After 48 hours, the living situation was a far cry from paradise. Annie taught Auggie all the swear words she knew in foreign languages. Auggie helped Annie remember Morse Code. They did laundry together in the kitchen sink. They rearranged the furniture and practiced hand-to-hand fighting. Auggie even laughed at Annie as she tried to cook dinner blindfolded. They were quickly running out of ideas.
"That's it, Annie. If Joan hasn't heard anything definitive, we should either go home, or complete the mission."
"Are you going to call her to say that?" Annie asked.
"Who said she needs to know?" Auggie asked.
"Protocol."
"Screw protocol. You said there was a big public square nearby? Let's go get some dinner, find somewhere inconspicuous to sit, and people watch. Well, you watch, I'll listen, while pretending to watch."
"Ok. But we are just going to a random cafe tonight. Not trying to complete the mission."
Auggie put his cane in his messenger bag, unwilling to completely leave it behind. He locked arms with Annie and followed her out onto the street. He settled his eyes on the ground ahead of them, hoping it was dark enough to look inconspicuous.
"Ah. The sweet smell of freedom." He spoke quietly, almost directly into Annie's ear. Annie responded with an elbow into his side.
"So, tell me about Pamplona. Are the streets full of blood stains from the slow runners that got gored?"
"Nope. The gift shops are full of red bandannas, though. You want one?"
"Trying not to attract attention, remember?"
"Okay so, to your left and right are nondescript European buildings. Three stories tall, half of the blinds are closed, nothing special."
"But we are getting close to the square. I can hear it."
Auggie was correct. Annie found them a restaurant with seating on the square where she had a great view, but they were in the shadows enough to not be seen. Annie described some of the scenes to Auggie. There were groups of hikers (but not many, as it was getting late), young families, the few random tourists, and a couple of dogs. Neither of them cared what the food tasted like, as they were just happy to be out of the safe-house for a little while.
They were each enjoying some flan for desert when Annie reached for Auggie's hand. "There is a man walking by that I recognize from Austria."
Auggie calmly spooned some more of the caramel creation. "Do you think he sees us?" he asked before placing the bite in his mouth.
"Not yet."
"Then we shouldn't draw any attention to ourselves."
"Or we should follow him."
"That would be risky, Walker." But even as the words left his mouth, he could hear her getting up to pay the bill. "You did that so we could rush back to the safe-house, right?" He asked when she returned to the table.
"To sit for another week? Come on, Auggie. If I can even get a picture of this guy to send back to Joan, it might help get this over with."
"I shouldn't go." Auggie stated.
"What?" Annie replied.
"Let's face it, you will have better luck discreetly following him if you don't have to worry about me falling off a curb. I'll stay here in the square and pretend to play on my phone. If you aren't back in an hour, I'll..."
"You'll what? Pull out your cane and find your way to the safe-house, even though the fact that I didn't come back more than likely means that somebody found me and is looking for you?"
"Fine. There was a bar around the corner. I'll wait there, and if you aren't back in two hours, I'll assume our cover is blown and go home with a Spanish woman."
"Auggie." Annie was learning to say so much with just his name. This time, she was hurried, frustrated, and needed him to be serious.
"Bar. If you aren't back in an hour, I remember enough to get back to the safe-house like a sloppy drunk."
They were already walking in that direction, and Annie discreetly led Auggie to a barstool in a back corner. "Be safe." He said as she walked away.
Spanish was no problem for Auggie, and he quickly had a drink in hand. It was a medium sized crowd that he was able to ignore by focusing his attention on his drink.
After fifteen minutes, there was a light presence to his left. "What is an American like you doing here all alone?" A soft female voice asked in heavily accented English.
Auggie tried to ignore her, but there was a hand on his shoulder. He kept his eyes in the direction of his drink. "What makes you think I'm American?" He replied in smooth Spanish, though not the local dialect.
The voice didn't reply, but the hand didn't leave his shoulder. She was staring at him, and he didn't need the attention at the moment. "I just want to have a drink alone, please." He said, darting his eyes in her direction for a moment too brief for her to notice the lack of contact.
The hand left his body and he heard her walk away.
The second person to approach him was more of a surprise. "Did your girlfriend abandon you?" The female voice stated, in English, close to his ear. Her accent was different from the first, with an Eastern European sound.
Auggie gave a look of confusion and turned slightly to the voice. "Who?" He asked in Spanish.
"You have traveled all over Europe with her, I assume you two are close."
Auggie's face twitched as he silently assessed the situation.
"I would describe her to you, but I'm not sure that would be of any benefit." The woman was directly behind Auggie, her right hand on his right shoulder while she spoke into his left ear.
Auggie stiffened beneath her touch.
"We have her, and if you want to touch her again, you will come with me." The voice stated clearly but quietly.
Auggie sighed. He wanted to call her bluff, but there were too many signs that the statement could be true. He turned toward the voice and moved around his barstool. The woman pushed him toward the door, with him running into more than one other patron on the way. "Pardon my friend, he gets uncoordinated after a few drinks." She said to the room as they walked out the door.
The woman pushed Auggie to the right and into a small alleyway. He was considering his luck with the closer quarters, knowing that his chances of winning a fight had just increased, when she spoke again. "I have a gun."
To prove the point, a hard object pushed into his back. So much for his chances at a fight.
"And I'll be taking this." She said as she pulled his messenger bag over his head. She reached into his pockets and also took his iPhone and passport. He heard them hit the ground, be kicked, and land further away. "Oops. I knocked it into the sewer."
They came out of the other side of the alley onto a quieter street. Auggie tripped up onto the curb as they reached the sidewalk. It took all of his focus to keep track of his surroundings and stay upright as the woman pushed him forward with a hand in his back. "You should watch your step." She sneered.
They didn't walk far before she stopped and directed him to get on the back of a moped. He held on tight as she sped through the city. They didn't go far, though there were a lot of turns. Auggie felt that he had the route mapped out well in his head, if he had the opportunity to try to return. They stopped, and he was practically pushed off the back of the bike. He was unceremoniously pushed through a grassy area until the woman swiftly grabbed his hands, cuffed them behind his back, and backed him into a rock wall. "Sit."
"I'm fine, thank you." Auggie replied.
A foot landed in his gut, and Auggie let out a yell far louder than necessary from the pain. He listened to how it echoed, and determined that they were likely at the city wall. They weren't too far from highly populated areas, but it was rather secluded.
"Sit." The voice repeated in the same tone.
Auggie slowly lowered his body to the ground.
There was silence. Auggie strained to hear any details, but the woman was obviously alone, and likely trying to figure out what to do next. This gave him hope.
"So is this your secret hide-out?" Auggie asked.
The woman didn't answer. It seemed that both of them were trying to assess the other's competence.
"I hope nobody heard that yell. Are we still in the city?" Auggie pretended he was far more disoriented than he really was.
"Be quiet. I told you that I have a gun." The voice was less certain.
Auggie began to doubt the existence of the actual gun. "Prove it."
"I'm going to prove it soon by shooting you."
Auggie adjusted his hands behind him, feeling the pull of the cuffs against the hard rock. "Are you?"
He heard an exasperated sigh, and the footsteps of the woman coming closer. Cold metal pressed against Auggie's face. "I know you can't see it, but what you are feeling across your cheek is the barrel of a real, loaded, gun. Now be quiet or..."
Her words were cut off by Auggie catching her body between his legs and flipping her into the rock wall, knocking her unconscious. Auggie listened for a second, then tried to bring his hands in front of him while still cuffed. Not having any luck, he moved toward her unconscious body and used his hands behind his back to find her pockets. Luckily enough, he found the key in the first pocket, and was quickly out of the cuffs.
He checked her pulse, which was weak but steady. He went to the moped, started the engine and pointed it down the hill. Hoping he didn't hurt anybody, he revved the engine, gave it a push, and listened to it crash into the solid rock wall. At least if the woman woke up, she would have to chase him on foot.
Auggie started back in the direction from which they came with his hand on the wall, which was great guidance until he reached the gate to the city and needed to move into the open. Without his cane, Auggie wasn't going to get far, fast.
He moved forward and listened for any clue that might guide him toward the safe-house, or Annie. While the Spaniards kept late hours, there weren't many people out at the time. From the short drive out of town, Auggie thought he must just be on the other side of the square where he and Annie ate dinner. If he could just cross that space, he would at least get away from the unconscious woman and be a little closer to finding his way to Annie.
But without his cane, in a strange city, and not even certain of his actual location, he was afraid to step out across the unknown. Auggie was rarely scared, but there were times when his limitations were unavoidably oppressive.
He moved back to the wall, wanting something to hold him in place, and listened. The wind moved softly, and he hoped to hear leaves rustling in the breeze. A tree would give him something to make a cane with, but he didn't hear any signs of a tree nearby.
Thinking of his options, Auggie moved forward, slowly. He was sure he looked silly as he dragged each foot forward and held his arms in front. He tipped his head forward to keep from running into anything face-first.
Not five minutes after starting across the unknown this way (and moving forward maybe thirty feet) Auggie heard footsteps coming toward him. "Señor! Albergue?"
Auggie lifted his head in the direction of the voice and spoke. "I've lost my way. Could you please guide me to Calle San Miguel?" Auggie asked in Spanish.
"The Albergue isn't that way. I will take you to the Albergue." The young man seemed certain that Auggie was one of the hikers, arriving after a long day on foot.
"I'm not staying at the Albergue. I need to get to Calle San Miguel." Auggie explained.
"Come with me." The man's footsteps started moving away.
"Wait!" Auggie shouted, surprised at the panic he felt. "I can't see. I need to hold you."
The footsteps came back. "Oh. Sorry I didn't realize."
He grabbed Auggie's arm, and Auggie quickly repositioned so that he was holding the stranger. As they walked forward, Auggie suddenly felt far more grounded and capable.
The pair walked in the awkward silence brought about by language barriers and disability. Auggie was contemplating the loss of his messenger bag when they turned a corner and he heard Annie's voice shout his name. He quickly patted his companion and thanked him, and turned her.
"Auggie, oh Auggie, where were you?" She put her hands on both sides of his face and pulled him close.
Instead of replying, Auggie just breathed in her scent and wrapped his arms around her body. "Did you get any information?" He asked.
"Nothing. Where is your cane?" She asked.
"With my bag in a sewer drain." He replied, as if this was the most logical explanation. "I was abducted."
Annie stepped back, her hands still on his face. "Are you ok?" She asked.
"Yeah. I'll live." He replied. "But we are definitely compromised. Should probably get out of town."
Annie looped her elbow in his and walked toward the safe-house. "Fine with me. This city is far too small for my tastes."
"Did you even see any bulls?" Auggie asked with half a grin.
"Nope." Annie replied. "Total letdown."
They walked peacefully through the empty street with locked arms and smiles on their faces, for the moment forgetting that the operation was blown and only thinking about how happy they were to be together.
Back at the safe-house they packed their stuff into the backpacks Annie bought. Just before dawn Auggie took Annie in one arm, and a trekking pole in the other, and they walked out of town. An hour or two after leaving, Annie and Auggie sat on beneath a giant modern windmill on the top of a ridge. The blades kept a constant beat in the background as the sun came up in the distance. Exhausted from the events of the previous night and relaxed by the fresh air, they curled up into each others' arms and fell asleep for an early morning nap before descending the hill to the west.
A/N: If you have seen The Way with Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez, this last paragraph takes place where Joost sees the bicycles. If you haven't seen The Way, then you should just go get a backpack and hike El Camino de Santiago de Compestela yourself. (Though seriously, if you want more information, the Camino a passion of mine, so PM. I'm sure I'll have Annie and Auggie on the Camino in some form or fashion again at some point)