Free The Eagle's Covenant by Michael Parker Page B

Schwelm, where the safe house had been situated. That was an irony, that a ‘safe’ house should be bombed with the intention of murdering all the occupants. It was situated on the south east of Germany’s industrial Ruhr heartland, the powerhouse of Germany’s economy. He continued driving until he reached Cologne and pulled into a side road. He waited for several minutes before climbing out of the car, making sure nobody was about. His apartment was about a mile away off Boltenstern Strasse near the docks, just west of the Mulheimer Bridge. There was no way he could really make himself inconspicuous at that time of night, but by walking in such a manner that he looked like someone going home, perhaps returning from a party, he was quite sure little notice would be taken of him.
    He reached his apartment about thirty minutes later. He saw several people on the way; early vendors, street cleaners, vagrants, people going home from night clubs, but no police or someone running at him with a bomb or a gun. Conor’s flat was on the first floor of a tenement block. He knew nobody else in the block because he had always kept himself to himself. He paid his rent through an agency and used the alias John Buck.
    It was cold in the flat, but not unbearably so. The first thing Conor did was to run a bath. There was a gas water heater in the bathroom so hot water was not a problem. The next thing he did was to make a pot of strong tea and carry it through to the bathroom. He peeled of everything and stepped into the bath. It was all Conor could do to keep awake, but he fought the urge to sleep, promising himself that sublime sanctuary when he was ready. Right then he needed to plan carefully, and had several thoughts germinating in his mind, thoughts that could result in the deaths of a lot of people. And Conor didn’t care who he had to kill to get to Breggie de Kok and her leviathan boyfriend, Joseph Schneider.
    *
    Breggie opened her eyes. It was dark in the room and she lay there for a moment. She wasn’t aware of any sound that might have woken her. Joseph lay beside her, his breathing quiet and shallow. They had made love until quite late. It had been as furious as it had been pleasurable. Joseph was exhausted by it all and Breggie had felt physically bruised, but she knew it would pass.
    Why had she woken? She pulled back the bedclothes and sat up on the edge of the bed. Joseph stirred, made a noise and turned over. She ignored him and searched for her dressing gown in the darkness. She decided to go to the bathroom and padded quietly across the floor, pausing at the cot in which she had laid the baby Schiller. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness she was just able to make out the figure of the infant. He seemed quiet. She reached her hand into the cot and gently pulled the top cover clear of his face. Then she laid her hand on his tiny chest and could feel the measured rise and fall as he breathed. Satisfied she went through to the bathroom.
    When she returned to the bedroom, Breggie climbed into bed and cuddled up to Joseph. It was a little while before she finally succumbed to the beguiling warmth and comfort of the bed and she drifted off to sleep.
    In the small cot, the baby lay sleeping, oblivious to the big world and the dramas that dogged it. Unaware of it, his tiny brain sensed the smallest quiver deep inside his chest. As the baby drew warm air into his lungs, a small sliver of mucus covered a microscopic airway until it burst under the pressure. This tiniest of irritations was like a reed in the wind and the vibration carried up to his throat and erupted in a single, explosive cough.
    Breggie woke again but there was still no noise. She lay her head back on the pillow and wondered how long it would be before the little mite in the cot woke up for his feed. And how much sleep she would get that night. She drifted off to sleep and, at last, everything was peaceful again.
    *
    Joanna lay awake in the darkness, her eyes