The Book of Spies

35

Athens, Greece
THE LIBRARY of Gold Learjet circled down slowly, the lights of Greece's ancient capital gleaming beneath. Nervously making plans, Robin turned away from the panorama and stared back down the length of the cabin to Martin Chapman, his tall figure upright in his seat. He was on his cell phone, his jaw working angrily.
As the jet touched down at Athens International Airport, she studied her cell phone and battery, remembering Preston's awful call to her while she was waiting on the jet in London for Charles and him to arrive. He had ordered her to take the cell apart, and then he told her Charles was dead. Grief swelled her throat. She forced herself to repress it.
Preston had never told her why she was to not activate it again. It did not matter; she was going to need a phone. Sliding the pieces into her pocket, she stood and walked to the rear of the plane.
Chapman peered up as she slung on the backpack that contained The Book of Spies. She did not like the look in his eyes.
Still, he spoke neutrally. "The helicopter is ready."
She nodded. "Good." But she knew it was not good. Once she was in the helicopter, she would be on her way to the hidden Library of Gold, where security was so intense no one could escape--but people occasionally disappeared. People like her. "Will you be going with us, Mr. Chapman?" she asked, although he had made no move to rise.
"I have other business. Magus will take care of you."
From the front, Magus nodded knowing agreement. "Yes, sir, Mr. Chapman."
She followed Magus out of the Learjet and into the black hours of night. The cool air made her shaved head feel even more exposed. She forced herself to stay calm. The airport extended around them, a wide sweep of tarmac with jets coming and going from the long arms of the terminal. It seemed far away, an impossible distance.
A small luggage truck had pulled up to the tail of the jet, and the driver was unloading bags and other items. He was a small man and elderly, with stringy arms showing beneath the short sleeves of his airport shirt. She felt a moment of hope; she might be able to handle him. As he humped Charles's canvas-wrapped body into the back of the truck, she turned away.
"Let's go." Magus's face was a mask. "I'll bet you're ready to get home and settle in."
"You're right," Robin lied. "It will be good to be home."
They walked toward the waiting vehicle, which would take them to the helicopter. It was only about seven feet long and narrow, with space in front for just two people--the driver and a passenger. The rear was an open bed, packed with her large roll-aboard slammed against the cab, Charles's corpse, and several wood boxes Preston had picked up in London.
"I'll help you in." Magus stopped at the rear, where, as the junior member, she would ordinarily sit.
She stared at him, allowing a sense of helplessness to sound in her voice. "I'm so tired. And I'm supposed to keep this backpack with me all the time. Mr. Chapman's orders. Would you mind if I sat in front with the driver?"
They looked at the bed of the truck. There was no gate or upper flap at the end, while the sides had short walls about a foot tall. The floor was hard steel.
"Sure," he said. "Why not." But he touched his hip, where she suspected he kept his gun inside his jacket. The gesture might have been automatic, but it felt like a threat.
Robin gave him a bright smile. "Thanks."
He walked her around to the passenger side. There were no doors on the cab. She took off the backpack and climbed in. Then he walked around to the driver's side, which was also open. He ordered the elderly man out from behind the steering wheel, and her heart sank. Now it would be Magus sitting next to her, armed, young, and strong.
As soon as the driver crawled into the back, Magus studied the automatic transmission, then put the light truck into gear. They rolled away.
She held the backpack on her lap, cradling it in her arms, realizing she had one lucky break--he was an unsure driver, glancing at the steering wheel, the small rearview mirror, the gear shift. That might help--that, and if she surprised him.
She turned around and watched the Learjet taxi away. Returning to face the front, she asked innocently, "Wouldn't you like to see what's in the backpack, Magus?"
"No." He was focused on his driving.
But she started to unzip it, the sound jagged and sharp.
He glanced at her. "Close that up." He reached a hand toward it.
She bit the hand and tasted blood. Swearing, he jerked his hand back, and she slammed the heavy backpack against the side of his head. Reeling, he lashed out with an arm, connecting only with the pack. With the sharp toe of her boot, she kicked the calf of the leg that had a foot on the accelerator and immediately crashed the backpack against his head again.
His foot bounced off the accelerator, the small truck careened, and there was a shout from the back as the driver slid out.
Magus hit the brakes and reached inside his jacket for his gun. In a flurry of motion, Robin slammed her foot down on the accelerator and bit his ear. The truck shot ahead. As his gun appeared in his hand, she slashed her fingernails down his face and eyes, ripping skin.
He yelled and lashed the gun toward her. But he was off-balance now, and the truck was lurching forward, alternating between braking and accelerating. His gun was aimed at her.
In a fury, she smashed the backpack into his face again and rotated her hips toward him. Bracing one hand on the back of her seat and gripping the handhold on the dashboard with the other, she rammed her boots into his hip, inching him across the vinyl seat.
His gun went off, the shot deafening as the bullet exploded through the cab's roof. Blood dripped into his eyes as he tried to see. He shot wildly again, and she shoved him out the door and floored the gas feed. The truck hurtled forward.
Her heart pounded like a kettledrum as she slid behind the wheel and began to steer. More bullets sliced through the cab, barely missing The Book of Spies on the seat beside her. Driving, she crouched low, eyes just above the dash, thankful for the vast open space of the tarmac. A shot flew over her head, a lethal whisper. And then there was no more gunfire.
She rose up and peered into the rearview mirror. Magus was running after her, more and more distant, a hand angrily wiping his face of blood. Behind him lay a trail of capsized wood crates and Charles's corpse. For a long moment she was furious with Charles, furious he had put her in this position, and then the emotion vanished. She was on her own now, as she had been in years past. You know how to do this, she told herself.
Determined, she spun the steering wheel, heading toward a chain-link fence. At last she saw a gate beside a dark airport outbuilding. It was quite a bit away, which was good. More distance between her and Magus. The night air cooled her face as she kept the gas feed pressed to the floor.
At the wire gate, she screeched the truck to a stop and jumped out. Putting on the backpack, she looked back. Magus was very far away and had slowed to a jog. His hand was at his ear, no doubt calling for help. But as long as she had The Book of Spies, she had a bargaining chip. Martin Chapman would stop at nothing to get her back, hunt her to the far reaches of the planet if he had to, but with the illuminated manuscript she could perhaps negotiate permanent freedom.
She wrestled her roll-aboard out of the truck's bed. It had been crammed against the cab and had missed the fate of the rest of the luggage. Pulling it, she hurried through the gate and into a big parking lot.
She moved quickly among the cars, vans, and SUVs, peering inside. At last she found an old Peugeot, battered and rusted, with a key in the ignition. Scanning around, she took her purse from the roll-aboard. She still had pounds from England; she would exchange them for euros. Last, she found the straw hat she had bought in London. She slammed it down on her bald head and tied the ribbon under her chin.
She loaded the roll-aboard and the backpack into the car. Fighting fear, she drove off through the moonlight toward the exit, her gaze constantly going to her rearview mirror.