‘Late lunch or early dinner?’ I wondered as I dug into a veggie wrap. “At least I can still eat fries. What I wouldn’t give for a nice steak right now.”

I glanced at Kristina’s phone for the tenth time. I still didn’t have anything from Kristina. I felt very exposed at the moment. I didn’t have any proof that the Syndicate had the expertize to track me using technology, but I hated taking the risk.

“Alright, Jimmy-boy, what are the priorities?” I said, thinking out loud. “One. Survival. Two. Link up with Kristina. Three. Get your body back.”

I took a sip of the diet coke that had accompanied my meal. “Assets?” I looked over at the backpack, “Three days’ worth of clothes.” I then surveyed my computer and phone, “Decent comms.” Inside Kristina’s purse were credit cards and an ATM card. “Adequate funds.”

I paused to spend a few seconds eating and then returned to my planning. “Liabilities. Any use of comms or electronic funds risks exposure.” Then I looked down at my body, “Physically, very limited direct action capability.”

I finished the wrap and checked my phone, still nothing. “Time to focus on survival.” I said to the empty room. ‘I need resources with lower exposure risks,’ I thought. I glanced at Kristina’s ATM card and credit cards, a trip to the bank was in order. There were other options for getting untraceable funds, but everything that I could think required me to break the law in some way. And while survival was more important than keeping a clean record, those ideas held risks. I also knew I was on the clock.

I’d left a dead body in Kristina’s apartment. I wasn’t sure how the law in the UK would go on this one. It was obvious that they’d blown my door down and I’d had to defend myself. I’d wiped the broom down and screwed the head back on before leaving so the weapon might be a bit of a mystery. Or not. I was pretty sure that if the situation were, in any way normal, Kristina should have stayed and called the police and claimed self-defense. So, what was the risk? Best case, the Syndicate cleaned it up. Not wanting the exposure from a failed kidnapping attempt and the death of one of its employees. Worst case, the Syndicate tampered with the scene to make it look like I was a murderer . . . er . . . murderess. Most likely? I had to admit that I didn’t know. I lacked the information I needed to make the assessment.

“Okay, Jimmy-boy, hope for the best, plan for the worst. You’ve got a few hours and then assume there is a warrant out for your arrest. You need to fall off the grid quickly.”

Done eating I grabbed my gear, I’d seen a bank on the walk to the hotel. Time to get as many Euros as possible.

The trip to the bank was uneventful if a little nerve wracking. I couldn’t tell if people were looking at me because they thought I looked odd, or out of place, or if this was just the way the world reacted to a beautiful woman. I’d made the max withdrawal on all the cards and Kristina’s ATM, this resulted in several hundred euros.

It was starting to get dark when I made it back to the hotel. I was feeling full of nervous energy so I figured a workout was in order. I’d brought sweats and spent the next two hours going through a routine that left me gasping for breath. Once done I went to the shower and got the water running and just then I heard my phone ring. I rushed back to the living area and picked it up off the desk where I’d left it. It was my number so I pushed ‘talk.’

“Kristina?”

“Yeah, James, it’s me. What’s so urgent? What happened?” It was my voice, but it sounded tired.

“After you left the Syndicate showed up at your place. Two thugs with guns blew the door.”

“Oh, my God! Are you alright? How did you get out?” Now the fatigue was gone from his voice and I had his full attention.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I took them down and ran. I’m in Brussels right now. Where do you want to meet?”

There was a pause, “You took them down?” The disbelief was a little insulting.

“Yes, I took them down. I killed one and left the other tied up.”

“You KILLED one?” The shock in his voice was clear. “Are you telling me you killed someone?!” Now there was shock, horror, and disbelief in his strong voice.

“Kristina, calm down and focus.” I said as calmly as I could. “They blew down the door with a breaching charge and were carrying guns. I didn’t think they wanted to have a lovely chat over tea.” I said the last part a little more harshly than I intended. “We need to talk about this, but save it for later. Now, WHERE do you want me to meet you?”

There was a long pause, and then my former voice sound calmer, “James, I’m sorry to have dragged you into all of this . . . I never thought they’d try to kill you . . . uh . . . me.”

“Kristina, we can talk about this LATER, right now, I need you to focus. I’ve got to keep moving. I’m too exposed and too public to sit still. If I do they’ll probably catch me.”

“Okay, can you get to Berlin?”

“I think so.”

“Alright, I’ll text you an address. I’ve got a friend there, Jenny Hömann, she’ll help you . . . er . . . me.”

“Fine. Have you figured out how to swap us back?”

“Uhm, no, but I’ve learned a lot. I’ve got some new friends, they’ve agreed to help us. They’re kind of the opposition to the Syndicate. Look, I’ll explain everything when I see you. I should be able to be there in two days.”

“Alright, I’ll see you in two days!” Then I pushed the end button.

Less than thirty seconds later my phone buzzed and I looked at the text message:

Kristina: Stirnerstraße 33b, Berlin

Me: Got it. Shutting off my phone. I’ll call or text you in twelve hours.

I found a pen and paper on the hotel desk, jotted down the address and then killed the phone and popped out the battery. I had two days to get to Berlin, well, staying at a friend’s house would be much better than a hotel. I glanced at my watch, it was starting to get late. ‘I bet they’ve got trains leaving here at all times of day.’ I thought.

An all night train trip would be perfect, if they had one. I jumped into the shower trying to ignore my body and just focus on getting clean. My hair had gotten sweaty and stinky so I washed as quickly as possible, hoping that I wasn’t adding to much risk. Something just told me that I needed to be out of here as soon as possible. I was still uncomfortable with the girl routine, but I reminded myself that I need to blend in. Looking small, harmless, and female was now my best protection. If it took an extra twenty minutes to blend in with the rest of the female population, so be it, it might save my life later.

As it turned out it took almost a half hour to blow dry my hair, and another fifteen to put on a touch of makeup and get into a set of traveling clothes. By the time I left the hotel the temperature had dropped and I was wishing I had more than just the light leather jacket I’d taken from Kristina’s place.

I tried to hurry, but I’d worked out pretty hard and I soon had to slow down and pace myself. I got to the train station without any incident. It was now after 21:00 and I discovered there was an overnight train that departed at 23:41 and arrived at 08:13 in Berlin. Luckily there were plenty of seats, I got a funny look when I paid cash, but from this point on I planned to limit my use of anything that could be traced electronically. Hopefully, the syndicate wasn’t powerful enough to access government records, or they’d see that I’d entered Germany.

With nothing else to do I found a shop selling magazines. The latest Field & Stream, magazine was out and the cover article talked about Elk hunting. Just as I reached out to pick it up I spotted the nail polish on my right hand. It was slightly chipped from my failure to properly take care of Kristina’s hands, but it was an instant reminder of who and what I was. A cute, blonde, sitting in the train station reading a hunting magazine would be a little odd. In resignation I looked around for a fashion magazine, if I couldn’t read something fun, then I might as well do some research.

I took my time looking through the magazines, I had plenty of time to kill and this gave me a chance to people watch while I looked. There were people of all varieties moving through the train station and I realized that this was a place that never really slept. I could see families arriving and meeting loved ones, young people obviously intent on exploring Europe, and others who appeared to be traveling for business. In many ways it reminded me of an airport, but it had an older feel, as if the period of time that had given birth to the train station was very different from today. There were plenty of modern things, so maybe it was just my American perspective that colored my impression.

I finally settled on a fashion magazine and then impulsively grabbed the issue of Field & Stream. I figured I could put the one inside the other and then people would think I was reading something on fashion. The woman at the cash register was a little older than me and looked bored as she rang up my purchases. It almost surprised me that I didn’t even get a second look.

The wait proved uneventful and even though I didn’t get a sleeper car the seat I had was quite large and reclined with a leg rest coming out so that it was almost in a bed. As luck would have it another woman, traveling by herself took the seat next to me and then a group of nuns filled the next two rows. ‘Good,’ I thought, ‘no kids and maybe some divine protection.’

The train pulled smoothly away from the station and I closed my eyes. The last twenty four hours had taken a toll on me and I could feel my body wanting to shut down for some much needed rest.

I don’t normally dream. However, since becoming Kristina my sleep had been filled with dreams. It was no different now. It started out with me, in uniform, in the field. It was a training event, land navigation, our team was moving toward the objective when the ambush happened. Everyone reacted with precision each person knew their job and went at it, except me.

I knew that if I got down on the ground it would get my dress dirty. Then I sort of blinked in the dream, instead of wearing the full battle rattle I was expecting I had on a frilly white dress.

“What the hell?”

I looked around but the fire fight had continued while I was distracted. The team was moving forward breaking out of the ambush; Sgt. Davis looked back at me.

“Frost, get your butt in gear or you’ll get us all killed.”

Then he looked ahead just as his MILES (Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement System) gear went off. “Fuck, now I’m dead!” he said and glared at me. “Well, are you going to get that pretty little butt moving or not? We didn’t train you to sit around and let the enemy come at you. Attack the ambush!”

I tried to explain that I was a girl and that I wasn’t in the service when the dream shifted. I found myself back in Kristina’s apartment. The door was wide open as a group of men in suits entered. The thug I’d tied up was free and he met them at the door. I couldn’t hear anything but they pulled out a long canvas bag and rolled the body of the second thug into it, zipping it up. While they were at work I saw someone else had taken my door off the hinges and to my surprise they had another door they were already fitting onto the apartment.

Then one of the guys, older, with a touch of grey in his rust red hair, froze and looked around. At last, as if sensing me, he looked in my direction and said something and his eyes started glowing. At that I panicked and tried to run, and the dream faded away.

I found myself still in that same white dress, but now I was on a train. Not the same car that I was sleeping in but rather the dining car, and there were four men that drew my attention as they ate. They all had the look of low level crooks and it made me wonder what they were up too. If I were to guess they were locally hired cheap muscle, but for what?

“The boss said she’d be on this train.” The oldest crook said, and took a long pull from his beer.

“What’re we supposed to do, again?” The smallest of the group asked.

“Easy, find her, and at the next stop escort her from the train. Then we just hold her and call the boss in. She said, that she’d pick the girl up herself.”

The crook of African descent spoke up, “Too, easy.” And cracked a couple of knuckles.

“What if she causes a fuss?” The small guy asked looking a little worried.

“That’s what we’ve got this for.” The leader held up a small glass jar with a clear liquid. “The boss said put some of this on a rag and then hold it to her mouth. After she breathes it in she’ll do anything we ask.”

The little guy sat up and a creepy grin filled his face showing off rotten teeth. “Anything?”

Now all four were grinning, “Yeah, and the boss said that she wants the girl, alive, but she didn’t say anything about us not having some fun with her while we wait.”

With that the dream faded and I found myself shivering as I sat up. I looked around the dark passenger car and didn’t see anyone moving. ‘Was that a dream? Or something more than a dream?’ I wondered. It had, and it hadn’t, felt like a dream. The quality had been dream-like, but it had been so vivid and there was no doubt in my mind that the guy in Kristina’s flat had seen me, somehow. Did that mean those criminals were actually on this train?

As quietly as I could I collected my gear and moved into the aisle, the best way out of an ambush was to push through it. If I just waited for them I was doomed. I’m good, but even in my body, I wouldn’t have wanted to take on four guys at once. Now I didn’t even want to fight one of them if I could figure out a way around it.

I hadn’t done any exploring when I’d boarded the train and now I regretted that, it’s always good to know the ground when you’re facing a fight. I turned right and decided to try going forward to see what I could find. As I moved through the compartment I spotted a couple, obviously together since she was snuggled into him, sleeping. On the seat next to the woman was a large hat, without slowing down I snagged the hat and as soon as I opened the door into the next car I put it on. It didn’t really fit me but I could use the floppy brim to hide behind, it was a poor disguise, but it was something.

It took me a few minutes to figure out that I was headed to the dining car. I pushed the door open and when I spotted the four guys I felt my blood run cold. They looked just like they had in my dream! I didn’t know what was going on but I turned around and headed back the way I’d come. As I did out of the corner of my eye I saw one of the guys point in my direction. “Shit!”

I knew better than to run, but I moved as quickly as I could. As I passed the sleeping couple I dropped the hat back onto the empty chair. If they’d seen the hat, maybe this would slow them down. I doubted it, though.

I passed through several passenger cars and paused only to grab my gear before continuing aft. When I saw the sleeper cars I cars I was tempted to break into one of them. I shook my head, dumb idea, although the fearsome foursome had no idea if I’d booked a sleeper or a seat, I was suddenly sure they had a way of checking. I just needed to find a place to hide. I kept going further and further back, not seeing a good hiding place. At last I got to a door to a car that wouldn’t open. ‘Crap, I’ve reached the end.’ I thought, and in the dim light provided between the cars saw that this was the baggage car.

I tried the handle again, and it didn’t budge, then in desperation I dug into Kristina’s purse and pulled out a credit card. I pushed and pulled the door a couple of times to see how much slack was in the lock. Satisfied, I leaned against the door and then pushed my credit card in, wiggling it against the bolt. It was lose, with, a little luck . . . It took several tries but then I slipped the card between the tongue and the lock, and the door pushed open.

I moved into the dark compartment and was instantly struck by how cold it was. This part of the train wasn’t heated! I pulled out Kristina’s key ring, attached to it was a small flashlight and I used it to look around. The passenger’s luggage was neatly stacked waiting to be off loaded at the proper destination. Just then I heard someone rattle the door to the baggage car. I could see shadows through the frosted glass window in the door and I moved away between a set of shelves.

Could it be the thugs who’d spotted me earlier? I wasn’t sure but I was hoping that they didn’t have the same idea that I’d had to pick the lock. Then the rattling stopped and I let out a sigh. ‘Alright, Jimmy-boy, time to get off this rolling death trap. As soon as the train stops, get off and let it take those creeps as far from you as possible. There are other ways to get to Berlin.’ I thought to myself.

I sat my backpack on the floor and used it as a seat while I leaned against the wall behind me. “Well, this isn’t first class, or even coach,” I said to the darkness, “but at least it’s dark, quiet, and safe.”

I wrapped my arms around myself trying to conserve heat and started shivering as the cold began to soak in. As I shivered I looked at all the luggage around me, I was willing to bet that somewhere in all of that baggage there was a coat. Just then there was the sound of a key turning in the lock and I barely had time to pull my feet in when the door opened and someone flipped on the overhead light switch.

“Now, which bag is yours?”

I peaked between the luggage racks and saw a man in the uniform of a train conductor looking over at the short crook from the dinner car. Next to him was the slightly taller guy who’d remained silent during the conversation.

“Be a good chap, and stand over there please. Be quiet and don’t move, we’ll just be needing a bit of a look around.” The short guy said, and I could see a handkerchief in his hand. The conductor moved over and stood where he was told like it was the most natural thing in the world.

‘Shit, shit, shit, shit,’ I thought. ‘My dream was right!’ There was absolutely no way, I was going to allow them to use whatever it was, that they’d put on that hanky, on me! I slowly moved to a low squat and got ready. The short guy led the way down the narrow walkway between the shelves. When he was a few feet away I moved. I stepped into the aisle and shouted, “Surprise!” I threw my backpack at his face and caught off guard he brought his hands up to block. That gave me the target I’d wanted and I planted a front thrust kick with all the power I could generate into his groin.

The nice thing about boots, from a fighting perspective, is that the toes and heels are great weapons. The hard toe of my leather boot made solid contact with his groin and he folded over. The back of his head was a perfect target for an ax kick, I just had to be careful since the aisle was too narrow for a normal wind up. Instead, I stepped back and did a sliding front leg ax kick that used the heel of my boot to make solid contact with the back of his head. He hit the ground, hard.

The second thug looked at me, shock written plainly on his face, what I wouldn’t have given for a nice 9mm at that moment. I moved over the semi-conscious guy on the ground and tried a step behind side thrust kick. He just moved back out of range. Now I was in the wider area of the baggage car and he grinned at me.

“I always liked girls with some spunk.”

He lunged forward and grabbed my left wrist. Big mistake. I kicked him with my right leg in the left shin, he did the normal thing, bending over slightly in the direction of the pain. His grip also loosened just a little. I reached over to grab his wrist with my right hand and ducked under the arm that had been holding my left wrist and then spun around in a tight circle so I ended up facing him. As I did I applied a Sanyko lock.

He tried to turn toward me reaching out with his free hand to grab me and I stepped back with my left foot creating a little separation between us and then, with my hips and legs behind the move, I used all the force I could generate to sharply twist his wrist into him. The crack of his wrist breaking reminded me of the sound a bat makes when it hits a ball.

For most people, unless they’ve made pain a friend, on a daily basis, that first blow, slap, or joint popping out of its socket, is uniquely painful and shocking experience. Pain and I are old friends, in fact we’re on a first name basis, evidently that wasn’t the case for tall, dark, and silent.

“Arghhhhh . . .”

I let go of the now broken wrist and not wanting to risk breaking a hand on his head, did a front heel kick to his jaw as he stood there hunched over cradling his arm. I felt my heel make a satisfying crunch and he dropped onto his side. The first guy was starting to move so I rushed over to where he’d dropped the hanky and put it over his nose and mouth before he was fully aware of what was going on. It took second but I saw a change come over his body, it was as though all the tension fled, he just sort of relaxed. I moved the hanky away.

“Sit down, and don’t move.”

He drew his legs under himself and sat cross-legged. I moved over to the conductor who was just standing there watching but not moving.

“Give me your keys.”

Woodenly he unclipped a large key ring and handed it to me.

“Go back to your seat, sit down, close your eyes and take a nap. When you wake up you’ll be back to your normal self and not remember any of this, got it?”

He seemed to focus on me and then nodded, “Yes, Ma’am.” With that he shuffled out of the baggage car closing the door behind him.

I cringed a little at the ma’am but ignored it. The second goon wasn’t moving yet but I went over to him and used the hanky on him. I could see his body relax as whatever it was took effect. I didn’t know if he could hear me but I figured it couldn’t hurt.

“Sleep. Forget everything you saw inside this baggage car.”

A second later a soft snore escaped his lips so I crossed my fingers and went to the short, sexual predator. I studied him for a minute, he had sandy brown hair, his dark brown eyes were glassy, and he looked like he could have a few less beers in his diet.

“Tell me your name.”

“Patrick MacDonald.”

“Okay, Patty, why were you looking for me?”

“Because Big John got a contract to grab you.”

“Who put the contract out?”

“I don’t know, some broad, I didn’t talk to her, or see her.”

“Do you know anything else about her?”

“John, thought she was hot, but said she had the eyes of a killer.” Then he grinned, “John’s got her phone number, we’re supposed to call her once we’ve got you.”

“Okay, Patty, I want you to get up and go over to your buddy over there and spoon him, and take a nap.”

For a brief second I’d considered having Pat fuck his buddy and let him have those memories. Particularly, when I thought about the dream and what it would have been like for me to have been at the mercy of these guys. But I didn’t do it. It would’ve been unprofessional, and besides, it would have made me responsible for a rape. Pat moved over to his buddy and laydown snuggling up to him.

“Oh, Patty, when you wake up, you won’t remember anything that happened in the baggage car. You came in and then just woke up. Understand?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Then almost as an afterthought, I did a quick search of my two goons’ pockets. I ignored their IDs but took all the cash. They each had a pair of knives and tall and silent had a Leatherman. I stowed these in my backpack. Then very carefully I put the hanky in a side pocket. I wished I had some hand sanitizer because I didn’t want to risk accidently smelling my own hand! For now there was nothing I could do so I started looking around. That’s when I spotted the hanging bag with the large Roman Cross embroidered on it. One of the great things about transportation security these days is that you can’t lock your checked bags.

I opened the hanging bag and grinned, “Bingo!”

When I left the baggage car I was wearing a full nun’s habit. I stopped at the first bathroom I found and checked myself in the mirror. I couldn’t believe how much the clothes changed my appearance. I made sure to wash my hands twice before leaving and rather than return to my compartment I picked an empty seat just a few cars from the baggage car.

It wasn’t long after I’d found my seat that the other two thugs made their way back toward the baggage car. I hoped they had a plan for getting the door open. I grinned, remembering that when I’d left I’d put the key in the door, and then using the Leatherman’s plyers, twisted the key in the lock breaking it. Opening that door would take a lot of work now. ‘Unless someone thought to use a credit card,’ I reminded myself.

About twenty minutes later the train pulled into the station at Hagen. I slipped off the train, it was very early and I moved quietly through the train station to a spot where I could watch the platform without being observed. I saw the leader of the thugs get off and look around, then just before the train pulled out he got back on board. He looked red-faced and frustrated. Once the train was gone I let myself breathe a sigh of relief. I went through the station and found a security guard by the main entrance.

He saw me coming and nodded, “Guten Morgen, wie kann ich ihnen helfen?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t speak German.”

The guard smiled, “Ja, what can I help you?”

“Is there a twenty-four hour rental car service, here?”

“Ah, nein . . . sorry.”

“Is there a hotel close?”

“Ja, go out turn right, zwei blocks, nice hotel.”

“Thanks.”

“Bitte sehr.” he said, and tipped his hat.

I found the hotel and even though it looked old enough to have survived WWII the guy at the counter accepted cash. Once in the room I collapsed onto the bed and fell into a deep dreamless sleep.