I paid the fifteen-dollar fee in cash, and they promised to bike it around just after 4 p.m. I needed the intervening two hours to prepare for a meeting.
We went into the Latham Hotel. I'd guessed my accent wouldn't stick out in here, and I was right; the large reception area was full of foreign tourists. I sat Kelly in a corner and went to the information desk.
'I'm looking for a mall that would have a Fun Zone or a Kids Have Fun,' I said.
It turned out there were about half a dozen of them in and around the D.C. area; it was just a matter of looking up all the different addresses in the city guide I'd been given. There was one at the Landside Mall, not far from the Roadies Inn. I hailed a taxi; this time the driver knew where he was going.
The idea of Kids Have Fun is that you drop your kids off for a few hours while you go off on your big shopping frenzy. I'd gone once with Marsha to pick up Kelly and Aida from one.
The children get a name tag on their wrist that they can't re move, and the adult is given an ID card that means they're the only person who can collect the child. The girls had been acting up the morning I went, and I remembered that as we approached the center Marsha had grinned at the travel agent's across the way and said, 'I always think that's brilliant positioning the number of times I've been tempted to drop the kids off and pop in for a one-way ticket to Rio!'
The mall was shaped like a large cross, with a different department store Sears, Hecht's, JCPenney, Nordstrom at the end of each spur. There were three floors, with escalators moving people up and down from the central hub. The food court was on the third floor. It was as busy as it was massive, and the heat was nearly tropical probably on purpose, to send you to the drink counters.
I spotted Kids Have Fun on the Hecht's spur. I turned to Kelly.
'Hey, do you want to go in there later? There's videos and all sorts of stuff.'
'I know. But I want to stay with you.'
'Let's go in and have a look anyway.' I didn't want to put her in there yet because I didn't even know if we were going to get the phone call or not, but I'd still have to do the recon.
I went up to the desk.
'Do we need to reserve to come in?'
Apparently not; we just had to turn up and fill out a form. I figured that if I did get a phone call at four, I'd have only half an hour at the most to hide her. I had to assume the worst-case scenario, which was that they knew Kev's mobile number and were waiting to intercept it and listen to me giving Pat directions. I wanted Kelly away from that area and safe. Also, I couldn't be sure about Pat. He might call the police when he got the card. Or he could be part of a trap. I had to be careful, but at the same time I was desperate to see him.
I could see her looking around. It didn't look that bad. We walked out.
'You can come with me now, but I have to go on my own later, OK?'
She looked pissed.
'Whyyy?'
'Because I have to do stuff, OK? You can help me now, though.'
At last I got a smile.
'Oh, OK-. You won't be long, will you?'
'I'll be back before you know it.'
Kelly and I started walking around, doing recon without her realizing it.
'What are we looking for. Nick?'
'A store with cameras and telephones.'
We covered the whole mall, eventually finding a store on the first floor. I bought a battery charger for the mobile phone.
Kelly decided not to buy another present for Melissa after all;
she'd just pick up the friendship bracelets from home. I didn't comment.
At five of four I took the phone from my pocket and turned the power on. The battery and signal strength were fine. I was ready.
At ten after four it started ringing. I pressed Receive.
'Hello?'
'It's me.'
'Where are you?'
'In a phone booth.'
'At five o'clock, I want you to come to the Landmark Mall in Alexandria. I want you to enter via JCPenney, go to the center hub, take the escalator to the third floor, and go straight toward Sears. OK so far?'
There was a pause as it was sinking in.
'OK.'
'On the left-hand side there's a restaurant called the Roadhouse.
Go into the Roadhouse and get two coffees. I'll see you there.'
'Seeya.'
I turned the power off.
Kelly said, 'Who was that?'
'Remember I talked about Pat? I'm going to see him later--that's good, isn't it? Anyway, are you ready for Kids Have Fun?'
She was going whether she liked it or not. If Pat were setting me up, this place would soon be swarming with cops.
I filled out the form with the names we were using at the hotel. Kelly was studying the obstacle course with padding and plastic balls to break your fall. There were video areas where a huge variety of films were being shown, a juice dispenser, rest rooms. It looked very well organized. The place was packed. I could see hosts who were playing games with the kids and doing magic tricks. Seeing as she'd been doing nothing but watching children's TV for God knows how many hours, Kelly should be into all that. The downside was the danger of her talking, but I had no choice. I paid my money, plus a twenty-dollar deposit for the magic key to reclaim my child.
I asked her, 'Do you want me to stay for a while?'
She was dismissive.
'You can't stay. This is just for kids.'
She pointed at a warning sign that said: be careful, parents.
DON'T GO NEAR THE PLAYTHINGS BECAUSE YOU MIGHT TRIP
OVER THEM AND HURT YOURSELF.
I squatted, looking into her eyes.
'Remember, your name's Josie today, not Kelly. It's a big secret,
OK?'
'Yeah, OK.' She was too busy looking into the play area.
'I'll be back soon. You know I'll always be back, don't you?'
'Yeah, whatever.' She was dragging herself away. Her face was toward me but her eyes were looking the other way. A good sign, I thought, as I headed off.
I took the escalator to the third floor. I got myself tucked in the corner table of a cafe and ordered an espresso and a Danish.
I knew that if Pat was late, he wouldn't move into the rendezvous.
The SOP--standard operating procedure--was that he'd wait an hour. If that didn't happen, it would be the same routine tomorrow. That's the great thing about working with people you know.
I looked at my watch. It was two minutes to five. Looking down the escalators, I could see the JCPenney spur joining the hub. On my floor I could also see the entrance to Sears and the Roadhouse.
At about two minutes past I saw Pat below me, walking in from the direction of JCPenney. He was sauntering along, casual and unhurried, wearing a brown leather bomber jacket, jeans, and running shoes. From this distance he looked unchanged, just a bit thinner on top. I looked forward to laying into him for that.
He'd been at JCPenney right at five; I also knew he would have been putting in his own anti surveillance drills enroute, driving into the parking lot early to check it out, even sitting in his car to time it right. Pat might have his head in the clouds, but when he had to perform, he was shit-hot. At the moment my only worry was not about what was in his head but what might be up his nose.
