She had learned quite a lot about the different places, and what their specialties were, when she began to realize how alike the waiters all were. What one had said blended in her mind with all the others. They had written down notes for her on prices and recommendations. Then they had turned to the next customers and spoken as easily. In a way they were invisible. Customers were nurtured, people eating, talking, laughing, but a waiter in the traditional distinct black was not remarkable, not really seen, because you expected him to be there. He would only be noted if he were not. Nobody said, “What’s that waiter doing here?” They only said, “Where’s the waiter?” if he were not there.
It took Elena the best part of two days to discover where Max Klausner had worked. It was not in one restaurant, but three. He had had a small apartment, though no one had seen him there for more than a week. He had completely succeeded in being what Elena had deduced: an invisible man. He was good at his job, an expert on food, and imaginative in his descriptions, making anything sound delicious. Nobody could remember exactly what he looked like. Dark. Average height. A little plump. A wry smile. One person thought he had a chipped front tooth, but could not be certain. There were hundreds, if not thousands, of middle-aged, dark-haired men in Trieste. Only his knowledge of food, his ease in conversation, and the name Max made her think it was likely to be the same man at all three restaurants.
The thing that mattered was that it bound him to a certain area, and only those restaurants that specialized in Austrian dishes. If they had a large Austrian clientele, surely Aiden would be among them.
Elena disliked dining in restaurants alone. She felt conspicuous, because it seemed that everyone else dined with friends. But it was necessary. She saw few other women doing so. She had lain awake a good part of every night since she had accepted the job, wondering exactly what she would do when at last she found Aiden. Would she be casual? Or would seeing him again, remembering so vividly how they had parted, make that impossible? Would emotion drown out all her intentions? The betrayal still hurt. She had been prepared to give him everything of herself, and he had refused her. Yes, it was a blow to her self-respect, self-belief. Was rescuing him now an oblique kind of revenge? But in a way, that was still letting him win, because she would be behaving badly, in a manner that injured herself even more, in order to hurt him. And would it?
Peter Howard trusted her to fulfill her mission, to be far bigger, far better than that. And so would Lucas.
She would just do her job. She would not give Aiden Strother that power.
For all her preparation, she was not ready for it when it happened. She was sitting at a small table in one of the more fashionable restaurants where Max Klausner had worked, when a group of people came in. There seemed to be six of them, three men in dinner suits and three women in evening gowns. It was one of the women who caught Elena’s eyes first. She was of ave
rage height, but she moved with such grace that she captured Elena’s attention, even more than the blonde in silver sequins or the startling brunette in red. She had very dark brown hair and she wore a black silk dress with fluid lines that moved with her. She was laughing genuinely, not for show, and her face was beautiful. If she had worn hopsack, she would still have been beautiful.
Elena watched her for several minutes before a flood of heat filled her whole body. She recognized the man with her: Aiden. It was his profile, the angle of his head, the light on his fair hair. He was handsome and he knew it. She had forgotten until now how straight he stood, which gave him several inches he did not really need. She swallowed hard. Her heart was thumping so, she thought it must be visible to other people, shaking every part of her.
Fortunately, they were all totally absorbed in each other. Not one of them was looking at her. Aiden slipped his arm around the waist of the woman in black. She allowed it. In fact, she was smiling easily. They passed within a couple of feet of Elena. Aiden actually glanced at her, just to make sure they were not accidentally going to bump her table. There was nothing in his face. No flash of recognition, or wondering for an instant if she reminded him of anyone.
“Excuse us,” he said casually. He spoke in German; the cadence of his voice was exactly as she remembered it.
Then he turned away and spoke to the woman in black. “Gabrielle, do you want to face outwards?”
She smiled at him. “Of course. Don’t we all?” But her tone was so light, she clearly did not care. “I’ve been here before.” She gave a slight, very elegant shrug, and moved further ahead of him.
Elena knew that she was blushing. She could not control it. Thank goodness no one was looking at her! She was a stranger worthy of no attention at all. A woman dining alone. She watched them until they were out of sight behind a pillar.
Aiden had looked straight at her and seemed not to know her from any other stranger. Could the memory of their passion, laughter, intimacy all disappear so completely, so soon?
He looked much the same. A little heavier, maybe. His skin had more color. It must be from the Italian sun. It suited everyone.
She could remember everything about him. The obvious things…and the others. The feel of his skin, the thrill of his strength, how easily he moved, his laughter. The way he kissed her slowly, softly…at first.
She searched for the waiter. She would pay the bill and escape.
Then her own voice rang in her ears with contempt. Elena, what the hell is the matter with you? You’ve found him. You have to stay here as long as he does, and then follow him. You have to give him vital information to save his life. And even more importantly, to get the information Peter Howard wants, needs. You let Aiden destroy your career once. Are you going to let him turn you into a coward now? You have been given a chance to redeem yourself. You can’t get the past back, but you can influence the future. Don’t let him do that to you!
The waiter came. She paid him and ordered more coffee, so she had an excuse to sit there until Aiden left.
It seemed like ages. Her coffee grew cold and she still sipped at it, as if it were delicious. Time seemed to stretch out endlessly. She only glanced at Aiden and his friends now and then. She should not be caught staring, although it would be natural enough to stare; they were anything but discreet. The woman in black, whom Aiden had called Gabrielle, apparently was vivid enough to draw the eyes of men in admiration, and of women in envy. And perhaps curiosity as to how she achieved it. Was it her hair? Her clothes? Her perfect features? Or did it lie in the grace of her movement?
It seemed like midnight when eventually they rose and made their way to the door, and Elena rose, too. Would they call taxis? There would have to be two, or possibly three. Would she lose the chance to get one also, and to follow the one with Aiden in it? Or on a fine night like this, would they walk?
She stood on the pavement as if she were waiting for someone. She had had some training in this, but now it seemed far too little. She had already spent two days in Trieste, and time was short. Why was she dithering? She was standing just yards from Aiden. Was she just going to watch him walk away? Was she being cautious or cowardly? She must speak to him now. He had to recognize her, for heaven’s sake. Whatever his feelings, perhaps they were not as deep as hers. They had slept together for months! She had lain in his arms almost all night, woken to kiss one last time before he left in the dawn light. He might not acknowledge it, but he must know. It was impossible to forget such things.
She walked up to him casually, a cigarette in her hand. She had never smoked, but it was a useful pretense. “Excuse me, can you give me a light? My lighter seems empty.” Did that sound like she was trying to pick him up? She could not let it matter now. Once he had recognized her, he would know that she had some message from MI6. That would be all she needed.
She was a couple of feet away, close enough to reach out and touch him. He looked at her and met her eyes. There was a look of puzzlement, then a flash of recognition, and an instant later it was gone, masked. But there was a stiffness in him, tiny, almost invisible. Did he know that he had been betrayed?
No, Peter had believed that he did not yet know. It was part of Elena’s job to tell him. Peter had sent her because she and Aiden had known each other.
Aiden was looking into her eyes, waiting for her to catch a light to her cigarette, and they were blank. She was a passing stranger, possibly trying to scrape an acquaintance. Pathetic. Could anyone be desperate enough to approach a man who was already with a woman like Gabrielle?
Elena put the cigarette to her lips and took the light he held up. She drew in. She disliked the taste of tobacco. The minute he was out of sight, she would throw it away. “Thank you,” she said softly. “It’s a nice restaurant. Max Klausner recommended it to me.”
He hesitated only a second, perhaps two. “Max, the waiter?”
“Are there two Max Klausners?” she asked.