He wasted no time in leaping over the fence and heading toward the street. Samuels followed closely behind him with both men using the cars parked along the curb as cover as they tried to distance themselves from the pursuing officers.
They reached a small wooded lot nestled between two houses and ducked behind a felled tree. Hawk could feel his heart beating so strongly that he would’ve sworn it was audible to Samuels.
“Now what?” Samuels asked.
“We sit here and wait,” Hawk said. “The van is almost a mile away. We’ll never be able to reach it now without igniting a chase through the streets of Istanbul. Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m not very comfortable with that.”
“That makes two of us,” Samuels said. “I’m never comfortable when you’re driving anywhere.”
Hawk put his finger to his lips, signifying for Samuels to be quiet.
Along the sidewalk in front of their brief sanctuary, a policeman shined his flashlight everywhere in search of the escapees. Then he stopped and pointed his light at Hawk and Samuels. Neither of the men moved, both easing their heads down and hoping the officer didn’t see them.
“Is he gone?” Samuels asked after a few minutes.
Hawk peeked his head up. “It appears so. But let me go clear the area first. If they’re still milling around, at least one of us will have a chance to escape.”
Hawk ventured out to the sidewalk and noticed that the police car was no longer parked outside Kemal’s house. Signaling for Samuels, Hawk stealthily darted from one cluster of shadows to the next.
“You still there, Alex?” Hawk asked.
“I haven’t gone anywhere,” she said. “I’ve just been pondering where to dump all of Kemal’s money.”
“Give it back to him,” Hawk said. “We need him to at least be amenable to our demands the next time we approach him.”
“He almost screwed you over,” she said.
“And that surprised you?”
“Never mind that,” she said. “Just get back to the van as quickly as possible.”
Hawk glanced over his shoulder to see Samuels creeping along the sidewalk.
“You ready?” Hawk asked.
Samuels nodded.
“This isn’t going to be nearly as easy as I thought it would be,” Hawk said.
Samuels leaked a guarded smile, barely visible in the darkness.
“It never is, is it?”
CHAPTER 2
Lyons, France
KATARINA PETROV LICKED HER FINGER and turned the page of her book while she waited for her appointment. While she spoke a handful of different languages, she found that reading in English at least a half-hour each day kept her communication skills sharp. She needed them now more than ever after the setback she’d experienced in recent weeks.
Narrowly escaping right from underneath the noses of the President’s personal detail was an accomplishment to revel in. However, if anyone knew about what she’d done, she’d be dismissed from serious consideration regarding the one world currency she’d been so desperate to create. While she projected all the bravado of a heavyweight boxer when she discussed her economic plan, she knew the truth deep down. She needed the United States’ involvement if the idea was to ever gain momentum and take flight. But before she reached that point, she needed someone else on board. She needed new European Central Bank head Gaspard Fournier.
Fournier hobbled through the door ten minutes past their scheduled time. He said something to the host at the front, who then directed Fournier to Petrov’s table.
“I apologize for being late, I—”
“Save it,” Petrov said. “I don’t have time for excuses. And if you’re going to be that way, perhaps it’s best that we part ways right now.”
Fournier leaked a smile. “It’d be a shame that we never got to have this conversation because a terrorist attack in downtown earlier has traffic at a standstill. It’s awful outside.”
“I do enjoy a brisk walk twice a day,” Petrov said. “However, I didn’t ask to meet with you to discuss traffic patterns or terrorism—both of which are problems to the average person. But let’s face it, Mr. Fournier, I’m not average and neither are you.”
He wagged a finger at her.
“Flattery isn’t the way to curry my favor nor is a lack of decorum,” he said.
She glanced at the glass of alcohol she’d ordered for him.
“Will bourbon work?” she said with a smile.
“It’s a start, but I must warn you that I don’t have much time.”
“In that case, let me get straight to the point, Mr. Fournier. In my final conversation with Henri Dubois, he agreed that the European Central Bank was in dire need of a fresh start, something that only a brand new currency could give it. So, he and I discussed the details of what that would look like and how the ECB could move forward in this new economic environment.”
“Your point, Ms. Petrov?”
“My point is that if it made good sense for your predecessor to join this burgeoning movement, it makes good sense for you now as well.”
“I’m not my predecessor,” Fournier said. “And since you didn’t do your due diligence before having this conversation—in which case you would’ve saved yourself plenty of time and a trip to Lyons—I disagreed with Mr. Dubois on many fronts, most notably the notion that the ECB needs to transition to a new currency.”
“I’ll give you a moment to reconsider,” she said flatly. She fidgeted with the edge of a file folder while awaiting his response.
He sighed as his gaze met hers.
“Frankly, that’s never going to happen,” Fournier said. It’s why I was selected to assume Mr. Dubois’ position. The rumor had spread rampantly that he was going to lead Europe into a new economic era with that decision. It’s likely the board, at the time, would’ve ratified the proposal, but that’s not the case anymore. Apparently, several members of the board were indebted to you, but that debt has been eliminated. What you held as leverage before is dead weight now. You won’t pull the strings any longer with the ECB.”
Fournier
