Draco fell in behind her, determined to stick to her like flypaper, twenty-four-seven. She might not like the forced proximity, but after she’d been whisked away in a car he’d been standing beside, he refused to let her out of reach again for even a second.
Outside the restaurant, the air had turned cooler, and the clouds had moved on, leaving the sky clear and the cobblestones wet from the rain. Streetlights cast warm yellow light across the stone pavers.
An SUV idled against the curb, Dmytro having settled in the driver’s seat. A couple of taxis lined up behind it.
While Crusher and Phantom checked the IDs of the taxi drivers, Hammer held the door of his SUV open for Cate. “Let us drop you at your hotel,” he said.
Cate stared at the open door, her jaw tightening. She hefted the gym bag Hammer had given her, filled with clothing his wife had given her until she could get new clothes of her own. She pressed her empty hand to her chest, then pulled the edges of her coat together.
Draco leaned close to her ear. “Six blocks,” she whispered.
She turned, her eyes widening at how close he was. “What?”
He smiled gently and nodded toward old town and the quaint and varied heights of rooflines lining the Niederdorf. “It’s six blocks to the hotel, give or take. Since it’s stopped raining, it’s turned out to be a nice night. I feel like a walk. Care to join me?”
Cate stared up at him, her eyes narrow as if trying to discern whether he was lying or really wanted to walk. “You really would rather walk?”
He nodded. “I’ve been sitting for three hours. I could use a good stretch of the legs to get the kinks out.”
Her gaze swept over him. “Kinks, huh?”
Draco grinned. “I’m getting old. The knees have seen hard times.”
Her lips twitched at the corners and then twisted into a wry smile. “Old, my sweet patootie,” she murmured, turning a real smile toward Hammer. “Thanks, Ace. But I’ll walk and keep the old man company.”
Hammer chuckled. “Suit yourself.” His gaze met Draco’s over Cate’s head.
Draco gave the man a slight nod. He’d be on his toes, maintaining strict situational awareness the entire time.
He turned, slung her gym bag over the same shoulder as his backpack, then held out his other elbow. When Cate hesitated, he said, “The cobblestones are wet. I was hoping we could keep each other balanced.”
If he wasn’t mistaken, she gave a sound like a muffled harrumph and slid her hand into the crook of his arm.
They set out walking along the fresh, rain-washed streets, climbing uphill into Zurich’s old town. Medieval buildings lined the narrow streets. Shop windows were dark. Music, laughter and the hum of voices spilled out of the occasional bar they passed along the way.
Draco walked on the street side of the narrow sidewalk, his trained gaze sweeping the shadows ahead. He glanced back often, noting a man dressed in a gray overcoat walked with his head down forty feet behind them on the opposite side of the street. He turned at the next corner, disappearing down a side street. Probably nothing, but he didn’t let down his guard, just in case.
Cate’s hand tightened on his arm. “You’re doing it.”
“Doing what?”
“That thing you do.” She waved her free hand. “It’s like your head is on a swivel, and you’re looking everywhere all at once.” Cate pulled her hand free of his arm and both into her coat pockets. “You were doing it at the restaurant. Every time the door opened, you were halfway out of your seat, ready to attack.”
“Defend,” he corrected. “It’s a habit, an occupational hazard from years as a Navy SEAL and then with the SOS.”
“Draco,” she said as if speaking to a child hiding a stolen cookie behind his back.
He shot a glance in a three-sixty before looking down at Cate, his heart pinching hard in his chest at the bruise-like shadows beneath her eyes. “I think we picked up a shadow from the restaurant.”
Her head whipped around, her eyes wide. When her gaze returned to his, she frowned. “I don’t see anyone.”
“He dropped off at the last corner. I’d rather be walking where I can see who’s following than in a metal deathtrap someone else is steering.”
She slowed. “That’s why we’re walking?”
“It’s one reason.”
Cate glanced up at him. “What’s the other reason?”
