Stevedore Ch. 6
Caviar Bowl
Dawn broke, a man yawned from the bed in his penthouse apartment. His phone buzzed, turning over he grabbed the glowing device off of his dresser. The man read the message.
Gepra associates are in the lobby.
He stared at the woman beside him, smacking her on her ass with a quivering, vibrating jiggle. The woman stirred awake.
“mmmmmhmmm.” She turned over to face the man.
“Вне...” He swatted her backside more forcefully. “Воспользуйтесь служебным лифтом….”
The woman pouted for a second. He then gripped her face hard, and aggressively.
“Нет!”
The man reared back and slapped the woman across the face. Her head recoiled for a moment, letting her hand run past her reddened cheek, she then shot her hand across the man’s chin with a teeth rattling crack. The two stared into one another’s eyes before kissing in a ravenous manner of near violence. She then bit down his lip, drawing blood.
“Ahhhhh-haaaack!” The man then jerked away. “Теперь вон.!”
The woman let out a grunt as she shuffled out of the bed, shaking her bar ass left and right in the man’s face. “Ладно, ладно! Ты, маленький преждевременный эякулятор.!”
The woman then made herself decent as the man grabbed the phone.
Make them wait ten minutes, he typed, and send them up…
Downstairs a pudgy man with a widow’s peak pocketed his phone, walking up to the smartly dressed East Asian man and woman reclining on the lobby’s sofa.
“He needs to freshen up. I hope you understand.”
The East Asian man looked at the woman, who rolled her eyes -giving a little pumping motion between the nexus of the legs of her pantsuit. The East Asian man shook his head.
“Perfectly understandable.” He replied to the pudgy man diplomatically.
Upstairs the man gargled mouthwash as he fastened his bathrobe. He checked an app on his phone -lowering his head with a grimace. A body was pulled out of the river in Salzberg, and three more shot dead in the fucking city centre. The lack of a confirmation indicating his man had failed. He checked the barometer on the wall -a balmy three degrees Celsius. He smirked, motioning to the bellhop moving in with a cart and tray. He pointed out toward the balcony. The bellhop gave him a glance, the man then nodded. What better show of strength than to have breakfast in the brisk mountain air.
Minutes later, the man slouched on the balcony leisurely spreading beluga caviar on a biscuit, as the pudgy man led the East Asian man and woman into his penthouse. The pudgy man’s eyes bulged as he led the two onto the balcony.
“Please sit.”
The East Asian woman obliged, but the East Asian man stood.
“You may leave us,” he motioned to the pudgy man.
“He’s our fixer,” The East Asian man said.
The man sighed, “then tell him to leave. Technicalities aren’t my thing.”
The East Asian woman turned, “go watch the Meteo or something.”
The man smirked as the pudgy man -the Gepra’s reps’ fixer, bowed slightly before disappearing inside.
“Caviar….”
“No thank you,” the East Asian woman said.
“I wasn’t offering, I was addressing you.”
“Addressing?”
He took a bite, “we have a saying in Russia, in your country, your eggs are worth more than you…See the beluga fish,” He pointed at the pewter bowl that held the little black pebbles, “where we get this fine caviar, is not really that sought after in and of itself. It’s the eggs. Given your country’s demographic freefall we have developed a little anecdote.”
The East Asian man stepped forward, “we didn’t come here for small talk, you have something for us.”
He sighed, “You’re aware of the little coup north of here.”
“That farce masquerading as a coup?” The East Asian woman scoffed, blowing out dense air.
The East Asian man then added, “They say it was your doing…your government’s.”
He smiled, “I work for no government -I am a broker.”
“The American Rebels were acting on behalf of the New Russian Administration…our government has nearly confirmed it.” The East Asian man leaned forward, the cold air making him noticeably uncomfortable.
“I wouldn’t know.” He stalled, “as far as I am aware the American ‘Free States’ acted alone. But my point is -of bringing you here, one of their operatives is still at large.”
The East Asian woman cut her eyes, popping the collar of her pantsuit coat.
“Are you cold?”
“Get to the point.”
He nodded, “Café Oriental…Prague.”
The East Asian woman looked taken aback, “why the fuck would I want to go there.”
“The cakes are absolutely delectable…that and its where the remaining ‘Free State’ operative is heading next.”
“Why should I care.”
“The Free Sta -American rebel government is soon to capitulate. Rumour is their agents have knowledge of the rebel missile codes -missiles that have precoordinated targets that include several of your population centres in Gepra….”
The East Asian woman and East Asian man turned to one another.
“Go to Prague and get your codes.”
“Why are you telling us this,” The East Asian man said.
“Are our governments not friends?” He paused at their unamused faces, “not going to lie, I sent a man to kill him last night…he failed. When your proteges apprehend him -you do whatever you want to get your codes. I don’t care, as long as he is out of the way.”
The Asian woman stood. “Very well.”
“Knew you’d be reasonable, Caviar.”
The East Asian woman took the pewter bowl and tossed it out from the balcony. She then feigned clumsiness, “ooops.”
“Just a friendly warning -between allies.” He smiled wryly. “The Americans -the other Americans, have an exfil team as well. They might try to bring him in before you do.”
“Don’t worry,” the Asian man said, “we plan to go in heavy. So don’t fret, Mr. Velko…”
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Agent 0623 sat in a booth within the Café Savoy, leaning in toward the little tablet, the screen replaying security streams of a man running through the stations of the Munich Metro. She reviewed it over and over, along with more blurry footage of a similarly dressed figure seen on footage listed as being part of the Salzburg municipal network. She paused to take a sip of her espresso macchiato, not noticing the man sliding on the opposite side of the booth.
“That’s him…”
She jolted, slightly startled, before her heart fluttered at the sight of Agent 0620. He smiled at her warmly.
“Did he kill all those men?” 0623 asked.
0620 nodded somberly.
“He’s very dangerous, isn’t he?”
0620 nodded again, “these Fascists are desperate -cornered animals. They’re more dangerous in their death throes.”
“The camera shows him boarding a train.”
“OBB Westbound…it will stop in Wien Hbf…Here.”
Agent 0623 shook her head. “What are the odds of that?”
“Its not that serendipitous.” He leaned forward to dip his finger in the milk foam of 0623’s macchiato. “This was once a capital of an empire that was the hub of Central Europe.”
“Wouldn’t tell it today.”
“Still all roads lead here.” He looked over his shoulder, and she spied 0622, and 0628 leaning against the wall while 0622 feigned to look at cakes from the glass counter. “We’ve jammed the security footage…so that Brussels won’t interfere.”
She leaned in with a clever expression on her face, “do we intend on apprehending him here?’
0620 shook his head, “nah…this may not be his stop. Footage shows him boarding the EuroCity Express 128 which has a Terminus in Prague. 0625 and 0626 will board the train here and tail him. They will confirm where he gets off, then we will follow.”
“You think he’ll lead us to a bigger fish?”
“A hunch.”
0623 laughed slightly, a hunnnnch…”
“Yeah, a hunc-” He stopped himself, “what’s gotten into you?”
“Nothing….”
His face became serious, “well, stop it…I need your A-Game, as always.”
He then stood and began to leave.
“Yessir.” She was taken aback by his sudden coldness.
0620 turned back, “Take some free time this afternoon -you earned it. But I also expect you packed and ready to SP in less than a two-hour Notice to Move.”
“Roger.”
Agent 0623 watched as 0620 left -as if he were exiting her life forever. There would always be that distance between them, she surmised. It was always work, and nothing more. He always forced himself, placing those barriers and forcing her to stay at arm’s length. She understood its necessity. But part of her also felt aware of his awareness of her feelings, and suspected that he used it to his advantage. He was manipulating her and her attraction -but to what end? To make her a better operative? No, that couldn’t be it.
“Something else,” She found herself muttering aloud, before clasping her mouth -looking both ways suddenly.
The café was suddenly empty. She put down the tablet, and was suddenly and briefly at peace.
