17-02-2020, 02:12 AM
Ortega grabbed hold of the lid, slumped back in his chair, rested his arm on the armrest, and bent his elbow so that he was holding the lid up to his chest. Then he closed his eyes and relaxed. He allowed himself to drift off.
As he did so, his arm began to gradually do the same and start drooping. He didn't fight it, but didn't do anything to help it along as, over the course of a couple of minutes, it relaxed until it lay on the armrest. Once his arm began to relax, his grip on the metal lid did the same until it slipped from his fingers, clattered to the ground, and startled him conscious. The moment's rest followed by the quick jolt back to wakefulness wasn't as good as a real stimulant, but it was enough to keep Picasso going a bit longer. Add Ultimados training and Ortega could pace himself and get an hour or two's alertness out of it. He'd just put the lid away when his phone rang with a call from Prefect LeGrasse.
"Ortega." He answered. He could hear on the other end that the Prefect was in his car and the sirens were going. He leaned forward and put his elbows on the desk. "What is happening, Prefect?"
"I'm on my way to the caverns." He replied, wasting no time. "What kind of security do you have on La Contessa?"
Ortega rose to his feet, seeing that he wouldn't have time for another paint lid nap.
"Per her orders, so that she and Senor Mander can operate with a free hand, she has been under sniper watch only."
LeGrasse thought on that for a moment.
"Would the snipers follow her underground? To the film set? Where they're shooting a battle scene? With period guns?"
Ortega saw his point.
"No! Sending more!"
He hung up and started barking orders.
"Bring up a map of the Caverns! I want ten units on the scene, surrounding La Contessa immediately! See if there's anything we can do to recover her signal! Has someone at least tried reaching her by phone?"
An aide got off the phone.
"Just now, sir. Straight to voicemail."
He thought a second on that. If she'd been too far underground for her tracker to transmit, a call getting through was unlikely but had to be tried. He walked over to a large wall-mounted monitor where a map of the San Finzione Caverns was now being displayed. Ortega studied the map as he began to slowly pace back and forth in front of it. His mind flashed back to his recent conversation with her about Olof Palme.
"And someone get me some fucking caffeine!"
* * *
Helen and Mander continued walking as the boots of Good One and the others drew closer. Occasionally, she would glance into reflective surfaces she spotted along the way to see who was behind her. On any other day, five Nazis with guns would be a bigger concern. The director had rung the bell for last call to the set, so it made sense that they'd be hurrying. But wouldn't extras know better than to wander that far? It was a period piece, so smoking was permitted on the set and during shooting. They wouldn't have had to go clear back outside for one.
Good One and the others ran past. If she'd turned her head, he might have seen Helen's face, recognized her in the poor lighting from Dietz's computer, and realized he could have solved all his problems and possibly not undertake the suicide mission he was leading by simply killing her. She and Mander continued strolling casually as she noticed him noticing a thing.
"So, this Juliessa Skankeko..." Mander asked quietly, pronouncing it correctly, arm drifting down to his side. "That's you, innit?"
"Mm-hmm." Helen mm-hmmed, casually reaching into her purse.
"So, it's all about telling the Count's REAL story, right? Historically accurate and such?"
"What Vincenzo would've wanted."
Mander causally unsnapped his holster.
"Nothing in it about Nazis going through time and bringing back guns that didn't exist before 1954?"
"I'd remember putting that in." Helen replied, producing her LC9.
"Right."
Mander drew his Desert Eagle and shot the one carrying the Uzi in the back.
The gunshot resounded against the walls of the cave and the amplified all around them. Thanks to her experience with the tank yesterday and the knowledge that she and Mander were going to go onto a movie set where blanks would be fired in stone passages smaller than this one, the two of them had already been wearing earplugs.
As he did so, his arm began to gradually do the same and start drooping. He didn't fight it, but didn't do anything to help it along as, over the course of a couple of minutes, it relaxed until it lay on the armrest. Once his arm began to relax, his grip on the metal lid did the same until it slipped from his fingers, clattered to the ground, and startled him conscious. The moment's rest followed by the quick jolt back to wakefulness wasn't as good as a real stimulant, but it was enough to keep Picasso going a bit longer. Add Ultimados training and Ortega could pace himself and get an hour or two's alertness out of it. He'd just put the lid away when his phone rang with a call from Prefect LeGrasse.
"Ortega." He answered. He could hear on the other end that the Prefect was in his car and the sirens were going. He leaned forward and put his elbows on the desk. "What is happening, Prefect?"
"I'm on my way to the caverns." He replied, wasting no time. "What kind of security do you have on La Contessa?"
Ortega rose to his feet, seeing that he wouldn't have time for another paint lid nap.
"Per her orders, so that she and Senor Mander can operate with a free hand, she has been under sniper watch only."
LeGrasse thought on that for a moment.
"Would the snipers follow her underground? To the film set? Where they're shooting a battle scene? With period guns?"
Ortega saw his point.
"No! Sending more!"
He hung up and started barking orders.
"Bring up a map of the Caverns! I want ten units on the scene, surrounding La Contessa immediately! See if there's anything we can do to recover her signal! Has someone at least tried reaching her by phone?"
An aide got off the phone.
"Just now, sir. Straight to voicemail."
He thought a second on that. If she'd been too far underground for her tracker to transmit, a call getting through was unlikely but had to be tried. He walked over to a large wall-mounted monitor where a map of the San Finzione Caverns was now being displayed. Ortega studied the map as he began to slowly pace back and forth in front of it. His mind flashed back to his recent conversation with her about Olof Palme.
"And someone get me some fucking caffeine!"
* * *
Helen and Mander continued walking as the boots of Good One and the others drew closer. Occasionally, she would glance into reflective surfaces she spotted along the way to see who was behind her. On any other day, five Nazis with guns would be a bigger concern. The director had rung the bell for last call to the set, so it made sense that they'd be hurrying. But wouldn't extras know better than to wander that far? It was a period piece, so smoking was permitted on the set and during shooting. They wouldn't have had to go clear back outside for one.
Good One and the others ran past. If she'd turned her head, he might have seen Helen's face, recognized her in the poor lighting from Dietz's computer, and realized he could have solved all his problems and possibly not undertake the suicide mission he was leading by simply killing her. She and Mander continued strolling casually as she noticed him noticing a thing.
"So, this Juliessa Skankeko..." Mander asked quietly, pronouncing it correctly, arm drifting down to his side. "That's you, innit?"
"Mm-hmm." Helen mm-hmmed, casually reaching into her purse.
"So, it's all about telling the Count's REAL story, right? Historically accurate and such?"
"What Vincenzo would've wanted."
Mander causally unsnapped his holster.
"Nothing in it about Nazis going through time and bringing back guns that didn't exist before 1954?"
"I'd remember putting that in." Helen replied, producing her LC9.
"Right."
Mander drew his Desert Eagle and shot the one carrying the Uzi in the back.
The gunshot resounded against the walls of the cave and the amplified all around them. Thanks to her experience with the tank yesterday and the knowledge that she and Mander were going to go onto a movie set where blanks would be fired in stone passages smaller than this one, the two of them had already been wearing earplugs.
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