The Oslo Affair (Shadows of War, #2) by CW Browning (read after .txt) 📗

expected, unless it wasn’t Horace Manchester who was standing politely as she approached.

“Miss Richardson?” he asked, moving to pull out a chair for her. “I’m Collins, Mr. Manchester’s assistant. He sends his apologies that he couldn’t be here personally. He believes he is being watched, you see. He didn’t want to expose you any further.”

She nodded and seated herself in the offered chair, unbuttoning her coat.

“I understand, and appreciate his caution,” she said. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Collins seated himself again and smiled at her, his face open and friendly.

“I wish it were under better circumstances,” he said, reaching into the inside pocket of his coat. He pulled out a thick envelope and passed it to her. “Everything you need is inside. We’ve arranged passage for you on a merchant ship leaving for Denmark tonight. It will take you to Copenhagen. From there, it is up to you to find your way back to England.”

Evelyn took the envelope and tucked it into her purse. “Thank you.”

“London has been alerted to the arrangements,” he continued. “The passage is booked under the name of Clare Billadeau, a French national.”

“Did Anna get away?”

“Yes. I saw her not ten minutes ago. She’s on her way to the station.” He glanced at his watch. “You have to leave now if you’re to make the ship. There is a gray sedan outside that will take you to the docks. Your baggage is inside.”

Evelyn nodded and stood, holding her hand out to him.

“Thank you for everything, Mr. Collins,” she said. “Please extend my thanks to Mr. Manchester as well.”

“Of course,” he shook her hand with a smile. “Have a safe journey, Miss Richardson.”

She nodded and turned to leave, trying not to feel as if she was leaving behind the last friendly face she’d see for a while. It had been daunting to sail from Scotland for Norway with no idea what awaited her, but that was nothing compared to the prospect of sailing to Copenhagen with no idea how she would get from there back to England. She didn’t speak Danish, nor did she know if there was even a train that would take her from Copenhagen to the western coast of Denmark.

Before an overwhelming sense of panic could consume her, Evelyn took a deep breath and focused on the next few minutes. She’d get to the car before she worried about anything else, then worry about boarding the ship. Once she was away from Sweden there would be time enough to worry about Denmark. She could only worry about one thing at a time, and had to tackle each moment as it happened. Otherwise, she wouldn’t make it out of here.

She stepped out into the night again and looked around. A gray sedan was parked a few feet away and, as she walked towards it, the driver got out and moved to open the back door.

“Miss Richardson?”

She nodded and got into the car. As the door closed and the driver got behind the wheel again, Collins emerged from the cafe. The car pulled away from the curb as he turned to walk in the opposite direction.

Herr Renner strode across the sidewalk towards the entrance of the train station, his eyes on the two men waiting for him.

“Where are the others?” he demanded, joining them.

“Already inside,” Otto said, turning to walk with him through the wide doors.

“And the woman?”

“Disappeared.”

Renner looked at him sharply, his eyes narrowing. “What do you mean, disappeared?”

“She came in here, but there’s no sign of her yet. The others split up and are checking the waiting areas.”

Renner scowled and looked around the large lobby of the station. The ticket booth had one person waiting, an older gentleman carrying a briefcase, and the woman at the counter weighed at least three times what the woman who left the hotel did. He looked around slowly, scanning the crowds. It was the height of rush hour as people were catching trains out of the city at the end of the work day, and men and women swarmed around, hurrying to catch their train.

“There couldn’t be a worse time for this,” he muttered. “How many trains to Norway?”

“Two. But there are five more that go to other stations in Sweden where a connecting train can be caught to Oslo,” Otto told him.

“So seven altogether?” Renner looked at his watch. “What time does the next one leave?”

When there was no answer immediately forthcoming, he shot a look at Otter. That man looked uncomfortable.

“I...I don’t know.” As storm clouds formed on his superior’s brow, he turned hurriedly towards the ticket booth. “I’ll find out now.”

Renner watched him go in disbelief. They had taken the time at least to find out what trains went to Norway, but none of them had thought to get the times? Unbelievable! After glancing at his watch again, he started to make his way through the crowds, searching for a tall, dark-haired woman. There were any number of them, but none were the one from the hotel. And looking for a blonde woman was out of the question, he decided after a few moments. He was standing in a sea of light-haired women, all about the right height. It would be impossible to examine them all.

“Herr Sturmbannführer Renner!”

He swung around, watching as Otto pushed through the crowds towards him.

“It’s leaving now!” he gasped, joining him. “From track seven. Direct to Oslo.”

Renner turned and scanned the platform entrances, searching for the one that led to track seven.

“This way!” Otto said, motioning for him to follow. “It’s on this side.”

Renner followed him quickly as he pushed his way through the crowds, leaving exclamations of anger in his wake. Ignoring them, the two men half-ran to the entrance. Wide, shallow steps led down to the platform and Renner bolted ahead of him, his coat flaring out around his legs as he descended rapidly to the underground platform. He was halfway down when he heard the conductor call the last boarding call.

“Schnell!” He threw over