Chapter 2 :
So, this was it, this was the moment. Seated in the car at a short distance from the meeting point, Lucas awaited the signal to enter onto the scene. He was already nervous about playing a new part; he was always anxious when starting a new mission, but today was different.
He felt so impatient to meet her, hoping with all he had that she would agree to help them without having to use her. His face became stoic when he realized that he probably would not have the choice and that they will have to follow the plan till the end… but if it was possible that, for once, nobody would be hurt in the process, it would be welcome change.
Tariq sent the signal as soon as he saw Sasha entering the road leading to the coffee shop. Lucas turned his head to where she came from and was baffled. She was more beautiful in person than what the surveillance photos had captured. She was wearing a turquoise blouse fitting her perfectly elegant and attractive frame with grey pants. She walked lost in her thoughts, face relaxed and the shadow of a smile lingering on her mouth. But what caught Lucas’s attention the most was the brightness of her smile when her eyes met Joanna’s. The two women shared a smile and a quick hug before entering in the coffee house.
At the beginning of the conversation, Lucas didn’t really pay attention to the words used but was more interested in Sasha’s voice, her modulation, the rhythm of her phrasing. She has a sweet voice, a little more deep than he had imagined for such a young lady. But what was the most surprising was the fire, the passion that couldn’t help but leak out sometimes, with a shaken force. They definitely could use and even needed these sort of qualities at the MI-5, at least, as long as she could restrain it, take control and not let this wild aspect of her personality get the best of her.
“Will you come to the party tonight, Sasha?” asked Jo, rudely snapping Lucas out of his reverie.
“Don’t know. Probably not.”
“But why? You work so hard, you need to rest, to have fun… when was the last time you had fun?”
“Seriously?” joked Sasha with a bittersweet voice. “I don’t think I can even remember.”
The two women exchanged a little laugh but even if the sound of it was pleasant, Lucas winced because it was a half-hearted one. There was a few silent moment before Jo again started the conversation.
“Sasha, you need to relax, to enjoy your life a little more, to party, to meet some new guys…”
They laughed again and Lucas smiled to himself when he heard her teasing answer: “Meet some new guys? Oh my God, as if I needed another man to ruin my life every day. I have one at home and believe me, it’s more than sufficient.”
“Is it really that difficult?” Jo asked quietly, empathy feeding her question.
“Life with Dad?” answered Sasha with a sigh. “It wasn’t like that when Mum was there before. Father loved her so much that he was always happy to see her, to know she was here. Life was simple, happier… but after… the accident” – Lucas swallowed hard when he heard the reluctance in her voice at these words - “he was never the same. It was as if not only my mother and the car blew up that day. My father’s heart was in that car too…”
There were no more words exchanged for a while. The silence was so long that Lucas thought the mic was off but suddenly, he heard a soft sniffling and Jo spoke again, her voice softer and friendlier than before.
“Sasha, you need to get out, to think of something else, and to have fun… You’re too young to be so serious. I know how hard life can be sometimes, believe me…”
