Page 68 of Spymaster

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Back inside O’Learys, Jasinski looked down at her phone, which was sitting atop the bar. Harvath’s text had just come in. It was time to execute her exit plan.

She had begun looking for ways out the moment she had walked in. It was one of the reasons she had gone to the ladies’ room. Its windows, though, opened onto a small courtyard, framed by the medieval city wall. Without climbing equipment there was no way she was going to be able to get up and over it. It was too tall.

If they’d had time to prepare, perhaps she could have hidden a length of rope and a pair of athletic shoes, but they’d had to do this on the fly. As she had been trained in the Army, she needed to adapt and overcome.Think, she had told herself.What other ways are there out of here?

Nikolai was interested in his soccer game, but he was also interested in her. If she got up from her stool, he would want to know where she was going. And despite appearing a bit brutish, he didn’t come off as unintelligent.

The Russian was paying attention to his surroundings—watching who came and went. Jasinski had a pretty good feeling he had been keeping a mental clock on how long Sparrman had been gone as well. If he saw her walk out the front door, he was going to be very suspicious. He might even follow her. That couldn’t be allowed to happen.

The kitchen was her best shot. From what she could tell, it had a back door of some sort that opened onto a gangway that, she hoped, led to the street. The only problem was that the kitchen could be seen from where they were sitting at the bar. If Nikolai, or any of his comrades, saw her walk in there, they’d immediately suspect something was off.

The key was to do it without their seeing anything. She needed a quick diversion. It only had to last long enough to get her into and through the kitchen. On her last trip to the ladies’ room, she had seen just the thing.

Swallowing what was left of her beer, she playfully teased Nikolai with the empty bottle. “Buy me another?” she asked, pretending to be a little more buzzed than she was.

In the Russian’s estimation, the beers were very expensive.Tooexpensive. Nevertheless, if he ended up getting laid, the investment would be worth it. The woman was attractive and had put her hand on his arm several times, which was a good sign. She also didn’t talk too much. She seemed content to let him watch the game and talk with his buddies. She was almost too good to be true. Signaling the barman, he gestured to bring the woman another round. If he didn’t end up sleeping with her, he could always insist Sparrman pay him back.

“Will you excuse me, please?” Jasinski said, as she slid off her stool.

“Where are you going?” the Russian asked, one eye on the match.

“To the little girls’ room.”

The man looked at her, puzzled.

“The toilet,” she explained.

“Oh,” said Nikolai, embarrassed, returning his attention to the TV. “Okay.”

Picking up her phone, she headed for the ladies’ room.

Once inside, she made sure she was alone, and then unscrewed the pump for one of the soap dispensers. Removing the spring, she screwed the pump head back on and then uncoiled the piece of wire.

Pulling up Harvath’s message on her phone, she texted him back:Outside in 90 seconds.

Good copy, Harvath replied.We’ll be waiting.

Stepping out of the ladies’ room, she approached the breaker box, opened the cover, and threw the breakers. Instantly, the restaurant was plunged into darkness. All the TVs cut out, as did the music.

Shutting the box, she threaded the piece of wire from the soap dispenser through the area meant for a lock and twisted it as quickly and as tightly as she could. It wouldn’t prevent someone from opening it, but it would slow them down.

Leaving the circuit breaker, she moved as fast as she could in the darkness to the kitchen.

Gotland was an island, and as with most islands in Europe, its inhabitants were used to suffering power outages. As a wave of annoyed groans rolled across the establishment, the staff hunted for flashlights while customers activated the lights on their phones. Jasinski made it into the kitchen right before a beam swept over her.

Taking out her own phone, she activated the flashlight and used it to light her way to the side exit. She was moving with such purpose that no one in the kitchen bothered to question who she was or what she was doing.

Pushing through the door, she ended up in a narrow gangway between O’Learys and the building next door. Seeing the gate at the end, she ran for it.

She was only steps away when her eyes zeroed in on the chain and padlock. She’d seen enough security theater in her lifetime not to assume it was locked. Besides, if the restaurant caught fire, the gangway would be a death trap.

Getting to the gate, she gave the chain a tug. It was definitely locked.Shit.

The gray Camry had just pulled near the entrance. She could see its taillights. Pulling out her phone, she called Harvath.

“Back up ten feet,” she told him when he answered. “I’m in the gangway, but the gate is locked.”

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