Frozen

Jo froze on the inside as the target emerged from the train and walked past the newsstand where she was waiting. She sucked in her breath, slid her hand inside her coat pocket and found the paper-wrapped gum she kept for moments like these. She unwrapped it with one hand and slowly moved the stick up into her mouth. It used to be cigarettes she used to give her a reason to loiter, but since her cancer scare she had given them up. Jo started chewing and made her move. The target was walking quickly. If he was checking for a tail, Jo couldn't see it. That meant one of two things: either he was unaware of her presence, or he was on the grid. A fellow spook. Shit. That would make this morning's work all the more difficult. She knew there couldn't be any cock-ups today. Spartan was counting on her. Jo was maintaining a good distance from the black-coated man, while at the same time making it look like she wasn't in a hurry. A tricky balancing act, but one that she was confident she'd mastered over the past five years in the service. She was just about to phone in to control when her target stopped dead and spun around. He took off his glasses and stared straight at her as she faltered. Hello Josephine.