Chapter 7

Calder Michaels had always thought of himself as a man made for management. Ever since joining the Central Intelligence Agency his journey had been one of ladder climbing and overcoming office politics, both of which he had succeeded at. He had never imagined for one moment in his life that he would be caught up in the middle of one of the biggest scandals in CIA history. Henry Wilcox, a once revered man of power amongst the spy world, had turned out to be the dictionary definition of a traitor. And now that he was gone, and the destruction that followed him was being laid to rest, Calder finally felt like he could breathe without having to look over his shoulder, wondering what sort of cluster fuck Walker or Anderson would throw at him next.

And then Annie Walker had disappeared. Again.

Calder could not say it surprised him. He had studied Annie's file extensively ever since he had first seen her step off the plane in Colombia. He'd had a bad feeling then, and his gut was hardly ever wrong. She had a penchant for running, and she was good at it. The fact that she had managed to go dark and pursue Henry Wilcox without being completely overwhelmed was noteworthy, but Calder could not help but wonder how someone with so much at stake could so easily throw caution to the wind and leap first without considering the risks. Her psychological profile suggested a strong-willed woman with a tendency toward assuming she was invincible. In Calder's estimation the combination made her decision-making dangerous and sloppy. It was only a matter of time before Walker leapt and found herself flying too close to the sun.

Hopefully Auggie would be able to find her before it came to that.

His office phone began to ring, pulling him from his thoughts. Calder eyed the phone for a moment before picking it up. It still felt odd to be carrying the title of interim head of the DCS, to be sitting in the office that had previously been occupied by Joan Campbell. It was fascinating how one's opinion of someone could change. His arrival at Langley had been unwelcome at best, and it was no secret that "The Sheriff" had been detested by those who did not agree with his forward-thinking and innovative ways of managing the DPD. Yet despite their initial dislike for each other, on the tarmac, before he, Walker and Anderson had departed for Hong Kong, Joan Campbell had treated him like an equal. Instead of being suspicious of his intentions, she had decided to give him her trust. That was a compliment in itself.

"Michaels," he answered, leaning back in his chair, eyes on the ceiling.

"Hey, it's Barber." The distinctive sound of a potato chip bag rustled in the background. "So I have good news and bad news. Which one do you want first?"

"What do you mean bad news?" Agitation in the form of a growl.

A very, very awkward silence followed.

"Ok, good news it is then." Barber cleared his throat. "Auggie says they're hot on Annie's trail. She rendezvoused with a contact in Amsterdam. He thinks he can get the contact to keep her there until they catch up."

"If he thinks he can keep Annie Walker anywhere, he is severely underestimating what she's capable of." Calder muttered, running a hand over his face with an exasperated sigh. "So what's the bad news?"

"We've received some chatter from our people in Hong Kong." Keys on a keyboard clicked in the background. "You're not going to like this, but we aren't the only ones looking for Annie."

"God dammit, who is it now?"

"Chinese MSS. And if the intel we've received is true, they want Annie dead."

Sleep was an endless, black abyss.

Rest was a luxury Annie had not been able to afford over the course of the past few days. Or even the past few months. So the act of waking up out of a deep slumber was akin to being resurrected from the dead. At first there was nothing but emptiness. Then suddenly bright, blinding light. She lunged up, gasping for air, shadowy images of her nightmares dissipating in the early morning light that filtered through the window of the loft she was in. Sheets were tangled around her haphazardly and she was still in her clothes from the night before, hands reaching for gun that was not there. Once the initial shock of returning to the world of the living wore off, Annie pulled the sheets away and crossed her legs, her elbows balancing against her thighs, head in her hands. A cold sweat dampened her forehead, and she could feel it along the dip of her back. She closed her eyes and focused on breathing evenly again.

A brief walk from the Pulitzers the previous evening was all it took to reach Joost's rooftop flat that overlooked The Emperor's Canal. After thanking him for his generosity Annie had excused herself to the loft, her new home for the next several days. She was grateful that he allowed her to stay despite the questionable circumstances surrounding her appearance- she would not have blamed him had he been suspicious. After closing the door behind her and killing the lights, the only thing Annie felt motivated to do was absolutely nothing. And so she slept, barely remembering to kick off her boots before falling into the bed and succumbing to exhaustion.

The single circular window on the far wall revealed the rooftops of Amsterdam at dawn, slivers of frost spiderwebbing their way across the glass, the first rays of sunlight casting long shadows across the wood floor. She felt like they were reaching for her with their spindly wisps, claw like, menacing. Annie rubbed her eyes, adjusting to the warm glow, so different from the darkness her dreams swallowed her with while she was asleep. Somewhere down below her a radio played a fuzzy jazz tune over the muffled clangs of kitchenware. Knowing she could only linger alone with her thoughts for so long, Annie clambered out of the bed and pulled on her boots, kicking the messenger bag underneath it before opening the loft door and making her way down the stairs.

She was surprised at the sight that greeted her. Joost hovered over a stove top, humming along with the radio (out of tune), flipping pancakes and frying bacon. For a moment she thought she was dreaming, but the growl of her stomach and the smell of breakfast told her otherwise. When was the last time she ate?

"Ah, good morning Annie!" Joost boomed, spinning around in the small kitchen area to reveal a plate stacked with entirely too many pancakes. He placed it on the center island, next to what appeared to be a hookah. Annie eyed the scene skeptically, sauntering forward and taking a seat on one of several bar stools that loitered at the island's edge.

"You go all out." Annie observed, reaching behind her head and pulling out what little remained of the braid in her hair, wincing as her fingers snagged in tangles.

"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day." Joost placed an equally large plate of bacon next to the pancakes, along with a container of maple syrup. "But more important still, I like to eat."

"I can tell." Annie did not argue when he proceeded to hand her a plate and a fork. She would be lying if she said she wasn't hungry, and the food smelled heavenly. "Blueberry?"

"Aye, what a sharp eye you have." His words were obscured by the pancake he was shoving into his mouth as he took a seat across from her, eyes beaming humorously, at which Annie rolled her's in response.

They ate in silence, and Annie did her best not to act ravenous. Food had been the least of her worries during her adventure, but the feast Joost had prepared made her eyes larger than her stomach. The radio continued to play in the background, ambient sound to cover up their chewing, occasionally accompanied by the scratch of white noise. At one point Annie was pleasantly surprised when she detected the unique sound of Mingus floating through the speakers. Unsurprisingly Auggie appeared on the periphery of her thoughts as well, accompanied by an undeniable sense of guilt and a loss of appetite.

Joost took note of her sudden change in demeanor. His curiosity got the best of him, and despite the well known adage that curiosity killed the cat, he could not keep quiet. "So, what's so complicated that it's got someone like you-" an interlude of chewing "-running like a scared little girl in the opposite direction?"

There was no attempt on Annie's part what so ever to hide the glare she shot in Joost's direction after his jibe. "Why do you care?" She was defensive, bitter, biting. She took it out on the pancake in front of her, a much better option that stabbing Joost in the eye with his own fork. Joost, being very observant, did not miss the assault on said pancake.

Does it matter?"

The same question she had asked a scorpion now echoed in her head. The same scorpion whose life she took in cold blood, in that God forsaken back alley in the walled city of Kowloon just days before. It felt like a million years ago, and it weighed heavily on her, debilitatingly so, until she no longer felt like herself. Her nightmares resurfaced in the shadows of her thoughts, taunting and malicious. Henry Wilcox's final words to her seemed like a cruel joke now, as if he had known. Even from the grave, he still tormented her. Had he not asked Annie himself what she was running from? More importantly, did she even know the answer?

It always matters.

"It's not that I care, per say," Joost finally replied after a moment of silence. "Not about you, anyway."

"Gee, thanks." Annie deadpanned.

"I'm smarter than I look, you know." Joost ignored Annie's apparent attempt to avoid conversation, waving his fork in the air for comical emphasis. "And I'm not a complete ass, either. I do care, about a lot of things actually, but I care most about my friends. Auggie is a friend. And if there is one thing I am certain of, it's that Auggie cares about you." He punctuated by pointedly jabbing the fork in Annie's direction. "So, that being said, forgive me for keeping my friend's best interest at heart by looking out for his girl."

Annie almost choked on the piece of bacon she had been gnawing on. Surprise made her stomach flip, her heart fluttering uncertainly, her cheeks burning, not believing the words that had come out of the man's mouth.

"Who said I was his girl?" Trying to remain unflustered was harder than it appeared. There was a childish thrill that accompanied the new found knowledge that Auggie had given Joost some reason to believe she was more than just a fellow agent. Yet at the same time it terrified her, and further confirmed what Danielle had unknowingly revealed to her in Sweden nearly two years past. That she had feelings for him; feelings beyond her comprehension or understanding. Feelings that had grown during their short time together, before the complications of the past few months turned her life upside down. Yet Annie was left in a state of wonder, trying to recall if it always been so obvious that Auggie had feelings for her as well. And if so, how the hell had it taken her so long to realize it?

"No one said anything." Joost shrugged, feigning indifference. "But honestly it's not hard to guess by the way he talked about you, and by the look on your face, I'd say I guessed right."

"I don't know what you're talking about." She muttered, unable to come up with any real defense, because even though she would not admit it out loud, the Dutchman was right. Despite her spoken denial, her eyes said otherwise.

"Listen, it's none of my business what you do or don't do." Having finished eating, Joost stood and donned his jacket, heading toward the apartment door. "But my advice to you - if you'll have it - is don't keep him in the dark. August has been through enough loss in his life. I'd hate to see him lose you as well."

The silence was deafening. In that moment Annie wished she could disappear, melt into her surroundings and escape the truth that was being offered to her on a silver platter. There was nothing she could say, because any attempt to disagree with Joost at this point would have been no better than lying to herself, and she had done enough of that the past few months to last her an eternity.

"Don't worry about the kitchen, I'll get it after I get back from the shop." Joost called over his shoulder, acting as if nothing had just happened, as if they were just two friends in a perfectly normal situation. He opened the door, pausing thoughtfully and turning to look at Annie, the sounds of an Amsterdam winter morning drifting inside. "By the way, there's a burner phone in that old desk over there, against the far wall." He gestured toward the antique looking piece of furniture with a grin. "I like to keep one handy for emergencies. Y'know, in case you need to call someone."

Saying nothing else, Joost disappeared, and for the first time since she had left Hong Kong, Annie found herself desperately wishing that she was not so alone.

Later, she will wish she would have thanked him.

A/N: Yayyy update! Super mega awesome thanks again to my super duper editor Ashleigh. And of course thanks to all you awesome readers who keep coming to back to review: you guys ROCK! I have had a blast with this story, so I hope you continue to enjoy it. Things are gunna start moving. Let me know what you think! xxx :)))