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Allegra pulled on the new clothing, including the boots and jacket. Then she tucked her hair up in the hat. Putting on the sunglasses, she turned to him. “See you shortly.”
He nodded once and she headed for the door. He admired her ass in the leggings the entire way until she was out the door.
“Now, for you,” Lena said and pointed to a new jacket.
This trip was costing him a fortune but he’d spend every single cent he had to keep Allegra safe. He could lie to himself and say it was because of Hank and that he owed the man but the truth was, it was because of Allegra. He wanted—no,neededher to be safe.
Putting those thoughts aside, he brought a new jacket and hat along with sunglasses and boots. He left his old stuff at the store with Lena and asked her to donate it somewhere. “Can I borrow your phone for a second? I’ll pay you for the time.”
She nodded and handed him the phone. He moved over to the window and scanned the street as he waited for Hank to answer.
“Patterson,” the voice said in clipped tones.
“Hank, it’s Xavier.”
“Jesus Christ, are you okay? Where the hell are you? What happened?” The relief and worry in Hank’s voice was palpable. It eased some of the tension in Xavier’s gut.
“All good questions. I don’t have a lot of time. I wanted to call the team but figured you’re the best way to get the information through. I’m okay. The plane was brought down by the co-pilot on purpose. Still trying to figure out what the hell is going on but someone is after Allegra. They want her dead. I’m in some small town in Switzerland. We’re heading to Geneva. We’ve got gunmen after us and no supplies. Any help you can give would be greatly appreciated.”
“I’m already tracking this number. Not sure what I’ve got in your area, but I’ll work on finding resources. I’ll let the guys know you’re okay. I’m on the co-pilot thing. The rescue workers just found the plane a half hour ago and they want to know where the hell you two are. I won’t tell them, but the gunmen aren’t the only ones looking, so I know I don’t need to tell you but stay safe and watch your six.”
“Will do. I have to give this phone back. I’ll get another one and call you on it. Do me one more favor; check on Joey, my usual co-pilot. I got a bad feeling about him.”
“On it. Stay safe.”
Xavier ended the call and gave the phone back to Lena along with a large tip. Then after studying the map, he left the store.
The day was cold but sunny. Merchants were still cleaning snow off the sidewalks, but occasional slick spots made the path treacherous. The guest house was about five blocks down and then he’d head right a few blocks. Allegra was taking a more direct route but off the main street. He had planned on going a more circuitous route. He didn’t want to attract any attention by heading the same way as Allegra.
He got down to the end of the first block and was crossing the street when the smell of roasting meat hit him. His stomach growled like he’d been starving for weeks. He looked around and saw the source of the smell. A small restaurant in the next block. He made a beeline for the place. It was a risk, but he was so damn hungry, he almost didn’t care. Besides Allegra needed food too.
Entering the restaurant, he realized it wasn’t just a restaurant but also a hotel. The reception desk was directly in front of him and the restaurant was off to his right. He walked over to the hostess stand and asked the young woman there if he could order takeout. She smiled and handed him a menu.
The place was kind of like a diner with stools by the counter and tables along the wall. He perused the menu. One side was in German but the other side thankfully was in English. He ordered cheeseburgers for both of them with fries and drinks and then sat on a stool at the end of the counter, his back to the wall, giving him a wide view of his surroundings. The place was cute and full of tourists. Skiing was the main attraction for the area since they were in the mountains, and he’d noticed a lot of cars with skis on top of them on the way in. People also seemed to be from all over the world. Lots of languages spoken, including English.
Might as well take a stroll around as sit on a stool and wait. No need to be that visible. Xavier wandered through the lobby of the hotel and checked out the little gift shop. Then he headed for the restrooms. Five minutes later as he was exiting the bathroom, he caught movement in the corner of his eye. A man was standing at the window that overlooked the parking lot. He was on the phone and he was also wearing a white parka with white boots. He’d ditched the white snow pants and had on black cargo pants instead.
Xavier stepped back into the gift shop and pretended to look at the postcard display while he tried to eavesdrop on what the man was saying.
“No. Not yet.” There was silence and then, “I’m not convinced they made it off the mountain. Two of my men are still searching for the snowmobile.” More silence. Then, “You received the laptop?”
The man directed his gaze through the window of the gift shop as he spoke. “We did search the site before the rescue crews arrived. There was no trace of anything else. No papers. No other computer.” He fell silent again, listening to whoever was on the other end. “If they don’t show up today, what do you want us to do?”
The woman who took Xavier’s order was waving at him from the door of the restaurant. He waited until the man on the phone turned back around before nodding to her and then heading in her direction. He paid for the food and moved swiftly out of the building. The man was no longer at the window when he left but Xavier sure as hell wasn’t going to go searching for him. If only he knew what the answer to that last question was. He had a feeling that whatever the answer, his life just got more difficult.
CHAPTER12
Allegra smiledher thanks at Gunther and took a sip of tea. Where the hell was Xavier? It shouldn’t have taken this long. She stood in the little kitchen and looked out the window toward the back of the house.He’ll come walking down the driveway any minute, she told herself. She rubbed the back of her neck. Her ribs hurt and so did her ass. Last night’s activities hadn’t helped the bruising but they’d helped her in so many other ways.
“He will be here,” Gunther said as if to reassure her.
Although the man didn’t know either of them, his confidence in Xavier was bolstering. Something she could hold on to. The knots in her stomach were still tied tight and her patience was at an all-time low but she was also thankful for this man’s help.
“I’m sure you’re right,” she replied. “So, have you lived here long?”
“All my life. I grew up here in town but I now live on the mountain. My wife passed on a few years ago. Ingrid liked being in town. I prefer to be up in the mountains.”
“I am so sorry for your loss.” How heartbreaking. Being alone at his age. Being alone at any age was hard but she imagined that it was harder as the years went by. Allegra’s mother kept harping on her that she’d be alone all her life if she didn’t stop working so much. Mom had a point, but Allegra didn’t really care about being alone. She liked her own company. She had friends and a life. Who needed a man to come in and mess with everything? They only got in the way or were upset when they took a backseat to work.
