Mei led James through a series of narrow, winding hutongs—old residential alleyways—a labyrinth of ancient stone walls and hanging laundry.
"The shortest route is through the 'Eight Bends of the Sleepy Cat,'" Mei explained. "Stay precisely behind me. Every turn is monitored, but these alleys are chaotic enough to mask our movements."
James did his best, but his long legs and bulky jacket made him less 'covert agent' and more 'flapping kite.' He kept bumping into residents, apologizing profusely for his "lack of lateral awareness."
"Stop apologizing!" Mei hissed, pulling him back from walking straight into a wall. "It draws attention! Just act like you belong here."
"I don't belong here!" James whispered frantically. "I belong in a comfortable leather armchair, reading The Economist! My current environment lacks the requisite comfort and accessibility!"
Suddenly, three more Grey Suits appeared at the end of the hutong, having clearly anticipated their route.
"They're anticipating our moves too fast," Mei muttered, frustration evident in her voice. "There's a leak."
"Perhaps," James offered helpfully, "the administrative data of your 'Panda Protocol' has been misfiled? It happens with the municipal plumbing in England all the time."
Mei grabbed James's wrist. "This way! We split up. Meet me at the Giant Stone Tortoise outside the Temple's East Gate in twenty minutes. If you are late, I will assume you were arrested for cultural insensitivity."
She shoved James into a dark alcove and disappeared over a wall with a graceful leap.
James was alone. He looked left, then right. No Mei. He felt his pocket for his map, the reliable, heavily creased tourist map of Beijing he'd marked up with all the best tea houses.
He pulled it out, relieved, only to realize he had accidentally swapped his map for Auntie Liu's bag of roasted chestnuts. The heat had melted the ink, leaving a gooey, brown, utterly useless paper mass.
"Oh, bother," James groaned. He was lost, alone, and surrounded by shadowy operatives, with nothing but a sticky bag of nuts for navigation.