against the ties. His mouth opened in a silent scream, face contorted in a rictus of unimaginable pain. Then his head snapped backwards and bounced, chin coming to rest on the emaciated, bruised chest
.
Blood dripped from his nostrils and a fat crimson droplet fell from his ear, splattering the carpet. Pienaar lunged forward, immediately sensing something was wrong. His hand shot up to check DM’s pulse
.
‘
Fuck
.’
The mathematician’s heart had given out under the stress, and pain
.
This could turn into a serious inconvenience, but hopefully one of his associates would have better luck. Besides, the little Burmese coward might have let something slip that he had missed
–
he would need to check the recordings with care. Pienaar grabbed the satellite phone from his coat and dialled a number from memory
.
‘
What?
’
The Englishman’s voice at the other end was rough from sleep
.
‘
He’s dead
.’
Silence. The line crackled with static, then went quiet. The Aussie could hear some breathing, short, machine-gun like
. Bloody amateurs.
‘
Dead? How… why?
’
‘
Accidents happen in this business
.’
Another intake of air
. ‘
Did you get the software, at least?
’
Pienaar almost giggled. It sounded like there was more fun on the way
. ‘
No. The thing burnt itself out. Sounded good, though
.’
‘
So you have nothing?
’
‘
Maybe. Don’t forget the other target
.’
‘
I never forget anything, you stupid fuck. But this is a nightmare. What are you going to do now?
’
Pienaar sighed, pretending to ignore the insult. For now
. ‘
You tell me. Should I plant some of the stuff around the place?
’
‘
Yes
.’
The Englishman paused for a heartbeat
. ‘
Have it look like a real drug bust-up. And make sure Walker pans out, or…
’
‘
Of course
.’
The apartment door slammed shut as Walker searched blindly for the light switch, his mouth tangled with Layla’s. She was already shrugging out of her overcoat when she stepped away from him and turned around, studying the room. Dropping the heavy jacket on his couch, she walked past one of the thin metal columns that speckled the open space and glided towards the large triple windows, her eyes fixed on the London night outside. The City buildings shone across the river, a skyline dotted with thousands of artificial fireflies.
‘It’s beautiful here.’
Walker joined her, his arms embracing her slim frame from behind, hands coming to a stop just below her breasts. He inhaled her perfume and nuzzled her neck, keeping his eyes open to avoid the nausea that threatened to overwhelm him. His head ached, a throbbing pain just behind his temples that had been made worse by the short taxi ride, but a weird sort of energy seemed to burn through his muscles.
Layla twisted in his arms, her mouth coming up to meet his, and they kissed hard. His hands went to her back, searching for the zip of the dark velvet dress she had changed into. She unbuttoned his shirt while still kissing him and pulled it off his head, kneeling to caress his bruises. ‘How did you get these?’ she said.
‘Boxing. I guess I’m becoming too slow.’
Layla straightened and stepped away from him, her back against the windowpane. She looked him up and down with a smile. ‘It keeps you in good shape though, especially for a banker.’
‘How did you…’
She raised her index finger in front of her full lips. ‘Shush, it’s a trade secret. Do you have any music?’
Walker nodded and went to his stereo, fumbling with the dials. His headache was fading a bit now, as waves of heat came up from his loins into his neck and face. He brushed away a few droplets of sweat from his forehead and managed to switch the radio on just as Layla slid up behind him, her hands coming to rest on his shoulders.
He turned and saw she was already naked, wearing only stockings and a satin suspender. Walker bent and kissed her deeply, her mouth opening to swallow his tongue. Her skin felt
.
Blood dripped from his nostrils and a fat crimson droplet fell from his ear, splattering the carpet. Pienaar lunged forward, immediately sensing something was wrong. His hand shot up to check DM’s pulse
.
‘
Fuck
.’
The mathematician’s heart had given out under the stress, and pain
.
This could turn into a serious inconvenience, but hopefully one of his associates would have better luck. Besides, the little Burmese coward might have let something slip that he had missed
–
he would need to check the recordings with care. Pienaar grabbed the satellite phone from his coat and dialled a number from memory
.
‘
What?
’
The Englishman’s voice at the other end was rough from sleep
.
‘
He’s dead
.’
Silence. The line crackled with static, then went quiet. The Aussie could hear some breathing, short, machine-gun like
. Bloody amateurs.
‘
Dead? How… why?
’
‘
Accidents happen in this business
.’
Another intake of air
. ‘
Did you get the software, at least?
’
Pienaar almost giggled. It sounded like there was more fun on the way
. ‘
No. The thing burnt itself out. Sounded good, though
.’
‘
So you have nothing?
’
‘
Maybe. Don’t forget the other target
.’
‘
I never forget anything, you stupid fuck. But this is a nightmare. What are you going to do now?
’
Pienaar sighed, pretending to ignore the insult. For now
. ‘
You tell me. Should I plant some of the stuff around the place?
’
‘
Yes
.’
The Englishman paused for a heartbeat
. ‘
Have it look like a real drug bust-up. And make sure Walker pans out, or…
’
‘
Of course
.’
The apartment door slammed shut as Walker searched blindly for the light switch, his mouth tangled with Layla’s. She was already shrugging out of her overcoat when she stepped away from him and turned around, studying the room. Dropping the heavy jacket on his couch, she walked past one of the thin metal columns that speckled the open space and glided towards the large triple windows, her eyes fixed on the London night outside. The City buildings shone across the river, a skyline dotted with thousands of artificial fireflies.
‘It’s beautiful here.’
Walker joined her, his arms embracing her slim frame from behind, hands coming to a stop just below her breasts. He inhaled her perfume and nuzzled her neck, keeping his eyes open to avoid the nausea that threatened to overwhelm him. His head ached, a throbbing pain just behind his temples that had been made worse by the short taxi ride, but a weird sort of energy seemed to burn through his muscles.
Layla twisted in his arms, her mouth coming up to meet his, and they kissed hard. His hands went to her back, searching for the zip of the dark velvet dress she had changed into. She unbuttoned his shirt while still kissing him and pulled it off his head, kneeling to caress his bruises. ‘How did you get these?’ she said.
‘Boxing. I guess I’m becoming too slow.’
Layla straightened and stepped away from him, her back against the windowpane. She looked him up and down with a smile. ‘It keeps you in good shape though, especially for a banker.’
‘How did you…’
She raised her index finger in front of her full lips. ‘Shush, it’s a trade secret. Do you have any music?’
Walker nodded and went to his stereo, fumbling with the dials. His headache was fading a bit now, as waves of heat came up from his loins into his neck and face. He brushed away a few droplets of sweat from his forehead and managed to switch the radio on just as Layla slid up behind him, her hands coming to rest on his shoulders.
He turned and saw she was already naked, wearing only stockings and a satin suspender. Walker bent and kissed her deeply, her mouth opening to swallow his tongue. Her skin felt
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