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Chapter 1: Annie 1. Annie
THE BEYOGLU AQUATIC CENTER SHARED a parking lot with an auto repair shop, so it wasn’t uncommon for teenagers with dripping-wet hair to cross paths with mechanics whose hands were covered in grease. This was Istanbul, a city that straddled two continents and was home to more than fifteen million people. Life here was defined by unlikely encounters.
Despite this, Annie couldn’t help but think the man was out of place. She noticed him the moment she stepped outside after practice. He was muscular but bulky, built like a boxer, not a swimmer. And his fitted shirt and perfectly pressed pants were hardly garage-appropriate. She watched as he dropped a cigarette to the ground and stubbed it out with the toe of a thick black boot. Judging by the other discards lying nearby, he’d been waiting awhile.
Annie turned to her friend Gökçe and asked, “Who’s the musclehead?”
The girl gave her a confused look. “What is ‘musclehead’”
Gökçe’s English was so good that Annie sometimes forgot she was still learning it. “It just means a guy with lots of muscles.” She bowed her arms in a flex. “Like a bodybuilder.”
“Ahh, musclehead, I get it.” Gökçe smiled, pleased to add new slang to her vocabulary. “I don’t recognize him. He probably works at the garage.”
“Dressed like that? I don’t think so. Besides, look at his hands. They’re manicured. Not a spot of grease on them.”
“Okay, then he’s a parent picking up one of our teammates.”
Annie gave her the side-eye. “We’re halfway through the season, and we’ve never seen him before. How do you explain that?”
Gökçe laughed. “I don’t explain that. Because unlike you, I am not an incredibly annoyed person.”
“I’m not incredibly annoyed,” Annie said defensively. “I’m just curious because... Wait a second.... Did you mean ‘paranoid’”
“That’s the word. Annoyed. Paranoid. They sound the same to me. You are the most paranoid fifteen-year-old in the world.”
Now it was Annie’s turn to laugh because there was more than a little truth to this. “Okay. That’s fair. But believe me. If you came from my family, you’d be paranoid too.”
Annie’s parents were both spies. Originally, they worked for MI6, British Secret Intelligence. But six years earlier a mission in Paris had gone terribly wrong. She still didn’t know all the specifics of what happened, but she’d been living on the run ever since. Türkiye was her ninth country, and like the other eight, it came with an entirely new identity and cover story. As far as Gökçe and everyone at school was concerned, Annie was Pam Ryan from Bakersfield, California, who’d moved to the Middle East because her father worked in the oil industry.
“Walk with me to the metro and help me practice my English,” Gökçe said.
“Okay, but you’ve got to help me practice too. You’re not the only one learning a new language. How do you say ‘paranoid’ in Turkish?”
“That’s easy,” Gökçe responded. “You just say... ‘Pam Ryan.’”
It took Annie a moment to get the joke, and when she did, she laughed despite herself. “That’s so not funny.”
It had been years since she’d had a friend this close. Someone she could almost be herself with. This was intentional because she knew she’d inevitably be forced to leave without warning or a chance to say goodbye. But with Gökçe, their friendship had clicked from the beginning. They were classmates at Galatasaray, one of the most prestigious high schools in the country, and played together on a highly regarded water polo team. Gökçe’s dream was that they’d end up playing at the same college in the United States.
“When we get to USC, my English will have to be perfect,” she said as they walked along the brick road. “It will help me in school and of course when I meet all the celebrities.”
Her plan was that they would go to the University of Southern California, which, in addition to having an elite women’s water polo team with Olympians from around the world, was also located in Los Angeles, just a few miles from Hollywood.
“Did you see many celebrities growing up in California?” she continued.
“I lived in Bakersfield,” Annie responded, sticking to her cover story. “All they’ve got there is desert, farming, and oil wells. No celebrities.”
“Too bad. We will fix that when we are at university. We will go to class. We will train in the pool. And then we will hang out at clubs with all the movie stars.” She did a little shimmy with her shoulders.
Annie loved Gökçe’s mix of confidence and optimism. It was so heartfelt that she sometimes got swept up in it. Despite her unpredictable undercover life, she almost believed that they would go to college together and remain friends forever. But then she saw a reflection in a shop window and was snapped back to reality.
It was Musclehead. He’d followed them from the aquatic center and was now watching from across the street. Annie was right. He had been waiting. He’d been waiting for her.
Her cover was blown, which meant she needed to execute an escape plan. She had to get away from him. Then she would have to get away from Istanbul. But first she had to get away from Gökçe. It was too dangerous for her to get caught up in this.
“What’s the matter?” her friend asked. “You look worried all of a sudden.”
“No.” Annie faked a smile. “I’m just tired from practice.”
“Yes.” Gökçe nodded. “Practice today was extremely ghouling.”
Even in this situation Annie couldn’t help but chuckle. “Grueling,” she corrected. “‘Ghouling’ would mean that there were ghosts and evil spirits. ‘Grueling’ means exhausting.”
“Sometimes I think the coach is like an evil spirit, but yes, grueling is better.” Gökçe flashed a smile, and Annie took a mental picture. She knew she’d never see her friend again.
As they neared the station, Annie was careful to keep track of the man without giving any indication that she’d spotted him. He likely wouldn’t make a move until she was alone. That meant she had two blocks to work out a strategy.
“You should come home with me for the weekend,” Gökçe suggested. “We could work on our Renaissance project together. And the food is much better than at the dorm.”
They were both boarding students at Galatasaray, but since it was Friday, Gökçe was heading home for the weekend. Her family lived just outside the city. Sometimes Annie tagged along, but she couldn’t predict how her pursuer would respond, and she didn’t want to risk her friend’s safety.
“I wish I could,” Annie replied. “But I promised Seda I would help her study.”
“Too bad. My mother is making baklava for dessert.”
“Don’t rub it in.”
When they reached the Sishane metro station, Annie took a quick peek over her shoulder and saw that the man was now closer to them. He was ready to act in case she headed toward the subway.
“Teach me one new English word before I go,” Gökçe said. “Something good.”
Annie blocked out the looming threat for a moment and focused on her friend. “Okay, here’s a good one,” she said. “Bestie.”
“What is ‘bestie’” asked Gökçe.
Annie pointed at her friend. “You. You are my bestie.”
Gökçe smiled warmly. “That means you are my bestie also. See you Monday.” She got on the escalator and started to descend into the station. Before disappearing from view, she turned to face Annie and held up two fingers in a V for victory. “Fight on!”
It was the symbol and the slogan of the teams at the University of Southern California. The two of them had co-opted it as their own secret communication and used it for everything from a greeting to a farewell to a cheer during water polo matches. But now Annie took it as a reminder of what she needed to do. A call to action.
“Fight on!” she said, flashing the sign with her fingers. Then she added to herself, “Because that’s exactly what I intend to do.”
