Page 31 of Belgian Betrayal

Atkins nodded. “Ready.”

The men left the garden and boarded the boat. Fearghas untied the line securing the craft to the dock and slipped into the cabin with Catya and Atkins.

His Russian assassin shifted into reverse, expertly breaking away from the dock. Once in the middle of the channel, she pushed the throttle forward, sending them toward the train station.

“So, once we get to the train station, where do we go from there?” Atkins asked.

“We’re meeting my guy in Brussels to see if he can break the code to get us past the logon and password.”

Fearghas kept watch on the port side of the boat while Atkins manned the starboard.

Catya focused on getting them as close to the train station as possible, to a location they could climb out without making them easy targets.

She pulled the boat into a smaller, less traveled canal and parked it against the concrete wall.

Fearghas double-checked the walkways and shadows, then climbed out of the boat and secured the line to an iron ring.

Atkins climbed out beside him and watched his back while Fearghas helped Catya up onto the walkway.

She didn’t waste time, setting off at a brisk pace, leading the way through the streets, across a bridge and into the train station.

Fearghas and Atkins flanked her, using their bodies as shields in case they ran into attackers.

“Should we purchase tickets?” Fearghas asked as Catya paused in front of the digital train schedule.

“No,” she said. “I don’t want to take a chance of someone overhearing us talking about our destination.”

“Understood,” Fearghas said.

Catya knew what she was doing, having lived the dangerous life of an assassin. She was still alive because of the precautions she’d taken along the way.

Fearghas located Brussels on the monitor and committed the platform and time to memory. “Got it.”

“Got it,” Catya echoed.

“Same,” Atkins said.

Moving through the station, they kept their heads down. Fearghas laid a hand against Catya’s back.

“See the man dressed in black jeans and a black shirt leaning against that pillar at eleven o’clock?” Catya whispered.

Fearghas’s look in the direction indicated where a bulky man leaned, seemingly engrossed in something displayed on his cell phone. He didn’t move, smile or express any emotion at what he was seeing.

Without lifting his head, the man glanced up, his gaze zeroing in on Catya.

“I see him,” Fearghas said. “And he sees you.”

“Check out his twin at two o’clock,” Atkins said.

Fearghas casually scanned the opposite side of the corridor and nodded. “Don’t forget the guy who fell in step behind us a few minutes ago.”

“So far the odds are even,”

“They just tipped in their favor,” Catya tilted her head toward a man directly ahead of them. “Ready to play some bait and switch?”

“Always,” Fearghas responded.

“I’m in,” Atkins seconded.

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