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Merlin trusted her. It shouldn’t have been a revelation -- Amelia had been working for Kingsman for four years already -- but in the aftermath of V-Day, the most important revelation was that Merlin had trusted her.
The Paris listening post/analysis unit had multiple injuries and one death. Brussels, like Berlin, was sent a brief message by Merlin which said to make certain everyone was isolated from each other (and saying that they should call their families to give the same warning) and to check her office mates for a particular scar. No one from her station had it, but Milan and Brussels lost a couple of people to exploding heads.
Kingsman had over one hundred listening posts. Merlin sent a generic email to all of them recommending isolation until further notice. Only forty individuals were contacted and told both about the scar and the potential effects of the wave. Amelia was proud to be one of them.
***
She’d been recommended by the mother of one of her university friends. Mrs. ffrench-Devon had quietly taken her aside during a weekend spent at their estate and spoken to her about her degree -- she was on the way to a starred first in Logic from St. Catherine’s College, Cambridge -- her ability with languages and computers, and whether or not she could keep secrets.
“I’d hoped Jillian would be able to follow me into my field, but, frankly, my dear, my daughter can’t keep a secret and her analyses are poor.”
Amelia said, “Are you MI-5 or MI-6?”
“Neither. I would like your permission to have you vetted for working with my organization. Other than telling you it’s secret, nothing else may be shared until the background check is completed. Are you interested, my dear?”
Amelia thought for a moment and asked, “Do you feel your work is important?”
Mrs. ffrench-Devon smiled. “I do, yes.”
“Do you enjoy it?”
This time the older woman thought before answering. “Not always. As an analyst I find out things about people that I wish I didn’t know. Having said that, most of the time, I would say yes to your question.”
Amelia said, “Then I am interested. When will I know more?”
“Concentrate on getting that starred first. You will be contacted by the end of summer if you’re accepted. If you hear nothing more, then this conversation never happened.”
“I understand. Thank you for thinking of me.”
***
Two weeks after graduation a woman called her and asked her to report to a tailor’s shop in Savile Row. It wasn’t until the voice at the other end of the phone said, “Mrs. ffrench-Devon is a valued customer,” that Amelia put it together and accepted a job interview as a tailor’s assistant.
She interviewed in the morning, was asked to take tests in the afternoon, and passed to the next round of interviews the following week. She was even required to run two miles in half an hour and take an Esperanto test.
On the third week, Amelia was called back. She sat in a room with seven other people, most of them men and was told by a woman who introduced herself as Morgana that if they passed today’s test, there would be one final interview. Each of them was called forward and sent to another room. Amelia’s had a young woman named Safiya who told her she was interviewing as a translator. There was a packet of material on the table for Amelia, two laptop computers, and a listening device for Safiya. A voice told them they had four hours to translate and analyze the context of the recording using the information in the packet as background.
“Do you have any questions?” the voice asked.
“Can we get tea and toast? We’re going to need something to keep us going for four hours,” Amelia said.
Safiya’s eyes went wide, but there was a chuckle from the disembodied voice. “You’ll have tea and sandwiches within the hour.”
***
When the exercise ended, every single scrap of paper was collected from the room as well as the laptops they used. They were told where the cafeteria was and instructed to stay on the first floor until they were called in for their final interview.
Amelia found a billiard room and got into a game with several of the other people she’d shared a room with this morning.
Her name was finally called, and she was led downstairs to a tiny functional office. A tall bald man awaited her and greeted her in German. For the next twenty minutes, the interview -- which was very general -- was conducted in that language. Amelia had learned it for research purposes and found herself groping for vocabulary and occasionally stumbling over verb tenses.
The man leaned back in his chair, and said, “You’ll do very well. I’m called Merlin, by the way.”
“Merlin, like King Arthur?”
He nodded. “I didn’t come up with the code names, but yes, Kingsman is very Arthurian.”
“Why German? I didn’t think I was being hired as a translator.”
“You’re not, but I find that seeing how people react to having to speak a foreign language when they aren’t expecting it is an excellent indicator of how that person will react under pressure. You didn’t get angry. You took your time to find the right word. You muddled through if you weren’t certain how to conjugate. You didn’t demand that I speak English. So, what have you been told about Kingsman?”
“Very little. Mrs. ffrench-Devon thought I might be a good fit. I take she’s an analyst?”
Merlin said, “Yes, and a very good one. Works mostly on African issues, but has been used for general Commonwealth analysis and done very well.”
“What am I being considered for? And how did I do this morning?”
“You did very well with the information you had. Sadly, your partner’s translation was less nuanced than you needed.”
“I don’t know much about the Middle East, really.”
“If you had,” Merlin said, “we would have set you working on a different region. This is to check raw analysis. If you already have background knowledge, we can’t see how well you absorb the material you’re given. Of the seven people we interviewed as analysts today, you’re one of only two who will be offered a position.”
Amelia blinked a few times. “That’s… what is the position?”
“Intelligence analyst. Your Esperanto test was excellent, so we’d like to instruct you in at least one language besides German. You’ll be working in Berlin, if that’s acceptable, and your focus will be on what was once called ‘Mitteleuropa’ - Germany, Poland, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, and Serbia -- possibly Romania. It’s a complex area.”
“What language would I be learning?”
“Do any of the ones I mentioned interest you?”
Amelia thought for a moment. “Do you need Hungarian? It’s just, someone told me it’s one of the most difficult languages to learn, and I do love a challenge.”
Merlin smiled. “Hungary isn’t a major player, but we have no one who speaks Hungarian among the analysts. It would be an excellent choice from our perspective.”
“When do I start? Do I get training here or do I need to get to Berlin right away?”
“I’ll need your passport to get your entry visas for the non-EU countries which will be in your purview. That will take about three months. We could expedite it, but we’d rather not call attention to ourselves or to you. During those three months, we’ll start you on language lessons, including some to bolster your German, and you’ll work here two days a week reviewing the traffic that comes in from all our listening posts and sorting it to the right people. Once the visas are through, you’ll have a two week break, and then you’ll be living in Berlin. There’s a two bedroom apartment about two blocks from the Mexikoplatz S-bahn stop. It’s small, but there’s a good konditorei in the building.”
“That sounds… lovely. How much will the rent be?”
Merlin said, “We provide it. Once we find housing, we have to make certain the security meets our standard. Consider it a perquisite.”
“I… thank you. When do I start?”
He checked something on his clipboard. “Your first class in Hungarian will be held at Imperial College on Monday. It’s intensive and meets three days a week for a full day. You’ll work here on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and I’d like you to stay late on Thursdays to join the German conversation group we have.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Morgana will walk you through the intake procedures. Read our confidentiality agreements very carefully. I’d hate to have to order you killed.”
Amelia froze, searching his face for signs that he’d just made an unfunny joke. She saw a man who was resigned and sober.
Merlin looked her directly in the eye and said, “We are a confidential organization. It is rare that anyone is retired permanently, but in the twenty-five years I’ve worked here, I have had to give that order. You have until the end of the day to sign the papers. If you choose not to, I quite understand. You don’t know enough at this moment to compromise us. You can walk away.”
She thought about the information she’d analyzed this morning, her original conversation with Mrs. ffrench-Devon, and the potential jobs she would have elsewhere. She held his gaze and realized that she trusted him to be honest and thoughtful in his decisions even though she’d only met him an hour earlier.
“I look forward to learning Hungarian,” she said.
Merlin’s answering smile felt like a reward.
***
Her first year in Berlin had been wonderful. She traveled a great deal throughout Germany and Austria and accompanied one of her co-workers to Prague for a short assignment. She was continuing her Hungarian studies and planning a trip to Budapest on her holiday. On occasion she spoke to Morgana, though she mostly reported to one of her underlings.
It was a shock to leave her apartment one morning and have Merlin invite her to join him for fruhstuck. She sat across from him and accepted a cup of coffee while waiting for her own breakfast to arrive.
“There’s an issue in Hungary. We have a chance to change it in our favor in about two weeks, and Galahad will be the knight handling it. In the meantime, he needs more data and more analysis than we can usually get. Would you be willing to go to Budapest tomorrow? And before you answer, I’ll be accompanying you for at least part of the time.”
“Yes, I’d love to go. Why will you be with me?”
“I’ve been invited to an academic conference. I’ll be presenting a paper on the computer applications of number theory in cryptography.”
“That’s going to be hard to fake.”
Merlin shook his head. “No, I was invited to present this paper under my real name. It’s just fortuitous that it allows me to provide you and Galahad with cover. You’ll officially be my plus one. There are tours of the city and side trips organized for the people who are not completely captivated by maths. You’ll use those to learn the city. There’ll be some listening materials as well, I’m certain.”
“When? How will all this work?”
“We leave tomorrow. We’ll have Thursday evening and most of Friday to explore Budapest. Typical tourist stuff. Friday night we’ll attend the formal dinner which opens the symposium. I’ll attend the conference on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. You’ll debrief me at the end of the day. I’ll leave on Tuesday and your uncle, Galahad, will come to meet you. We think everything can be completed by Thursday, but there’s a chance you’ll need to stay through the following weekend.”
Amelia thought. “Am I allowed to turn it down?”
“Do you want to?” Merlin thought for a moment. “Yes, we can handle it without having an analyst in the field. It would just be easier with you there. No consequences for you, if that’s what you’re worried about, but you’ll never be asked to do something like this again.” There was a long pause. “I suppose if you changed your mind in future, you could ask to do this type of work, but, frankly, it’s rare that we need field analysis.”
Amelia said, “No, I want to do it. I… I’ve been wanting to see Budapest, and I’d like to know more about what the agents do. I just wanted to know I could turn it down, if I wanted.”
“Sensible.”
“If I’m your plus one, am I supposed to be, um, a girlfriend or something?”
Merlin said, “Spouse, yes. We’ll share a room, not a bed. You’ll be perfectly safe with me.”
“Oh, I didn’t mean…” Amelia chuckled. “Yes, I guess I did mean. Sorry about that.”
“You’re an analyst, not a honey trap and not someone for me to take advantage of. Any other questions?”
“What will I need to pack?”
***
They were staying at a five star hotel near the center of town. Merlin had taken her shopping for an evening dress in Berlin and reviewed the type of clothing she’d need for the other parts of her stay. He’d also reviewed emergency protocols, given her an encrypted laptop for her use, and presented her with a pair of glasses.
Over dinner on Thursday, they’d discussed what she’d be doing each of the days of the conference. When they got back to the room, Merlin had told her why each of the side tours had been chosen and given her lists of things she needed to keep her eyes open for. She’d insisted that she should attend his presentation, especially since they were claiming to be relatively newly married. He’d told her which people’s invitations might need to change her plans.
The opening dinner was fabulous. Amelia was pleased to realize that she was one of the best dressed women there. She found it easy to talk with Merlin and even to talk about him with other spouses. In the room, she’d put together a precis of everyone she’d spoken to, what topics had been discussed, and which tours she might join them on. Merlin was very pleased.
“Don’t accept any invitations you might get for tomorrow night. Your uncle is traveling to Budapest, and we promised to have dinner with him.”
“Too dreary,” she said approximating the upper class boredom she’d heard at university.
Merlin smiled. “Exactly. It’s Galahad, of course. He should have some more details about why he needs you here and where you’ll need to be.”
“Am I going to be his handler?”
“No. I’ll be handling both of you from headquarters. It’s one reason why you have glasses for this mission. You’ll be able to contact Galahad directly, but I’ll be watching over you both.”
Amelia stretched out on her bed to read the information her laptop had been collecting all day. “Merlin?”
“Yes?”
“How many handlers are there?”
He looked up from his tablet. “Do you want to leave Berlin?”
“No. I realized I didn’t know if each knight had his own, or if there was some rotating hierarchy or what.”
“Then the answer is no. The knights review the relevant analyses and determine their own paths. Arthur has to approve anything obviously dangerous or public. Though if you just read Lancelot’s reports you wouldn’t think so. Missions, especially ones with civilians and unknown factors, are monitored -- usually by me.”
“That’s an awful lot on you, isn’t it?”
“Merlin is as much a title as a codename.” He smiled secretively. “We’re expected to work magic.”
***
The rest of the weekend had been a whirlwind. She’d managed to see a great deal of Budapest and the immediately surrounding countryside. Their dinner with Galahad proved to be both useful and enjoyable. And the drinks in their room after dinner, where she presented both of them with an extensive analysis of the relevant political issues as well as her thoughts on the important players.
Galahad smiled at Merlin when she was done and said, “You chose well.” He turned to Amelia. “Two of the names on your list are the ones whose data I’m going after. I’ll need their full schedules from Thursday through Saturday of next week by the time I meet you on Tuesday afternoon. Can you do that?”
“Yes, Galahad.”
“Good. Then I should be taking my reluctant leave. I’m taking the overnight train to Vienna. I’ll see you for tea on Tuesday, Amelia.”
“Of course.”
“I’ll see you out,” Merlin said.
When he returned, he said, “You’re excellent at your work.”
“Thank you, Merlin.”
“Stay up as long as you need to, but don’t forget your vineyard tour starts early tomorrow morning.”
She got under the covers and switched her reading light off. “Good night.”
***
From Amelia’s point of view, the actual data retrieval mission was dull as ditchwater. She spent most of the time in the train station cafe talking quietly into her glasses feed and pulling out the relevant pieces of information as Galahad said he needed them. Then Merlin had said that he was cutting her feed. Galahad would meet her at the cafe at 19:45. If he wasn’t there by 19:55, she was to get on the train to Berlin any way.
He’d made it on time, greeted his dear ‘niece’ and bought a platform ticket to walk her to the train. She barely felt it when the two thumb drives landed in her jacket pocket. It wasn’t until after dinner, when they were well on the way to Bratislava, that she pulled them out and asked Merlin if she should risk them in her computer. Once he’d approved it, she reached for them and noticed a bloody thumb print on the cover.
“It’s not his blood, if that’s what you’re worried about.” Merlin’s voice in her ear startled her. She’d forgotten that he could see everything she could while she had the glasses on.
“That’s good.”
“No one died, either.”
“I’m not squeamish. I know our actions sometimes have lethal consequences.”
Merlin said, “I’m certain you do. It’s still different the first time you really see the fact of it.”
She went still and quiet. “It is.” Then she plugged the drives in her computer and set them to encoded transmission to headquarters.
***
One of the newer recruits knocked on her office door. “Excuse me, but Merlin’s on the line to speak with you.” Her eyes were wide with awe.
“Thank you, Lisa.” She asked the rest of her team to leave and picked up the line. “Amelia speaking.”
“Good to talk to you,” Merlin said. “I see you’re due for some vacation soon.”
“I hadn’t applied for any.”
“No, but there’s a project I’d like your help with, if you’re amenable. As far as your office is concerned you’ll be upgrading your skills at headquarters before taking a little home leave.”
“All right. What would I actually be doing?”
Merlin said, “Lancelot’s dead. We’re interviewing for his replacement. We need someone in the right age group, who’s athletic and has a plausible skillset. You’d be amazed at how few of those we have. You’ll be a ringer.”
“Will I be spying on the recruits?”
“No, I can do that myself.” He sounded amused. “Although, if you make it past the first test, you can always bring me any potential trouble you see.”
Amelia said, “So what will I be doing?”
“Drowning. Or not, if someone rescues you.”
“I assume my death won’t be permanent.”
“Of course not, but you really are the best fit for this job. You can’t let your section know what you’re doing or why.”
“Understood. Can I get an extra week of vacation for this?”
Merlin said, “I think that can be arranged. I need you to fly to London tonight and be at headquarters by 6 pm.”
“Will do.”
***
Merlin greeted her as soon as she arrived and asked her to take the only corner bed. “It means they’re more likely to forget about you.”
“I thought I was drowning?”
“This room can flood in under twenty seconds.”
Amelia looked at the spartan accommodations and said, “I thought I was the only one drowning.”
He smiled. “Those showers can be broken down to make snorkels once the line goes past the U-bend.”
She said, “And you expect they’ll know that?”
“I expect at least one will. The others will catch on quickly,” Merlin said. “You do know how to swim?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” He showed her a clear line hidden by the cables and other wires in the corner. “Unclip this when you first start feeling wet. There’s enough compressed air to last you an hour.” He glanced up at one of the ceiling panels. “The exercise usually lasts ten minutes or less.”
“Have you ever had anyone drown for real?”
“Not in over fifty years. It was harder to clear the room then.” He added, “If someone tries to rescue you, go along with it. We’ll use your dramatic death scene at a later point.”
“And in the meantime?”
“Dinner’s being served upstairs. Once you come back down, you’re a candidate to replace Lancelot. If anyone asks who sponsored you, just remind them they’re forbidden to discuss it.”
“Yes, Merlin.”
***
Merlin came to visit her in the care unit. The push of the water out through the glass had caught her by surprise. She’d been lucky that no one was looking her way because she’d flailed before she was able to catch herself on the ledge. Unfortunately, she’d landed hard on her back. X-rays showed she was fine, but the nurse indicated that she’d be on hard core anti-inflammatories for a little while.
“You did an admirable job,” Merlin said.
“Thanks, I think.”
“Since you didn’t spend much time with the candidates, I know there won’t be much information, but give me your impressions.”
Amelia leaned back, wincing until she got the pillow adjusted. “Only five made an impression of any sort, frankly. Roxy has the confidence not to be competitive.”
“I’m not certain that’s a good thing.”
“My impression, and I did speak to her the most, is that she knows she’s good. If she’s not the best at something, she’ll work until she’s the best she can be at it. If someone’s still better, good for them, but she’ll have gotten to her best level.”
Merlin wrote something on his clipboard. “Do you think she has the ability to back it up?”
“What, you think because she barely clears five feet, Roxy won’t be able to do things?”
“No. You never got to do any training with them, but what impression did you get?”
“Her hands are very strong. Calluses in the right places for her to be used to shooting. I watched her doing that simple yoga wind down before bed, so she’s definitely flexible and she’s not self-conscious at all. So, yes, depending upon exactly what you’re testing them on, she’ll probably be in the top three on any given task. Oh, and she’s a good card player.”
Merlin chuckled. “Good. I’ll let you know if you’re right about her standings.”
“Charlie, Digby, and Rufus all know each other and all know the knights who proposed them. They were doing a bit of lording it over and they were trying to figure out who proposed whom among the rest. They seemed to think the count was off.”
“If they keep worrying at it, I’ll mourn the loss of my candidate so they can pack it in.”
Amelia said, “I think, if there’s a way to, they’ll … cheat isn’t quite right… help each other at the expense of the other candidates. And they’ll help Nathaniel, Piers, and Hugo before they do anything for Eggsy and Roxy.” She thought for a moment. “They might help Roxy if it will keep Eggsy down. They’ll never help him.”
Merlin said, “That was my impression, too. The thing is, he has the top spot with Charlie and Roxy tying for second.”
“It’s just an impression, but they could get vicious.”
“I know. I’ll make it clear that any physical harm done to another candidate, and that includes sabotaging things they’ll need, will wash them out.” He shook his head. “I hate it when I have to tell them things like that.”
“Because they shouldn’t need to be told?”
Merlin just nodded. “Anything else?”
“Eggsy. I like that he joined Roxy with her yoga, didn’t get too close, just followed her lead. Plus, he treated me like a person. The other men treated me like I’d wandered into their world. I was a woman -- girl, maybe -- trying to invade their club. He treats people as they come, and, as a woman, I can tell you that’s rarer than you might think.”
“He left you to drown.”
Amelia said, “He tried to save the whole group. He did the logical thing and went to the door then he swam to the mirror and broke it. I’m not sure he saw me, which makes him guilty of the same thoughtlessness as everyone else, but the others’ instinct was to save themselves. His was, I think, to save everyone.”
Merlin leaned back in his chair and looked at the ceiling. After a long time he said, “That’s not how I would have seen it, but reviewing what he did and how, I think you’re right. Thank you.”
“No problem. So, I get to have my home leave after they let me out of here?”
“I promise, I’ll sneak you over the wall myself as soon as they clear you.”
***
The months after V-Day were hard. She found herself moved up to head of the Berlin analysis group. She spoke to headquarters at least twice a week because there were so many problems which needed resolution.
Once there was a respite, Merlin called. “We’re giving everyone a week, but we need to replace Galahad. Can you come drown for me again?”
Amelia chuckled. “Of course I can. What day does it start? And do you mind if I come in a day early?”
“Saturday and no. Be here around the same time again, so you can get that bunk. The set-up’s the same.”
“I’ll be there on Saturday.”
***
She poked her head out when the pod from the shop came in. She saw Eggsy leading two very attractive people into the complex. Amelia couldn’t believe how much a good suit and the proper accoutrements could change a person. Eggsy looked to the manner born.
Merlin intercepted them and led them to the barracks. Eggsy caught her eye and winked as he went past to help Merlin.
Later that night, after she’d drowned -- and not having someone break out the mirror was much easier on her back -- Merlin knocked on the door to her guest room. “Ready to debrief?”
“In some ways the lines are less clearly drawn than last time. The two braying twits don’t really know each other, so there’s not a clique the way there was with Charlie, Rufus, and Digby. I was more accepted than last time because I think being a woman is less strange to them than being non-white.”
Merlin nodded. “I did some vetting on Beaumains’ and Lancelot’s candidates -- at their requests -- and was of two minds. My first thought was ‘it’s about time,’ but my second was ‘will the table adjust quickly enough if one of them wins?’”
“Did you come to a conclusion?”
“Van would be the better one to succeed for the table’s comfort. His military background, including the fact that he is an officer, means they can communicate, and it’s only one difference. Just as Lancelot is only different in one way.”
“Daya’s more educated, more upper class.”
“Yes. But a second woman so soon and she’s non-white? That may be too much for some of the older ones to take.”
Amelia shook her head, “Heaven forfend they get a gay knight. I’m sure they’d all swoon from the shock.”
Merlin chuckled. “Credit where it’s due. Most of them went to all male schools. They’re more accepting of homosexuality -- though less accepting of homosexuals -- than you might think.”
“How can they be both?”
“Teenaged boys sequestered from the opposite sex? I’d be shocked if every agent at the table hadn’t had at least one gay experience during their adolescence. But men who continue to identify as homosexual after leaving school? Not quite our kind of people.” The last was spoken in surprisingly accurate Received Pronunciation. “Academics and actors, maybe even the odd high court judge, are acceptable. But not the horsey set or the politicians or military officers, and that’s where we get most of our candidates.”
Amelia nodded. “I’d never thought about it that way. So Van may not have a college education, but as long as he’s an officer and prefers women to men, he’ll be acceptable to them.”
“In any event, it will be interesting to see what the group dynamics are. They always surprise me.” Merlin smiled. “Have you any other observations or intelligence to impart?”
“No. And may I say that I hope by the next time you have to do this, I’m far too old to be the drowning victim.”
“I hope so too.”
***
Her weekly phone conferences with the other European analytical centers and, occasionally, Merlin kept her apprised of the the problems the knights were investigating which was why it wasn’t entirely a surprise when she was asked to go to Budapest for one of the Wolf Cartel clean-up operations.
It had been strange to know that Merlin was out in the field for some reason, and she wondered if the knights felt as she did, more secure with him on communications. Beaumains was the knight she’d be working with. Merlin had booked her into the same hotel they’d stayed in before.
“What am I analyzing?”
“The laptop should have a communication feed on a particular secure bandwidth. We suspect there will be a major shipment within the week. We don’t know what’s being shipped, where it’s come from, or where it’s going. Our best suspicion is stolen military weaponry. Most of it won’t be current weapons, but weapons which were supposed to be destroyed and instead…”
“Got lost?”
Merlin said, “Exactly.”
“What else could it be?”
“Drugs or money -- though they’re mostly using either gold or gems for financing -- but those will be harder to intercept. And there’s a remote possibility that they’ll be exporting people.”
Amelia said, “Human trafficking?”
“They’ve done it before, but we managed to disrupt their main supply source about five months ago. Nothing in the comms I’ve seen indicates that they’ve been able to reestablish it, but Budapest is actually a fairly unlikely hub.”
“If you’ve been dismantling pieces of their organization, I’m sure the unlikely hubs are the ones they’ll use.”
“Exactly. This is our first lead in awhile.”
Amelia said, “I’ll be here a week then?”
“If the intelligence is correct, yes. We won’t ask you to stay longer unless we have a major indicator that it will happen quickly after the week is up.”
“Fair enough. Can I take the laptop with me out of the hotel? I know I’m not likely to raise suspicions, but no one stays in a hotel room for a whole week.”
Merlin said, “Yes, you can take it with you. And I expect you to take occasional breaks. Go out to an art museum or whatever you enjoy. The feed will be recording. Just bear in mind that we’ll need a nightly report at nine pm your time. If something urgent comes up earlier, don’t hesitate to contact us immediately.”
“Got it.”
***
The information had come together quickly. The cargo was being exported three days after she arrived in Budapest. Amelia was looped into the communications feed, but unless something came through on the bandwidth she was monitoring, she was a silent observer.
She listened to Merlin guide Beaumains through the streets of Budapest to get to the Danube warehouse she had pinpointed as the point of export. There were three barges waiting to be loaded and the first room Beaumains came to held armaments, but not enough to fill a barge. The next one had a variety of drugs, but again, not enough to fill an entire barge. The third room was filled with women, most about eighteen she’d guess, but some looked a lot younger and there were a few older, too.
“Fuckin’ hell.”
“Maintain silence Beaumains. Get the information.”
Amelia watched through Beaumains’ eyes as he found the office she’d pinpointed for him. He plugged in the modified thumb drive, and began rifling every drawer he could for files and ledgers. When he found something relevant he would flip through it taking approximately a second on each page. It took her a moment to realize that he was making certain the pages would be readable from his feed.
Merlin said, “You can unplug the drive. There’s at least one person on the stairwell to the office. And I’ve notified Hungarian police about the shipment.”
There was a quick movement that she realized was acknowledgement of the information. The next few minutes made her dizzy. She knew that the knights were trained in violence. She’d listened to Merlin’s “most dangerous job interview” speech twice now, but watching Eggsy get out of that warehouse without alerting the criminals that he was there was amazing. There was one guard whom he surprised when he exited via the roof. He looked like he was twice Eggsy’s size, but the next thing she saw was the guard down and his neck being broken by Eggsy’s knee.
Merlin said, “Amelia, there’s going to be a few hours where he need to lie low. I’m sending him to you, if you don’t object.”
“Of course not, Merlin.”
She listened to Merlin’s directions and watched as Beaumains responded to every command without any hesitation, faster in some cases than she’d been able to register what was said.
Once he was out of the warehouse district, Merlin said, “Amelia, I’m cutting you out now. Ping me if there’s anything we need to know. Otherwise, expect to see Beaumains in half an hour.”
“Got it, Merlin.”
Twenty-three minutes later, she heard a knock on the French windows leading to the room’s balcony.
Eggsy grinned at her. “Forgot the chocolates, love.”
“I expected you to knock on the other door. You know, the one that doesn’t involve a ten story drop.”
“Keeping myself clear of security cameras, wasn’t I.”
She looked at him more closely. There was a cut on his forehead. “Need me to take care of that?”
He smiled. “Ta. It’ll be nice not to have to do it meself. Think I’ll need stitches?”
Merlin said in both their ears, “No, but Amelia, there are three prepared shots in the emergency medical kit you have. Give him the tetanus and the broad spectrum antibiotic. The second one needs to be given in a large muscle.”
“I’ll stick it in me own arse, thank you very much.”
Merlin talked her through cleaning his cut and pulling it together with butterflies.
When she was done, Eggsy rolled up his sleeve for the tetanus shot.
He said, “Merlin, am I okay to stand under a shower for a bit?”
“Yes, mo chridhe.”
He took the antibiotic shot with him to the bathroom. There was a knock at the room’s door, and a garment bag was handed to her. A room service meal was wheeled in, too. She thanked them and tipped them.
When Eggsy was done, he asked her for the garment bag and came out in pajama bottoms and a long sleeved t-shirt. He was talking softly and she heard him say, “Good night, my love,” as he took the glasses off.
He saw the meal and grinned. “You hungry?”
“I’ll join you for soup and dessert at least.” She noticed the flash of a wedding ring on his left hand. “Congratulations. One of the girls at headquarters, I presume?”
Eggsy said, “Why would you think that?”
“I heard you saying goodnight when you put down your glasses. So I figure she must work somewhere that she can get to comms. At the very least, she knows exactly what you do for a living.”
“Replay what you saw and use Occam’s razor.” He went back to eating his soup.
After a few minutes, when he’d started on the tornedos rossini, she said, “I don’t understand.”
“Least complicated answer is probably the right one?”
Amelia rolled her eyes. “I know what Occam’s razor is, I just don’t see how it applies… Oh.” She peered at him. “You’re married to Merlin?”
He grinned. “Yes, love. Are you looking so shocked because you thought Merlin was a robot or because I’m not fit to clean his boots?”
“No, neither.”
“Ah, heteronormative assumptions.”
Amelia shook her head. “No. I’ve… played both sides. The age difference is some of it, but I guess your first question was right. Not that I thought he was a robot, but he’s always around so I assumed he had no outside life.”
Eggsy shook his head. “Dunno why so many people think age means anything.”
“Social expectations have changed since the 1950s?” She changed the subject. “Didn’t having the meal and the suit delivered destroy any secrecy you have had by coming in through the balcony?”
“I always assume that they work for Kingsman and the hotel doesn’t know a thing about it. I’ll take the sofa tonight.”
Amelia said, “They’re pressed close together, but that’s two separate beds. Merlin and I had the same arrangement the first time I came to Budapest.”
“I have to be up in…” he glanced at the clock, “Six hours to make my extraction.”
“I can go back to sleep when you leave. How will you leave the room without being seen?”
He grinned. “Knowing Merlin, I’ll probably have to climb down the facade.”
“With your suit bag tucked under one arm?”
“I’m sure he’ll figure something out.”
***
When she got back to Berlin, there was a large vase filled with gerbera daisies on her desk. The card read: You didn’t turn off your glasses feed. Merlin
Amelia smiled. Merlin trusted her.