The Lions Of Lucerne

74

Scot chose to drive around Lucerne rather than through it to get to Mount Pilatus. By now, all of the city’s policemen would be carrying descriptions of him and Claudia, courtesy of the shopkeepers on the Kapellbrücke. The way they were going took more time, but it gave Claudia a chance to get some sleep. She had finally nodded off a while ago, and Scot had no desire to wake her. He needed her to be as fresh as possible for what lay ahead.

It was pitch black outside. Headlights blurred from one set into the next, indistinguishable as they zoomed past in the opposite direction. The VW’s dash lights glowed an eerie green. Scot was tempted to turn on the radio, but decided against it. The heater was turned up high, and he glanced over at Claudia, who was wrapped in the same wool blanket he had been in only this afternoon. It was funny how quickly roles could change. It also made Scot aware again of how painfully alone he was in life. Claudia stirred, and he was happy to find that she was awake.

“Hey there,” he said. “How are you feeling?”

“Pissed off.”

Scot laughed. “That’s good. Now I know I don’t have to worry about you.”

“How did you know I was in trouble at my apartment?”

“I made my call and used the fax at Fabia’s, then waited around for you for about an hour. When you didn’t show, I started to get a bad feeling.”

“That man. He wasn’t one of Miner’s men.”

“No?”

“No, he was an American.”

Scot had guessed as much when he’d retrieved the shattered Motorola radio from the man’s pocket.

“You should have told him where I was,” he said.

“What, and let him kill you? Besides, he was going to kill me anyway. That I’m sure of. Why would I want to make things any easier on him?”

“You’re right. Here,” said Scot, pulling the Toblerone chocolate from his pocket, “one of Fabia’s staff gave this to me. I thought you might like it.”

“Thanks,” she said as she unwrapped the chocolate and began to eat.

A light snow had started falling outside, and Scot turned on the windshield wipers.

“This ought to make things fun,” he said.

“If it keeps up, it will give us added cover. Don’t complain,” replied Claudia, who finished the chocolate and leaned over into the backseat.

“What are you doing?” asked Scot.

“Taking inventory and deciding how we’ll pack the gear so the weight is evenly distributed.”

“Don’t you want to do that when we get there?”

“I’m just getting organized. I don’t want us to be out in the open any longer than we have to.”