New Directions (37)

 

 

  By lunchtime my eyes felt like someone’d kicked sand in my face. Three hours of staring at my PC screen scrolling through hundreds of messages trying to find anything suspicious among the emoji filled dross took its toll. I looked across to Erik. His returning glance suggested he felt the same.

 

‘Wanna go for lunch?’ I asked

 

‘Yeah I could use a break.’

 

Neither of us had moved all morning except for short trips to take a pee. I don’t think we said more than a dozen words to each other and most of them were more like grunts or exclamations when something interesting turned up. It was Erik’s idea to keep shtum while we worked in order to maintain concentration. He said to write anything useful down on the notepads he brought with him so we could go over it later.

 

‘There’s a pretty decent pub in the next village, the food’s okay and it doesn’t get very busy.’

 

’Sounds good.’

 

As I’d expected the Green Grasshopper Inn was fairly sparsely populated, but it had a wintery cosy feel due to the glittery Christmas decorations around the bar and the big open fireplace. The “Grasshopper” tended to be a popular as an evening meal pub. We found a largish round table by the window.

 

‘What you drinking,’I asked.

 

‘No alcohol for me, Pal, I’ve have an installation to do this afternoon. Coke’s good.’

 

’So you actually work,’ I said after I returned with two large colas and the lunch menu. ‘The van’s not just a front then?’

 

‘Is your Landlord business a front?’

 

‘Yeah, sorry, Mate. I deserved that. We all have to make a living after we come out, Kosher or not.’

 

‘Kosher? You jewish?’

 

‘It’s an expression, means honest or not.’ I forgot Erik was Dutch. Erik’s smirk told me he was winding me up, ’sod off,’ I laughed.

 

‘I’d enough of spying for a living, but I thought, “why not use it to start up a business,” and that’s what I did. This little sideline’s only for Guido’s chosen few.’

 

’So you went kosher and I didn’t. I guess you wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t fallen for Harry Petit’s bullshit.’

 

‘I wouldn’t say that, you got out before it went too far. That’s why Guido supports you.’

 

‘Guido saved my life you know that. I owe him big time.’

 

‘He’s just returning the favour. Think about what he owes you, My Friend.’

 

A cold shiver ran down my back and I felt my body firing up a cold sweat. ‘Yeah well that’s enough of that, let’s eat.’ I blurted. 

 

The food arrived - quarter inch thick pieces of minute-steak sandwiched between silced chunks of crusty Spanish style barritas. The warm glow they brought countered my cold recollections. Both hungry we went for them like wolves on a kill, except we didn’t bare out teeth and snarl at each other. They were so good  we broke our self imposed rule and celebrated our banquet with a half of best. 

 

When we got back to my place Erik stuck another memory stick in his PC. After a about a minute he pulled it out and put it next to my PC then started packing up his gear. ‘What’s this?’

 

‘It’s a copy of everything I’ve found so far. Go through it and see if there’s anything I missed,’ he  pushed his book of notes towards me. With what you have on the WhatsApp stuff you should get a pretty good idea of what’s gone on.’

 

‘You leaving?’ I asked feeling a tad let down.

 

‘I have to make that installation. It’s business,’ he grinned rubbing his fingers and thumb together, ‘besides there isn’t much more I can do now. I need to get into this guy’s phone and set up a something so we can record his voice calls. I can’t do that from here — too risky. Also it takes a long time. I’ll be back Monday.’ He must have seen the hurt look on my face. ‘It’s Friday, Man. Take a day off, go and see Karen, I’m sure she’d be happy.’

 

’She’s on call all this weekend.’

 

Erik picked up the memory stick again and waved it in front of my face. ‘Well I guess you have a busy weekend ahead anyway.’ He laughed. . . . ‘Monday, 9am.’