Instead he rammed the Irishman's head against the steel strut a second time, and a third, till he felt the body go fully limp.
Not good enough, he told himself, and reached into his pocket for the bottle. The ether was going to get more use than he'd planned.
He doused the heavy cloth he'd brought along and shoved it against the fallen figure's nostrils. He continued to hold it on the ruddy face as he closed the elevator door and pushed the button that would take him up.
As the lift rose, he checked his watch and smiled to see that his timing was perfect. Ten seconds to go.
"You bastard," Eva screamed as she slapped Vance with all her might, knocking him against the door of their room. The thin walls shook.
"Don't ever do that again." He drew up and swung for her, missing and crashing against a chair.
"Get away from me. You're drunk." She shoved him farther into the room, her voice trembling with anger. Then she wrenched open the hotel room door and stumbled into the hallway. "Pomogethya mnye!"
Their KGB guard, Igor Borisovich, was already running down the hall, "Shto . . .?”