Chapter 4
Know Your Enemy
The journey passed without incident as they pulled up outside the magnificent old building and piled out of the car Sofia said, "Why is it always the psychotic dictators that get to live in luxury?"
"I think the answer to that is contained somewhere within the question." Ros smirked as they walked up the wide stone steps into the reception area.
"Right, so how are we playing this?" Sofia asked as they waited in the queue for the front desk.
"One of us just needs to convince her that we are three of the most important people ever to enter this hotel and that they would kill to have the people that we represent stay here." Ros replied breezily, "It's almost as though the part's been written for you." She told Lucas in mock sweetness.
He shook his head slightly, but smiled all the same as he approached the front desk, "We need to view three of your luxury penthouse suites."
"I'm sorry sir; viewing is done in a brochure." The receptionist informed him in clipped tones, pointedly sliding one across the desk to him.
"I would thank you to take that back and remember who you are talking to." He hissed, contemptuously.
"Who am I talking to sir?" she asked, mockingly.
"Very well, if you do not want the President of the Untied States residing in your hotel then there are plenty of other hotels available."
"Excuse me sir, did you say the President?" she asked, flushing darkly.
"Is that what you heard?"
"Yes sir."
"Well then that is what I said...Does one of your managers have better hearing than you?" he asked, dismissively, casting his eye around the room.
"No, no sir, which rooms would you like to see?"
Slipping comms into their ears they headed up the stairs to the top floor and the penthouse suites, keys and instructions were accepted, assistance denied.
"Shall we take a room each?" Ros suggested as they stood outside the rooms.
They each entered an identical room, exquisitely furnished. Plump, velvet armchairs sat around a pristine glass coffee table perched on top of an immaculate thick, snow white fur carpet. Chandeliers encrusted with diamonds set in silver hung from the ceilings. Magnificent four poster beds with crisp white sheets and silk hangings waited invitingly in the large bedrooms with breathtaking views of the city sprawled below.
"I've got half a mind to assassinate the PM if this is the level of luxury 'sleazy psychotic politician' buys you." Sofia muttered to the others, as they began looking for a long-term hiding place for their bugs.
"Noted." Ros smirked as Lucas chuckled in agreement.
"OK, creative..." Lucas muttered, refocusing them on the task at hand.
"Is this place really for the American President or was Lucas just winging it."
"I was winging it." Lucas said at the same time Ros answered, "Yes."
"Really?" Sofia and Lucas asked together.
"And the French. The adjoining rooms are for our American friends, the single for our French buddies across the channel." As she run a hand under the armchairs, finding a hollow spot at last she made a small slit in it and inserted the bug into the small hole.
"So who's sleeping with whom in those delegations?" Sofia asked, as she too glanced around the room. Perching precariously on one of the overstuffed armchairs she slipped the bug into the chandeliers bracket that held it suspended over the room.
Lucas laughed softly, "Oh I'm sure we'll find out before these talks are over...The press will have a field day..." he said. As he examined the large marble fireplace the quaint little carriage clock on the mantelpiece above caught his eye. Removing the back he slipped the bug inside it after noting that it did not have a second hand that could have interfered with their signal.
"Done?" Ros checked quietly as they left.
"Done." The others replied, as they too exited the rooms, meeting in the corridors.
"Since you did such a wonderful job earlier Lucas, make sure they get checked into those rooms, I don't need to spend my weekend listening to some sleazy business man cheating on his wife." Ros told him as they walked down the corridor.
As they clambered into the car, Ros' phone rang,
"Harry...Yes we've just finished, hold on I'll put you on speaker."
"Do the bugs all work OK?" Lucas asked,
"Yes, everything's fine there, we'll just have to hope they don't get found now. That's not why I'm calling."
"What's happened?" Ros asked,
"It's interesting to me how you always jump to the worst conclusion." Lucas smirked
"Well that way I'm never disappointed." She replied, "What's happened Harry?"
"Salko's made contact, he wants to meet." Harry informed them curtly. "I need someone to meet him and someone else to gave as back-up, he could be dangerous. Ros? Lucas?"
"Sure, where are we meeting him?" Ros asked, as Lucas nodded.
"The London Eye."
"How original." Ros muttered
"What are we getting from him?" Lucas asked,
"I'm not sure, he just said he wanted to meet and discuss how much farther we were going to take this."
"What is that he's after?" Ros asked,
"Not sure, but apparently it's not money."
"I'll believe that when I see it." Lucas said as Sofia snorted.
"That should be in about two hours. Keep in contact." He told them before hanging up.
"Well, one down, five to go." Ros told Sofia, cheerfully, "Shouldn't take too long."
"Indeed...Why are you two still here?" she asked, airily.
"Well I don't intend on flying to the eye. " Ros replied quaintly.
"Well I don't intend on driving you." Sofia said, flatly, "The Savoy's nowhere near the Eye..." When still neither of them moved she said, "Do I look like a taxi?"
"No, but you drive like one..." Lucas muttered.
Her glare in the rear-view mirror was enough to make him get out.
...
Lucas and Ros took an actual taxi and arrived at the Eye with almost an hour to kill.
"Fancy a ride?" Ros asked, eying the enormous structure behind them.
"Never had it down as your thing. "Lucas said, upon checking his watch he added, "Why not?"
It was still relatively early in the middle of the week and they ended up with a compartment to themselves.
"So, what's going on with you and Sofia?" Ros asked bluntly, taking a sip of water.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"I think you know what I mean." She said, flirtatiously. He smiled playfully and she raised an eyebrow saying, "You sleeping with her or what?"
He grinned seductively and said, "If I was, why would you care? Jealous?"
She smirked before adding casually, "Well I wouldn't kick you out of bed..."
It had the desired effect, he choked and she smiled, satisfied before she said, vaguely "She seemed upset earlier..."
"I'm not one to kiss and tell..." he replied.
She took the hint, "Good to know."
They were quiet for a few minutes until Ros changed the subject, "How do you want to play it with Salko?"
"I don't know, we're at a disadvantage here and I'm sure he knows it."
"How do you figure that one out?"
"He seems to know a lot more about us than we know about him." Lucas muttered, gazing out at the view.
"True, but we have Ruth. He won't have an advantage for long."
"No...No we won't." He had not considered. There was bound to be a paper trail that documented Sofia's history with Salko. If there was a record, Ruth would find it.
"Do you want to do this one on one with the other discreetly positioned to intervene if necessary? Less intimidating."
"I take it you want to be the one?"
"Do you have any objections?"
"No, I just didn't think you could take the words 'less intimidating' and put them in a conversation about yourself."
She glared at him, "It's times like this I wonder why I didn't just shoot you when I had the chance."
"Well there's no fun in that."
"Right, we've been on this thing so long I'm getting dizzy, fifteen minutes until Salko's due. Shall we get off?"
"We shall."
Ros and Lucas wired up their comms once more, Ros waited cautiously at the base of the wheel while Lucas perched on a wall, a comfortable distance away.
"Heads up." Lucas said as a tall slim figure approached her. He had dark green eyes, and pale skin peppered with tattoos, mostly hidden under a thick winter coat. Despite being slim, he was well-muscled though he carried himself quietly.
"Enjoying the scenery?" Ros enquired, smoothly.
He studied her for a second before answering, "Indeed. "His voice was deep and rich with a clear accent.
"Shall we?" he asked, indicating the wheel behind them.
"No offence but I'd rather keep both feet on the ground as opposed to suspended in the air in a glass coffin with you, we just met..."
"I see, a little paranoid Miss-?"
"Curtis, Heather...Occupational hazard I'm afraid."
She led them to a small green bench situated in the shadow of a large beech tree.
"You haven't brought any of your friends?" he asked, coldly. His intent green eyes had not stopped searching their surroundings.
"We're alone...Unless you have people following you?"
He smiled grimly, "If anyone was following me, Miss Curtis, I can assure you they would not be friends."
"I see, and you're quite sure?"
"I was careful. We are safe."
"I'm not so sure I believe you Mr. Salko." She said, icily.
"Probably for the same reasons I don't entirely trust you. Of course, there is an easy way to check that...If you're telling the truth then I can do this," he said, as he produced a small handgun and pressed it threateningly in the gap underneath her ribs. "Without your friends descending on me."
"Easy..." Ros muttered, more to Lucas than to Salko, "There's no need for that, I've told you."
"Very well Miss Curtis, I work with you, you work with me."
"Indeed...I've been led to believe that you have information for me." She pressed, delicately,
"I do. The kind that your government would deem invaluable at this point. These talks seem to cause more tension than they solve."
She laughed softly, "You're not wrong there." She muttered bitterly, "What do you have for us?"
He laughed lightly, "Clearly you have been misinformed Miss Curtis, you get nothing for nothing in this life."
"Very well...What do you want Mr. Salko? Money? Protection?"
"No, I have money, and as for protection, I've already told you, I've been careful, had I not we would not be here. What I want is far more specific and far more valuable than money." He said, sinisterly.
"What do you want then?" She asked, coldly.
"To be honest Miss Curtis, I was disappointed you see you...Not to say that I haven't enjoyed your company, but I had been hoping for a different member of your team. I take it you know Sofia Fletcher?"
"How do you know that name?" Ros breathed, taken aback.
"It is not important...Suffice it to say that we're old friends."
"What do you want from her?"
"That is for her eyes only."
"Let me be clear Mr. Salko, you do not have carte blanche here, we will not bend to your every will based on tenuous evidence."
"I'm not asking you to bend to anything, at the moment all I want you to do is give her this." He said removing a small flash-drive from his pocket, "She will know what it means. You should tell her, I will accept nothing more, and nothing less than those terms, and that I have ensured that I am the only information with the information you seek."
"I'm not so sure that I believe you have any information of note Mr. Salko." Ros said coldly.
He had stood up to leave but turned at her words, leaning in close he murmured, "You may have ruined the overall network but there are still several individual attacks from Lighthouse that will still server their own ends."
She froze as he walked calmly away from her, calling over his shoulder, "Say hello to Sofia for me won't you?"
As soon as Lucas joined her she hissed, "What the Hell was that? How does he know Sofia?"
"I don't-"
"If you finish that sentence in the way I think you're going to I will put a bullet in you." She whispered, warningly.
"We should head back to The Grid." He said, quietly.
"Lucas." She said, sharply, "What can he want from her?" there was more concern than anger in her mind. She had no idea what that man was capable of, but even after their short meeting, she did not want to even guess.
"I don't know." He said, truthfully, looking at her, and seeing his concern mirrored in her face.
...
"Harry? Lucas and Ros have met Salko; they're on their way back now...They say we have a problem."
"Don't we always?" he sighed.
"I'm afraid I'm not going to ease your discomfort." She said, sitting down opposite him.
"Who did you find?" he asked, not sure if he wanted an answer.
"It wasn't easy, the words 'restricted access' have been permanently imprinted on my retinas, but I did manage to find this." She spread a file on the desk between them, and watched as his face darkened, "What does this mean to us Harry?" she asked, softly.
"It means that Sofia has been lying to me..."
A/N: For the most part, thank-you all for your reviews. I apologise to the majority of guest reviewers but someone seems to have taken it upon themselves to continually post the same criticisms with different wordings which has forced me to temporaarily disable guest reviews. I am always grateful to receive constructive criticism from readers and I take all of your opinions into account, however I don't enjoy having the same viewpoint continually shoved down my throat. Let me know what you all thought of this chapter :)