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The woman’s face relaxed. “That’s right.”
Leilah swiped the lipstick over her mouth, checked her handiwork, then returned the tube of lipstick and the jar of primer to the bag before extending her right hand. “I’m Leilah Khan.”
“Nice to meet you,” Maggie O’Donnell murmured as she shook Leilah’s hand. “Leilah’s a pretty name.” She paused and tilted her head. “Seems I’ve heard that name recently?” Her voice carried a question.
“Probably from Ryan.”
The woman’s face lit up. “Oh, you’re Ryan’s Leilah. What on earth is he doing back so soon? Getting your car?”
“He needed to look up one more piece of information. In fact, I suspect he’s already finished, so I should hurry back. You take good care, Mrs. O’Donnell.”
Leilah zipped the makeup bag closed and returned it to her tote bag.
As Leilah headed toward the door, Maggie called after her, “Did Ryan’s friends catch up with him?”
She froze with her hand on the door, poised to push it open. “His friends?”
“Yes, not even five minutes after Ryan popped into my office to say goodbye, four gentlemen showed up asking if I’d seen him.”
Leilah turned from the door and pasted a bright smile on her face despite her galloping pulse. “Oh? Did you catch any of their names?”
Maggie frowned and gave a slow shake of her head. “I’m afraid not. I’m surprised they didn’t head over to the hotel.”
Leilah’s eyes widened. “The hotel?”
Ryan told this woman where he was staying?They were going to have to have a serious conversation about operational security.
“Well, yes, dear. Ryan mentioned that he’s staying at the Diplomat Club. So I sent them there.”
A tsunami of relief swept over Leilah and her knees nearly buckled.Sorry, I doubted you, Ryan.
“Oh, of course. That was kind of you. I’ll let him know.” She flashed another smile and then raced out of the bathroom.
She sprinted down the hallway and skidded to a stop in the doorway to the reading room. “We need to go. Now.”
Ryan looked up from the computer screen and held up his pointer finger. “Give me a minute.”
“No! Now!” She realized she was shouting but didn’t care.
He didn’t ask any questions. He pushed his chair back, grabbed his bag, and hurried to the doorway. She pulled him toward the exit door.
As they stepped out onto the wide brick porch, Ryan gave her a worried look. “What’s going on?”
She was opening her mouth to answer when a dark, late-model sedan careered into view, screeched to a stop directly across the street, and parked illegally. All four car doors opened, and four men in suits exited the car.
“We need to get my car.” She turned toward the parking lot behind the building.
“No time. Run,” Ryan shouted, pulling her down the stairs to the street.
They ran.
* * *
Ryan caughtLeilah’s hand and pulled her off the sidewalk into a dormant green space maintained by one of the embassies. “Shortcut,” he huffed. “This runs behind the hotel. There’s a back way into the guest parking garage.”
They hurdled a row of low bushes and came out of the mini-garden in a brick alleyway. He craned his neck. He didn’t see their pursuers, but he couldn’t imagine they’d been that easy to shake.
“Come on,” Leilah urged. “I can see the garage door.”
