AFTER AN EIGHT-HOUR JOURNEY, the Talgo Barcelona-Murcia train arrived punctually at Carmen station. The doors opened amidst hisses and whistles coming from some unknown part of the train. The passengers alighted from the carriages with a certain lassitude, walking along the platform in search of the exit. Among them was Altar, who blended into the mass of people leaving the railway, becoming part of the whole.
He walked to one of the public transport vehicles parked outside. He asked the taxi driver if he could take him to Avenida Espinardo. The man nodded wearily after removing the toothpick from his mouth. He then opened the car door as a gesture of courtesy, for, due to his accent, he could tell he was a foreigner, and gringos, he assumed, tended to be generous with tips.
Sitting in the back of the car, Altar opened his computer and forgot about the driver. The laptop's built-in GPS tracked the city map until a red light appeared on the screen, blinking as it navigated the maze of endless streets and avenues that made up the city of Murcia.
According to the virtual guide, Sephy was driving her vehicle around a shopping center in the Atalayas neighborhood. He was surprised to find her not in the building where she had spent the night, something she systematically verified, every half hour, by the time it took to get there from Barcelona.
Apparently, Sephy had gotten up early to do some work-related task, perhaps following someone. This, in a way, suited his purpose. He was going to check out where Sephy had spent the night, now that she wasn't home. This way, he could devise a surprise attack plan, eliminating unnecessary risks.
Sephy wasn't exactly a novice. He knew how to dodge danger, like any hired killer capable of surviving his trade. One slip, and instead of the executioner, he'd be the victim.
She looked back at the screen. Sephy was standing on Del Rocio Avenue. And she stood there, motionless. She couldn't help but smile. Her old friend had gone from being a role model within Life&D to joining the company's list of internal victims. She wasn't the first, nor would she be the last, to make the grave mistake of acting on her own. These irregularities affected the Agency's smooth running, which is why, at times, it was necessary to take drastic measures and amputate the gangrenous limb at the root. Therefore, the best thing was to follow orders, with all the rigor the job deserved.
No one, other than a hired killer, knew better the price he had to pay to continue surviving indefinitely.
Babie decided to stay home from school. She'd been sick that night with menstrual cramps— it had been impossible to sleep until five in the morning. So, while she was fast asleep, Lela woke her to tell her that her new roommate had left early, leaving a note on the refrigerator door.
In response, she let out a nervous grunt, urging him to leave her alone and leave for class once and for all. Soon she was asleep again, despite the incessant noise of traffic that was gradually taking over the city streets. She woke again when she felt intense pain in her ovaries. She decided to get up and get some painkillers.
She crossed the apartment in her pajamas and, still drowsy, glided with difficulty down the hallway, yawning groggily from sleep. Just then, she heard the doorbell ring. Like an automaton, she went to the door to peer through the peephole. She saw a thin, pale-skinned man, very well dressed. He wore a black jacket and a beige shirt. He had platinum blond hair, slicked back, and blue eyes tinged with green. She thought he might be one of those foreigners who, lately, had been spreading a new doctrine called Scientology through the streets of Murcia, a sort of cult she had heard so much about on television and in conversations with her friends, and to which several famous Hollywood actors belonged. However, she saw nothing strange in his hands, not even propaganda pamphlets, and this convinced her she was mistaken. He didn't look like a preacher, much less a street vendor.
— Who is it? — he asked before opening it.
— Sorry to bother you, but I'm looking for a German girl... — he heard someone say in broken Spanish. — ...does she live there? — Babie remembered the new girl and the message, the one he hadn't had a chance to read. He tried to get rid of the subject.
— He's not... — I said to him from the other side of the door. — He left this morning. I think he went to the university. Maybe he's coming to eat, but I'm not sure.
He leaned over again to see the stranger's reaction.
— Oh, what a shame! — he sounded annoyed. — I made an exhausting trip, many miles, to visit my sister, and now I have to wait for her to return from class.
Altar didn't want to be more explicit, because he was actually unaware of the story his old friend might have invented. He opted for caution.
— Is Sephy your sister? — Babie asked, visibly surprised.
— That's what our parents say... — he replied succinctly, and then laughed innocently before adding: — ...sorry, but this conversation is ridiculous. I don't know if you realize we're talking to a door.
The young woman got the message. After all, he was a relative of the new tenant. Furthermore, he was quite attractive and seemed completely trustworthy.
— One moment, I'll open it.
He turned the doorknob and opened it. The man nodded shyly, not for nothing, but since Babie was in her pajamas, he assumed he had woken the girl.
— Sorry, this might not be the best time — he began, — but I need to get in touch with Sephy as soon as possible. Would you mind delivering something to her when you get back?
The stranger crouched down. The young woman discovered, at that moment, a black suitcase resting on the floor. He took out a small porcelain box the size of a cigarette pack.
— It's her lucky box... — he handed it over shyly. — Could you tell her to call me as soon as she gets back? I have nowhere else to go.
— Yes, of course... — he hesitated for a few seconds, wavering between letting him go or inviting him to stay.
Finally she decided not to do it unless he asked her to.
— Oh, I almost forgot! — He put his hands to his head. — I just remembered I changed my cell phone number, and Sephy still doesn't have the number... — He pulled a ballpoint pen from his inside jacket pocket. — Do you have any paper handy, or a notepad?
Instinctively, Babie turned her head toward the house. She looked at him again, with renewed interest.
— Yes, wait... — he said softly — ...there must be a little notebook in my room.
He smiled before turning his back on her. He left the china box on the dresser in the hall and went straight to the bedroom.
Altar, for his part, looked both ways, wanting to make sure there was no one else on the floor, or even going up in the elevator. Then he nudged his suitcase with his foot, subtly introducing it into the hallway, and quietly entered the house. Then he closed the door carefully, following closely behind the gullible Babie.
Wasting no more time, he took from his jacket pocket a steel cable whose ends terminated in ivory grips carved with oriental motifs. He gripped them tightly to stretch the wire.
— There's something I don't understand... — Babie began to speak aloud, believing he was waiting for her at the door. — How did you know where we lived, if your sister moved in yesterday and you just got back from your trip?
Before she could turn around, as he sensed she was going to do, Altar wrapped the cable around the young woman's neck and squeezed firmly, giving her no time to react. Realizing what was happening, Babie tried to escape her attacker, shaking her body violently. She wanted to scream, but it was impossible. Then, in her absolute helplessness, she decided to cling to the cable that was increasingly squeezing her throat, but all she managed was to tear the skin on her neck and break a nail in that desperate attempt.
After a few seconds, Babie's body was completely still. The execution was over ahead of schedule.
Altar felt satisfied.