"Tanya." A voice behind her was accompanied by a heavy hand clamped on her shoulder. Tanya jumped and dropped her spoon, spilling mousse in her lap. She recognized the grip on her arm.
"I finally found you. I suspected you would disguise yourself as Edda, just as we planned a long time ago. It was so smart of you to remember," Charles said as he sat beside her. Tanya smiled slightly. Edda had reminded her; she wouldn't have remembered on her own. "But you're not home safe yet," he continued. "You're still in danger. See those two men sitting over there? They're after you. We have to get out of here, and quick." He tugged at her arm as he placed a bill on the table. "Come on, move!"
Tanya didn't move. She looked at Charles, frowned, and said, "Malcolm told me to catch this flight." She waved her boarding pass. She grasped her bag with her knees, holding it close.
"Yes, I know. I spoke to him just minutes ago. The plans are changed. There's danger." He again tried to pull her up. "Don't you remember? I'm your bodyguard."
"But Malcolm couldn't find you."
"Of course not. I was searching for the bastard who shot Edda. Now come on, before those two come after you."
The two strangers had risen from their seats and were heading toward them, one on each side of the people waiting in line.
Tanya looked at Charles and then at the approaching men. "Move. Fast. Now." Charles pulled her up, grabbed her bag, and shoved her toward the exit. "Excuse us, we're late for a flight," Charles said to the people he pushed aside. The two strange men continued to follow them.
Charles dragged her to a taxi and shoved her inside. "Gare de Lyon," he said to the driver. "Triple fare if you lose the blue car behind us."
Tanya glanced back. The two men were, indeed, behind them in a blue car which had been stationed in front of the main entrance. She turned back to Charles, appraising him. He now wore a well-trimmed moustache, and his blond hair had turned a deep shade of brown. She glanced back at the blue car, and saw the taxi was succeeding. The driver would earn his triple fare. Casually, she lifted her bag and placed it on her lap, then glanced out the window as if she were interested in the scenery.
The taxi stopped at the entrance to the railway station and Charles leaned forward to pay the driver. Tanya jumped from the door.