Deception
 
 

Part Five     by Robin







It was after nine at night when the train rolled into the station in Odesa.  From the inside, the building’s architecture was quite impressive as was the huge dome ceiling.  Even at the late hour, the train terminal was busy.  Amanda walked through the building and noticed a lot of people rushing about, as well as vendors hawking their wares.
 

Along the wall, she observed a bank of telephones.  A surreptitious glance around, she didn’t notice anyone watching her.  She went over to a phone and picked it up, attempting to make her long overdue check in with Billy.  By now, he was most likely concerned.
 

After dialing Billy Melrose’ phone number she leaned against the wall waiting for him to answer. Despite spending most of the day sitting in a train, she was exhausted from the nervous tension from all that had happened.
 

“Melrose here,” he bellowed into the phone on the fourth ring.
 

“Sir, its Amanda King.  Sorry for the late check-in, but I’ve had quite a day.  I woke up sick this morning, and went out to breakfast…”
 

“Amanda, we’ve been worried about you!” he exclaimed in relief.  “Where exactly are you?”
 

“I’m at the train station in Odesa.  I was followed most of the morning, when I got back to my hotel it had been ransacked.  I packed up and left the hotel immediately and headed for the train station.  Before I could get out of town, I noticed the same two goons who were following me in the morning were there as well.  I bought a ticket…”
 

“OK, Amanda, slow down,” Billy prompted her. “Are you all right?  Are you currently being watched or followed?”
 

Amanda turned casually and observed the people rushing by.  The station was still busy, but nobody seemed to notice her lingering along the wall.  “No, Sir, I don’t think anyone here is watching me.  I don’t believe I was followed once I left Kiev.”
 

Billy breathed a sigh of relief.  “Good.  Get in a taxi and head to the Londonskaya Hotel.  It’s not too far from the train station.  Wait in the lobby; I will have a contact meet you there.”
 

“Sir,” Amanda hesitated, her mind still foggy on what she her assignment was.  “I’m not sure what’s going on.  When I woke up this morning I was physically ill.  Everything is… I don’t know… fuzzy?  I can’t remember who I’m supposed to meet over here.  How will I recognize my contact?”
 

“Don’t worry, Amanda.  Your contact will recognize you.  He can fill you in on the details.”
 

“Yes, Sir,” she answered, feeling somewhat relieved now that she’d spoken with Billy.  “The Londonskaya Hotel – I’m on my way.”
 

Hanging up the phone, Amanda rushed towards the exit, hopeful to find a taxi to take her to the hotel.  It had been a long day and she was both exhausted and famished, but she kept a watchful eye on the crowd as she left the train station.  For the first time all day, she felt confident that she wasn’t being followed.
 

The crimson sky outside the building told Amanda that the sun had recently set.  She went to the taxi stand and waited.  There were only a few people ahead of her, but it seemed like an eternity before a cab was available.
 

“Where to?” the driver asked when she opened the door.
 

“The Londonskaya Hotel,” Amanda requested as she plopped inside the confines of the vehicle.  Despite never being to Odesa before, she was too tired to enjoy the sights.  All Amanda wanted was to be safe at the hotel.  Hopefully then her contact could fill in some of the blanks.
 

The cab ride through the historic city of Odesa didn’t take long.  Amanda quickly paid the cab driver and walked into the entrance of the old hotel.  The three story hotel was far from lavish, but attractive and welcoming.
 

The lobby with its high ceilings was elegantly decorated although clearly from another era.  There were a few people in the lobby and she glanced around looking for her contact.  Nobody seemed to take any notice of her other than the older man working the front desk.  The clerk smiled warmly at her.  Amanda wondered if the clerk was her contact.   Leisurely, she began to stroll towards the front desk when she was tapped on her shoulder.  Turning around she was welcomed by a handsome man with a dimpled smile.
 

“Good evening, Mrs. Stetson,” Lee greeted his wife.
 

Amanda’s eyes flew open, and a smile grew across her face.  “Lee, I’m so glad to see you!”
 

“Not nearly as glad as I am to see you,” he answered as his arm swiftly reached around his wife’s waist and guided her towards the grand staircase.  “Shall we?”
 

“Sure, but…”
 

He put his finger on her lip to silence her questions.  As they continued to walk up the stairs, his eyes carefully scoped the lobby area making certain there was no interest in either of them.  His lips tenderly touched her cheek and he whispered reassuringly into her ear.  “In a minute, sweetheart.”
 

Once they were safely within the confines of Lee’s room, he pulled his wife to him and kissed her passionately.  She eagerly responded to his kiss and the day’s tension they both had endured was lost in their love for another now that they were reunited.
 

Eventually, Amanda pulled away, out of breath.  “Oh my gosh!” she gasped.
 

Lee chuckled.  “You can say that again.”
 

She shook her head.  “What are you doing here, and more importantly, what am I doing here?  I can’t remember a thing!”
 

Lee kissed her forehead and sighed heavily.  “I’m just glad you’re all right.”
 

“All right?  Lee, didn’t you hear me?  I don’t remember what my assignment is!” she stated with obvious frustration in her voice.  Taking a deep breath, she explained her day to him.  “I woke up this morning sick as can be, alone in a hotel room in the Soviet Union!”
 

“Have a seat, Amanda,” he requested with compassion as he patted his bed.  “I think I can fill in most of the gaps.”
 

Amanda glanced at him quizzically, but complied with his request.
 

“Do you remember your ‘friend’ Galina Popova?”
 

“Oh my gosh, yes!” she nodded as flashes of her encounter with Gail flooded her mind.  Covering her mouth with her hand, she choked out, “Is she all right?”
 

“Depends what you call all right,” Lee muttered angrily.
 

Amanda glanced around the room.  “Is it safe to discuss this here?”
 

“Yes, I checked the room when I got here earlier this evening. It’s clean.”
 

“Did the Soviets pick her up?  Did they find out about the plan to get her out of the country?” Amanda gushed out, concluding from the recent events.
 

“Amanda, slow down,” Lee admonished.
 

Amanda smiled and took a deep breath.
 

“What do you remember last?” he asked.
 

“I met with her last night.  We had dinner, and discussed things.  She is definitely anxious about getting out of the country.  In fact, she returned to my hotel room late in the evening.  She didn’t want to wait and let the plan work.  I convinced her that it would work and we had a drink…”
 

“What do you remember after that?” he prodded knowingly.
 

There was silence in the room.  Amanda closed her eyes trying to recollect what had happened.  Finally she shrugged.  “Nothing.  I remember waking up this morning feeling terrible,” Amanda answered, rubbing her temple remembering the headache she woke up with.  “I only had one drink at dinner and a glass of wine when she came up to my room last night.”
 

“First of all, it wasn’t last night,” Lee explained patiently.  “It’s Friday, Amanda.  Your so called friend, Gail, drugged you.  Best we can figure you were out cold for about 48 hours.”
 

“No, she wouldn’t,” Amanda shook her head in disbelief.
 

“Afraid so,” he nodded with a sigh, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.  “You’re lucky you’re not dead.  The drug she used was an experimental drug that the Russians discontinued using because of the side effects. One of the many side effects is amnesia.”
 

Amanda stood up and started to pace the room.  “That explains why I couldn't remember anything, but what I don’t understand is why would she do it?”
 

Lee walked over to his suitcase and pulled out a passport.  “She wanted this,” he answered, handing the passport to Amanda.
 

“My passport?  Why”
 

“You both are about the same age, height, hair color,” he reminded his wife.  “Galina Popova drugged you, and stole your passport.  Then she left you unconscious in your hotel room and took the first flight to DC.  If Francine hadn’t flagged your passport, we might not have figured things out.”
 

“Oh my gosh!” she gasped, her body beginning to shake.  “Gail is already back in the United States?”
 

“Yup, she left you alone and without your passport to fend for yourself.  When we found out, I took the first flight to Kiev, not knowing if you were alive or dead.  Like I said, the Russians discontinued using the drug because it has a wide variety of side effects.  When mixed with alcohol, the drug was known to cause respiratory arrest and even death.  You’re lucky to be alive!”
 

“You were right.  I should have never taken this assignment,” she said despondently.
 

“Amanda, there were a lot of things that I thought could have gone wrong with this assignment.  This was not one of them,” Lee admitted; his voice was steady but filled with honesty and regret.  “You had a great cover.  You were being you, a friend to a person in need.  Galina screwed you over, Amanda.  Unfortunately, it happens in this business, but it doesn’t change the fact that you were the right person for the job.”
 

“I shouldn’t have trusted her,” Amanda grumbled, biting her lip.  “She slipped something into my wine when she came back to my room, didn’t she?”
 

Lee nodded.
 

“She was a friend, Lee!  How could she do that?” she asked, not understanding.  Her voice trembled, as she wearily dropped back down on the bed.  Everything that she’d been through the past few days combined with exhaustion finally began to catch up with her.  Being safe with Lee in a hotel room, she succumbed to her emotions and tears began to fall.
 

“Amanda, don’t…” Lee started to say, but instead, he went to her side, pulled her to him and let her cry.
 

When she regained control of her emotions, she swallowed hard.   “Don’t get me wrong, I’m thankful you’re here, but I sure made a mess of this operation.  Billy must be furious with me.”
 

“On the contrary,” Lee admitted.  “Billy is furious with Galina Popova.  He’s holding her at the Agency pending the outcome of your safe extraction.  He’s threatening to send Popova back here, to the Soviet Union.  He’s wants what I want - your safe return to the States.”
 

Amanda rested her head on her husband’s shoulder.  “Scarecrow to the rescue.”
 

“That’s what partners are for.  I shouldn’t have tried to talk you out of the assignment. I should have insisted we come over together.  I could have watched your back.  This would have, and should have worked out a lot differently.”
 

“So what now?” Amanda asked.
 

Lee reached for her passport.  “Billy’s making arrangements.  He’ll call in the morning with details.  We leave tomorrow from the Odesa airport on the first flight he can get us on.”
 

“Lee, I was followed this morning.  Someone ransacked my hotel room.”
 

“Yeah, I went to your hotel room earlier today…”
 

“You did?” she gasped.
 

“I was all over Kiev looking for you.  I was at your hotel, the police station, Galina’s apartment,” he paused for a moment before picking up her hand and kissing it.  “I even went to the morgue.”
 

“Oh, sweetheart, you must have been worried sick.”
 

“I was,” he nodded, “but you followed protocol and you have good instincts. I’m really proud of you.  You stayed one step ahead of whoever was following you.  You’re safe now.”
 

“Am I?” she wondered aloud.
 

“Yes, you are.  They have nothing on you.  You had dinner with and old friend.  That’s all. We’ll be on a plane tomorrow and we can put this lousy assignment behind us both.”
 

“Sounds like a good plan.”
 

“It’s getting late and you look exhausted.  Why don’t we get some sleep?” Lee suggested to his wife and partner.
 

“You look exhausted too,” she remarked, then was about to add something but stopped.
 

“Amanda, what is it?” he pried.
 

Sheepishly she explained.  “I haven’t eaten anything since breakfast. I’m starving.  Do you think we can call room service?”
 

“Anything your heart desires,” he laughed, as he went over to the table and got the room service menu and handed it to his wife.
 

End Part 5
 
 

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