33 or 9 (eBook)

Dark Alley

Smoke slowly billows from the suppressor of Rick’s Beretta. Rain drizzles down his face as he stands over the body lying in the street. He slowly tilts his head to one side, keeping his eyes on the motionless body as blood flows onto the cobblestone and washes down the alley, leaving a trail that connects to the corpse. The blood and water merge together as they dilute each other. The stench of burnt gunpowder mixes with the rainy air as the smoke slowly fades away.

10 minutes earlier

A tall lanky man runs down a small alleyway, one of the oldest streets in Salzburg. The street parallels the river and is famous for its brothels. This street normally comes to life in the evenings and has a view of the river that runs to its side. The alley is often too dark even to make out shadows at night. The man is slender, wearing a nice, expensive overcoat and a fedora that prevents the rain from hitting his face. Under the fedora, one can make out his black thick bushy eyebrows, brown eyes, crooked nose, and thin lips. He senses someone stalking him and abruptly picks up his pace, running under the streetlights with a briefcase in his right hand.

He stops to look at which way to go, making sure no one follows him. He decides to turn into a dark, dim-lit area along the cobblestone street and moves swiftly to one of the archways located there. He sees a small light pierce through the darkness up ahead and stops.

Rick lights a cigarette and takes a long puff.

“Roger, it seems you are not the person I thought you were,” he says. After a pause, he blows out the smoke from his cigarette.

Roger stops immediately. He sees the embers of the cigarette and can barely make out the shadow of a tall man wearing a brown, leather flat hat. He leans forward and squints his eyes to try to identify the guy.

“Wh- who are you?” Roger asks cautiously.

Rick slowly steps into the light, his face just a silhouette as the outline of his figure becomes more visible.

“Now, what is a good ol’ American like you doing running in the streets of Salzburg this late at night?” Rick asks as he draws closer. “Are you out here painting the town, Roger? Did you come for a hooker? Or is it something more, might we say, unpleasant.”

Rick stops a few feet away and lifts his head to reveal his identity. Roger, still puzzled, scans his face. He looks confused for a moment, not sure what to make of it.

“Rick? Is that you?” he asks. A sense of relief comes over Roger as he recognizes Rick and comfortably walks up to him. Rick smiles as he approaches.

“So, Roger, why are you selling our nation’s treasured secrets down here?” Rick asks.

Roger’s eyes suddenly widen with shock. “You know?”

“Of course, I do,” Rick responds. “Did you think I got all dressed up and came to Salzburg for the tasty, boiled beef? I can’t stand that shit! You know I am too Texan for that crap; our beef gets grilled.” Rick chuckles then gets serious in his tone. “So, this brings me back to you.”

“Rick, I have a daughter I have to get through college, do you understand that?” Roger stammers and pleads with Rick.

A sense of disappointment comes over Rick, as he looks at Roger.

“That is a sad story, my friend, but I did come down here to keep you from selling any more of Uncle Sam’s secrets,” Rick says with a frown. “It saddens me, that it has come to this.”

In the shadow of the archway, Rick pulls out his Beretta with a suppressor. Roger raises his hands. “No, no, please, Rick.”

Pat-pat.

Rick stoically fires two shots into Roger’s chest. Roger immediately falls to the ground as the empty shell casings bounce around on the cobblestone. Smoke billows from Rick’s Beretta. He flicks his burnt-up cigarette to get rid of it. The sound of rain hitting Rick’s flat hat makes a unique tapping sound that breaks up the silence of the scene on the street. As the rain drizzles down, Rick slowly tilts his head to the side, keeping his eyes on Roger, whose body lay motionless as the blood starts oozing into the cobblestone.

Rick grabs the briefcase and then patiently searches Roger’s pockets in a methodical fashion. Rick retrieves his wallet, cell phone, and thumb drive.

Blood starts flowing down the street making its own little river mixing in with the rainwater. The stench of gunpowder overwhelms the night air. The smell is unavoidable as Rick slowly walks down the alleyway, as if nothing happened. He takes out his cell phone and calls Franz.

“Hallo Rick, how are you, my friend?” Franz answers the phone.

“Franz, we need a mop-up down on the brothel street,” Rick replies. “He is in the archway. The briefcase is in my possession.”

“We will be there in a few,” Franz replies. “Are you safe?”

“Yes, on my way to the rendezvous point.”

“Good job, Rick,” Franz replies.

Rick walks down the cobblestone street, as a lady steps out from one of the doorways of a brothel, dressed quite scantily. She is in her early 30s and has on a simple black laced onesie. Her outfit does not leave much to the imagination, just covering enough of her to grab the curiosity of a potential customer. Her blonde hair lays across the top of her onesie. She pulls out a cigarette and Rick steps over and pulls out a lighter. Rick’s free hand and the lady’s hands huddle around the cigarette as it lights. She can feel the warmth from the lighter as the cigarette begins to burn and she takes a drag off of it. She exhales away from Rick’s face, then turns to him with a smile and gently grabs his arm to invite him in. Rick can smell her perfume as it lingers through the air. He recognizes the scent of Obsession perfume that is lingering. Her sensual green eyes gaze into his blue eyes and gives him a nod to come. Rick shakes his head.

“A pretty lady like yourself might catch a cold out here tonight,” he says. “Maybe it would be best if you went inside. It seems that cigarette is the only thing keeping you warm.”

The lady puts her hand on the side of Rick’s face, and seductively smiles.

“Well, maybe you, could keep me warm?”

Rick smiles. “I would love to, but unfortunately, I am already late to a previous engagement.”

“Well, if you are already late, then why not make the most of being late. I am sure I could find ways to make you forget about your engagement.”

The woman undoes one of the straps on her onesie and slowly reveals her breasts to Rick. Rick continues to smile.

“Those are something to be proud of, that is for sure.” He notices her nipples are firm. “Either I have you aroused, or it is a bit colder than I-”

Before he finishes the sentence, she leans over and kisses him on the lips. Her aggressiveness caught Rick off guard as he enjoys the nice warm kiss. Gradually the woman parts from the kiss, looking deeply into his eyes, almost seems to be lost for a moment. A small grin comes over her face.

“We have all night to stay warm,” she says.

Rick looks at her, tips his hat, and says, “Ma’am, I am afraid it is just a pleasure that I just have to miss, I must go. Maybe another time.”

Rick steps away quickly and heads down the street.

I am glad I stepped away or I would have been there all night and probably broke afterward. Rick thinks as he walks away. A smile forms as a chuckle escapes his lips. But it sure would have been a very fun night as well.

Rick scurries down the street. Moving through the drizzle of the rain and maneuvering around street puddles, Rick walks across the bridge that crosses the river. As he gets closer to the rendezvous point, the rain picks up. He enters the historic square and Rick sees a familiar black four-door Mercedes sedan. The driver’s door opens and he sees a woman in a lovely red evening gown with a long slit up to her tan, athletic upper thigh. The woman has on red lipstick that radiates from her tan skin and her blonde pixie cut. Rick smiles for a moment as he sees Katja in the driver’s seat. He can hear her listening to the song Seven Nation Army by the White Stripes.

Katja looks at Rick as a flirtatious smile comes across her face.

“Hey stranger, is this the place where I pick up men? I am kind of lonely,” she calls out to him as he approaches the car.

Rick smiles. “Normally down at the brothels on brothel street, but this will do,” he says as he gets in the passenger seat.

“So, what’s the going rate for a guy like you?” Katja cleverly asks. “If I don’t like your performance, do I just drop you off somewhere and head back here, or down to brothel street?”

“Well, I have been busy tonight,” Rick proudly smiles. “Already had to turn down a lovely offer at one of the brothels. Although she was extremely persuasive.”

Katja shuts her door and laughs as she puts the car in gear and steps on the gas to speed away. “Oh, really now?”

Then Katja notices the lipstick on Rick’s thin lips and the side of his mouth.

“You little devil,” she says. “Well, I would expect nothing less, my love. I hope you got your money’s worth.”

Rick smiles....