Action, Reaction and Consequences Ch. 07

She kissed him, but he failed to reciprocate the act; she felt like he was emotionally shutting her out. As the two men walked away Tanya stood looking at Matt, neither moving.

One of the men spoke.

"Are you in? If you are, you need to come now."

Tanya's eyes dropped their gaze from Matt and started to walk away. Matt shouted out.

"You said to support you as your goal is within reach. But there's a problem, Tanya. Like football you can only play for one Team. This is your last chance to decide which Team to play for. Us, as in me, you and starting a family together or whatever you are about to do. Choose the goal you wish to score, it's solely your choice."

She stopped walking. By now the two Frenchmen were several steps ahead of her standing in a doorway out of the departure hall. She started to turn, Matt thought she had seen sense but then she looked at the two Frenchmen who were beckoning her over to them. She looked back at Matt who stood immobile and expressionless looking towards her.

With a sad expression she silently mouthed 'I love you' before following the Frenchmen, letting the door close behind her.

"OK, now your husband is gone I'm Jean Claude, my colleague Phillipe we are from Interpol. Your colleagues have sent the files you need to familiarise yourself with, they will have your ID and suitable clothing for your operation when they arrive in a couple hours then, within seven hours, you should be at the operational site."

They left Tanya with the tablet so she could immerse herself in the files. By the time she lands in Dubai she will need to be Tammi Willis.

The two Frenchmen left Tanya in the interrogation room so she could concentrate without distraction. Earlier on her phone had pinged with a password to access the tablet, she smiled at the password, R1ght_Cho1ce_T, obviously a message from Mr. Smith and Jones. She expected them to be with her in Lyon shortly.

She opened the tablet to see a single folder in the Documents section called Culebra and opened it to see various pdf type files and several images. She opened the file labelled '01_PM' and read it.

'Dear Mr. Smith

I would like to express my thanks to you and your small, but certainly far from insignificant, specialist department that our Government relies on more and more frequently in our hours of need. You are aware of our latest dilemma. I have the utmost faith that you will be able to 'cut the head' from this poisonous snake that is threatening to sully our country's reputation around the world and reap untold harm upon the fair shores of the British Isle.

Can you please send the Government's heartfelt thanks to the individuals considered the country's best operatives for this operation. Namely 'XXXXXX' and 'XXXXXX', in particular the latter. The senior cabinet members privy to this operation are in awe of her commitment to the role she is about to undertake, especially since she is to make some harsh temporary personal sacrifices as detailed in the agreement that she and her husband must sign before we allow for full project commitment after the initial priming stage.

It saddens me that you have already lost one of your team in attempting to get close to the snake in the grass but, God willing, 'XXXXXX' has the tenacity to see this through until the end. The self-sacrifice she will make are ones I do not take lightly and, as a husband with a loving wife, I pray that at the end she is as strong as you have portrayed her to be and able to pick up her personal life and rebuild her marriage into a stable and happy one.

With great hopes and belief you will succeed

The Prime Minister.

There it was, the accolade she had strived to receive. The hours of studying, financially scraping through university, living a thrifty existence, missing out on all the life experiences a girl should be enjoying at that age and then, lastly forsaking commitment and love.

Love, it had almost undone her desire to reach the top. Her plan was to achieve her personal goal then find a relationship where she could be happy, in love and ready to make her own family with children brought into a world where two parents would love them. Her children would not feel like a discarded piece of rubbish which is how she imagined her own mother must have seen her before she abandoned her in life. She vowed to never, ever let it happen.

She thought about Matt, she so nearly turned back in the airport terminal before abandoning him there. All she wanted to do was sit on the floor and cry because she was truly caught between a rock and a hard place. What if she had turned and walked back to Matt, chosen that permanent path to be his wife and no more? Mr. Smith made it abundantly clear that when the chance came it would be a one-time offer, if she declined it then she would sink back into obscurity, she may as well give up on her dream and become no more than a man's wife never to experience the praise she would rightfully earn as someone quite capable of reaching the very top.

She had made that decision no more than half an hour ago when she walked through the door and left her husband behind. They had already experienced their own trauma together and they had pulled through it, their love was so strong they could do it again.

The French officers Jean Claude and his colleague Phillipe had gone into the adjacent room where the two-way mirror allowed them to see Tanya.

"I am, how do the American's say, gob-smacked, by the skills of that woman. My discussion with her boss said she was the best undercover operative in the United Kingdom but I took that as the English peacocking but, Sacré bleu! Did you see the way she transformed? It was like the scene from some cheesy Hollywood romcom movie out there with her husband. But within moments of stepping through the door she transformed into the true professional we see sitting there, next door."

Jean Claude sighed. He was so close to his retirement he wondered if he should stay on a little longer if Phillipe was representative of the modern Interpol officer.

"Is that what you see Phillipe? I beg to differ. I see a troubled woman that will probably self-destruct in the near future and probably take anyone close to her when that happens!"

"Jean Claude, really! I think your age has made you too cynical. Tell you what, if you can convince me of that before the hair stylist arrives, dinner at L'Alexandrin is on me. If not, dinners on you. Sound fair?"

Jean Claude laughed. This was going to be an easy win.

"Right, watch her carefully. Concentrate on her facial expressions."

They watched for several minutes as she stared at the tablet screen. She scrolled down then suddenly stopped with her finger still on the slider bar of the document.

"There, did you see she blinked twice in succession? There was a very slight twitch in her face, if you weren't looking for it you wouldn't see it. And her finger is still on the tablet, it's like she is frozen to the spot. I very much suspect she is dealing with the conflict of leaving her husband as she did. Don't forget, the English told us she is walking out on the start of the holiday and there are dots of their puzzle her husband will quickly put together to realise he has been deceived so may become irrational and we would need to be prepared."

They stood studying her for another fifteen minutes before the hair stylist arrived to take her away for the necessary work she needed for the role. Apparently, her hair needed to be blonde and cut shorter.

"It appears I owe you a dinner Jean Claude. Now you've pointed it out I can see it happening. You think she is fighting within her mind between her job and her relationship. But how did you know?"

"In all my years I've seen it once before but that time it was an American woman. She wasn't married like this one but had a deep bond with one of our countrymen. They assigned both of them to tackling Greenpeace by infiltrating the organisation at different levels but after a year they were brought together by Greenpeace's activities in French Polynesia. She found him with a girlfriend who was three months pregnant, the girlfriend a committed activist and unaware he was an undercover French operative.

The American was recalled back to Paris after a few more weeks and I worked with her but she had changed, there was a split in her personality visible exactly like our English woman we've been watching."

"So, what happened, Jean Claude?"

"It was simple, she vanished from Paris one day, a few days later our French operative and his girlfriend were found dead, supposedly from a bodged mugging attempt. You don't need to be Einstein to figure out who committed the crime. She was found a week later trying to get back to America. I understand she was committed to a mental institute and considered too damaged to ever come back into society. Like I said, this one has all the signs. It's not a question of if she blows, it's just a question of where, when and how much damage she will do. Just be glad it's an English shit show about to unfold."

They disappeared off to get a coffee and await the arrival of Mr. Smith and Jones from London. Jean Claude had minor dealings with them before and Mr. Jones was a person who he never, ever let stand where he couldn't see him and always made sure his own weapon was loaded and ready to grab should he need to. He wanted them all out of France as quickly as possible.

At Biggin Hill airport in London the Gulfstream G550 had been loaded with several suitcases of clothes for Tanya which were stored in the bedroom of the private jet. Mr. Smith began to get agitated at the tardiness of Mr. Jones. He was convinced it was a subtle way to stick two fingers up to the authority Mr. Smith held.

Mr. Jones arrived and on walking onto the jet was surprised to see an attractive woman in her mid-forties sitting towards the back of the plane in a seat by the bedroom door. Mr. Jones nodded his head towards the unexpected passenger.

"Who's she?"

"Mrs. Smith, she works part time for us as a consultant where required. And today, my gut feeling is she will be required. She will be staying with me whilst we are on our holiday at the resort too, she is always complaining we don't get away as way as often as we should."

Mr. Jones was angry, was this his real wife, he had no idea. He was finding, that of late, Mr. Smith was sharing less, and not more, of plans that were afoot for the operation that was now entering a new stage with the insertion of Tanya into the field of work. And how the hell was the plan to acclimatise Tanya to her new life with her on board the plane? Was Mrs. Smith going to take part, watch or simply sit outside the room listening?

The jet was soon underway bound for Lyon and, in less than two hours, the three passengers on board would become four. All three sat at the table of the office segment within the fuselage checking through the documentation one last time to ensure that nothing was being left to chance. The plane landed and taxied to halt. Only Mr. Smith and Jones left the plane for the short walk to the terminal buildings. Halfway between the plane and the terminal Mr. Smith spoke loudly enough so he could clearly be heard by Mr. Jones who was walking slightly ahead of him.

"Paulie, there is something we need to discuss before we go inside."

Mr. Jones stopped dead but didn't turn to look back. This was the first time since he had arrived from Australia all those years back when he left his old life behind to become Mr. Jones that, the man he considered his sole friend, had used his old name. Whatever was coming was going to be a defining part of their relationship.

"I know you have designs on Tanya and yes, I'm well aware you went down and stalked her. I understand enough about the way to tick to know what you wanted. I'm glad you stepped back, that would have been too early in your life to announce your demise."

"This assignment you and Tanya are about to embark on will raise you and I up to be considered gods amongst the corridors of power within Britain. If we fail, well, I suspect we'll end up as fish food out somewhere in the English Channel."

"You have certain taste in the way you wish to live that I tolerate Paulie, because you are exceptional at performing the roles that you undertake for our great country. But I'm drawing a very clear line in the ground that you must not, and I emphasise, must not cross if you wish to remain amongst the living. You will not handle Tanya in any way that will jeopardise our business. Once you have rolled the dice to bring her into play, step back and let her work unhindered."

"But I recognise that you have desires and feel that you deserve reward for the part you have played in this operation to date. Once we leave Lyon, I will allow you to have a piece of what you desire but it will be strictly supervised by me. But it will not be in the fashion you so enjoy. We, as in you and I, will make love to her, we need to hold her hand into accepting the path she is going to follow. I have already primed her back in London but we need to delicately take this next step with her. I have brought Mrs. Smith as a form of insurance in case Tanya baulks once we are underway."

"If you go off the rails Paulie, and revert at any point to your true form, it will all end there. You will end there. I want no marks and she must be able to step into her role in Dubai fresh as a daisy to maximise the time in this short window of opportunity to bring about the changes we need. Is that clear?"

Paulie nodded.

"Don't nod at me Paulie, I want to hear you speak the words so there is no misunderstanding."

Mr Jones turned around with an impassive face he spoke but Mr. Smith could see the anger simmering deep behind his eyes.

"Yes, Mr. Smith, I understand and accept your offer."

"Good, I'm glad that's clear. I will add that, when we reach the end, there may be an opportunity to scratch that inch you rarely get to scratch with someone you so want to, how can I put this, play one of your special games with. But you do not, and I repeat, do not undertake that obligation unless I am standing talking to you face-to-face before it happens. If you did it without express permission from me, I will personally come looking for you and slowly, painfully but without fail, put you down."

As they walked in silence into the terminal building Mr Jones was furious at the ridiculous restraint Mr. Smith was putting on him. He tried to calm himself, he may not be able to follow his instincts but he could wait. And if he had to wait it would make the end game even sweeter for him.

Inside the building they were greeted by the two French Interpol officers assigned to the case who took them to Tanya where she was having the final work done to alter her appearance. Gone were the long locks, her hair now bleached blonde, straightened, and cut in an angled bob. A make-up artist had given her a new look with make-up colours she would not have selected and a light-coloured pink lipstick. Looking in the mirror Tanya liked the new look.

Mr Smith walked up to Tanya and kissed her lightly on the cheek.

"Tanya, my, that new look suits you down to the ground? Do you like it?"

"Actually, yes I do Mr. Smith."

Tanya noted that Mr. Jones said nothing, merely looked at her in the doorway with his

Arms folded with a sly grin on his face. She felt like a wolf was looking at a lamb.

"Well new look, new you from now on you are Tammi Willis, ok? Tanya is now put in a box, at least for the time being. If you can gather up all of the belongings you have, I assume you turned your phone off the minute you stepped away from Matt?"

Mentioning his name changed the look on her face from pleasure to sadness in an instant. Mr. Smith reached out to put his hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry the notice was so short; I don't like that I've forced you to cut this special holiday of yours so abruptly. I understand how Matt would have taken it, let's face it, it shows how much he loves you. But trust me, the sacrifice, your goals and the ultimate rewards will be worth it. I gather you've read the letter from the Prime Minister? He spoke to me this morning to tell me how proud of you, putting the needs of your country first in this dreadful affair. Once you successfully complete the operation, he wants to meet you and Matt personally to express his thanks and tell Matt he should be honoured to have such a committed wife as you."

Tanya looked up and smiled, it wouldn't repair everything but if the Prime minister explained to Matt why it was important the way these things had played out it would give them a concrete base to start to rebuild their life together.

As Tanya gathered the few belongings she had taken when she walked away from Matt, Mr. Smith thought about his last comments. He deliberately left telling Tanya to the last minute. Giving her advance notice could have given her a chance to reflect on it, especially if the guilt succeeded in opening a discussion with Matt. As for the Prime Minister, he was a snollygoster, he would do, and say, whatever he needed to, to make sure that operation Pórnē succeeded. Like Mr. Smith his whole political career was now explicitly tied to it and he could not untangle himself from it.

They walked back to the plane, Mrs. Smith was seated back down by the bedroom reading some paperwork.

"Tanya, the woman sat down there, you can call her Mrs. Smith and she is part of this operation to give you support ok? She's busy at the moment, but you'll have the chance for a chat before we get to Dubai."

They sat and discussed the planned stages of the operation in Dubai. Mr. Jones was already known to Mickey Two Guns as Lucas Jones, a freelance agent that had a knack for coming up with useful information at the right time. Mickey had resources to check on Lucas's background and all that was done was to use the original investigation into Mr. Jones former self, Paulie, tweak it with the name change and make it a dishonourable discharge. There was now a man than Mickey could relate to.

The most important part of the operation would unfold the following morning. Mr. Jones would arrive at Mickey's extravagant Dubai retreat which bore more resemblance to a small five-star resort than a holiday home. He would have Tammi Willis in tow having spent the journey out from London sitting next to Mr. Jones and accepting his offer to stay overnight. Mickley held a master key card to every room with an almost clockwork set of behavioural patterns. The guard would message Mickey advising him of Mr' Jones arrival and also advising of a female guest in-tow. That had never happened before and they knew it would pique his interest therefore he would open the door to Mr. Jones rooms sometime just after nine am. They would be waiting for him, prepared to have him draw Tammi into his life.

Tammi, we need to be sure that you pull off this first critical stage without the merest hint you're uncomfortable, you've got to make Mickey believe you are the one driving the events. You know it's best to have a practice run right now, get any jitters out the way before it's too late. If you go down to the bedroom there are some clothes to change into. Once you're ready let us know.

Tammi walked down to the bedroom. Mrs Smith looked up from the notes she was reading and gave a slight nod acknowledging her as she passed. Tammi noticed a slight smile on her face which she found reassuring. On the bed was a bag containing a bag with pair of new four-inch-high black heels along with a pair of black holdup stockings. And nothing else. There was nothing else obvious other than two unopened suitcases. Unsure as to what to do she opened the door enough to poke her head out.