10. Chapter 10 (1/2)

on the evening harry has to be home to meet his son, ruth meets andrew allen at a coffee shop in soho.

"what is this thing you have for coffee shops?" ruth asks him jokingly, as she sits beside him on a padded bench, facing the door, so that they can both keep an eye on anyone entering the shop. "most field agents i know practically live in pubs."

"it was a little over six months ago that i had my last drink," andrew answers. "the section doctor told me i'm an alcoholic, and i either give it up, or die young because my reactions are not as they should be. whatever it is i am, alcohol dulls my senses, and makes me forget who i am, which is why i'd used it. the down side in taking the edge off is that at my age, i need all the help i can get. if i can't go into the field, my life's barely worth living."

they sip their lattes, each watching the door.

"how's harry?" andrew asks at last.

"he's recovered ….. almost. just some soreness occasionally."

"and you and he?"

"we're …... fine. no ... we're good."

"i have a reason for asking you here, ruth. i feel a little awkward speaking to you about this, but your reputation as a reasonable person precedes you."

"alright. is there something i need to know?"

"i think there is. i'm telling you this because i like you, and despite his being a thorn in whitehall's side – or perhaps because of it – i quite like harry pearce."

"you and i are in the minority, then." ruth smiles as she looks up into andrew's green eyes, clearer now than they were a few weeks ago. "is harry still in danger?"

andrew waits at least three minutes before he replies, and when he does, his voice is low.

"not that i know of, and i have done numerous searches."

"should i do some digging around?"

"absolutely not, ruth. if my searches are tracked, then the worst thing they'll do to me is throw me in detention for a year or so. if they suspect you of the same thing, you'll be publicly humiliated, and harry will be sacked. that's the best case scenario. worst case would be for the hit on harry to be reactivated."

"why is it not still active?"

"because several of us know. tom sargent knows - he assisted me in your kidnapping - and i believe that lucas north also knows, although it's difficult to work out what's going on with lucas at the best of times. if they don't know that you also know, then that is to your advantage." andrew fiddles with his spare packet of sugar, while he thinks about what to say next. "my advice to you ….. and harry …... is that you get the fuck out. you have to leave london, perhaps even leave the country altogether. you need to resign, and disappear. weird things are happening in the service, and no-one is completely safe, and there's nothing the home secretary or the pm can do about it. people like harry – individuals with their own slant on how to do their jobs – are being targeted. i don't like it. i'm being kept out of the field in order to teach me a lesson. oh …. that's not what i'm being told. i'm on light duties in lieu of stress leave. can you believe it? i've been working in war zones on and off for the past twenty years. in all that time, i've never taken stress leave, although many others have. i thrive in a crisis. desk work is shitting me off no end."

andrew rattles on about his gripes with the security service. privately, ruth wonders why he doesn't just resign, and get a job with a private security company.

"i'll talk to harry about this," ruth says at last. she doesn't trust andrew enough to tell him any more, but she likes him enough to thank him for his information.

ruth is on her way to her nearest bus stop, when harry rings.

"can you come around here – now?" he says, without preamble.

"how did it go?"

"good. it was much better than i could have expected. can you get here …. to mine? if you have to grab a taxi, i'll pay."

"harry, i can pay for my own taxi. i'll see you in a bit."

harry is at the door when she presses the doorbell, and he lets her inside, and once the door is closed behind her, he pulls her into his arms, and kisses her soundly. it is only after a very long moment that they pull apart.

"will you stay the night?" he whispers against her ear.

after a kiss like that, there is only one possible answer.

"of course i can, but …..."