They’reheaded toward the waterfront where preparations for theBelgradeWaterfrontSummerFestare in full swing.Bannersand flags line the streets, and off to our left, we can see parts of the waterfront area where workers are stringing lights and putting up illuminating art installations, stages, interactive displays, tents, and pavilions.Afew street vendors seem to already be selling merchandise, too.
Thewoman’s car pulls into a parking spot by a pub, and we park along the street nearby, then we all put in our earpieces.Insteadof connecting to our tech ops, though,Damjanis our tech op for this mission.Ledgerhands him the car keys, andDamjansays he’s going to get us items that we need.
Oncewe are inside the pub, we are seated at a round table with four chairs.Wetake the two seats facing the pool table, where the five women are all standing, chatting, and playing.Theplace is loud, though.
Thewalls of the pub are decorated with signs, andLedgergets up and meanders near the womenunder the guise of seeing one of the signs more closely.Whenhe sits back down, he says, “They’reall speakingSerbian.IheardSavovic’sname, soI’msure they’re talking about work.Maybewe can ask for a closer table, and thenDamjancan translate for us.”
Ishake my head. “Wecan figure out who might be willing and able to get us that list without knowing what they’re saying.Sometimeswords can get in the way of reading actions.Alwaystrust the body language over the words.”
Ledger’sbody language right now says that he doesn’t believe that even a little bit. “Justwatch them,”Isay.ThenIsnap a picture of the menu and send it toDamjan, asking if anything on the menu has cheese.Withmissions like these, you never know when you’re going to suddenly be leaving, so it’s best to get cheese as soon as possible.Besides, if we’re not eating or drinking, we’re going to look suspicious, so really, the cheese is for authenticity.
Tenminutes later,Iam savoring a cheese platter with fruits, nuts, and breads, along withPirotcheese, which is hard and sharp, andTrappistacheese, which is smooth and mild and absolutely delicious.Ledgeris trying outCevapi, which are small, grilled minced meat sausages that he, of course, loves.Itcontinually amazes me how much food this guy can eat.
“Sowhat’s the deal with you and cheese?” he asks, our eyes as inconspicuously on the women as possible. “Isthat the only thing you eat?”
“Nah, butIdo get it whereverIgo.It’sa food that nearly every country has, so trying it everywhereshowcases how different each country’s is.”Ispear a cube ofTrappistawith a toothpick and hold it up, studying it. “Cheeseis like a story passed down through generations in an area.Itgives me a connection to the people and helps me understand whereIam, beyond the sights and sounds.LikeI’musing another sense— taste— to connect in a way that’s universal.”
Ibelieve whatIsaid fully, butI’mlaying it on thicker thanInormally would, allowingLedgerto make fun of it soIcan push back.Insteadof pushing back, though, he looks thoughtful and then nods. “Ifeel the same way about joining in a sport with locals in a park or street or court.Itconnects me with the people and place.”
Irealize that my mouth has dropped open in surprise at his understanding, soIstick a piece of cheese in it soLedgerwon’t notice.
WhenIfinish chewing and swallowing,Isay, “Comein for a selfie.”
Ledgerscoots his chair closer to me and puts his arm around the back of my chair.Forsome stupid reason, it makes my heart rate kick up and some kind of fluttering thing happens in my gut.Ieven get goosebumps spreading along the back of my neck at his touch.
Stopit,Itell myself.Justbecause he understood about the cheese is a ridiculous excuse for letting my body react.
Welean our faces closer and smile at my phone, butIhaven’t turned the camera toward us—Iaim it at the women playing pool and eating appetizers, getting a picture of each of them when they’re facing the camera.Partof me itches, though, to flip the cameratoward us and take a picture.NotthatIwant one.JustbecauseI’mcurious as to how the two of us look side by side.
Idon’t, though.Aragundiis poised to pass along his empire to the men trying to steal the art piece fromSavovic— assuming their thieving is successful— so he can ensure that chaos and devastation can be spread across the world by an all-new generation.AndIcan’t let that happen.
Soinstead,Isend each of the pictures toPackstonand ask him to run a search on them.Wecan’t try to turn anyone into an asset without knowing if they have any reason to be in our database first.ThenIsay toLedger, “So, which woman do you think we should try to turn into an asset?”
Helooks back at the five of them. “PinkShirt— she’s dressed like she might be in a position to have access to a lot of things, but doesn’t hold herself like she has power.Apersonal assistant, maybe?Shemight be a little too timid to do something like sneak us information, though.Ormaybe the maid with the top half of her hair in a bun— maids have access to a lot.ButI’dprobably choose the woman in the pink shirt.”
“Iagree aboutPinkShirt.NotaboutBunMaid.”
“Whynot the maid?Theyboth seem disgruntled and therefore easy to turn.”
“Tellme,”Isay, “why did you say you’d choosePinkShirtoverBunMaid?”
“Idon’t know.Mygut just said she is the one.”
Inod. “BunMaid’sbody language doesn’t match her face when she’s complaining, and the face is the easiest part of the body to consciously manipulate when it comesto showing emotion.WhenPinkShirtcomplains about work, her shoulders sag.Likeshe is re-living it just by telling it, and it exhausts her.Shealso does a lot of behaviors that are meant to comfort her— touching the base of her neck, playing with her hair, holding her upper arm with her other hand, like she’s giving herself a hug.
“WhenBunMaidcomplains about work, she still has happy feet.Herarms still move a lot, instead of being more rigid at her sides.Themore the others buy the story she is telling, she becomes proud of herself for pulling it off so well.Soa smile leaks through at a time when it shouldn’t, or she’ll put her hands on the side of the pool table, spread wide, in a show of confidence.Didyou see how she put her tongue between her front teeth a couple of times, the tip of it sticking out a bit?Thatmeans she feels like she pulled one over on them.”
“So, she doesn’t hate her job?”
Ishake my head. “Shelikes their sympathy.Isuspect that the reason she’s working so hard at convincing them is not for the sympathy, though— it’s because she’s hiding a secret.”
Ledger’sattention whips back toBunMaid. “She’ssleeping with someone.”
Inod. “Myguess is her boss.MaybeSavovichimself.”
Hiseyes go wide, like it’s hitting him how bad it would be if we approached her to try to make her an asset.Herloyalty is likely withSavovic, so it would’ve backfired and possibly compromised the whole mission.
Idecide to throw the guy a bone. “Yourgut instincts have always been good,Ledger.Justlike howthey told you thatPinkShirtis the right choice.Listento what your instincts say— they’ll tell you what your brain missed.”
