PART 7

She was almost at the entrance of the coffee shop when she spotted him. Riley was glad that he hasn't changed much since the last time she saw him. It was almost five years ago when she first met him at the Naval Special Warfare Centre. He was training to become an elite Army Intelligence at the time. Thor Benward. Now he is Secret Agent Benward.

She'd just pushed open the door when he saw her. Thor immediately got up and walked to greet her.

"Matthews," he drawled.

"Benward," she said.

Thor led her to his table and ordered her usual cafe latte with one sugar. She wasn't surprised that he remembers what kind of coffee she drinks or how she takes it. Thor has a good memory, it's what makes him a good Agent.

Riley isn't sure why but she suddenly noticed that Thor has dark brown hair, arching cheekbones underscored intense green eyes. His razor-sharp nose had been broken at some point, but it only added to the unrelenting maleness of him. More telling, his mouth had a scar that hooked the left side of his upper lip. The man in front of Riley had lived a life of dangerous pursuits.

She couldn't help but compare Thor's physical appearance with Lucas'. Both men are extremely attractive, each has their own distinct quality, Thor with his rugged and dangerous persona, while Lucas' has a charismatic and yet mysterious aura about him.

"Care to share?"

That was a loaded question and she didn't want to answer it. But she had to say something. "Not particularly."

Thor's shoulders straightened. "How's the Agency?"

"Which Agency are you inquiring about?" she asked.

Thor shrugged. "Both."

Smiling faintly, "The Feds are thriving, as for the other one, I'm really not sure. I should be asking you since you are still with them."

He let his guard down a little and smiled. "Depends on how you define being with them".

She knows what he meant. A Secret Agent is trained to blend in. To be out of sight. To disappear - and after a lot of disappearing - you lost touch. A good enough reason for Riley to leave the Agency just after 10 months. She wasn't cut out to be that kind of Agent.

Thor stared at her. "What's your story?"

"I'm the new attaché assigned here in the Philippines."

His mouth tightened, "I thought you don't do undercover anymore?"

"I don't," she said.

He leaned back in his chair and picked up his drink. "What do you want to know?"

She sat back herself. "Everything you can tell me."

He glanced pointedly around the coffee shop and back at her. "Off the record?"

Her brows drew together and gave him a nod.

"This is big. Bigger than what we expected," he growled. "How familiar are you with the Big Five?"

Big Five. The traditional international organizations consisting of the Italian Criminal Enterprises, Russian Mafiya, Japanese Yakuza, Chinese Triads and the Colombian Cartels. "So which of them is fueling the diehard religious sect? From what I heard the Abu Sayyaf is making a name for themselves. And if my gut is right then the Colombian Cartels is backing them up just like they are doing with the Al Qaeda."

Thor's jaw shifted. A trace of admiration touched his features. "I've always trusted your gut feeling. But this time you're not completely right."

"What'd I missed?"

"The other four," he said quietly.

Stunned to silence, she shook her head. The Big Five, all of them? Why? It makes no sense. These criminal organizations had caused the growth of capitalism to a lot of countries. They are highly organized, operating globally, they do form strategic alliances with rogue government, terrorist organizations and with each other but ultimately each of them vie for dominance. It doesn't make sense. Unless...

Reluctantly, he set down his drink and got up. "Let's go for a walk."

Without awaiting a response from her, Thor began to make his way to the exit, so she hastily retrieved her purse and followed. He turned his head once, to glance at something that must have caught his eye. Thor stopped briefly to hold the door for her then continued walking. She liked that he is an equal opportunist. Clearly, Thor wasn't a coddler, and she respected that.

"You've figured it out," Thor said quietly, as if able to read her mind, or the emotions flickering over her face.

"Yes."

Compare to the US or Canada, the Philippines is a speck of dust. For a country so small it is overly populated and the government corrupt. It has been documented that the crime-terror links in an increasing number to insufficiently governed countries. In countries such as the Philippines, where corruption and other destabilizing factors provide opportunities for illicit networks to thrive and find safe haven - and as possible staging platforms to project their terror campaigns abroad.

With the Abu Sayyaf and its apparent growing connections to radical Islamic groups, it is no wonder that the Big Five found it very enticing to invest and share. Greed. Plain and simple.

Thor stopped, and turned to stare at her. They've worked on a couple of assignments together, but somehow there seems to be an undercurrent tension between them now that wasn't there before. Strange thing about tension... some Agents rose to the challenge, some snapped and some, well, quit. And neither Thor or her are quitters.

"Did you drive here?" he asked.

"No."

"My car's up at the cafe. Let's go." He led the way up to the parking lot. They walked in silence until Thor halted beside a black, commonplace, four-door Toyota sedan. He didn't stride to the passenger side to open the door for Riley. And again, she grudgingly saluted him for it. He was obviously the kind of man who assumed a woman in her job could take care of herself. And she could. "Where should I drop you off?"

Riley gave him the address. He must know the area pretty well since he didn't even ask her for directions. There were no more comments between the two of them. The trip took 40 minutes. The condominium wasn't that far from where they came from but the traffic was terrible.

He parked the car in front of the building. Thor inclined his head but this time he took her arm and guide her to the main entrance. "Keep in touch."

"I will."

Something stony and strong-willed flared inside Thor's eyes. "Be careful."

She drew to a stop in front of Thor and did her best to sound efficient when she told him, "I always am."