This timeline gave us just enough time to speed-walk to our accommodation to keep up the ruse that the book wasn’t on me. I ran up the stairs to our room, and just in case, I crouched down beside the bed, out of view of the window, and slipped the book into the dictionary safe before putting it back in my bag and standing up.
When I jogged back downstairs to meet my friends, I was sweaty and out of breath. Now, I just had to hope that our performance was believable enough . . . maybe the perspiration and panting would help sell it.
We hurried back to the café Weber had indicated, and as soon as we walked in, two men met us at the door and gestured toward the back of the restaurant. There, I saw a curtain hanging in one corner and thought immediately of Joel’s club in the show Marvelous M
