empathized with her pain. The agency had codes for assignments. They ranged from the least dangerous, white, to the most, red. There wasn’t an agent at Nassar who didn’t dread a code white. They were well-paid assignments that were the bread and butter of the agency. But they were also, as in this case, ten days of guaranteed boredom.
She waved as she turned to leave.
“Take a good book,” he called after her.
She gave him a look that would have torched a lesser man.
He only laughed.
Jade van Everett had been a pleasant surprise.
* * *
Three days earlier
THE SMALL STONE house had stood on the edge of the massive estate outside Rabat, Morocco, for generations. It had survived two world wars. Now, an explosion rattled the windows of the main house and blew the roof off the small stone house. The outer walls held for seconds after the initial explosion before the shock rippled through the structure and caused the small building to fall inward. The resulting fire licked quickly through the old wood and paper within the building. The smoke curled easily into the still air. It wasn’t until the building was engulfed in flames and the last wall had collapsed that sirens could be heard. By then, it was too late. It was exactly as he had planned. Time would take care of the rest.
His jaw tensed as he looked around in the dim light of the plane’s cabin. A young woman stood up two rows ahead of him and stretched. Behind him someone coughed. He covered his mouth and nose with the back of his hand. He hated flying, hated the people, the tight space, the snotty flight attendants. He hated all of it. He pushed his seat into an upright position and tried to stretch, but one foot was trapped by the seat in front of him. He was stuffed and cramped like he, too, was one of them, like the other nothings on this plane. But he was nothing like any of them—he didn’t belong here, and soon they would know it.
He’d like to hurt someone right now. He knew that would make him feel better, but he couldn’t do that for obvious reasons. Instead, he relaxed his features and tried to keep a pleasant look on his face. The last thing he needed was to act suspicious so that when they landed he was pulled aside by security. That would have his entry into the States delayed or worse, denied.
Calm down, he told himself. There was no reason for any of that to happen. But it wasn’t over. His fingernails dug into the armrest. He looked down and forced himself to relax. He’d learned years ago as a child that one must relax to gain control. A strap against bare skin was easier to take if one was relaxed rather than tense. It was a tough but useful life skill. He looked furtively around him. But there was nothing unusual. The lights dimmed, and ahead of him a reading light clicked on. To his left was an empty seat and beside that was an elderly woman who’d been snoring off and on since takeoff.
He closed his eyes even as he knew that he couldn’t sleep. Minutes passed. He opened his eyes, and his thoughts went back to where they had never left, to all that had transpired. The explosion that was the first step in completing the job he’d been hired for. It was unfortunate that he’d only seen his handiwork from afar, that he couldn’t have stayed to hear the man’s dying screams. Instead, he’d had to leave, catching the explosion from a distance, seeing the lick of flames and knowing he was one death away from the cash prize.
Across the aisle, a middle-aged man snored, lurched forward and shook himself awake.
He looked away. To any of the other passengers he was unmemorable. A swarthy man with a tired expression in the aisle seat of the Boeing 737. He feigned reading a newspaper. His left ankle was crossed over his right. He ran a hand along the seam of his pant leg. He scowled and then glanced at the watch on his right wrist. He moved the silver band back and forth as if that would adjust the time, but no matter how he looked at it, there were still hours before they landed.
He shoved the paper into the flap in the seat in front of him and looked up. He smiled at the passing flight attendant and thought how he’d like to twist her slim neck until it snapped. He forced his eyes closed, and smiled for the first time since he’d gotten the news. For it was in Jackson, Wyoming, where he’d finally finish what had begun so long ago.
Take a good book.
It was a lighthearted statement. At least that’s what she had thought at the time. Now Zafir’s comment held new meaning. At the airport, the client’s round, olive-toned face had lit up at the sight of her as if she were a prize in a game of chance. But an hour later, she would have preferred the company of a good book to the client’s chatter and fawning eyes.
She remembered trying to lead him through the airport. He’d been distracted by everything. He’d stopped to stare out a window, claiming that he hadn’t seen anything so beautiful as that particular view of the Teton Mountains. And when she finally got his attention again, he’d asked that she call him Stanley and then followed her to collect his luggage. She’d had to nudge the duffel under his arm as she gathered his bags. She’d updated him on his living arrangements as she ushered him to the rental vehicle, but she wasn’t sure if he heard a word of it.
At the van, she’d slid the door shut after wrestling his bags into the backseat. Stanley had dropped the duffel by the back door and taken his seat without asking whether she needed help with his luggage.
On the way into Jackson, she asked him about the obviously expensive Nikon camera that he pulled out of its case shortly after they left the terminal. That’s when she’d found out that Stanley was a talker, at least about his passion—photography.
“How much farther?” His voice would have been average except for the slightly nasal whine.
“Five minutes,” she said shortly. She could feel his gaze on her but kept her attention on the snowy, and now icy, road. Her knuckles were white, and it wasn’t because of the driving conditions. She knew admiration when she saw it, but she knew it could also turn into something worse. Stanley kept glancing at her in a way she didn’t like. She wasn’t sure how she was going to make it through an assignment that would be not only a bore but annoying, as well.
“We’re here,” she said minutes later as she parked the van. It was the only vehicle the rental agency had left that served her purpose. She would upgrade it tomorrow. Once that was done, she could take Stanley to the places he’d identified were perfect for a photo shoot.
“I’d like to take your picture, too, if...”
“No,” she bit out. “I’m sorry. That was rather abrupt but no, I’m here to facilitate your trip.” An interesting way to put it, she thought. “Not be a subject for your photography,” she finished. “I’m sure we’ll find more than you can imagine as far as scenery and wildlife to photograph. You don’t need me.”
“You’re beautiful and...”
“No,” she repeated. “Enough. This is business, nothing more.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, looking rather abashed and completely out of his element.
But this time she was sorry, sorry for so many different reasons than he might think. Sorry for making him uncomfortable, sorry for taking this assignment. Although she had to admit that there was no choice in the latter. It hadn’t been voluntary.
Her
