Chapter 12: Gangplank
"Marta," Aaron said, as he gently shook her shoulder. "Wake up."
Marta's eyes fluttered open then closed again tightly against the bright sunlight that poured through a porthole window. She rubbed her eyes sleepily. "What time is it?"
"It's time for you to get ready while I scout the docks. There's a few things on deck I need to check out. I'll let you know if it's safe for us to disembark with the rest of the passengers or if we need to jump ship."
Marta groaned and propped herself up on her elbows. "I'm afraid to ask if that's a joke."
Aaron just smiled back at her then gestured to the table. "I brought you a quick breakfast. Go ahead and get dressed in the clothes you bought yesterday. I'll be about half an hour and let you know if we need to change our plans."
He stood up and approached her. Marta noticed he was already Mr. William Fitzpatrick, the alias they had decided to use when back in Manila. She was his wife, Katherine Fitzpatrick. She wondered how long he had been up. It had taken her forever to fall asleep last night. He hadn't made it back from his run before she finally drifted off. He sat down next to her on the bed.
"Did you sleep at all?," she asked.
"A couple hours," he replied. "I hope we won't have to do much running for our lives today. I nearly ran my legs off last night trying to clear my head, no thanks to you."
Marta scoffed, "Me?! I think not."
Aaron laughed, gave her a wry smile, then grew serious. "I finished up our identification. Yours is already in your purse, along with some other items a rich tourist would have on her. We've got a reservation for the penthouse suite at the hotel; the confirmation number is in your purse along with a burn phone. The number to mine is already programmed in. Only use it if we get separated then toss it. I've made arrangements for the two town-cars already. Generous tips for the drivers were included in the prepayment, but I've got cash for the bellhop at the hotel."
"My purse?" Marta questioned, taking it all in.
"Yeah," he said, pointing to a beautiful sable brown leather handbag hanging from the hook with her linen outfit. "You said we should have Louis Vuitton luggage, right?"
"Yes," she agreed slowly and scanned the room. Her eyes widened when she saw three matching pieces next to the door. She highly doubted this ship carried the expensive luggage in their duty free shop. "You found those last night?"
"Found is a nice way of putting it," he replied. "The purse was from the same cabin, so I figured it's an appropriate brand. I jammed the lock to the rightful owner's cabin so they're stuck in their room for now, but that won't buy us much time once they realize it. Hopefully they aren't early risers. I suggest we be the first tourists off the ship. "
"You've certainly been busy," Marta commented with a nervous laugh. Using stolen goods made her feel awful, but she knew they didn't have much of a choice. Trepidation began to take hold. "I'll get ready quickly."
Aaron placed his hand over hers, grasping it reassuringly. His thumb stroked hers as he continued, "I have the location to the morgue but I'll have to case it on my own, after we're settled in at the hotel-just like we planned. Do you remember?"
Marta breathed in deeply to calm herself and recited dutifully, "Disembark at eight, take a town-car to the airport but don't go in the building. Then, pretend we forgot something and get in another town-car. Take it to the Manila Palm, where I stay while you're out doing your Outcome agent thing. We're booked for ten days but we'll leave the next day, after we have the program medication."
"Good." Aaron leaned over and held the back of her head steady as he kissed her forehead. He pulled her into an embrace and they stood for a minute in silence. Aaron placed another kiss to the crown of her head as she rested against his chest. Quietly, he asked, "Are you ready for this?"
She swallowed her fear and nodded her head, meeting his eyes. His big icy blue eyes bore into hers as if to imbue her with his strength. "Let's do this," she said, using his phrase.
Aaron smiled and squeezed her hand then reached into his pants pocket. "One more thing," he said, with an odd tone to his voice, as he pulled his fist out. Marta looked back at him quizzically. He opened his hand before her. On his palm was a pair of wedding rings.