SEPHY, PLEASED WITH WHAT she had just heard, headed for the hotel elevator. In her hands was the room key she had been given at reception. She entered the room with a smile on her face. She left the key on the table in the lobby and went to her room, while she got rid of her horrible braces.
When she reached the mirror, she removed her wig. Then came her brown contact lenses. She wiped the mascara from her eyelashes and the dark outline of her eyebrows with a baby wipe. Then she rinsed her face with warm water. And then, when she opened her eyelids, there was Sephy again: blonde, pale, and blue-eyed. The most attractively diabolical doll on the criminal market.
She lit a cigarette and went to the living room. She needed Nina's help... or maybe she just missed someone she could trust. Being in the Agency's crosshairs, which wouldn't give up trying to eliminate her, was something that made her very uneasy.
However, the conversation he had just overheard might be more important than the bounty on his head. They had referred to chains surrounding the octagonal building of the Velez chapel, the Centuries of Nostradamus, and the Ark of the Covenant, a relic in search of which the Third Reich conducted numerous archaeological expeditions in the Middle East, especially Egypt, believing it to be a magical amulet endowed with supernatural powers, with which the Fuhrer could rule over the other nations of the world.
Most important of all, however, was knowing her man was sleeping at the hotel. She'd heard his wife call the man next to her — Greg — and it would be nearly impossible for two people with that name to be involved in the same matter. She'd also memorized the names of the architect and his niece — supposedly missing — which further increased her chances of success, as she'd already devised a plan and wasn't about to renounce it.
She took her cell phone out of her purse. She dialed Nina's number and waited for the signal. After a few seconds, she heard a recording informing her that the phone was either off or out of range. She tried again, with the same result. She found this strange, because Nina had promised to keep it on at all times, precisely so they could communicate when necessary. Then she called Fraulein Gottdard, the elderly woman who lived in the apartment across the street and who used to water Nina's hydrangeas when they were both away on trips. She was always available to the others. She was the only one who knew where her friend was.
As soon as she heard Sephy's voice, the woman began to cry.
— Little one, is that you...?
— Yes, it's me! — she replied, surprised by her neighbor's behavior. — Did something happen to her?
— Oh, creature! I don't even know how to tell you... — she moaned, disconsolate.
— Tell me what?
So many sobs were starting to make her nervous.
— It's about Nina... it was horrible!
— Where is she? What happened? — she asked anxiously. Her heart skipped a beat as a terrible premonition began to well up in her gut.
— She was found dead in her apartment, shot in the head... — the neighbor moaned again. — I'm so sorry, little one! I'm so sorry, I really am! You know very well how much I loved her... She was like a daughter to me! If I tell you that...
At that moment, Sephy stopped listening. She slowly lowered her hand, cutting off the communication without even saying goodbye. She had been dealt a heavy blow, perhaps too heavy. Her friend's death was not indifferent to her. What's more, she managed to extract a scream of hatred from her that ended with a helpless punch against the wall.
For some strange reason, the Agency had found Nina before they got to her, Sephy.