Text message from V. Nair to G. Mallory, sent at 2:01 PM GMT: Due to a reliable report of an individual trafficking an anomalous virus for an unknown organization, agents have a twenty-carriage shuttle sequestered in the Waterloo & City tunnel beneath Spur Road. Please announce a minor derailment with no injuries and a closure of the line for the rest of the day. I am flying in to assess the situation and close the books on it. ETA 3:30 GMT.
Vera and her team received clearance and entered the tunnel via a maintenance entrance near the train. It was not a particularly busy time of day for the Waterloo & City, which Vera was surprised to learn had only two stops less than two miles apart. This was a true commuter line. If the call had come in even a few hours earlier or later, it would have been packed to the point of disaster.
As it was, each car was less than half full and the landing party had the suspicious individual, Ms. Arielle Blanc, in custody in the cleared second-to-last car. Vera examined Ms. Blanc first, carefully searching for signs of exposure to the very virus she'd been carrying in her briefcase, but found nothing of note. In addition, Vera's line of basic questioning offered nothing of substance.
"No symptoms and she's not going to crack here. Take her away," Vera ordered evenly as she stood to replace her gloves with the intention of examining the passengers Ms. Blanc had interacted with on the camera footage.
Text message from V. Nair to G. Mallory, sent at 4:12 PM GMT: Suspect in custody. Ms. Arielle Blanc, bank teller. Virus confiscated and removed from scene. No symptoms apparent in Blanc. About to examine oth
The message was sent, but only by accident as Laramie tackled Vera to the floor of the train as the doors to the second-to-last car opened towards the car ahead. A group of people disguised as passengers was fighting tooth and nail to get into the second-to-last car. Through a hail of gunfire from both the apparent Group of Interest and Vera's own team, Laramie shouted at her to run.
He rolled off of her and took control of the field, though it was like shooting fish in a barrel now that the second-to-last car was seemingly locked off from the side exits.
Vera made a run for the rear door, only to be side-checked by Ms. Blanc. She was a soldier, though. Not entirely unprepared for a sudden hit. There was a scuffle that ultimately ended in a gunshot wound to Ms. Blanc's knee and the grim realization that no one was firing at Vera, only her agents.
Which meant that these people wanted her to be very much alive.
She slipped into the last car and ran to exit at the back, reappearing outside to discover an unmanned main entrance as well as about a dozen Londoners in various states of confusion about the woman covered in blood racing down the street.
Voice message left by V. Nair for B. Kindersley, sent at 4:20 PM GMT: Code U. GOI. Code U. GOI. Backup. Backup. Backup! Kindersley, fucking backup!
She hung up and turned left down an alley, hearing the shouting of her pursuers behind her. She'd have Kindersley's head for this. Or maybe this was what he wanted.
Vera wiped her face with her sleeve and ducked into an Indian restaurant. There was no bathroom, but she ditched her green anorak in the bin and gave a man her number in exchange his Chelsea cap. Then she stole his unlocked phone while he paid for his food.
Text message from Unknown Number (Richard Smythe) to G. Mallory, sent at 4:30 PM GMT: I am alone on Kirby and Dashwood, being pursued by an unknown number of armed assailants. No back up. Must run.
She returned the phone and headed out the door at a light jog, but she knew that she was not dressed enough like a jogger to go unnoticed for long.
They were organized and they were back on her not twenty minutes later.