Read Agent of Influence: A Thriller for Free Online Page B

thinking, and many in the DGSE who were previously lauded by the politicians, soon came under close scrutiny for their shady dealings with the dictators and despots of the world. Solomon decided it was time to vanish before his past caught up with him and made him another nameless body in a back alley of any of one of the numerous countries in which he operated illegally.
    He had been preparing for the day of his escape for years. There were large sums of money sitting in bank accounts in Grand Cayman and Rio de Janeiro. When another DGSE agent named Jacque Mille disappeared into South America amidst heavy suspicion of selling radar secrets to drug lords, Solomon was finally given his opportunity. He was sent to track down the defector and bring him back. Instead, he used the opportunity to vanish into the mountains of South America. Ironically, he wished he was back in the steaming jungles of South America now. They were dangerous and wild, but the lawless mountains provided easy remedies for dealing with traitor and whores.
    “This is the tape for the hour we chased her,” Solomon said as he grabbed the tape. “Let’s have a look at it. I was in ...Terminal One, right?”
    “Yes, put it in,” Gregor replied. “The kid was jittery about us showing up. Let’s make this as quick as possible. We don’t want any surprises.” Originally from East Berlin, Gregor enlisted in the army at the age of eighteen. His clandestine potential was noticed by a member of the Stasi, East Germany’s security service that collected thousands of bits of information on everyone in East Germany during the height of the Cold War.  When the Berlin Wall collapsed, so did Gregor’s unflappable faith in Communism, and his love for East Germany turned into a seething hatred. All the leaders of the promised revolution disappeared, telling the West whatever it wanted to know and collecting large sums of money for doing it. Solomon used every moment available to him to poke fun at the tall German for actually believing that Communism was a viable form of government. 
    Arab oil billionaires who paid top dollar for the best bodyguards available on the open market eventually recruited Gregor. Despite the exceptional income, Gregor did not like living in a region as unstable as the Middle East, and he quickly accepted a job offer from Aman. Solomon continued to remind Gregor that he got his job only because of Solomon’s recommendation. It was just one of many areas of difficulty that caused friction between the two former Cold Warriors.
                  Solomon shoved the tape into the closest VCR. He could not believe that the airport had not upgraded their surveillance equipment to a newer format. He pushed “play” and a full view of Terminal One appeared on one of the numerous televisions. The time showed as 10:07 p.m. at the bottom of the television. Solomon fast-forwarded through the first portion, watching in silence as crowds of people flew threw the airport in the hyperactive motion that could only be provided by holding down the fast forward button. He keenly observed the clock in the corner, searching for the correct time. Gregor peered over his shoulder like a fifth grader trying to cheat on a test, and followed the speeding clock as well.
                  “This should be about the correct time,” Solomon spoke softly. Both men stared intently at the screen, looking for the woman. She finally came into view for the first time. The camera doing the filming was located behind her, and they watched her hustling through the crowd. She disappeared into the bathroom once before coming back into view. She appeared to make several circles around the same area as if she was searching for something or someone.
                  “There’s one possible drop,” Solomon said. “We need someone to search that bathroom immediately. Check all the toilets,” Solomon commanded Gregor, who nodded