No Tomorrow Read Free

in order to maintain their cover, but that was to be expected.
Take no risks
, they would tell one another. They knew he wouldreturn to the hotel at some point, because the Danish surveillance expert had hacked into the hotel’s registry system. They knew how long he was staying, how much he was paying for the two rooms, even what he ordered from room service and that he had requested feather-free bedding and smoking rooms.
    â€œBut he hasn’t smoked a single cigarette in all the time we’ve watched him,” the Swede noted.
    â€œNo assumptions,” the Finn reminded him. “This guy’s only consistency is inconsistency.”
    â€œYou sound like you respect him.”
    â€œI do,” she said. “He’s a lion.”
    â€œA lion?”
    She nodded and grinned. “His head will look great mounted above my fireplace.”

Chapter 2
    T wo days later the voice of the female Dane, who was one of the pair shadowing on foot, sounded through the speaker of the mobile radio unit set up in the back of the rental van.
    â€œHe’s buying camping supplies.”
    The Swede pressed the SEND button on the radio control panel and spoke into the microphone. “What kind of supplies are we talking about?”
    â€œA stove, solid fuel, waterproof sleeping bag, bungee cords, padded sleeping mats, a walking cane . . . items like that. I can’t see everything he’s loaded into the trolley.”
    The Finn was also shadowing, but currently outside the store. Her distinctive red hair was hidden beneath a wig. “Any cold-weather gear?”
    The Swede waited for the Dane to respond when there was no danger of being observed. After a moment’s silence she answered, “Not from what I can see. Shall I get closer?”
    â€œMaintain a safe distance,” the Swede replied. “This could be a ruse to draw out potential surveillance. We make no assumptions about this guy. Take no risks. Okay?”
    â€œGot it.”
    The Finn said, “I think he’s planning for a job.”
    â€œYou can’t be certain of that,” the Swede replied.
    She responded without pause because while outside the store there was no danger of being exposed. “He’s not going camping for the fun of it. I know that much.”
    â€œWe can’t be sure he is going camping.”
    â€œTalk quieter,” the male Dane said, and rolled over.
    â€¢Â Â Â â€¢Â Â Â â€¢
    The next day was the same: more waiting. During that time they had witnessed him buying used mobile phones from a market trader and top-up credit from two different stores. The Finn had point for the foot surveillance. She enjoyed watching the target from relatively close proximity. She enjoyed pitting her skills at remaining unseen against such a careful mark. She didn’t take risks, of course, however much she wanted to impress the others. Particularly the Swede, who aroused her and frustrated her in equal measure in those moments when she did not think of her boyfriend or the Swede’s lovely wife.
    The Finn wanted to be the one that ended this. Not necessarily with the kill itself, but by providing that advantage they had so far struggled to acquire. Perhaps if she did not lose the target, as the others often did, she would be led to somewhere that could be used as a strike point, or learn some extra intelligence that they could exploit to create one.
    Gunning him down on the street wasn’t their style. They wanted to live free and enjoy their hefty tax-free commissions. It was rare they even left a body behind. A combination of the Swede’s cocktails of flesh-dissolving enzymes and acids and the Finn’s willingness to use power tools ensured that after they had made a kill, notenough of the target remained to be identified. They charged extra for such cleanup, but would do it regardless. The Finn kept her thrill at putting to use circular saws and belt