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beginning to stir, Maggie was about to reach for another magazine when she heard the door behind her open. Glancing over her shoulder, she watched as a tall, balding man with wire-rimmed glasses walked into the room. Placing a large shopping bag on the floor, he removed his raincoat, and tossing it on a chair, he retrieved the bag and approached the Inspectors.
    “My name is John Harper,” he began, handing Maggie the bag. “You’ll need to put these on.”
    Raising an eyebrow, Maggie glanced into the bag. Seeing that it contained what appeared to be old and ragged clothing, she looked up at Harper and said, “Excuse me?”
    “I know you were told that you’d be escorting a witness today, but that’s not entirely the case.”
    Taking a step closer to the man, Blake asked, “Who the hell are you?”
    With a snort, he pulled out his identification, and flipping it open, he stated, “John Harper, Interpol.”
    “Interpol?” Alex asked.
    “Like I was saying, you weren’t exactly given all the facts,” he said, slipping his identification back into his pocket.
    Confused, Alex leaned over and looked into the bag. Seeing the clothing inside, she quickly added two and two.
    “Christ, we’re decoys, aren’t we?” Alex said, trying to keep her temper in check.
    Nodding, Harper said, “I’m afraid so. Normally, this type of thing would be handled by our own people, but we believe we might have a leak in our department, so we asked the Met for help. We have a woman in custody that we need to keep out of harm’s way. In order to get her out of the country in one piece, I’ve arranged for three teams of officers to pose as the woman and her escort. Each team will leave here today on separate flights, all of which will be heading in different directions. You and DI Campbell will be one of those teams.”
    Accustomed to following orders, without saying a word, Maggie headed to the ladies’ room to change her clothes, leaving Harper alone with Alex…and her temper.
    Perturbed that her assignment had just been reduced to a ruse, Alex walked over and sat down. Defiantly crossing her arms, she groused, “Apparently Campbell fits this woman’s description, but why me? I don’t see why you can’t get a constable to play my part!”
    Frowning, Harper said, “Detective Inspector Blake, apparently you think this is a waste of your time?”
    “Yes, I do. I would think someone in your position would know better than to waste the time of two Detective Inspectors on nothing but a bloody ruse.”
    Narrowing his eyes, he said, “Well, Inspector, I frankly don’t give a damn what you think. You will escort DI Campbell through the airport and onto a small jet we have waiting, just as you’ve been ordered to do.”
    “So she gets on the plane, and I leave?” Alex asked, quickly sitting up in her chair.
    Snickering at the DI’s continual attempt to shorten her assignment, Harper shook his head. “No. You and DI Campbell will take a rather long flight, land at a small airport, change planes, and then you will return to London.”
    “But—”
    “That’s final, Blake, and I think it wise that you shut your mouth and do your job! I may not be your direct supervisor, but trust me, I have his number.”
    Knowing that she was very close to stepping over the proverbial line again, Alex did as instructed and remained quiet until she heard the door to the ladies’ room open. Glancing over her shoulder, Alex couldn’t help but grin at the sight of her fellow Inspector.
    Campbell’s gray power suit and maroon sweater had been replaced by an ill-fitting black wool skirt and a baby blue twin set, and draped around her neck was a garish paisley scarf. Her polished ankle-high boots had been exchanged for a pair of scuffed black slip-ons, and to complete the ensemble, over her arm she was carrying a dowdy black cloth coat which had seen better days.
    As soon as Maggie came back into the room, she glared at Blake as if daring her to