Dangerous Territory

Pakt Mit Dem Teufel

Eren glared. "Don't call her that. She was kidnapped and forced into that bordell."

Levi frowned at the paper. "I do sympathize, but ... you know this is probably a trap."

"It might not be. She sounded sincere."

"Of course she would!"

"The girl was terrified."

"I don't doubt she is," Levi said, "but she could be a pawn."

"Pawn?" Eren asked, confused by the word.

Just then, the phone rang. Levi jumped up with his hand reaching to the knife strapped on his belt, only to realize what it was. He sighed out the adrenaline rush.

Eren held a finger up to show him to keep quiet, and he answered the call. While he was busy talking to what sounded like Jean, Levi glared at the paper. He had half a mind to shred the scrap right there, except ... what if it wasn't a trap? What if this was his way out?

Getting help from the French Resistance ... again! They failed the last few times. Could he trust them now?

Did he have much other choice?

While Eren continued to talk on the phone, Levi stared hard at the paper and especially the phrase at the end. Une bouteille de bourgogne se marie le mieux avec une tempête. A bottle of burgundy pairs best with a storm. Was the French Resistance planning a storm, or did they mean the situation in Metz was already a storm ready to burst?

Finally, Eren hung up, and as soon as the receiver was down, Levi tore the paper up.

"Wait!" Eren cried out in horror.

He made a rush toward Levi, who easily leaped away, tearing the paper more and more, into tiny pieces.

"Levi!" Eren cried out. Now how was he supposed to help Louise?

"Do you have that address memorized?" Levi asked coldly.

Eren was shocked that he would do such a thing, damning a girl to sexual slavery. Sadly, he shook his head.

"Good. I do." He pointed a finger into Eren's chest. "You will not go to that address. I will."

Eren's mouth dropped. "But she gave it to me. They might be expecting me. And what if it's a trap?"

"Oh, now you think it might be a trap?" shouted Levi.

"I thought right away that it could be. So don't go!"

Levi punched Eren's leg, not hard, but enough to get him to yell, "Au, das tut weh!" and remember just how much pain he was in. Levi glared at Eren as he said, "How are you going to stop me? Besides, if it's not a trap, then maybe I can get the hell out of here."

Eren scowled as he rubbed where Levi bopped him. "But ... still ... I want to help her."

"Goddammit! You're too kind for your own fucking good!"

Just then, there was a knock. "Hallo, es ist Zimmerservice." Hello, it's room service.

Levi panicked, especially since he had just yelled in English. He dove under the bed right away. Eren hobbled over to the attic and threw the ladder back up. He could not reach the opened hatch, so he hoped the hotel staff person would not see it from the doorway. Then he wrapped a robe around him, cracked the door open, and saw a bellhop in a red and black uniform with a wheeled tray of food.

"Guten Morgen, Herr Oberleutnant."

"Guten Morgen, danke. Ich übernehme ab hier." Good morning, thanks. I'll take it from here.