The Phoenix

‘With respect, sir, that’s ops. If Elena is Athena, Ella will be in significant danger and you know it.’

‘In case you haven’t noticed,’ said Redmayne, choosing to let the insolence go, ‘she’s been under the same roof as Makis Alexiadis for weeks now. Arguably one of the most dangerous men on the planet.’

‘Which I advised against,’ Gabriel reminded him.

‘Hmm,’ Redmayne grunted. ‘Well, I don’t know what to tell you, Gabe. You were wrong then and you’re wrong now. The young lady is far more capable and more resourceful than you give her credit for.’ He waved a hand airily, as if he could swat away the risks of the Sikinos expedition like a pesky fly. ‘She’s brave. Like her mother,’ he added, a dreamy, nostalgic look flitting briefly across his face.

Gabriel could have punched him. How could he bring up Rachel Praeger at a time like this? Had he no shame at all?

‘Ella’s already proved she can handle Big Mak, which is no mean feat as we both know,’ Redmayne went on. ‘All she has to do is identify “Elena”, not engage her. She’ll be fine.’

‘Sir.’

Gabriel gritted his teeth, but inside he simmered with anger like a slowly boiling kettle. The boss was trying to frame his negligence for Ella’s safety as some sort of compliment, a sign of his ‘faith’ in her, when in fact all he wanted was to hurl her recklessly into the lion’s den. It was almost as if he wanted something terrible to happen to her. Wanted her to be killed. Although, of course, that made no sense.

‘You said yourself last week that Ella needed an exit strategy from Villa Mirage,’ said Redmayne, sensing Gabriel’s disquiet and cleverly using his own words against him. ‘That she couldn’t be expected to hold Makis Alexiadis off forever. That she’d already gleaned whatever useful information was to be had from inside that house and we ought to pull her out.’

‘I meant pull her out and bring her home,’ snapped Gabriel, exasperated. ‘Or at least back to relative safety in Athens. Not pull her out and send her to confront one of the most dangerous women in the world.’

‘Potentially most dangerous,’ Redmayne replied archly, reminding Gabriel of his own doubts about Sister Elena’s identity. ‘As you said yourself, she may just be a go-between. Besides, Ella’s eager to go.’

‘You already discussed it with her?’

‘Via Nikkos Anastas,’ Redmayne said nonchalantly, ignoring his agent’s dismay. ‘She was keen.’

‘Well of course she was keen,’ Gabriel said bitterly. ‘After what you told her about her parents’ deaths? She wants vengeance.’

‘What we told her,’ Redmayne corrected him sternly. ‘You’re a part of this too, Gabriel. In case you’d forgotten.’

Gabriel hadn’t forgotten. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

‘Sometimes we have to tell people what they need to hear,’ Redmayne rationalized, the way that people without a conscience seemed to do with such blithe ease. ‘Never lose sight of the big picture, Gabriel. The greater good.’

He drained the last of his coffee, setting the cup back down with finality.

‘So. You’re to let Ella know we’ll be extracting her from Mykonos very soon and bringing her back to Athens, to prep her for the Sikinos mission. I’ve given Nikkos four days to organize her new cover.’

Gabriel shook his head but said nothing. Four days wasn’t long enough. It was nowhere near long enough. But Redmayne wasn’t about to change his mind. Besides which, even Gabriel could see the importance of getting someone inside the Convent of the Sacred Heart as soon as possible, before ‘Sister Elena’ pulled another disappearing act. If indeed she was Athena Petridis, the last time she vanished, nobody heard so much as a whisper from her for twelve long years.

‘Remember, all Ella has to do is take the shot and ID her,’ Redmayne said, trying to sound reassuring. ‘If it is Athena, we’ll have an experienced team ready to go in afterwards and do what needs to be done. I won’t put Ella at any more risk than I have to, you have my word on that.’

Your word! Gabriel thought bitterly. As if that’s worth the paper it’s written on.

‘I heard about what happened to the Kouvlaki brothers,’ he observed, deadpan, changing the subject in a way he knew would disconcert Redmayne, and hopefully wipe the smug smile off his face. ‘The murders. The brandings.’

‘Hmmm.’ To Gabriel’s irritation, Redmayne gave nothing away. ‘Nasty business.’

‘An “A” and a “P” apparently,’ said Gabriel. ‘Some sort of message from Athena?’

‘One assumes so,’ drawled Redmayne.

‘Unless she was set up,’ muttered Gabriel. ‘Someone using her calling card to make it look like she ordered the hit?’

Redmayne didn’t flinch. ‘I don’t think so. Not that it matters vastly. I mean, obviously we won’t be shedding any tears over Perry and Andreas.’

‘Obviously,’ nodded Gabriel. ‘So you don’t know anything more about the killings then?’

Redmayne raised an eyebrow languidly. ‘More?’