CHAPTER 182

SLEEP CAME AND ALREADY THERE WAS ONLY HIM. When he was at the height of his grief, he was, however, interrupted in an impolite way.

— Mr. Evans!

Gregory Evans listened in the darkness.

— Mr. Evans! There's no more time!

Suddenly he realized where he was and opened his eyes. Out of the darkness came dim beams of light that gradually became the figure of a man in a suit, standing above him in front of the bed, under the light of the enormous chandelier that centered the suite.

— Mr. Evans, did you have a good rest? — asked the strange man with a contemptuous look and a doubtful tone of voice.

— Well... — he tried to say something with a choked voice.

— I must direct you to boarding. Please stand up, sir, you have ten minutes to get ready.

Still groggy from sleep, he got up and went to the bathroom. With a cold jet of water, he bathed himself until he felt awake. In the corner there was already a suit, tie and very well-polished shoes hanging up. After putting on the clothes and putting the finishing touches on his hair and teeth, and worrying about his appearance before the statesmen, he met the man who was waiting for him near the door. They left from there.

The sun had not yet shown its rays of light and the horizon was reduced to immense darkness on all sides when the helicopter took off. The entourage went to the airport, from where they would depart for Geneva, Switzerland, where, in a few hours, an extraordinary meeting with the main world leaders would take place at the United Nations building regarding the situation of terror experienced by the Americans and the plan created by President Kenan to reverse the situation.

No global representative had the idea of holding the meeting at the New York headquarters. The current state of national security made it impossible for the world's top leaders to be present on their territory, something that Kenan understood very well. In fact, this was a trump card that he would use in his argument, a weight in his speech, proof of the serious threat that would befall everyone if nothing was done.

Already on the plane, the President seemed very anxious. He had been waiting for that moment for a long time. Greg could see his restless gaze from afar, looking around for things that could distract him and calm him down in the moments leading up to the important meeting.

Floyd Kenagan was talking to the President confidentially, focused as always, with his gestures and surreptitious gaze watchful. After all the situations they had faced in the past two days, such surveillance inside the plane could just be excessive caution, coming from a shrewd professional like Kenagan had proven to be. That was what Gregory Evans thought. Even he, who had little to do with all those stories, felt compelled to keep an eye on everything and everyone, fearful of witnessing events like those experienced before.

Few security guards accompanied them. Greg watched each of them, always with his hand close to his gun, previously loaded and dangerously unlocked.

He had to be quick if something happened.

THE FIRST RAYS OF LIGHT illuminated the world around the aircraft, showing that they had already reached European territory. The beautiful urban landscapes, painted between the modern and the old and colored with gray and green, impressed the young man, even seen from so high up. He thought about his wife, who always said she wanted to visit Switzerland. He could bring her here, take a trip... Surely, when life returned to normal, they would get to know that beautiful place.

After a smooth landing, the group continued, escorted by a huge security entourage that joined them at the airport, to the previously agreed destination: the Palace of Nations.

Gregory Evans remained surprised throughout the entire journey, such was the sumptuousness of the place. From the gardens to the entrance of the building, passing through the first security check, to which everyone was subjected except the President, also reaching the corridors and halls that passed, none of this was new to him, even though he had become accustomed to the American suburbs.

At the second security checkpoint, after passing through the metal detector and an x-ray check, like at airports. Before he could retrieve the pistol that had been handed to the security guards, one of them put his hand on his chest, making him stop, in his own French:

— Cet homme est un agent? (Is this man an agent?) — he asked, beginning a thorough search of Gregory Evans, who remained silent next to Tommy, without understanding what he was saying.

— Est avec nous . — replied Gregory Evans.

— Lettres de créance . (Credentials) — asked the Swiss man, extremely serious.

Kenan realized what was happening behind him and turned around, addressing the Swedish agent:

— Don't worry, he's watching me ! (Don't worry, he's watching me).

With some resistance, the man moved out of the way, allowing Tommy to continue alongside Gregory Evans. The rules were extremely strict here. A place that brought together dozens of heads of state could not fail in any way.

— Relax, everything will be fine, Tommy.

— I hope so...

— Is something bothering you?

Greg knew the answer, Martin had told him what his strategy was.

Tommy didn't know what to do, much less why he was really there. He didn't even know how to speak any language other than English. He also didn't have the demeanor of a security agent, a fact that made him stand out from the others, which was also why the Swiss man had confronted him. The fact was that Kenan had noticed in him a resistance that no one else had shown during the attacks they suffered on Fifth Avenue, and so he decided to break protocol and keep him close, in case of any threats that might arise.

One of the Americans, as he walked beside him in the corridor, said softly:

— You don't speak French, do you?

— No, sir. — Tommy replied embarrassed.

— Everyone here speaks the six official languages, but the Europeans insist on their native languages. Excessive nationalists...

— Well, so do we, don't you think? — Tommy replied as he followed him through the hallways filled with artwork, social symbols, and surveillance cameras.

Nodding, the man agreed. Everyone continued walking under escort.