“My own team and a few who we both know, but I trust them all implicitly, which I think confirms why these people thought it would be far easier to take us out of the city. My own address was known to several people who we now know were working for others, and so they must have planted the tracker when the car was parked at docklands and just followed Carol to David’s apartment”.
“Have you checked that account in Lucerne to see if that money is still there”? Asked Sir Richard.
“Not today, but it was still there yesterday, why do you ask”?
“Well instead of us waiting for them to make a move on it, why don’t we do it for them”?
“Are you suggesting that we empty their kitty completely”?
“Well you have the ability and they have had it far too long already, so why not, even though they are nowhere near the amount they started out with, two billion dollars is still a significant figure, and so if they have nothing they would need to start again, which would get them to start talking to each other and then GCHQ can get involved. We need to know exactly what the money was for and I am hoping that when I see Bloche’s wife in a few hours’ time, then I may know a little more”.
“Alright Richard keep me informed, speak to you later”. And just as Graham had finished his call the girls walked into the house, “I can smell tea”. Said Joyce.
“I have just made it and so I will pour you one, are you both feeling alright”?
“We are fine, but have we missed anything”?
Graham quickly brought them up to date with the details of his conversation with Sir Richard. And so there was not a great deal more that could be done for the moment until he spoke to him later, and so he suggest that they all try and get a few hours’ sleep before deciding their next move, but first he had to relieve someone of a little money.
“You are not going to take their last two billion surely? I think that’s very mean”. Said Carol very sarcastically.
Graham opened his laptop and logged on, he excelled at being able to hack into most systems which in the past had got him into trouble with the authorities in many different countries, but this time before he did anything he decided to contact Carl in New York and keep him up to date with his plans.
“Good morning, I hope I didn’t get you up”.
“No not at all, I have been sitting here all night in my bed just waiting for you to call, it’s all I live for”. Replied Carl with a hint of sarcasm in his voice which made Graham smile.
Graham went on to explain all that had occurred. “Is Roger with you yet”?
“No, I am picking him up this morning from the airport, can I ask how Joyce coped at the gunfight at the old corral”? Asked Carl.
“She did really well and got her first kill, she is now officially a murderer”. And Carl laughed.
“Well in that case tell her well done from me”. He replied.
“Carl have you spoken to any of the people you know yet”?
“I have, but I can tell you that this money is nothing to do with the families here in New York”.
“I had a funny feeling you were going to say that, do you have anything at all, any whispers on the street in fact any little item of information that could throw some kind of light on this monies final use”. Asked Graham.
“Well I have been told that a couple of Senators had a very discreet meeting with some Russian and Chinese business men up state a couple of weeks back”.
“How did you find that out”?
“It’s surprising what you can learn from a driver at the Russian Embassy, especially when his boss has pissed him off”.
“Is the info sound Carl”?
“I have used him before and he has always been right, so I would say yes. I also mentioned the name Aslanov during our conversation which stopped him dead in his tracks. He asked me how I knew that name, and I told him that I had heard he was big in St, Petersburg, to which he replied “He will also be very big here one day soon”. I asked him what he meant by that, but you could tell he was scared and that was it”.
“That’s very strange that Aslanov even got in to the states in the first place, I would have thought he would be on their no entry list”.
“Well funny you should say that, I thought the same thing, so I enquired with my contact at U.S. Immigration and he confirmed that no visa had been issued in that name, but as we know there is always a way if you have the contacts and the money. Let me find out a little more about the senators who were at the meeting and maybe that might reveal a little more”.
“Alright, but be very careful, we are now way beyond our original brief for this job, I am expecting a phone call later from Sir Richard at MI5, I want to find out just how big Aslanov is in Russia and then I will get back to you, so now you can go back to bed, bye”.
The group were now in a dilemma and there was no more they could do until Sir Richard had concluded his meeting with Bloche’s widow, and so David closed his laptop, now wasn’t the right time to hack the account in Lucerne. Hunger was now the order of the day, and so Graham went out of the house by the back way and to the local café and returned a short time later with some very welcome bacon sandwiches. The food helped everyone to relax a little after the journey and also the events of the previous evening, and with their breakfast now over and the house finally warmed up it was time for some sleep.
“Where are you sleeping David”? Asked Carol.
“I am going to sleep with Joyce for bodily warmth and companionship and to check out her credentials to make sure that they are patriotic”.
“You mean sex”?
“Well put it that way, yes”.
“How do you know she will let you sleep with her?
“It’s my boyish charm and the fact that some bastard burnt my car out, and so she feels sorry for me”.
“Sounds good to me”. Said Graham as Joyce led David away.
They went into the bedroom, and in seconds David and Joyce were in bed.
“Let me examine those wonderful breasts of yours at very close quarters”. And they both started to laugh.
“Can I ask you a question please David”?
“Not at the moment, I am very busy checking things for security and safety under the covers to confirm that you haven’t been infiltrated”.
“David take my nipple out of your mouth and listen to me”.
“All right, but make it quick, this work is very important to National Security”.
“When we were back at Carols and we were shooting do you think I did actually shoot one of those men in the kitchen, I know I shot that one in the head but I couldn’t miss at that range”?
“I would say there was a very fair chance that you could have killed them both. Why does that concern you at all”?
“No not at all, in fact I found it very exhilarating, does that sound weird”?
“Not, your brain was aware that you were fighting for your life and so the adrenalin kicked in and that lifted you to do what you had to without a second thought”.
“Thanks for that, you have made me feel much better, now you can put my nipple back in your mouth and make love to me very slowly and let’s think about a possible visit to Kent to see our new friends in the future and have another wonderful evening”.
“Yes it was rather good fun, but first we have work to do and staying alive is more important”.
The love making was indeed very gentle as they were both very tired, but it took away all the tension of the previous evening’s events and with love making now over the couple fell asleep in seconds, but that sleep was only to last a few hours before they were woken by Graham.
“Sorry to disturb you, but Richard has just called me, he has met Bloche’s widow, and she now really hates her Father. Apparently she knew of her husband’s affair with the Ambassadors wife and they were both in the process of sorting it out. But what she did say, was that her Father had been dealing with a banker in Nigeria, and also that he had the man killed.
She also knew that a great deal of money was involved, but he was acting with a Russian and none of the families in Italy or America were involved at all. He told her that the Russian was meeting some very important people who could change the balance of power in America and maybe much more. I wonder what he meant by that, but it does confirm what Carl said regarding the senators upstate meeting”.
“Is Sir Richard contacting the Americans”? Asked David.
“From what he says not yet, he doesn’t want to alert too many people, you know what the Yanks are like, and they get very excited”.
“What’s our next move then Graham”?
“Well Richard is still very concerned about our mole, and so it’s very difficult for him to contact us properly, so until that’s cleared up it looks like we are on our own at the moment and so keeping ourselves alive is my main concern”.
David who was still in bed sat pondering all the alternatives. “Look basically this country is not really involved directly, and our original task of just getting hold of the money is long gone, which still leaves us as the targets, and by staying here we can’t get anyone to come after us. But Aslanov and Fermi still very badly want that money back, so why don’t we contact them after you remove the last bit of their kitty”?
“That’s very risky, but your right waiting here is not helping any of us, there’s no point in pissing about let’s get ready, we are going to New York”.
Everyone quickly got up and showered, and within a couple of hours they were ready to leave and a quick call to British Airways and their seats were confirmed on the evening flight from Heathrow.
“David, contact Carl and let him know we are on our way, but also tell him not to arrange to meet us, I want our arrival to be very low key, and before you girls say anything, we are not on a shopping trip so don’t ask. I will send a text to Richard to keep him up to date with our plans”.
“There’s a taxi office down the street, and so we will go out the back way and walk down there”.
With plans now made, Graham sent the text to Sir Richard and the group left the house one at a time until Graham who was the last to leave finally locked the door and made his way to the taxi company. Now regrouped at the office they boarded a mini bus to take them to Heathrow.
“I know we are early, but at least we will be away from prying eyes if someone is looking for us and we can make a few solid plans, and by the time that we arrive in New York, Roger will also be there which will give us a few more contacts. He and Carl know a lot of people and so we should be able to get a better idea of what is actually being planned for the money”. Said Graham.
Graham’s phone indicated he had received a text. “It’s from Richard, he is going to meet us at the airport after we have gone through passport control and security”.
“That’s very strange, said David, he must have something very important to tell us but he doesn’t want to use communications, did you tell him that we are going to use our own passports and to forget the ones he was getting for us”?
“I did replied Graham, I told him that there’s no point in doing any other if we are going to draw Aslanov and Fermie out, and so we might as well just be ourselves, but we can use Carl and Roger to do the introductions being whoever we need them to be for our meeting”.
As the group were being driven away, the already grey sky now turned to rain. But very little was said between the group as the mini bus made slow progress through the busy streets on its way to the airport until it finally arrived at the departures entrance. They made their way to the British Airways desk and collected their tickets.
“You’re splashing out Graham, First Class tickets, the VIP lounge, I am very impressed, you are normally to mean”. Said Carol.
“Your right, I am too good to you all, I will take it out of your wages and in your case Carol it will come out of your house keeping”. He replied.
Joyce was by now getting very excited, I have never been to America before, what’s it like David”?
“It’s a great place but there are just too many American’s there, no seriously it’s a wonderful place but don’t forget we are working and staying alive is our main priority”.
With their bags now dropped off they made their way through the passport and security checks and into the VIP lounge.
“Just because the drinks are free don’t get pissed”.
“As if we would”. Replied David as he walked up to the well-dressed young lady who was stood behind the complimentary bar and got everyone a glass of champagne.
“Isn’t it a little early for that”? Asked Joyce.
“It’s never too early for champagne”. Replied Carol looking at Graham with his head in his hands as they all took very little notice of what he had said.
“I have just had a text from Richard, he is on his way, so let’s see what the latest information he has for us”. And they all sat down in the very comfy surroundings of the lounge awaiting Sir Richard’s arrival.
It was about forty minutes later before he arrived and was escorted through a side door into the Lounge where he joined the group, he was accompanied by two other men who stood either side of the table. Graham looked at him and smiled.
“I see you have brought some friends with you”.
“Yes I know it looks very dramatic, but when I tell you what I think maybe going on you will see the need for security. We have identified the leak, and it was indeed an American who is attached to GCHQ as a liaison officer, he was accessing MI5 confidential reports including my own and he has also been in direct contact with Aslanov, that’s how they knew where the money was”.
“The American Ambassador and I had a very long private meeting this morning and I decided to tell him in confidence all that we knew about the money and the leak, but he and I agreed to do nothing at the moment. But I can’t keep him onside for long unless I can give him something positive”.
“When you say the American has been in contact with Aslanov what exactly do you mean”? Asked Graham.
“There has been no actual reference to the end use of the money, but from what we now know it confirms our original thought that it has a specific purpose, but some very big political hitters appear to be entering the frame now, and which may have a dramatic effect on events”.
“Well before you go any further, I have information from Carl who told me that some senators had an upstate meeting with Aslanov last week, so whatever is happening appears to be underway”. Said Graham.
“That’s very interesting, now back to your friend Aslanov, you asked me what we know about him. Well he is very big indeed and also very ambitious. Apparently he has direct dialogue with some very high people in the Kremlin. What we don’t know is whether that’s official or unofficial contact, only time will tell”.
“This is starting to get out of hand now”. Said Graham. What are you doing about our leak Richard”?
“Nothing at the moment, but if the Ambassador gets a sniff of the Russian’s being involved then the CIA will step in and then it will be a total fuck up”.
“Alright, keep feeding info to our leak and then no one will know we are in the states until we make some kind of contact with Aslanov or Fermi. While you are here Richard let me check the account in Lucerne”.
“How do you do that Graham”?
“As if I am going to tell you that”. He replied.
Sir Richard looked on as Graham did what makes him possibly the best hacker in the world, and in no time he checked the account. It’s gone, they have emptied it which I think means things really are underway.
“I don’t believe they have enough funds in total, but they seem to have enough to get their plan started, so I assume that’s for payoffs, maybe even to our friendly Senators, but I won’t know any more until we arrive”.
“Alright, contact me as soon as you can or when you have anything more for me, but watch yourselves. They may not know you are coming, but I am sure they would like to speak to you when you c
ontact them. But also bear in mind if the yanks get involved they wouldn’t think twice about throwing you to the wolves, so cover yourself and your team. With you all being together you will make an easy target. Where are you staying in New York”?
“The Jolly Madison Towers on Madison Avenue, it’s not too big and I have stayed there before and also I can log into their CCTV from my room which keeps us a little safer”.
“Oh, just one other thing before I leave you, the three men from your house that you dispatched, they had no identification on them, but their bodies were covered in tattoos which we think are Russian and they indicate that they have all at some been in a Russian Prison, but the other one is still alive. The doctors says we may be able to speak to him later today, so if I find anything out I will let you know. Take care you bunch of renegades and if possible come back alive. I think our country will have great need of you at some time in the not too distant future”.
“We will try our best Richard and I will speak to you later”.
The threat to Joyce’s life had never really entered her head before, to someone who had already been dead for so many years, this only appeared to intensify the satisfaction she felt with her new life, she may have already killed someone but she was fully prepared to do it again, no one would ever rob her of the will to succeed again.
The flight was eventually called for boarding, and this now very sophisticated young lady and her friends stepped forward onto the plane and into the First Class compartment. She sat beside David and they shared a loving smile, she knew that he and her friends would always be there for her, as she would for them, this was her family and she would protect them no matter what the cost.
An hour or so into their flights, their meals were served, not in plastic containers but on real plates from a selectable menu with another glass of champagne, and for Joyce life just couldn’t get any better.
“Well I am going to try and get some sleep as I can see tomorrow being a very long day”. Said David as he lay down and pulled his blanket over himself. Joyce sat there for a little while longer taking it all in, here she was in first class and she thought to herself.
Dark Secrets Page 16