Chapter 143
143
Dario sent the 20,000 euros.
Thirty minutes later, Gunnar texted I would be meeting ‘Diana’ the next evening at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, a swanky restaurant in London. ‘Diana’ would be identifiable by a single yellow rose at her table.
I doubted that would be the only way I could identify her.
I was told to arrive after 7PM, but I decided to show up a good bit earlier than that.
I flew into London that evening on a commercial flight.
The restaurant where we would be meeting was in the Mandarin Oriental, a beautiful hotel next to Hyde Park. I booked a room for the night; I wanted to check out the meeting place beforehand, and I figured the best way to do that without arousing suspicion was to stay at the hotel.
It was a thousand pounds a night, which I knew Niccolo wouldn’t be happy about if he was having me fly coach –
But fuck him.
I also walked a couple of miles down the road and booked another room at the Gore London as a backup. In case my meeting with Rachel got out of hand, I didn’t want the Mandarin Oriental’s staff – or the police – to know exactly where to find me.
The next morning, I went to meet my contact.
He was an old-school British gangster with a bald head and jowls like a bulldog. I met him in the back room of a pub, probably a front for a local crime syndicate.
He gave me a choice between a Glock 19 and a Ruger-5.7.
“Neither of ‘em has ever been fired,” he assured me, then paused. “Well… not at anybody.” He paused again. “Well… nobody got hit p>
After checking the slide mechanism, I bought the Glock and four magazines of ammunition for 4000 pounds.
“That’s a steep markup,” I commented.
“Times’re hard. Want a suppressor?” he asked, pronouncing it suh-press-ah. “Extra three grand p>
“Jesus,” I said as I shelled out the money.
“Well worth it if you don’t want all of London hearin’ ya do yer business p>
He had a point.
I had lunch at the restaurant where we would meet later that evening.
I was paranoid that Rachel might be scoping it out beforehand – but then again, she had no idea what her ‘prospective client’ looked like, so why would she bother?
I decided to take the chance – to get the lay of the land and give myself an unfair advantage.
The restaurant was quite nice: modern furniture, recessed lighting, and a beautiful bank of plate-glass windows looking out on an exterior lawn with shrubs.
While in the restaurant, I visited the restroom twice – once after I was seated and once halfway through the meal. I didn’t actually have to go to the bathroom. Instead, I used the opportunity to plant spy cameras the size of packs of chewing gum. They were impressive gadgets I’d ordered on a whim back when we were buying surveillance cameras for the mansion.
I placed one at the bar, sticking it under the counter with adhesive tape.
Another I hid in a flower arrangement on a shelf.
When I left after my meal, I hid a third camera at the far end of the restaurant in a display of wine bottles.
When I reached the lobby, I opened the surveillance app on my phone and made sure I was receiving the transmissions.
Everything worked great. Between the three camera placements, I had every table in the restaurant covered.
All that was left was to wait.
I showered at 5:30 PM and was dressed in a suit by 6.
I spent the next hour watching the camera feeds on my phone.
My stomach was tight with nervousness. Niccolo’s taunts about this being personal kept coming back to haunt me.
Seven o’clock rolled around, and I watched the camera feed for Rachel to appear.
She didn’t.
But another woman did…
And she placed a yellow rose on the tablecloth in front of her.
SHIT.
I used the app’s controls to zoom in on her. She was blonde and 5’3”… obviously not Rachel in a wig.
FUCK!
Then I started to think.
If I were an assassin who had once been an MI6 agent, would I really go meet any Tom, Dick, or Harry without knowing who they were first?
No, I wouldn’t.
And I was sure Rachel wouldn’t, either.
I placed the Glock in the back waistband of my pants, where it was hidden under my jacket. The suppressor was too long for a quick draw, so I put it in my pocket.
Then I walked down to the hotel lobby. I kept glancing at the app on my phone to see if Rachel showed up.
She didn’t, but the blonde woman looked around periodically.
She seemed to be waiting for someone:
Me.
Unfortunately for her – and for Rachel – I would have to send another ‘me’ in my place.
I just had to find him.
There was a bar on the opposite end of the lobby from the restaurant. I walked in, scoped out the Saturday evening crowd, and found the perfect mark: a young guy at the bar, about 25 years old. He was dressed for a night out and nursing what looked like a whiskey sour. Most importantly, he was alone.
I walked over and sat down next to him.
“Shit,” I muttered to myself.
He looked over. “Something wrong, mate p>
“No,” I grumbled – then immediately said, “Yeah, actually, I’m supposed to meet a woman for a business dinner in the restaurant – but I think it might be the girl I had a one-night stand with last night p>
“Oh shit!” he said as he laughed.
“It gets worse. I snuck out of her flat before she woke up this morning p>
The guy at the bar was nearly pissing himself with laughter. “That’s a bloody cock-up! How the hell did that happen p>
“It’s a long story. My company threw a party, she was there, one thing led to another… the problem is, I don’t know if the woman at the table is her or not p>
“How do you not know p>
“I can’t get too close or she’ll see me. Plus, I was fuckin’ drunk. The woman from last night was short and blonde – that’s all I remember. I definitely don’t remember her name. All I know is that the woman I’m supposed to meet for dinner is named Diana p>
“Well, you’ve got yourself into quite the pickle, my friend. You American p>
“Yeah,” I said, pleased he couldn’t place me as Swedish.
“Welcome to England,” he said with another laugh.
I paused like I was hesitating. “…could I ask you a huge favor p>
“Oh no. I’m not getting anywhere near this one p>
“But – ”
“Can’t do it, mate. I’m meeting someone in ten minutes p>
“It’ll only take two,” I said as I pulled out five 100-pound notes.
That got his attention.
“If it’s the woman from last night, this whole situation could ruin my career – so I’ll gladly give you this,” I said, holding up the money, “if you just go in there, sit down, and find out if her name is Diana p>
“What good is that going to do you p>
“I’ll be watching from a distance while you keep her distracted. If it’s the girl I slept with last night, I’ll signal to you by shaking my head ‘no.’ You say you’ve got to go to the bathroom. Come meet me, I’ll pay you, and we both bail. If it’s not the girl from last night, I’ll walk up to the table, say you’re needed back at the office, slip you the money with a handshake, and take your place p>
He laughed uneasily, but he was eyeing the cash. “Isn’t she going to find all of that a bit odd p>
“She’ll get over it. Five hundred pounds for two minutes’ worth of work – and you might save me from getting fired. I’d owe you forever p>
He sighed heavily… then grinned. “Alright p>
He reached for the money –
“Ah,” I said, pulling it out of his reach. “Only at the end p>
He gave me an irritated look, so I put one of the hundreds in his hand. “But consider that a down payment p>
“Okay,” he said, considerably happier. “What do I do p>
“She’s a blonde with a yellow rose on the table in front of her. Left side of the restaurant. Go ask if she’s Diana and say you’re Herman p>
“Don’t take this the wrong way, but you don’t look like a Herman p>
“I get that a lot,” I said drily. “If she says her name is Diana, sit down and talk for a minute. Just say things like, ‘Have you been waiting long?’ and ‘Nice place.’ I’ll come around from the side to get a good look at her. Once I’m sure it’s fine, I’ll signal to you – or I’ll walk up to the table and take your place. Either way, you just made 500 pounds p>
“Okay,” he said, drained the last of his drink, and stood up. “Why not p>
“That’s the spirit,” I said. “What’s your name p>
“John p>
“Thanks a million, John. You have no idea how much you’re helping me p>
“Get ready to pay me, Herman,” he said with a wink.
“I will. You have my word p>