The Shadows of Diplomacy

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Arya sat at her desk inside the Embassy, she had replayed the scenario in her head a million times but was going through it once more. She thought that she would have been satisfied finding out why Alexei was acting so strange, he wasn't cheating on her, which was what she had feared, yet she had stumbled upon a truth that left her with even more questions. The mundane routines of diplomatic life were now cast aside, replaced by a thirst for answers.

Arya grabbed her handbag, this time she drove her own car because she knew she would park it far away and approach Alexei's apartment building from the back, she would once again enter through the emergency exit, and climb the stairs to his floor. She punched in his security code and entered his home, confident she would not get caught this time, but she was wrong. There Alexei, all six feet five inches of him, was standing in his apartment. "Arya?" Alexei sounded confused. "What are you doing here?"

Words began leaving Arya's mouth before a thought could enter her mind. "I could ask you the same question," Alexei looked puzzled. "Are you cheating on me?" Arya asked, of course, already knowing that he wasn't.

"Is that why you've popped up here?" Alexei asked, his thin eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

Arya turned on her sass. "Yes. Now answer me."

"W- No. Obviously, no. I can't believe you'd even think that."

"You've been acting so strange!"

"Arya," Alexei dropped his shoulders, looking at her almost pitifully. "Let's sit down." Arya reluctantly followed him to the sofa. "Work has been pretty hectic lately, and I have just been needing some space, that's it."

Arya didn't notice she was looking at him quizzically, but the look on her face signalled to Alexei that he needed to say more.

"To be honest, I'm a bit disappointed that you'd show up to my house like this. We're supposed to trust each other, Arya. If you thought something was going on, you should've just asked me."

Arya wondered if she was being dramatic this whole time, had she read too deeply into Alexei's secrecy? Is the mysterious woman just a friend of his who somehow stumbled upon secret information just this once and decided to share it with him? Butterflies erupted in her stomach, it was her intuition's way of telling her 'No.' Her gut was also warning her of confronting Alexei with what she already knew, she had to collect more information. She had to confirm, for herself, that Alexei was the man she had always thought he was.

"I'm sorry." Arya took a deep breath, "I guess I kind of panicked at the thought that you might've been seeing someone else, I don't know what I was thinking."

"You know how much loyalty means to me."

The air between them fell tense, each of them inexplicably wary of the other. Arya showing up to Alexei's house like this made him more uneasy than he was letting on, and Arya somehow knew that, Alexei knew that Arya knew that. He understood that cracks were forming in her trust in him, which meant that to some degree, he could no longer trust her. Arya couldn't place her finger on it then, but she felt fearful. She feared that Alexei was not who she thought, and she feared that this was the beginning of the end of her idyllic relationship with him.

***

February was dragging along. Though she often thought about it, Arya left Alexei's business alone, which gave her enough time to complete her report on the potential trade opportunities between Jamaica and Switzerland and submit it to the appropriate authorities. She thought about the small businesses in Jamaica that could benefit from increased trade with Switzerland. Her island home was rich with things to export, especially agriculture, and could benefit from importing advanced technology, and knowledge, to name a few. Upon submitting the report, Arya felt satisfied, she felt a tiny sense of purpose, however, very shortly after, her greed for more returned.