The Shadows of Diplomacy

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Arya embarked on her pursuit of Alexei along the winding roads of Switzerland, her heart raced with a potent mix of anticipation and uncertainty. She gripped the steering wheel tightly, her eyes occasioning her phone screen which was displaying Alexei's location in real time. Excluding her gut being in knots, the journey was pleasant. She was a comfortable distance behind Alexei, and she had her windows rolled down to take in some of the fresh, cool air. She was able to absorb some of the scenery, a stunning juxtaposition of mountains and lakes in vibrant greens and blues. Time seemed to warp as the minutes turned into hours, each passing moment an exhilarating countdown to seeing what Alexei was about to get up to in Bern. The quiet evening drive terminated in Bern upon nightfall.

Alexei's dot had settled upon a location that was not at all the Russian Embassy in Bern. Arya turned into the underground parking lot of the building mere minutes after Alexei had. Her breath came in shallow bursts as she exited her car. She was clad in black leggings, a black sweater, and black sneakers, and her straightened hair was in a messy fold atop her head.

As Arya stealthily moved through the maze of parked cars, looking for Alexei's car, she became acutely aware of a presence nearby. She could sense someone watching her every move. A chill tingled down her spine, her senses on high alert, as she inched forward careful not to make a noise. The air was so still, that she could hear her heart pounding in her chest.

Suddenly — Click! a car door opened, and the sound reverberated through the silence. Arya's heart skipped a beat as she snapped her head towards the sound, her almond eyes widened with fear. From behind the wheel of a black SUV, a masculine figure had his intense gaze fixed upon her. The shock of his sudden appearance momentarily immobilised her before panic settled in and Arya turned to run. The man alighted from his vehicle and chased after her.

Arya was a good runner, but the man was better. He caught up to her with ease, grabbing her by the waist and covering her mouth to prevent her from screaming. They were only a few feet away from her car.

"Don't panic, don't scream. Easy." He cooed. Arya could feel the cold barrel of a gun, pressed into her side, as she complied with him guiding her back to his car from behind. He put her in the front passenger seat and crouched to talk to her. As Arya's eyes fell upon the man's face, recognition settled in.

"You." Arya's eyes narrowed. "I've seen you before."

"You have no idea what you were just about to get yourself into." Markus Keller calmly spoke.
"Who are you?"

"My name's Markus Keller, I'm a Swiss intelligence agent. I'd love to tell you more, but we're in a pretty precarious situation here, and I need to know you won't try anything stupid." Markus' piercing blue eyes subtly pleaded with Arya.

Arya was reluctant. "Okay."

"Good." Markus stood up and walked around to the driver's seat. "I assume since you're here, you know what Alexei is."

Arya remained quiet.

Markus continued. "He's a spy." He had a neutral accent. "I've been following him around as of late trying to gather who his contacts are, and what they're up to. It's not looking good." Markus stared at Arya expectantly.

"What, am I supposed to say something?"

"The Russians are aware that we have grown more aggressive towards them since the war started a few weeks ago. Several spies posing as diplomats have already been expelled, but the ones left behind... they're like a malignant tumour." Markus' words hung heavy in the air. "We suspect they are gathering intelligence on the G10's potential sanctions against Russia for the war it's waging on Ukraine, that's natural, but I think Alexei is up to far more sinister things. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Arya shook her head. She was calmly absorbing what she was being told.

"Alexei has connections to Russian oligarchs who will be the targets of certain punitive measures against Russia, they stand a lot to lose. Russia stands a lot to lose... and as you probably already know, he is very loyal to Russia, and frankly, I am afraid of the lengths he'll go to protect them, or even to retaliate."

Arya's heart was racing. Markus glanced over to her momentarily, she seemed shaken, but he continued nonetheless. "I'm on a mission to find out what he knows, and what he's going to do with what he knows."

"Why are you telling me this?" Arya spoke.

"Because I feel like we're on similar missions." Now, he was staring at her intently, his expression hard to read. "You want to know who he is, and what he does, that's why you're here."

Arya shrugged.

Markus scoffed. "They told me you were smart... We can help each other."

"Help each other with what?"

"Information exchange. I can tell that you don't know very much about this man you claimed you were so seriously in love with before. He doesn't trust you, and you don't trust him. I can tell you what I know about him, and you can tell me what you know about him."

"I don't know anything. You've already just told me more than I knew before."

"I can help you to find out. I know you've seen things, heard things, that you probably couldn't figure out, but I have the tools to do so."

"You want me to be a mole?" Arya cocked a brow.

"Ah, so you do catch on quickly —"

"I'm not doing that."

"Damn. Here I thought you driving out to Bern meant you were really curious, but you two keep showing me that things aren't always as they seem." Markus leaned over to Arya. "Do you know what you become when you know what you know now, and you choose to stick with Alexei?"

"What?"

Markus smirked devilishly. "An accomplice." A moment of silence elapsed, Markus was allowing Arya a moment to digest everything he had just said. "Let me give it to you straight. Alexei Petrov is on a sinking ship, you can stay on it and sink with him, or jump off now, while I'm throwing you a lifebuoy. He's involved in some very shady stuff, which means when he gets caught, you, his accomplice will go down with him. Your career will be over, you'll return to the life you worked so hard to escape from in Jamaica... and let me tell you what, it's all for a man who would murder you if he found out you know what you already do."

Arya's heart skipped a beat.

"You do what I tell you, and when shit starts hitting the fan, I guarantee you'll be under Swiss protection."

"Why would I trust you?" Arya questioned.

Markus took one of Arya's hands between his, clasping them firmly. He looked straight into her eyes. "I promise you, if you help me, when this gets ugly, you'll be safe."

Arya had unknowingly stumbled upon yet another master of manipulation. She snatched her hand away from him.

"Listen, think about it," Markus said, opening his glove compartment. He took out a pen. "When you have your mind made up, call me." He wrote digits on Arya's inner arm. "But right now, you take your little car and go back to Geneva. However you managed to follow Alexei here, he better not find out about it. If he finds out you're onto him, you're done for."

"Can I ask you something?" Arya asked as she opened the door.

"Shoot."

"Was poking a gun into my side necessary?"

Markus was taken aback by Arya's question, but his response was calm nonetheless. "How else was I supposed to make sure you'd calmly follow me back to my car?"

Despite the tension in the air and the stress Arya felt, a little chuckle escaped her. That was Markus' first hint that things were likely going to go as he wanted.