The Korean Gambit

by Charles DeMaris

  He rarely went to the city. No need to really. Between the lake and the nearby woods, he could catch or shoot more meat than they could hope to eat and Jelena worked wonders with the small garden plot behind the house. They weren’t rich, but they had everything they needed. It was a nearly idyllic existence. He was a happy man, happier when their grandchildren came to visit, which wasn’t often enough.

  For years he had wondered who lived in the large estate on the other side of the lake. There were times he heard helicopters coming and going at various odd hours, and a few glances through his binoculars revealed an unusually high number of security personnel, on the roof and on the decks. Probably some important person’s second house away from the city, or a retired KGB officer. As long as they didn’t disturb him, he didn’t much care who lived over there.

  Recent activities across the lake were putting his live and let live attitude to the test. The frequency of the helicopters had increased, often waking him up in the middle of the night, and there were more security people present, including what appeared to be snipers on the roof. What anyone needed with that level of security out here he couldn’t figure out. Nobody lived out here, at least not many people, other than farmers and fishermen. He thought about all this as he sat on his front porch eating pirozhki and looking at the lake. It would be a good day to fish. He loved this time of the year, the air starting to get crisp but not yet cold. He would be content with this all year long. He found his tolerance for winter declining with his advancing age, a fact that he was hesitant to tell anyone. What kind of a Russian can’t tolerate winter?

  Jelena’s voice was intruding on his thoughts, but he couldn’t make out what she was saying. She had that habit of calling out from whatever room she was in, despite the fact that he could never understand her from halfway across the house. He went in and heard her voice again, coming from the basement.

  “What is it,” he asked from halfway down the steps.

  “Bring water…and that soup I have warming on the stove. I think she might be waking up.”

  Rachel was drifting slowly from the grip of a deep sleep with the fleeting vestiges of a soon to be forgotten dream fading away. A dream of swimming, swimming somewhere but never getting closer, and that dream fading into one of lying in bed next to a loved one, but never seeing his face, only feeling his warmth and feeling a strong sense of security. At some point she realized this was a dream and she didn’t want to leave it. She was warm and cozy underneath a mountain of blankets with someone at her side. The dream faded, but not the warmth next to her or the blankets piled on top of her. Her mouth felt dry and her eyelids were still heavy. She could hear voices speaking close by but couldn’t understand a thing they said.

  She managed to open one eyelid, then the other, then blink a couple times. Man, she was thirsty. There was a woman sitting next to the bed. The woman called out a couple times, there was an answer from a man nearby, and a moment later the woman was holding a glass of water to her lips and speaking complete gibberish. Once a stream of the water made its way down her throat, she couldn’t get enough of it and downed the entire glass in no time.

  She tried to speak and found it difficult at first, finally managing a word.

  “More.”

  Nikita was already anticipating this and was ready with another glass of water which she downed as fast as the first one. Her mouth was starting to feel normal and she began to look around the room. The warm presence was still next to her and turning her head, she found herself looking into the loving face of a large dog that was pressed against her. The dog leaned over and licked her face and its tail gave a slight wag.

  “Where am I?” she managed to say.

  Jelena hesitated for a moment before answering in English, “I’m Jelena and this is my husband Nikita. You’re in our house.”

  “How long have I been here?”

  “Over two days. We thought we had lost you.”

  “Two days? You speak English?”

  “It is a useful skill at times. Yes, two days. You’ve been so feverish. You have Druzhok to thank for being alive. He hasn’t left your side since.”

  “Druzhok?”

  “Lying next to you,” Nikita said, “Woke me up barking like a mad fool two mornings ago. I let him out and he ran straight for the water. I couldn’t see anything, but he went in and started swimming like the devil was on his heels. I saw a splash farther out…that was you…then you were gone. He found you and dragged you to the shore. Pumped more water out of you than I thought was right…were still breathing. Jelena got the bullet out of your leg…lucky it hit where it did…stitched you up, and Druzhok has spent the last two days with you. Hardly even eating. Always knew he was a good dog.”

  “Here you go love,” Jelena said, holding the bowl of soup and putting the spoon up to Rachel’s lips.

  Rachel wanted to feed herself, but found she didn’t have the strength to lift her arms.

  “You just relax and eat, child. You lost more blood than I thought a person could and still live. Your strength will come back.”

  “Has anyone been looking for me?”

  “Some men were poking around the lake yesterday,” Nikita said, “but I haven’t seen them today.”

  “They might come here. They’re dangerous men. I can’t stay long.”

  “You can’t even get out of bed right now. I don’t think they’ll come here.”

  “Why do you say that? They won’t rest until they know I’m dead.”

  “They found your clothes floating near the shore, a bit bloodier than when we found you. Jelena’s idea. She’s the smart one in the family.”

  “I hope you’re right. Yuriy is a dangerous man. If he knows I’m alive…”

  “Yuriy?”

  “Yuriy Kazakov, you know him?”

  “Heard the name…long time ago…rumors…just a lot of rumors, none of them good.”

  “I can tell you more than rumors.”

  “First, you finish this soup,” Jelena said, “Then you can talk.”

  Rachel finished the soup, and another bowl, two pirozhki, another glass of water, and a glass of juice, and for the next two hours told them everything she knew.

  19

  One week later

  Harrison

  Jefferson completed the tactical shooting course again and checked his score on the screen.

  “Better than the last time, but I got a long way to catch you,” he said.

  “You’ll get there,” Casey said, “You’ve already come a long way in the last few days.”

  “It’s fun, like a real -life video game. That why you put the screen with the scores there?”

  “That was Avi’s idea, thought it would motivate us.”

  “He was right.”

  “You going to go again?”

  “After I get some water. It’s a bit warm today.”

  “You’re from Alabama. You should be used to it.”

  “Guess I thought it would be cooler up here.”

  “Wait until January. Anyway, what news from the doc?”

  “Neck looks good. I can start working out again. Well, he says to keep the workouts light and low impact. Gonna take a short run with Brock this afternoon. You care to join us?”

  “Sounds good. How you doing with the computer system?”

  “Better than I thought I would. Ahmed’s shown me a lot. You know, he’s a pretty cool dude. Never knew many Muslims before.”

  “I never did either. I mean, they were there at school and all, but with football…”

  “Same here. Saw some in class, but all my friends were on the team.”

  “We got all types of folks working here. Avi’s a Jew, Jenny’s a Christian, Earl and Clyde…you met them? They’re both Christians.”

  “The two redneck dudes? Didn’t think you had those this far north.”

  “Lot of rural areas in Ohio. I figure we got as many rednecks here as anywhere else, and you know what? Don’t believe all th
at BS about them all being racist bigots.”

  “Yeah, I like Earl. He’s cool. How he end up with Jenny? Hot English chick marries a redneck? Don’t see that every day.”

  “Lot of rumors flying around about them. Got engaged two days after they met. I don’t know what to believe and what not to.”

  “You believe that? He just up and proposed in a couple days?”

  “That’s the official line, but everybody’s close lipped about it. Then there was their wedding. Had some 1700s kind of ball with people dressed up in old time outfits. One of the guests looked like George Washington, dead on like. Folks comparing him to dollar bills.”

  “That ain’t so weird. Lots of folks look like historical people.”

  “That’s what I figure. But Avi’s always tinkering with stuff. You remember a couple years ago the bit on the news about an old scientist claimed he figured out time travel?”

  “Yeah. I remember hearing about it at school. Nobody believed him.”

  “That was Avi. If you bring it up, he changes the subject. I found some things in his workshop and asked him, but he wouldn’t give me a straight answer. All I know is something went down before this place was formed. Avi, Earl, Clyde, Jenny…they were all in on it. Took down a couple guys who were trying to kill them. Clyde started to talk about it once when he was drunk and Earl stopped him. He said they met Jenny then.”

  “So, it’s the whole ‘two people thrust together in a crisis’ story?”

  “Pretty much.”

  “Thought that kind of thing only happened in the movies.”

  “Yeah, me too, but you look at them and it’s real. Oddest couple you’ll ever see and they’re mad for each other. Hope I find something like that someday .”

  Jefferson shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “Yeah, me too.”

  “Oh…sorry bro.”

  “No worries. She was out of my league.”

  “Oh, I don’t know about that. Don’t forget. We’re gonna get the bastards that did that.”

  “Looks like Brock’s here for our run. Coming?”

  “Sure, and by the way, dinner’s at my mom’s place tonight. 7:00 sharp. We’ll leave here by 6:15.”

  The distance from Rachel’s bed to the kitchen counter wasn’t more than twenty feet or so, but it might as well have been twenty miles, such was the sense of satisfaction she felt when she managed the walk unaided. Her reward was the pile of pirozhki on the counter, and the immense pride she felt in the accomplishment. She took four of them and started making her way back to the bed.

  “You’re doing well,” Jelena said.

  “These things are delicious. What are they called again?”

  “Pirozhki. My mother taught me how to make them.”

  “And you’re going to teach me, if I’m here long enough.”

  “You’ll have enough time to learn,” Nikita said, “you were fortunate.”

  “How big was the bullet you took out of me?”

  “7.62 from the looks of it. This is what saved you,” he said as he held up the combat knife she had taken from Oleg. The knife blade was bent slightly.

  “The bullet must have glanced off this knife blade before going in your leg. A shot from that rooftop should have done more damage. You’ll heal fine, but it still might take a while.”

  “Was anything else in my pockets?”

  “One pistol and some ammo. I cleaned them up for you. There was also this.” He held up the thumb drive.

  “I wonder if it’s still good.”

  “Jelena dried it out, but I couldn’t get anything on my old computer. If you get it somewhere with better equipment, you might be able to recover the data.”

  “I know somewhere with the best equipment, and I need to get there as soon as I can.”

  “You’re in no shape to travel right now. You should be mobile enough in a few days.”

  “I don’t know how many days we have. I know Yuriy is planning something big, but I don’t know what. If that drive has any intel on it, I need to get it back to France.”

  “I think I can get you to France. I’ll need to make some calls. It still might take a few days. Jelena can look at your wound. As long as it’s healing fine, there’s no reason you can’t be walking better by the end of the week.”

  Pavel knocked once on the door and let himself into Yuriy’s study.

  “Boss, how sure are you the girl’s dead?”

  “Dmitri shot her from the rooftop—”

  “At the edge of the water and he saw her fall in. I heard that much. Did they get a body?”

  “He brought back her clothes, a hole in the back and soaked in blood.”

  “But no body?”

  “No, they never found the body.”

  “We need to be sure, boss.”

  “You look like you need a drink, Pavel. Let me pour you a glass.”

  “No Yuriy, I don’t feel like a drink right now. This is serious.”

  “You have my attention. Do you think she knew something?”

  “She might not have known much when she came, but she might know much more, if she survived.”

  “How do you figure she survived a bullet in the back?”

  “Do you know Dmitri shot her in the back? It was night and the shot was nearly 600 meters. He saw her fall in the water and all we recovered was her bloody clothing. What if he only wounded her and she made it across the lake?”

  “You think she swam the lake wounded? That would be difficult if she was healthy.”

  “What if she had help?”

  “Who would be around to help her?”

  “There is an old couple living in a small cottage across the lake. I took the liberty of looking them up, Nikita Ivanov and his wife Jelena.”

  “Should that name mean anything to me?”

  “He was Spetsnaz. Wounded in Afghanistan and bought the place across the lake when he returned. Maybe he’s just been a quiet retiree, but I have my suspicions. I think we should pay him a visit.”

  “We? You’re a computer guy and I’m too old.”

  “Someone from here. If she made it across the lake and he’s helping her—”

  “What is it about her that has you so spooked all of a sudden?”

  “You saw how she escaped—”

  “Stabbed Oleg in the brain, got his gun, and made a run for it.”

  “She didn’t run right away. She was fishing for intel. She got into the server room.”

  “Why wasn’t I made aware of this?”

  “I was only recently made aware myself. Alexei came back to his terminal and saw her fleeing the server room. That’s when he pulled the alarm.”

  “He told me he spotted her in the hallway.”

  “He didn’t want us to know that she accessed his terminal.”

  “And he just told you after all this time?”

  “I had to be…persuasive.”

  “You…”

  “With Dmitri’s help. I was checking the system yesterday and found that some files had been copied. I went through the terminals in the server room and found that it was on his computer. Those terminals log everything. Several files were copied to a thumb drive the same time she escaped. Alexei admitted that he had gone to the restroom and when he returned, he saw her near the door of the server room.”

  “And you think she got away with the thumb drive?”

  “If she didn’t drown, then yes. There was a drive in the desk drawer of Alexei’s terminal and it was missing.”

  “So, would it be correct to assume that Alexei is no longer in my employ?”

  “That would be correct.”

  “I trust you were discreet?”

  “Completely. He won’t be found.”

  “So, how bad is it? What kind of files are we talking about?”

  “Enough to cause trouble if she manages to translate the data, and if the drive survived immersion.”

  “What kind of data, Pavel?”

  “The U.S.
operation, for starters. All of the data from the car hacks. Names and payments for Pyongyang. All of my test data for the guidance system hack “

  “That’s enough to piece together the entire op.”

  “That’s why we have to make sure she’s dead. If she has that drive and gets it to the wrong people…”

  “You don’t have to say any more. Tell Dmitri to put together a team and hit that house. If the girl is there, bring me back the body.”

  “What about the old couple?”

  “We can’t have any witnesses.”

  Rachel woke up suddenly and looked at the clock on the nightstand. It was only 2:00 a.m. She didn’t have to go to the restroom and the pain in her leg wasn’t enough to have woken her up. Then she heard it again, a low growl coming from next to her in the bed. Druzhok was in his usual spot next to her, but he was sitting up and staring at the window, highly attentive and on full alert.

  “Mr. Ivanov,” she called out

  “Yes dear,” he replied a few seconds later, “what is it?”

  “Druzhok is on to something.”

  Nikita looked at the dog and followed his gaze to the window, but saw nothing. Druzhok was growling continuously now, and followed it up with two sharp barks. Nikita looked again out the window and…what was that? He couldn’t be sure, but he thought he caught a reflection of moonlight off metal. He dove behind the bed, pulling Rachel down after him.

  Rachel winced in pain as she hit the floor, then reached for the nightstand and retrieved her pistol. She chambered a round and thumbed the safety off, training the gun on the door opening. Nikita was beside her with his own weapon out, a submachine gun he had pulled from under the bed.

  “You’ve had that there all along?” she asked.