Story 13 – Part 1 – Getting Hot

Regg ambled down the street in a tacky tourist shirt and a map. It had been a long time since he and Driver had been given an assignment that was not in the same city as the agency office. Now he was slowly making his way back to the home base without being followed. This assignment was exhausting since Regg had been given several things to do all at once. Not to mention the heat in this city was unbearable.

He mentally ran through his check list as he stopped at a corner and stared at the map. He had dropped off one mysterious package, met a contact and got some information, and picked up a sealed envelope. All that was left was getting the envelope back without being followed. So far he had managed to lose every person tailing him.

The lucky thing was that his only time limit was to finish all of his tasks by the end of the day. It was nearing dinner time and Regg only had one thing left. He had even checked out three monuments and a museum. Seeing that he had about three people tailing him at the moment, Agent Michaels decided that it was time to stop for dinner.

“My friends told me about this place,” he excitedly told the cashier when his turn in line came up. “They told me that this was the best hole-in-the-wall local joint. The only problem was that they all recommended different things. I still can’t decide.”

“Well, there’s always the special and it’s made fresh and hot,” the teenaged cashier said. “For only a quarter more you can super size everything as well.”

After about five more minutes, Regg finally ordered and ate his meal. It was actually really good food. He took his time, all the while watching people out of the corner of his eye. Sometimes he wondered why he bothered pretending to be a tourist when he had people tailing him, but it was his job and so he would keep doing it.

He had memorized most of the city, but continued to keep the map out. It was the best excuse to look around with a clueless expression without attracting attention. Regg checked to make sure everything he had was still secure and then he threw away his trash and left the restaurant. The people who had been tailing him looked to be no where, but Agent Michaels knew better. He quickly checked the map and headed toward a popular tourist landmark.

He paused to check for directions and used the map as an excuse to glance around him. There were several people around the area, and he looked for anyone who looked familiar. Chances were that if he recognized a face then he had probably seen that person before. He saw several other tourists and shop workers, but it looked like his original tailers had given up on him. Still, it was always better to be safe than sorry.

Regg checked out one last tourist attraction and than stopped at the window of a tacky souvenir shop. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted a suspicious person. The man had turned his jacket inside out, probably thinking it would make him less noticeable. Regg almost laughed, the man had a nice pair of shoes that did not quite fit with the local look the guy was going for.

The man was not the only one who was recognizable. Even with the hat and glasses, Regg recognized the way the older woman was walking. From what he could glimpse, the two people were not working with the same sides. It was like playing a sport with several teams and having everyone else against you. Now that he knew the basics of what the teams were, it was time for Regg to bring out some strategy.

“Hey!” Regg yelled into his phone pretty loudly. “Guess what I did all day while you were stuck working?”

“About time you called,” Agent Driver snapped on the other end. “Where were you? The place of no reception? The plane arrived early so get your ugly mug and your fancy rental car over here. I’m going to roast alive here.”

“You mean you actually got vacation days?” Regg asked, faking conversation. Each sentence was code, and the real conversation was hidden in what was being said. “What’d you do? Fake sick leave?”