The Man From U.N.C.L.E: The Thief From Moscow

Chapter 10: Death Threats

Illya knocked on the hotel room door. Inside he heard small, elegant feet lightly run in his direction. He immediately recognized the footsteps as Gaby's; it took every muscle in his mouth not to smile when she finally opened the door.

"Illya!" She whispered, jumping up and hugging his neck tightly. She grinned at him when she jumped back down and took his hand to guide him to one of the couch's to sit down. "Solo's taking his time in the bathroom."

Hearing Illya, Solo opened the bathroom door. He strolled out in his usual royal blue nightgown with his hair still wet and hanging limply in front of his eyes. "Peril, nice to see you. We were starting to wonder where you'd been."

Solo tapped his watch and pointed outside. It was already starting to get dark and the streetlights were all turned on. Illya took some paper out of his pocket and carelessly dropped it on the coffee table in front of him. "These are the letters Alexei Kosygin has been receiving. They're all the death threats."

Solo sat down opposite him and took a letter. " 'The next time you go outside will be the last time you see the light' very good..." he took another letter and hummed while reading the scrawled sentences. " 'Your daughter will be dead before she turns thirty-five' a little morbid, I'll admit." Solo put down the letter and turned to face the spies. "He's definitely got an attacker coming for him."

Gaby picked up a letter and played with the sides as she thought and read it. "When were these sent?"

"They've been sent throughout the course of three weeks." Illya replied.

Solo's frown knitted together. "That long? You'd think he would've attacked by now..."

"Exactly," Gaby put down the letter and looked up at them. "The more you receive in a longer period of time means you'll get used to them. You won't care anymore."

"What do you mean?" Illya and Solo both said simultaneously.

Gaby adjusted her postures to face them both. "The person writing these obviously didn't want to kill him straight away. They want to wait him out. They're going to wait for the KGB and security to give up on the case and tell him it's just a false alarm, and when he's completely vulnerable that's when they'll attack."

Illya rubbed his forehead. "It's like a waiting game."

"The police and secret agents make a fuss for a couple of months and then they give up on him." Solo nodded. "Gaby, I think you've probably just saved Alexei Kosygin's ass in the long run."

Gaby smiled. "You're welcome. Now, I'm going to get ready for bed."

"Good point," Solo got up from the couch and made his to the bed. "Have you checked in Peril?"

Illya nodded. "I'm just a couple of doors down."

Gaby smiled to herself as she faced away from Illya. She took a deep breath before she turned back to him. "Goodnight then." She hastily pecked him on the cheek before running to the bathroom, grabbing her pyjamas on the way.

Solo roared hysterically with laughed at Illya's expression, totally lost in that singular peck given to him. "You need to get higher expectations, Peril." He finished chuckling before he got underneath the bed sheets with a couple of letters to study.

Illya nodded at him and left the room. The feeling of Gaby's lips on his cheek still resonated in his mind.