Fred never let go of my arm as we searched for Zach among the crowds outside the Louvre. We finally found him being examined by a doctor. He was fighting with him, slapping his hand away every time it moved to search for any injuries.
“I’m fine! I don’t need an examination!” he argued with the French-speaking doctor.
“Maybe just a mental one,” I retorted as we neared him.
Zach jumped up, shooing the doctor away with a rough push, and threw his arms around me tightly, nearly lifting me up from the ground. I was taken aback by how strong he was.
"You did it!" he said happily.
"You both did a grand job." Fred broke in. I cringed slightly as Zach let go. My face began to burn.
“Thank you, sir,” Zach said, shaking Fred’s hand.
A man in a police uniform approached Fred, resting an arm on his shoulder as he spoke quietly.
“Excuse me for a moment,” Fred said before walking away with the policeman, leaving Zach and me alone.
“Looks like you got everyone out in time.” I nodded towards the authorities mixing with the models and celebrities.
He laughed softly. “It was not an easy task. I nearly got arrested until I was able to show my badge.” He put his hands in his pockets and nudged me with his shoulder. “I knew you could do it.” He softened his voice. “You’re amazing, Laura.”
I was blushing so furiously, I couldn’t look at him.
“I was wondering-” he started.
He was cut off before he finished his sentence. "Excuse me, Mr. Freeman?" A tall, well-dressed man came up to Zach and held out his hand. He lowered his voice. "Emilio Gomez, CIA Headquarters in Langley, Virginia." He slyly showed his badge to the two of us.
Zach, wide-eyed, took his hand and shook it firmly up and down several times. "It's a pleasure, sir."
"May I speak to you for a moment?" Agent Gomez asked, gesturing to an empty area away from the police cars and fire trucks and bomb squads.
Zach glanced at me nervously, but I smiled. He followed Agent Gomez across the lot.
Suddenly Fred was once again at my side. He lowered his voice to a whisper. "They want to promote him to the main CIA branch. It's what he's worked for his whole life."
I watched Zach and Agent Gomez huddle in a deep conversation. I could tell Zach was trying to stay calm, but his wide eyes were giving away his excitement. "He deserves it," I said sincerely. I wouldn't be here if not for his quick thinking. "I’ll never be as good as he is.” A painful reminder hit me. “I’ll never be as good as my parents, either.”
"You don't think your parents made mistakes,” Fred said instantly. “I could go on about all of the dumb things your father did when we went on missions together." He laughed to himself. "Not much common sense, that one. But he was an amazing man. An amazing friend." He pulled something out of his suit pocket and handed it to me.
It was a folded picture of my parents from there last mission. The beautiful city of Rio de Janeiro was behind them. My mother was in a white dress, her dark hair spread over her shoulders. My smiling father stood next to her, his glasses falling off of his nose.
"They sent it in an email when they found out you were here. They were so proud of you," Fred said softly.
I felt tears burn my eyes as I folded the picture and held it tightly in my hand. With everything that had been going on the past few days, the realization of what awaited me at home…or rather what wasn’t waiting for me, never sank in. The picture in my hands, however, was making everything very real. Fred watched me nervously, fiddling with the end of his tie in his hands. A lot of change was coming, but I wasn’t alone. I was never alone. I threw my arms around Fred’s neck once more.
"I do need a break, though,” I said as I squeezed him tightly. “A teenage girl needs to go to school. She needs to go shopping and go on dates," I added the last part sarcastically.
"Not while I'm your guardian," Fred laughed as he pulled away, but he froze. “If you want me to be, that is. I don’t want you staying in that big house all alone. If you wanted to move…I know it sounds silly. You’re almost an adult,” he stuttered breathlessly.
I cut him off. “There is no one else I would rather be with."
Fred didn’t hide his smile. “How about we stay in Paris a few extra days?"
I stared at the chaos around me. The city would be talking about this for months. "L.A. sounds just fine," I told him. I glanced at the photo in my hand again and smiled.
Footsteps stormed towards us before coming to a skidding halt. “They promoted me to Langley!” Zach whooped. “They want me to leave for Virginia tomorrow and then report to London next week.” He could barely breathe and the smile on his face was the biggest I had ever seen.
"Well done, my boy," Fred said, patting him on the back.
“You sound really excited to leave someone as amazing as me,” I joked. “Your words, not mine.”
Zach’s cheeks turned a shade of light pink. "I don't remember saying that," he stuttered quickly. Too quickly.
Fred looked at me, his eyebrows raised. What a liar.
Ten hours, three CIA interviews, and five binders full of paperwork later, I had just finished packing my bags for Los Angeles. Fred and I were leaving in the morning. After shoving everything into my suitcases, I took the opportunity to just relax, something I didn’t really get to do at all in Paris.
While Fred was on the phone with someone from the modelling agency (trying to think of a cover for my early retirement from the business), I decided to get one last view of the City of Lights. I opened the glass door and walked out onto the small mezzanine. A cool fall breeze twirled my hair and the Eiffel Tower sparkled in the distance. I stared at it, captivated by its beauty.
I turned around when I heard someone open the door. It was Zach. He was unusually dressed down, forcing me to do a double take. I wasn’t used to him in jeans and a t-shirt. He smiled. “Hey Laura. I’m getting ready to go, so I wanted to say bye.”
Bye. It was so hard to say, especially in this business. Bye could mean for a day or a few months or maybe even forever. Zach was my first real friend. It was unfair that when I finally got a friend, I had to say goodbye.
He walked over to me and leaned over the railing, his eyes following mine to the Eiffel Tower. “You know I’m going to miss you, right?”
I turned to face him, thankful that it was dark out. I didn’t want him to see me blushing. I also didn’t want him to see my red, puffy eyes. I was on the verge of tears. Zach was going to D.C. I was going to L.A. It might as well have been halfway across the world. “I’m going to miss you too.” I tried to smile but it faltered. “Here’s a tip. Don’t be a jerk to people when you meet them or you’ll never make friends.”
He laughed. I never noticed he had dimples before. I also never noticed the crinkles around his eyes when he flashed a big, white smile. All this time together I was finally starting to get to know him. “Yeah, I’ll work on that.”
I became serious. “And be careful.” I knew he could handle any mission the CIA threw at him. He was brilliant, brave, and everything else the CIA looked for in their agents. But I wanted him to know that I cared.
“You too,” he said. “You know, since I won’t be there to save your butt.”
“Oh!” I threw my arms around him and hugged him tightly. I took him by surprise, but he hugged back. I felt him rest his chin on my shoulder. I was really going to miss him, so much so that I couldn’t even put it into words. I gripped him tightly, not wanting to let go.
“We’ll see each other again,” he said. I felt one of his hands run through my hair gently. “You can fly to D.C. and we can meet up,” he whispered. “Or I can fly out to L.A.”
I pulled away from him and looked up, trying to get a good look at his face before he left, not knowing the next time I would see him.
Suddenly, Fred opened the door. Zach let go of me quickly. I grabbed hold of the balcony’s railing. Of course Fred would walk in at a moment like that! He muttered something unintelligible before backtracking into the room and closing the sliding glass door. And its shades.
Zach ran a hand over his face while I tried to focus on anything, the Eiffel Tower, the cars zooming below, even the young French woman yelling at who I assumed to be her boyfriend, her finger wagging up and down as rapidly as her words.
“Um, I should go.” I thought Zach would maybe pick up where we left off, but instead he took my hand and squeezed it tightly.
“Bye Laura.”
I swallowed hard. “Bye Zach.”
I was still frozen in place on the balcony ten minutes later. I watched Zach get into the waiting taxi, pulling his rolling suitcase behind him. The driver walked around the side of the car and helped Zach lift his bag. Zach nodded his thanks.
Three beautiful girls, their legs long and thin and their hair bouncing with their every step, giggled at Zach as they passed him. One waved to him flirtatiously. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.
But he didn’t bask in their attention. Instead he turned around and found me on the balcony. I hated that he caught me staring, but with a wink and a wave, he got into the taxi and slammed the door before the driver dangerously weaved into the flow of traffic.
“I don’t think this will be the last of Zachary Freeman,” Fred said from behind me, causing me to jump. He chuckled and rested a hand on my shoulder.
I wouldn't admit it, but I really hoped Fred was right.
A/N: Thank you again to everyone who has been reading The Model Spy. I also want to thank everyone who has been leaving the nicest comments on how much they like the story! I love it when readers let me know what they think :) I just wanted to leave this note to say thanks, but the story isn't over! The epilogue will be up in a few days, as well as a sneak peak of the sequel in which Laura heads to England! Finally, I've been getting a lot of requests from readers asking when the story will officially be in the Watty awards. As soon as the epilogue is posted, I am entering it!
Thank you again for everything and I hope you like the rest of the story!