Isabelle's directions were not very clear. But the directions of the man on the phone were simple and couldn't be any clearer.
"Keep the phone on your person. Head to a public place. A restaurant. A coffee shop. Wait."
Macy didn't question. She didn't try to show whether she understood or didn't. She simply answered, "Yes," and did exactly as asked. It was after eleven. Made sense he asked her to pick between a restaurant and a coffee shop. Not many would be operating this late. Not many would know where to look for one. Fortunately, she wasn't one of the many. She knew a few that fit the requirements and she knew just the one for her.
Cup of Life was a neither-too-small-nor-too-big coffee shop in the middle of the street that was open pretty much twenty fours hours. The only time the closed sign was hung on the door was in the cleaning hours, one in the early hours of the morning, one in the early hours of the evening. It had a steady traffic though it never did appear full. Majority of its business was takeaway. And it could manage the big profit because of three main reasons, the law office across the street, the IT company at the end of the street, and the student hostel at the other end of the street. Three places where employees/residents kept long hours and needed a lot of caffeine. The perfect situation for a coffee shop. Others would have loved to follow, unfortunately there was no space. The street was entirely occupied by offices and old residences. When Cup of Life opened doors, there was only the student hostel. The interiors of the office across the street were not yet complete, and until the doors were opened and business began, no one knew it was a law office of such a big size. And the building that was bought out by the IT company was still under construction. People laughed at Cup of Life, mocking it openly for having such bad vision. Not much long after, they were laughing at themselves.
Macy was familiar with Cup of Life. If she were to confess, she'd say she couldn't be more familiar. It was a fifteen minute drive at this time of the night when the roads were free. Luckily, the street itself was a popular destination among the taxis, since business could be found at any hour. She wouldn't have trouble getting a taxi. She didn't bother changing. Merely washed her face as she waited for the taxi and went straight to Cup of Life.
Cup of Life was open. Brightly lit. Isabelle would have liked it, Macy thought, ruminating over the fact that they had never visited this late. There was a different kind of charm to the place at this hour, coffee was a slightly better flavor under the bright white lights perfectly contrasting the dark of the night outside. As she sat at a table in the middle, she heard her stomach's cry. She decided to get herself something to eat while she waited.
She had finished the sandwich and the coffee was down to the final fifth, when the phone rang. She answered immediately.
"Is the phone important?" It was the same voice.
"No," she answered honestly and without hesitation.
"Drop it. Come over to the table in the corner."
She left the phone under the table, carefully. Looked to the corner where there was a man of a medium build, dressed innocuously in a white shirt, the top button open and the sleeves rolled a couple of times, black trousers and black leather shoes that were the right balance of polished and scuffed. The look of a man who'd worked a long and tiring day. She was happy she hadn't changed. She looked no different, a woman who'd worked a long day. The two of them blended in perfectly, neither arousing suspicion nor attracting a second glance. Not even as she joined him.
She sat next to him and greeted. "Hello."
"Hello." He said easily. "Why do you look so surprised?"
"Sorry," she blushed, so very slightly. "I just thought you'd be nervous, like in the movies. Wasn't expecting it to be so relaxed."
"That's movies. Meant to entertain. This is reality. Meant to survive. About your friend."
"Isabelle. Yes." All traces of calm were wiped away. Macy showed every bit of nervous she was. "What happened?"
"I don't know," he answered, his voice not changing. "Tell me first, what do you know about her? About what Isabelle does?"
"Nothing. She told me she couldn't tell me what she did. Only gave me the number to call if something happened, and the words to speak. Something did happen, didn't it?"
Wasn't a question. He didn't treat it like one. "Yes. Isabelle was right not telling you. Would have been far too dangerous for you. Yes. Something did happen. I don't know yet for sure exactly what. Just that it had to do with the last job. This is as much as I can tell you about her and her work. Isabelle was a specialist. That's what we are called. Information stored within computers, was her specialization. Retrieval, to be more precise. We are a small company. We've been called a think tank. A consultancy. Doesn't matter. What matters is this. There's no word on Isabelle. That's not good. You were living together. Which means you can't go back there, at least for now, for a while. Do you have somewhere else you can go to?"
She nodded.
"Good. Go there. A few days. I'll get in touch with you. If needed, I don't believe it would come to that, but just in case, be prepared to take a few days' leave from work. We'll figure this out."
She nodded, again.
"Try not to worry too much. I'm sorry, I can't do much more." He looked like he meant it. "I will get in touch with you. Until then, please lay low." He got up, and left quietly.
She stayed at the table a minute longer. Allowing herself to clear her head. Then, rose to her feet and walked out.
She wasn't lying. She did have somewhere she could go. A place she hadn't thought of in a long time. A place she never thought she'd return to after Isabelle. Had been a place she stayed at, slept at, for a long time. But was never home. Was never meant to be. She thought she'd have forgotten the way, but realized she was wrong. She didn't even have to try. It was like her feet never forgot. It was like it was only yesterday she had walked the path. The long, almost thirty minutes, walk from Cup of Life, down the busy street, down quieter streets, down narrow streets under the canopy of trees that looked like trails running through woods, finally stopping outside the gates of the large grounds of the orphanage. Gates that were never closed. The smallest slate of marble, greyed by dust and time, with words etched in black that were almost unreadable. Mother's Bosom. The trail continued past the gates, through the grounds. First came the outside cottages. Small, ancient buildings that were leased to residents, orphans, who'd grown up and still wanted a place at the orphanage. Further in was the actual orphanage itself. Macy stopped at the cottages. Almost all were occupied. The lease wasn't much, but to the residents who needed it, it was astronomical. It was a badge of pride for those who could sign a lease, at least among the younger ones. Most were dark. It was late. Few were still lit. Residents working or studying late. Those were the ones with the most promise, the ones rushing the most on the road out. Macy walked to one in the middle, that was dark and locked. She punched in the key, walked in and shut the door after her.
She'd been asked to wait. Nothing could be more painful than patience right now. She was no stranger to difficult though. She looked at the small phone he'd given her. It was an old phone, with a tiny screen, that could make calls and send texts and nothing more. He'd get in touch, he said. Lay low until then. Sighing, she walked in. She left the phone on the table, collapsed into the old armchair that looked bigger and more comfortable than it actually was. Moments later, she was asleep.