“We’ll take care of that later,” said Marcel dismissively. “The main thing is to ensure she doesn’t bleed to death.”
In the end, she didn’t bleed to death, but it wasn’t tidy, and afterward, Odette and Marcel looked exactly as if they had conducted emergency surgery in a hotel room.
In order to leave the suite without sending the Checquy guards bursting in as soon as they got one look at her, Odette had washed her hands and face thoroughly and wrapped herself in Ernst’s gigantic and luxurious robe. It had trailed behind her as she walked down the corridor, which had garnered some startled looks, but the hallway guards seemed to put it down to Grafter-style eccentricity on her part.
Unfortunately, Clements did not seem to be so asinine.
“You performed surgery?” exclaimed Felicity. “At a staff meeting?”
“Um, yes,” said Odette, trying desperately to behave as if this were a perfectly normal occurrence. “One of the assistants had some problems with her implants. She was sick all over the table, so we opened her up in the bathroom,” she added in a fit of inspiration. There was really no way to prevent news of the vomiting from getting out.
“I see,” said Felicity. She looked appalled at the idea, but to Odette’s relief she seemed to buy it. Apparently, she was willing to believe anything of the Grafters — a thought that depressed Odette a little. “Well,” said the Pawn, “I had a meeting too.” She did not add that her meeting had not resulted in her getting covered in bodily fluids, but both of them were thinking it. “I got a call to go down to Portsmouth. They want me to take a look at something.”
“Oh!” said Odette. “So does that mean that I won’t...” have to endure your presence for the rest of the day? she mentally finished.
“No, it means you’re coming down to Portsmouth with me,” said the Pawn. She sounded as deeply unenthusiastic about the prospect as Odette felt. “They checked with your grandfather, and he thought it was a good idea.”
“I see.”
“He said to be sure to wear your coat, as it gets cold down by the seaside,” said Clements.
“Right,” said Odette absently. She’s not going to be following me around, she realized with a sinking feeling. I’m going to be following her around. Because she is more important than I am.
“We’re taking the train down, so you’ll need to get changed. Quickly.”
Odette nodded unhappily and hurried into her and Alessio’s room, where she put on her fourth-best suit. Clements chivvied her out of the suite and down to the lobby. Apparently, there was a car waiting to whip them to Waterloo Station. They were just heading out the hotel’s main door when Felicity’s mobile rang.
“Clements,” the Pawn answered briskly. “Yes? Yes, sir, we’ll wait.” She snapped the phone shut. “They’re sending someone down with a briefing folder; more material came over the secure line. I’ll meet them at the lifts. You sit on that couch, and don’t go anywhere. I’ll be watching you.”
Odette sat, reluctantly obedient, and looked on without much interest as a swarm of businessmen were checked in. She glanced over to the bank of lifts and saw that Clements was indeed watching her. She looked down hastily. There was a bowl of apples on the coffee table in front of her, and she took one while she waited.
“Delicious, aren’t they?” said a voice beside her, and she turned, startled. A blond woman was sitting on the arm of the couch, also eating an apple. She was stunningly beautiful and had the best-looking skin Odette had ever seen on a non-Grafter. She smiled at Odette and rolled her eyes at the harried-looking hotel receptionists. “I expect they put the fruit out just to cover up for the long waiting times, but what can you do?” Her accent was British and, from what Odette could tell, very upper-class.
“Just have an apple and bide your time, I suppose,” said Odette.
“Not a bad motto for life in general,” remarked the woman with a smile, and Odette smiled back. “Have you got a busy day coming up?”
“I’m heading down to Portsmouth.”
“Well, word around the halls of the Apex is that the negotiations are going along quite well.”
Oh, she’s Checquy, realized Odette. And she doesn’t recoil from me. Finally, someone pleasant. And some pleasant news.
“That’s encouraging,” said Odette. “I thought I hadn’t made the best impression.” The woman shook her head, smiling as if she couldn’t imagine what had given Odette that idea. “Well, shall I see you at Apex House?” Odette asked.
“Nope, I’ll be stationed here for a few days,” said the woman. “Security detail. I’m mainly stuck hanging around in the lobby, reading complimentary magazines, watching the door, and being mistaken for a call girl by drunken businessmen.”
“We’ll try and be as unexciting as possible,” said Odette. “I promise.”
“I’d appreciate it,” said the woman.
“I’m Odette,” said Odette. “You probably already know that, though, from the files.”
“I do,” said the woman. “I’m Pawn Jelfs. Sophie. Good to meet you.”
“You too,” Odette said, feeling slightly better about the day. On the spur of the moment, she picked up an apple to take to Clements.
*
Clements guided Odette firmly through Waterloo Station. They’d missed the rush hour, but the crowds were still busy enough that the Checquy agent’s threat-detection instincts were on overdrive. She moved like an eel through the throng, avoiding even casual physical contact with people, and every time they were jostled, Odette could see the bodyguard actively restrain herself from taking down some hapless commuter with a chop to the throat. It was apparent that Pawn Felicity Clements was not at ease among civilians.
Odette did her best to remain focused, but she couldn’t help getting distracted by the station. The architecture, the people, and the energy were captivating. She kept stopping to take it all in. Judging from Clements’s sighs and other irritated mouth-noises, the Pawn wanted nothing more than to take Odette firmly by the hair and drag her to the train, but that would presumably have violated the Checquy policy of remaining unnoticed.
Eventually, after much pained sighing and pointed nudging on the part of Pawn Clements, they were seated in the first-class carriage of the train going from Waterloo to Portsmouth Harbour railway station. Clements disappeared into her folder of official documents, and Odette amused herself by looking out the window at the people walking down the platform.
As the train pulled out of the station, all Odette’s concerns were swept away, and she stared out the window, enthralled by the new perspective of the city. Then they were sweeping through the countryside and she didn’t care about the awkward silence at all. God, this is a beautiful country. It was so green it almost hurt her eyes.
When they arrived at Portsmouth, she could smell the ocean in the wind. She would have liked a chance to look around the city, but Clements led her briskly to a dark car that was waiting near the entrance of the station. Before the door was even shut, the driver was pulling away, sending the both of them bouncing around in the backseat.
“Where are we going?” ventured Odette once she’d unwedged herself from the corner. The car was moving so fast and taking turns so sharply that all she could tell about the city of Portsmouth was that it appeared to be made up mainly of buildings of some sort.
“The naval base,” said Clements. Odette nodded. She was dimly aware that Portsmouth had been a navy port for centuries, but she only remembered it because she’d read Mansfield Park. “The item they want me to look at is under armed guard there.” Odette felt a trifle surprised that the item, whatever it was, was being kept at a regular navy base and not some secret Checquy facility. But it’s all government, she told herself. You’re going to be a government employee yourself.