A E Radley [Radley - Lost at Sea

Annie Peck hurried as much as possible without looking as if she was running for her life.

Which she was.

Her eyes darted around the wide and empty backstreets of Barcelona, searching for anyone who looked out of place. In particular, she was looking for anyone who might have followed her.

She knew she had to do her best to look casual and relaxed, to appear like a tourist strolling about the city, even if her heart was threatening to beat out of her chest and her breath came in short, sharp pants.

Getting out of the city was her number-one priority, even if she currently had no idea how she would manage that seemingly impossible feat. She imagined that Diegos people were spread across Barcelona looking for her.

The grotty hotel shed been staying in had accepting cash and asked no questions, but remaining there for much longer would just make her escape all the more difficult.

People talked, and she knew word of an English woman who never left the hotel would soon filter through to the ears of someone in the Ortega clan. And soon after that, shed be dead.

A shiver run up her spine, and she tried to convince herself it was the chilly breeze in the morning air.

She stopped walking and sucked in a deep breath, marvelling at how shaky it sounded. She turned to look around, just in case.

An elderly woman was crossing the road in the distance, a mother was walking with her toddler, and a man walked his dog. Everything seemed normal and safe, but Annie knew from bitter experience that could all vanish in a second if Diegos men found her.

She needed a plan. Her cash supply was running dangerously low, and she couldnt trust anyone.

Her life had completely turned around in the space of just forty-eight hours. Being in the wrong place at the wrong time had ended her carefree lifestyle and would probably lead to her death.

Shed turned thirty-one a few days earlier, and now she doubted shed see the end of the week.

Excuse me, do you speak English?

The young woman had appeared from nowhere and caused Annie to jump.

Oh, Im sorry, I didnt mean to scare you! I just need directions, the woman said, apologetically.

Annie took a couple of deep breaths and looked at the young backpacker in front of her. She seemed legitimate enough.

Where are you heading? Annie asked.

Oh, youre English, the girl sounded surprised, no doubt assuming that Annies olive-skinned appearance meant she was from the region.

She would surely be shocked to learn that Annie was from North Yorkshire and, after five whole years living in Spain, had only learnt how to order a beer. And to say I love you.

She shuddered at the thought of all the times shed said those words, to a man like Diego. Especially when shed known that it hadnt been love.

Im looking for this art gallery. The girl pointed to a spot on the paper map she clutched, a map she obviously couldnt read if she was asking for directions.

Annie gestured behind her. Down there, turn left when you get to the main street. Walk for about ten minutes, and youll start seeing signs. Its on the right.

Thanks, youre a life-saver.

Annie quickly continued walking, knowing that the girl was about to attempt to strike up a conversation. Its what young travellers often did: find people from their own country and chat about tourist tips.

Its what Annie had done. Its what led to Annie staying in Spain when she should have just gone home. Not that she felt she had a home any longer. She felt nomadic and lost, feelings that she knew had always been there but had been lurking behind a seemingly perfect life in Spain.

It was only when everything had gone wrong two short days ago that she had been forced to face up to things and realise that her life was a faade. Shed lived in a semi-daze for five years, not having the courage or the strength to acknowledge what had happened.

A couple of stray tears fell down her cheeks, and she hastily brushed them away. She didnt have time to think about her parents now.

She tried to tell herself that, in some ways, what had happened was a good thing. At least now they were safe from Diego.

Shed been twenty-six back then, young and nave but thinking she knew everything. Now, at thirty-one, she would give anything to be able to go back in time and shake some sense into herself.

Not that she would have listened. Diego was charming, rich, powerful, and so handsome it made her knees buckle. And she was a mess. She needed saving, and he was there to save her.

She shook her head. She needed to focus, not think of the mistakes of the past. There were plenty of them, and she didnt have the time to dwell on each one.

Getting out of Barcelona needed to be her one and only focus.

She knew that theyd expect her to go to the airport, but she also knew that the Ortega family had people working there. Shed be seen in minutes if she tried to fly out of Barcelona.

That left driving or getting the train. The train seemed like the better option of the two. Safety in numbers maybe they wouldnt kill her if she was found in a packed train carriage.

Maybe.

Get a hold of yourself, Annie, she muttered. Falling apart now was not an option. She needed to keep everything together if she was going to get herself out of the city, and, hopefully, the situation shed found herself in.

She adjusted her dark glasses and pulled her Herms scarf up a little higher to obscure her face without looking too suspicious. Unfortunately, there was no way to get from her location to the train station without crossing some of the busiest roads in Barcelona.

She sucked in a deep breath and turned onto the main road at as fast a pace as she dared.

The ten-minute walk felt like it took half an hour. Across the short distance, Annie had been close to having a panic attack. Barcelona had been her hometown for five years. It was a city, but it wasnt that populated. Even with the tourist season kicking off, it still felt like getting lost in a crowd was an impossible task.

Thankfully, the railway station had multiple entrances, and Annie knew to find a rarely used one. She walked through the wide-open space of Barcelonas central rail hub. Her heels clicked on the marble floor, and she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the glass windows of the many shops she passed. She wondered if she stuck out as much as she thought or if it was just paranoia that was racing through her veins.

She found a departure board and stared at the names of stations.

Madrid, Paris, Lyon.

She didnt know which was best. Shed gotten as far as deciding she needed to get out of Barcelona. Where she was actually heading was a completely different matter.

Wherever it was, it needed to be completely unpredictable, somewhere theyd never think to look. Somewhere she could lie low and, hopefully, reinvent herself.