Read Under Cover (Agent 21) for Free Online

then gave the two Russians another of his thin smiles. ‘You see, gentlemen, I can show you how to locate any British nuclear submarine, anywhere in the world. Which is valuable information, of course. So shall we talk money?’
    The two Russians grinned at each other. ‘Not here,’ said Dmitri. ‘Let us return to the car. There is a helicopter waiting to take us back to London. As we travel, we will be happy to discuss how rich we are going to make you, Mr Cole.’
    Without another word, the three men turned their back on the ocean and walked up the hill to the waiting car.
    Felix was right. Ricky
did
like his new home. How could you not?
    There was a vast bedroom overlooking the Thames with a huge double bed and a big TV on the wall. The kitchen glistened with quartz and steel and there was a fridge packed full of food and soft drinks. The bathroom had a jacuzzi and a shower with four separate jets. There was a video entryphone, a state-of-the-art computer and a fully equipped gym in a room all by itself.
    – This is awesome! And free!
    – Nothing’s for free, buddy. Nothing’s for free.
    ‘Make yourself at home,’ Felix said as Ricky stood in the main room, clutching his rucksack, his eyes wide, not quite sure where to look.
    ‘This isn’t a wind-up?’ he asked.
    ‘Nope. I’ll leave you to get settled in. I’ll be back tomorrow morning, nine a.m.’
    ‘What for?’
    ‘I told you. Lessons.’
    Felix turned his back on Ricky and limped towards the exit.
    ‘Hey, Felix.’
    The strange man stopped and turned.
    ‘What happened to your leg?’
    Felix’s face twitched. It was clearly a painful memory.
    ‘Somebody shot me. The bullet shattered the bones in my lower leg. They had to amputate.’
    ‘Sounds painful.’
    ‘I was lucky they could do it below the knee and not above it. It’s a good deal harder to walk without a knee joint. Or so I’m told.’
    Ricky thought about that for a moment. ‘Does this sort of thing happen often, in your line of work?’
    ‘Amputations?’
    ‘Bullets.’
    Felix scratched his nose. ‘We try to avoid it.’
    ‘Who’s “we”?’
    Felix gave him a blank smile. ‘It’s complicated,’ he said calmly. ‘Now then, I almost forgot. You’ll be needing a key to get in and out.’
    ‘Who’s “we”?’ Ricky repeated. ‘The good guys or the bad guys?
That’s
not too complicated for you, is it?’
    ‘I’m surprised you care – it’s not like you really intend to stick around long enough to find out.’
    Ricky said nothing, but he felt himself blushing.
    ‘Am I right?’
    Silence.
    ‘
Am I right?
’
    Silence.
    ‘Good,’ Felix said, almost as though he was talking to himself. ‘Maybe we’ve learned something already. Now, about that key.’
    ‘Yeah,’ Ricky said. ‘About that key.’
    ‘It’s in the flat somewhere. Your homework is to find it.’
    ‘
What?
’
    ‘Find it, Coco. Use your eyes. Show me how good you are at looking.’
    – He’s crazy.
    – You’ve only just worked that out?
    Felix was limping towards the exit.
    ‘Hey, Felix?’
    ‘Yes, kid?’
    ‘Who are you, really?’
    A pause. Felix put one hand in his pocket and pulled out a mint humbug, which he popped into his mouth.
    ‘Why don’t you just think of me as your guardian angel,’ he said.

5
HOMEWORK
Friday, 2:30 p.m.
    The key was nowhere. Ricky was sure of it. He’d looked through the drawers in the kitchen, inside all the cupboards and even in the fridge. He’d checked under the mattress of his bed and inside all the wardrobes. He’d checked under the rugs in the living room and hallways. He had even found himself on his hands and knees checking behind the U-bend of the toilet, before returning to the kitchen and double-checking the drawers he’d already searched.
    It was at that point that he’d decided this was insane. Felix was playing silly games with him. Well, maybe Ricky didn’t want to play.
    He helped himself to a Coke from the fridge and sat on the balcony