Chapter 7
Simon stomped angrily back to his hotel. He didn’t even bother to hide himself or be careful. It was no longer necessary. Although, he should have. Back in his room, he immediately sensed someone had been in there. Nothing was disturbed, but it was a feeling, that something was going on. Had Vitoly been followed? Had Jessalyn? He cleared the room, checking the bathroom, and closet. No one remained there. He dropped to the bed. Hanging his head, he propped his elbows on his thighs, and held the sides of his heads. Staring at the floor, he tried to calm the anger raging through him. His marriage had been the one thing going for him. The one thing that truly made his life worth living. It was all gone now. Betrayed. How could he have been such a fool? Not known? It didn’t matter anymore though. He got up, looking at the paper he left on the desk, carelessly. Normally he would have taken measures to ensure that it was not out for just anyone to find. He scanned the list of appearances Andel Novak would be making the next day and the day after. His appearance at St. Vitus Cathedral would be the perfect place. A crowd would gather, to hear the politician speak, he would walk through, though with bodyguards, and all Simon had to do, was get close. Then leave. Run. He would get him money from the Swiss, move to somewhere remote, and change his identity.
The fact that he was leaving his wife behind, hurt. Her betrayal hurt, badly. And worse, she knew, she now knew that he was The Lion. He had to work fast. Pulling out a tablet from his suitcase, he started his research. Pulling up plans and maps of the area, watching videos of Andel’s other appearances. He studied how many bodyguards he would have and any other security measures he could find. This shouldn’t be too hard. Czech politicians usually weren’t big targets, like US ones. They were more lax here, with their security. As he grappled for control of his focus, his mind kept returning to Jessalyn, to their life together over the last year, to the happiness he was losing. Before her, his life had been a dark place, she was a bright spot. He had been an angry person, living a life of death, darkness and it almost drug him to a place of no return. Now it was gone. How could they go back? How could he ever trust her again? To him, it was all a lie. Everything. She wasn’t who she claimed, so how can he trust that their love was real? He couldn’t get the pained look on her face out of his head though. She looked truly upset. But good agents, were good actors. With a plan in mind, he crawled into bed. The speaking engagement was early in the morning. As he lay down, he couldn’t sleep, only tossing and turning with thoughts of what he lost.
***
As the sun rose over Prague, he packed his bags and headed to the private air strip. He had booked a flight to Switzerland, and left his luggage, promising to be back in a few hours. With the venom in his pocket, he made his way to St. Vitus. Tightening the scarf, pulling his newsy low, he tried to blend in. A little girl in rags was selling little Czech flags for 100 crowns. He handed her an American twenty, took a flag and moved on. Poverty was rampant in parts of this country. He felt good, giving her the extra that would probably feed her family for a month. He shoved through the crowd, making his way to the front, nearest where they would bring Andel in. He looked to the left, and spotted Vitoly. The man was smart enough to not acknowledge him, but they made eye contact. He wished the man had stayed home, but knew that he needed the satisfaction of seeing this done. With a hand in his pocket, he carefully slid the ring onto his finger. A vendor rolled nearby, selling food and ale. Though it was only ten am, many were drinking and celebrating. He chugged the ale, making sure to accidentally bump into someone and dump some on his coat. He smiled, raising the ale in the air as those he ran into, cheered with him. He kept moving towards the road, at the front of the Cathedral. Three black town cars pulled up and guards surrounded the middle one. Opening the door, the tallest man spoke into a Bluetooth. Andel Novak emerged from the car, straightening his suit. He looked around the crowd, smirking at the cheers he received.
The more Simon looked at him, the more this man’s evil shone through. His eyes were beady and black, and the calculating look he gave everyone and everything, just gave Simon an uneasy feeling. He pressed forward with the crowd as the guards tried to clear a path through. They were two feet away, so close. He took the final chug of ale, and cheered, slapping the politician on the back as he moved by. The man cried out in pain as Simon carefully slid the ring off, dropping it into the pouch in his pocket. He smiled widely as Andel turned, to look at him. Two of the guards moved between them, shoving Simon back. One of them sniffed the air, grimacing at the strong smell of alcohol.
“No touch,” he spit out, and the two then shoved him backwards. His arms fly wheeled around, as he tried to catch his balance. If he fell on the poison item in his pocket, he’d die too. Thankfully, the crowd surging forward, kept him on his feet. Frightened cheers came up from the crowd as they moved back in tandem, giving way to the politician. His face was red, sweat beading and dripping down his face. Simon smiled to himself and turned, slowly exiting the area. He hailed a cab and made his way to the private airport, and well after Andel Novak was already announced dead, he was in the air, on his way to Switzerland under a new name.