The first shot of vodka
Francesc arrived first. He asked for a beer and rubbed his hands through the jeans while examining the place again. Just in case. He recognised her by her way of dressing, when she turned around to close the door quietly. Some minutes later, when she went to the toilet, he realised about that fact: to recognise someone else not by the face or the body but the clothes. She recognised him quickly too. Actually, there was not a lot of people and he was the only one alone in that bar.
Katerina was the one to make the first step, to contact Francesc, weeks ago, thanks to a mutual friend during an academic visit to Berlin. It might seem random, but it is not. People go to certain places depending on their tastes, their intentions and their possibilities and none of this is part of the characteristics of chance. I mean, both Katerina and Francesc’s friends went to the same place because they were looking for someone like them.
Francesc started to make contacts with people who were interested in acquiring a very specific kind of weapons. The first time he witnessed a conversation on the subject he did not think about the possibility, he was just there, listening without any interest. But when he arrived home, when he sat together with his brother in front of the TV to tell him about that evening, he realised that perhaps it was an interesting business to take care of. It would not be so difficult to find a contact abroad, ask some questions and evaluate the potential earnings and risks.
And that is why Katerina was there, to give information, data, basically numbers, related to ammunition, calibre, boxes and calculation made by herself during the long and boring journey via London. Those calculations, those ideas had an objective: to encourage Francesc to enter the game with her. She said to Francesc, simple and clear, that they should be partners, before the waiter placed over the bar the first shot of vodka.