, Ruth, whatever it takes,' he said as she laughed in response.
'How will you explain to Matteo that I need a passport as well? We need a story that explains that.'
'Good point. I'll come up with a reason,' Zaf responded.
Ruth nodded. 'Enough talk. It's time for lunch. You ready to eat?'
'Yes, though afterwards I need to sit on deck. I'm feeling a little seasick.'
'Okay, food first and then sunshine. Once we're back in our cabin we'll start making more solid plans. I don't want to discuss it where a member of the crew may overhear us.'
Ros stared at the screen, wishing the words that recently appeared conveyed better news. Lifting her eyes, she glanced around the Grid. Harry's office was empty; he and Adam were meeting with the Home Secretary, but in checking the time, she realized they should be returning soon. As if her thoughts were brought to reality, the pods spun around to deliver Harry and Adam onto the Grid. Ros stood to greet the men as they approached.
'Another charming visit with Blake, I presume?'
'Something like that,' Adam said as Harry checked his mobile.
'I've had a message from my contact in Greece. Do you have time to discuss it?'
Harry nodded and then tilted his head towards his office, indicating that she and Adam should follow. They did so, with Adam closing the door behind them.
'It's not what we were hoping for. My contact reported that they have no further word on where the Redbacks or Zaf may be. They are still confident that it was them that passed through border control from Greece into Turkey, but from there the trail seems to have disappeared.'
'Have we learned anything from other contacts in intelligence in Europe? Places this group likes to meet, other agents that they are suspected of abducting, anything?' Harry asked.
Adam shook his head. 'Nothing yet. I've sent word to my contacts in Syria just in case they've made it that far. I hate to even think this way, but we need to consider the possibility that Zaf is dead. Remember the report from border control? One of the men was sick. Zaf was infected and he'd been shot. There's a real possibility that he's not even alive anymore.'
The room fell silent; none of the three occupants wanted to admit that death might be a preferable option to the torture that likely would befall their friend.
'Until we hear back from Adam's contacts, we continue to keep our ears open for any signs of the group's whereabouts.' Harry's mobile beeped with a specific tone that they knew signaled a message from Malcolm.
As Harry checked the message, Ros leaned towards Adam. 'I hope that's a message to say he'll be back at work soon. Steven from Section A is nice, but he doesn't quite have Malcolm's finesse.'
'That's what happens when we hire whiz kids out of primary school. Steven doesn't look much older than Wes if you ask me.'
'I think you'll find that it's more a case of you getting older than it is of them getting younger,' Ros retorted just as Harry looked up from his phone.
'Bad news. Malcolm's bronchitis has progressed to pneumonia. He's been admitted to St. Thomas'. He says they are hoping that with a few days of antibiotics they can get it under control but it will likely be a week or more before he's back at work.
'Looks like we're stuck with the whiz kid for a while longer,' Adam retorted as they walked out of Harry's office.
Tuesday afternoon
The four men sat around a battered table in the small flat they'd been directed to late last night. They were in better spirits this morning after the sighting of Zafar with Ruth, the woman they'd been trailing.
Markos had been frustrated that not only had his call to Josef not gone through, but the door from the garage back to the stairs required a key for access, locking him in the garage. It was several minutes before he found his way out, by which time the sedan was long gone. He walked back into the hotel, both to collect Oleg and to ask about older man who had driven away with Ruth and Zafar. The concierge staff member was new in the job and only knew the man as Giovanni, a local businessman. A report was made to their superiors in Famagusta, who told them to wait at the flat for instructions on how to proceed.
By late morning, they had information and instructions. There were a few possibilities as to the man's identity, but the most likely was Giovanni Mancini, who worked for Amathus Aegeas, a shipping company with stops in Limassol, Cyprus. Before long the men were on their way to the port to see what they could discover.
