WASHINGTON DC: The Sadir Affair (The Puppets of Washington Book 1)

  Chapter 21

  As expected, Samuel neared Melbourne in the early hours of the morning. He didn’t want to go to Millicent’s place just yet. He needed to rest for a few hours before he tackled that problem. If she were still in Melbourne, he would have to get her out of the way. He couldn’t kill her. That would attract too much publicity. Besides, he liked the woman. He had to find another way. As he drove past her building, he saw her car parked by the curb. He went down Caroline Street and his headlights hit a sign “To Let”. Samuel turned onto the avenue alongside the building and stopped. He turned off the headlights, rolled down the window and looked up at the multi-stories apartment block. He nodded. This was a satisfactory location; facing the river, no neighbours for hundreds of yards around and only the Yarra across the main façade. He decided he would catch a few hours’ sleep at the nearest hotel and get back here before noon.

  As he turned onto the bridge crossing the river, he noticed how different the city looked since he left. Perhaps, the images he kept in his mind were fading away and being replaced by new ones. His nostalgia of home and of Australia had never left him. When he spent some years in Israel, he felt as if he was visiting his ancestors’ homeland, but it never felt like home to him.

  He parked in the underground garage of a shopping mall, adjacent to a posh hotel, took the lift to the lobby, and registered for a two-night stay. He paid with an old credit card, bearing yet another name, and made his way to his room. He took his shoes and socks off—Australians love to walk barefoot everywhere—and lay down on the bed. Within minutes, Samuel was asleep.