by Peter Kozmar
The water felt too warm for further exercise and, with fatigue setting in, he climbed out and returned to the shower to cool down. Dripping wet and cooler he headed over to the chair with his towel. Andy dabbed himself dry, left the towel and headed towards the steam room and sauna. He reached the steam room first making his decision easy.
Opening the door, a wall of steam bellowed into him. He quickly stepped forward and closed the door to keep the heat and steam in the small room. With the dull lighting it took a few seconds for his eyes to adjust. Andy sat on a slippery, wet white plastic bench. Perspiration quickly formed on his forehead, cheeks, chest and back. He could feel his pores open and after a few minutes he wiped drips of sweat out of his eyes, the salt making them sting. Andy sat still and breathed slowly and deeply. After a few minutes he felt dehydrated. His eyes stung continuously, and he could feel beads of sweat running down his body. Time to leave, I need another shower to cool down.
Andy stood, headed for the door and pushed it open. He stepped out of the room and was momentarily blinded by the brighter lights of the pool area. The high-pitched squeak of rubber soled shoes on the wet floor carried to him. That’s odd. While processing what he heard as his eyes adjusted to the bright light, he felt a splitting pain radiate out from the back of his head, the room started to spin, then darkness; Andy’s limp body became a crumpled mess on the poolside.
CHAPTER 35
At eight o’clock Luba knocked on Flint’s door. She grew concerned when he didn’t answer but assumed he might be having a shower so tried his cell; it went straight to voicemail, now she really was worried. She looked down the corridor and saw two housekeeping staff going from room-to-room turning the beds down for the night. Luba approached them.
“I’m so sorry, but I’ve locked myself out of my room and left my key card inside. Please can you let me in?” she held up and waved the paper wallet she’d been given her with her access cards. The movement of the wallet prevented the staff from reading the room number written on it.
One of the housekeepers smiled politely and said, “Sure, which room?” She walked behind Luba until they reached Flint’s room. She stepped forward and used her master key to open the door.
“Thank you.”
“Would you like us to prepare your room for the night?” the housekeeper enquired.
“No. I’m fine now, thank you, I need to rest.”
Luba entered Flint’s room, closed the door behind her and looked around. The room appeared undisturbed. No signs of a struggle, everything in its correct place. Flint’s computer sat on the desk. Luba moved to the bathroom, all appeared normal there too. A large towel was missing. Where the hell is he?
Luba was puzzled. Flint hadn’t said that he would be leaving the hotel and going into the city. She checked his wardrobe. His overcoat was hung up. It was unusual for him not to be ready on time, she’d found that he’d been reliable and this would be the first time he’d not met a commitment with her. She processed her options. Should I wait a few minutes or make inquiries into his whereabouts?
Decision made. Luba stood, removed the pistol from her handbag and tucked it into the back of her jeans, concealing it with the cut of her jacket, and headed for the lifts down to reception. The reception desk was quiet and the two staff were talking between themselves when Luba approached them.
“Hello. How may we help?” the female receptionist asked.
“I’m staying in the hotel and I can’t find my colleague who’s staying in the next room.”
The receptionist’s male colleague interrupted and spoke over his colleague, “I’m sure everything is okay. If you want to wait over there, I’m sure he’ll be along soon.” He pointed to the lounge chairs near the bar. He clearly wanted to get back to his conversation with his younger colleague.
Luba rummaged in her bag, then, holding up her identity documents for them both to see, she said calmly, “I’m Luba Gamzova of the FSB. Get me your manager or Head of Security before I have you arrested for the obstruction of justice.”
“I … I ... I’m sorry,” the man stammered as his face drained of color. He picked up the desk phone and punched in a four-digit number. The other end was quickly answered, “I need you at reception, the Security Services are here,” he hung up, “our Head of Security will be with you shortly.”
A few minutes later a tall man wearing a dark suit, white shirt and red tie joined them. His badge read, ‘Ivan. Head of Security’. “I’m Ivan Kossack, Head of Security for the hotel. You are?” he held out his hand for Luba to shake which she ignored.
“Luba Gamzova, FSB. I need your assistance. May we go to your office? Ivan nodded to the receptionists and gestured for Luba to follow him. He led Luba through a side door and to his small windowless office. He sat behind his desk and gestured for Luba to sit opposite him.
“How can I help you?” he asked. His jacket spilled open to reveal the pistol grip of a sidearm held in a shoulder holster. He noticed Luba looking at the pistol. “I have a licence for this,” he tapped the budge under his jacket, “I’m former GRU and, with so many VIP’s coming and going, most of my security team at the hotel are armed.”
“I need to know what happened to my colleague in room four-zero-six. I was with him at a quarter-to-five and he now he’s missing.”
Ivan looked puzzled for a moment and then typed into his computer, “Mr Flint?”
“Yes.”
“Looking at his activity logs he made a phone call to reception at four-fifty which lasted twenty-two seconds. He opened the door to his room at four-fifty-eight. Let’s see what happened,” Kossack keyed the computer again and clicked using the mouse on menu options. He turned the computer screen, they both watched video footage from the security camera in the corridor on the fourth floor leading to their rooms. The time stamp was four fifty-seven. It showed a member of the house-keeping staff approach Flint’s room and knock at the door. Flint could be seen opening the door and taking an item from her. The housekeeper left and they watched Flint close the door. Ivan picked up his desk phone and called reception.
“What did Mr Flint in room four-zero-six ask for at four-fifty this afternoon?” Kossack asked. There was a pause. “Swimming shorts. Anything else? Thank you,” he hung up. “I think you got that,” he said to Luba and went back to the activity logs.
“It shows he activated his room safe and five-zero-five, at five-zero-seven removed his room key from the wall panel and opened door to his room.” Kossack typed at his keyboard and used his mouse. Luba carefully watched the video which showed Flint leaving his room and heading to the lifts. In his hands he carried a towel. After a short wait he got into an elevator. Kossack typed and clicked again. The view changed to the Spa area with a clear view of the elevators and the front entrance door. They watched Flint enter the Spa area.
“From here, there is no further activity on his key card. That indicates he’s still in the Spa area. I think we have found your man. Anything else I can help with?” He leaned back and clasped both hands behind his head, placed his legs onto the table top and crossed them. His face beaming with confidence at solving the FSB Agent’s mystery. Luba looked at the worn soles of his shoes.
“So, Mr Flint has been in there over three hours?” Luba stated as fact.
“Yes. He must be enjoying himself. It is a very good facility.”
“Does the hotel offer treatments at this time of day or offer any services which could take all of this time?”
“No. Our therapists are gone by five.”
“Don’t you think three hours is rather a long time to be swimming or taking a sauna?”
A look of realization crept over Kossack’s face. He removed his legs from the table, sat upright at his computer and clicked with urgency. The view changed to the inside of the pool area. Kossack speeded up the footage. It showed Flint swimming rapidly up and down the pool, take a brief shower, climb quickly into the pool again. The speeded-up footage of Flint looked almost comical
as he swam at record speed up and down the pool. He quickly exited the pool, showered and vanished into the steam room. It was then that four men, dressed in dark clothing and wearing ski- masks, came into view.
“Slow it down to normal,” Luba ordered. The four men took up positions on either side of the steam room door. Moments later the door to the steam room opened. One of the men could be seen raising an arm into the air and Luba could just make out some sort of cosh or club in his hand. She knew what would happen as Flint stepped out of the steam room. They watched, helplessly, as the cosh was brought down swiftly onto the back of Flint’s head, he crumpled onto the floor … and didn’t move. These guys were pros; how did they know where he was? Someone must be on the payroll at the hotel.
The four men split into two groups. Two picked Flint up from the floor and dragged him towards the exit doors. The other two gathered his clothes from the changing room and held the doors open as Flint’s unconscious body was dragged through. Kossack changed the view again. It showed the group dragging Flint down a short corridor to the basement car park.
The view changed again, this time from the car park and showed the nearest door from the Spa area. A white van pulled up. The door to the hotel opened and Flint appeared in view, still unconscious. As they reached the van, the rear doors opened and Flint was thrown, unceremoniously, into the back of the van. The three assailants climbed into the van via the side door, the fourth slid the door shut and jumped into the passenger seat. They watched, stunned, as the van disappeared from the carpark camera. “Do you have a view of the car park exit so we can get the van’s licence plate?” Kossack changed the view again and the van appeared, turned onto the street and away.
Kossack paused the video and wound it back until they had a clear view of the licence plate. Luba wrote the licence plates details on a piece of paper. “I’ve seen enough. I need a copy of the views from all the cameras.”
“It will take a few hours but when the copy is ready I’ll personally hand it to you.”
Luba considered her next move as she felt pangs of hunger, she needed to eat otherwise she wasn’t going to be any use to anyone. She decided to order room service then, she would put in a call to Moscow and have the licence plate checked. It was a long shot because she didn’t think they’d be stupid, or bold enough, to use a ‘clean’ van with valid plates.
“Can you take me back to reception please.”
“Sure.” Kossack logged out and led Luba back to the reception desk.
Kossack left Luba to order her meal. Once her order had been taken, Luba made her way back to her room and locked the door behind her. Although confident her room was secure, she removed the pistol and held it firmly in her grip, as she checked the bathroom to make sure no one had concealed themselves or was prepared to spring an ambush. Reassured her room was safe, she placed the pistol on the desk and removed her cell phone to call Kruputchkin.
CHAPTER 36
The sharp pain that radiated across his skull from the back of his head, and hurt like hell, reminded him that all was not good in his world. The squeak of a rat and the sound of it scurrying nearby shocked him back to a groggy level of consciousness. Andy slowly lifted his right hand to try and ease the pain, but his hand stopped short. He heard the sound of a chain rattle and his right wrist felt heavy; something sharp and metallic pinched into his wrist. “What the fuck!”
Andy opened his eyes. He couldn’t see anything but his senses were starting to return. He could feel his brain speeding up and the fug lifting. He was lying on a hard, cold floor and sensed that he was nearly naked. His left hand felt lighter, and wasn’t manacled, so he used it to rub his head for a few moments through the hessian material covering his head. Once the pain had eased a bit, he used his hand to trace around the hessian sack. Good. It wasn’t secured, so he worked it free and dropped it on the floor.
He blinked several times as his eyes to adjusted to the dim lighting. Andy looked at his what was weighing down his right wrist. It was a shackle with a short thick chain attached to a hoop on the wall. With only the swim shorts from the pool to keep him warm he shivered in the cold. Then he saw a blanket on the floor just within his reach, he grabbed it and wrapped it around his cold body. The blanket stank of stale urine, but for Andy, warmth was more important than hygiene!
He carefully studied the windowless room. It only had one steel door to his left. A single light hung high in the middle of the room, its bulb protected by a metal wire mesh. On the far side of the room he saw a bundle of rags. Then something scurrying to the right caught his attention, Andy turned to take a closer look and saw a large rat foraging for scraps amongst the mouldy food which littered the floor. “Go on. Get away!” Andy shouted at the rodent and kicked his leg out knowing the rat was too far away to make contact. The rat scurried off into the shadows.
The stench from the room started to assault his nostrils. The odour a mixture of damp, mouldy food, excrement and the full bucket of rancid urine sat to one side. He realized this wasn’t going to be a comfortable stay. The bundle of rags across the far side of the room slowly moved and appeared to grow. Andy realized the cell held another captive.
In the dull light Andy could just make out his clothes were crumpled and filthy. His unkempt and wild hair matched his beard; both in need of a good trim. Then the bundle of rags spoke with a reassuring voice, “Don’t worry, you’ll get used to the rats and the stench.”
Though it had been many years since they had spoken, Andy recognised the voice: “Vladim?”
CHAPTER 37
“Andy, my old friend. I expected you to find me, not join me!” the two friends laughed hysterically for a few moments.
“You look pretty good. You’ve been working out?” Andy asked, the laughter started again.
“As you see from my fine clothes, I’m now using your tailor!” the laughter erupted and continued, uncontrollably, for some minutes.
“My fashion sense has always been out there. What you’ve got on is so last year! This spring everyone will be wearing swim-shorts,” Andy pointed to his attire, “the key words are ‘comfort’ and ‘versatility’.”
“You’re killing me. Stop it!” the two men laughed again. “It’s good to see you, but I wish you were here to free me.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll get out of here.”
“Seriously, do you even know where ‘here’ is?” Vladim asked, “you arrived unconscious.”
“I think I do, we are in one of two bakeries near Moscow Victory Park.”
“Good, if you could find me, others can find us too. How is Ana taking this?”
“She’s concerned, worried and misses you.”
“I’m pleased she engaged your services. How’ve you been all these years my friend?”
“Well, I lost my job at the Agency, my wife left me, took the kids and then cleaned me out. My drinking took over and I was pretty much broke and an alcoholic, until Ana sent Tomas in, at great risk to his personal safety, to rescue me.”
“So pretty good then!” the two men laughed.
“Do you know who did this to you?” Andy asked.
“I have no idea.”
“I don’t know how to put this, but do you think you could have been set up by anyone close to you?”
“Go on,” Vladim was curious.
“You know Hans?”
“Of course I know Hans.”
“Hans appeared very close to Ana. I mean the two of them looked very comfortable together. Could they be … you know?” Vladim laughed again, this time even louder.
“Hans is in a committed relationship. Has been for some years.”
“The grass is always greener.”
“He’s married to Tomas! They’ve been married for three years,” Vladim chuckled to himself.
Andy fell silent for a few moments, “I’m sorry, he read Ana so well, she looked relaxed and comfortable with him.”
“Believe me, Hans isn’t after anything from Ana, there’s n
o sexual agenda, I can assure you of that!”
Embarrassed by his ineptitude, Andy quickly changed the subject. “How’ve you been treated?” Andy asked.
“They want to take control of my businesses. So I’ve been threatened and, when that didn’t work, they tortured me. I told them about the complex structure we have in place and, if anything happens to me, all my companies go into a perpetual trust to benefit three worthy causes. So it becomes worthless to them.”
“That was a stroke of genius, your father-in-law having to sign the paperwork, and him being away Ocean racing for at least another month.”
“I can’t help it if the old man is eccentric and loves adventure!”
“That’s what’s kept you alive!” Andy told him, “Got you another month for us to work out where you were, however, now we need to be serious so we can work our way out of here. What can you tell me about these guys?”
“They enjoy inflicting pain! There have been others through here and all were tortured. Some broke quickly, some took a lot of abuse before they broke, and then there were those who died at their hands. They are real hard bastards, not like Popov and his hoodlums, these guys are way above that!” Vladim replied as he reminded Andy of when they first met and Vladim’s problems with local thug Max Popov. “What have you learnt about them?”