by John Bowers
Nick stared at her a moment, then rubbed his face with both hands.
“My god, you’ve put a lot of thought into this.”
“Yes, I have. I’ve been working it out for over a year, and until now I’ve never felt confident that we could pull it off. But now that you are here—if you are still willing—I don’t see how it can fail.”
“And Kozel is good with all of this?”
“Da.”
“What about the Council of Five?”
“What?”
“Isn’t Stepan a member? If we take him out, we lose his influence in the government.”
“No, we won’t. Because you will take his place.”
“Me! Why not Kozel?”
“He doesn’t want it. Like I said, all he cares about is the casino and his Sirius connections.”
Nick nodded slowly, his mind running ahead.
“What about your father and uncle?”
“We don’t touch them. They are old and feeble. They will never know what really happened. We’ll tell them the Patushkins killed the cousins, then we retaliated and took control of the Patushkins. They never leave their hilltop mansions; they will never know the difference.”
Nick waited for her to continue, but she didn’t. She stared at him.
“Talk to me, Nick.”
“Is that everything?”
“Da. Maybe I left out some details, but that is the master plan. What…what do you think?”
He stared out the window for nearly a minute, his blood racing. He wasn’t acting—he was really overwhelmed by the audacity of her plan, of her sheer, cold-blooded resolve. It was enough to chill his blood, but…he had to admit, it was also brilliant. The plan was so bold it actually might work—and given the weakness of BC government, probably would.
He heaved another sigh and turned to her again.
“I think…maybe I need that drink now.”
She stared at him, hope in her eyes. Her lips trembled.
“So…?”
“I think we should toast our engagement. Don’t you?”
Chapter 25
“When are we going to do this?”
They were standing by the liquor cabinet, arms around each other. After their toast, Diana had kissed him passionately for several minutes, but Nick disengaged before things could go any further.
“Today,” she said. “Right away. We don’t have any time to waste.”
Now that she had made her case and secured his alliance, she seemed breathless, disheveled, relieved. Almost giddy.
“Where do we do it? Orel’s office?”
“It’s as good as any. We’ll need to call Stepan in from Government Annex, but Lebed should already be in the building. His office is just down the hall from Orel’s.”
“And Kozel?”
“I need to call him, tell him you’ve signed on. He has men ready to clean house with the employees.”
Nick frowned. “He’s told his men about this?”
“No! Nothing like that. But he knows who is loyal and who might not be. He has a list of people who might be a threat. He already has a plan to deal with them.”
“How many are we talking about?”
“Ten or twelve, maybe fifteen. I don’t know exactly.”
“Is Nicola on that list?”
“God, no! Nicola isn’t a soldier, just an employee. Actually, she’s a distant cousin, but she never gets involved in the business side of the family, or the politics. She won’t be harmed.”
“How will she react to all this?”
“I don’t know, but I think she’ll do what she always does—just keep her head down and do her job.”
“What about Sasha and Aleksandr?”
“They work for me. I trust both of them.”
“I’m glad to hear that. I’m starting to like them.”
And they may be useful.
Diana snapped her fingers.
“I need to let Vasily know; he has people waiting to clean house in Molograd. We already put a couple of our people in place to help out.”
Nick nodded. He wasn’t too worried about Vasily or Molograd; Molograd was six hundred miles away and his only concern, mission-wise, was Periscope Harbor. Assassinating the cousins at the top of the Petreykin family would effectively accomplish his mission. The only question in his mind then was…what to do with Diana?
He didn’t really want to kill her.
But he might not have a choice.
Sometimes he hated his job.
***
Diana had calls to make. Nick told her he needed more ammunition. They would meet in the mezzanine in an hour. He left her penthouse and returned to his apartment, where he loaded several more clips and shoved them into his pockets. Meantime, his mind was racing.
This was really it…unless Diana had set him up for betrayal. But if that was the case, she had worked overtime to convince him of her desperate plan. He couldn’t read her mind, of course, but Valentin had told him about her husband, Josef Stepurin—that he had been assassinated, probably by the family. Diana had merely confirmed what he believed he already knew. Based on that alone, he was pretty sure she was sincere about murdering her brother and cousins.
Nick didn’t have time to write things down, but in his mind he reviewed his mission. He couldn’t afford to leave anything to chance.
And time was running out:
His mission was to find out who killed the Federation Ambassador, Allesandro Federico, and eliminate them.
He’d learned that Federico had not been the target; his death was an unfortunate coincidence. Therefore, that part of his mission was no longer valid.
His mission was also, if possible, to eliminate or at least weaken Bratva’s grip on the BC government, opening the way for closer ties between Beta Centauri and the Federation. Killing Stepan Petreykin, a member of the Council of Five, would facilitate that.
However, if Kozel and Diana remained in charge, that grip could easily be reestablished. Killing the other cousins might not be enough.
He also had to think about his own escape; no one could know the Federation was involved in the assassinations, or the entire mission would be compromised.
Polina had told him that Ivan Federov had ordered him investigated, so he had to watch his step on that front.
He was worried about Polina. She hadn’t answered his call last night, and Connie Ventura hadn’t heard from her either. That could mean nothing, or it might mean everything.
Connie was also a concern, but she should be safe enough—no one except Polina Stepanova knew who she was, and she worked out of the Federation embassy. The FIA would protect her.
There were too many variables for him to control, but the mission had to be completed; he saw no way out except to move forward and improvise as the situation developed. Like it or not, he was committed to Diana’s plot.
For some reason, his ears were ringing.
Stress. It had to be.
He finished loading his clips and pulled out the keycard to see if he had any messages. There was nothing from Polina or Connie. He went down to the parking garage, where city sounds should mask his conversation, and called Connie.
She answered on the first pulse.
“Nick, thank god you called! I was just about to page you.”
“Why? What’s up?”
“I think MGB has arrested Polina. They must have tortured her, because a warrant has been issued for your arrest. Two MGB men are on their way to the Rodina right now.”
He closed his eyes as the implications sank in. If this had happened six hours later, everything might have worked out, but this was too soon. Much too soon!
“What else do you know?”
“That’s it. What are you going to do?”
“I’ll wing it. If everything goes my way, I’ll see you tonight at the embassy.”
“And if it doesn’t?”
“Then you wing it, but don’t put yourself in danger. This thing is goin
g to reach critical mass today, do you understand? Diana is making a play to wipe out most of her family and take control of Bratva. She wants me to help her.”
“What! Jesus Christ!”
“Yeah, I know. By tonight it should all be over, so file your report and let the President know. And whatever you do, don’t leave the embassy.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I have to help Diana kill her family, then I’ll probably go to the casino and finish the job.”
“What about the MGB men?”
“I guess I’ll have to kill them, too.”
“Good God, Nick! This is getting too big for the both of us! There are so many things that can go wrong!”
“Tell me about it. Look, I gotta go. Just remember what I told you.”
“Got it. Good luck, Nick.”
“You, too.”
He rang off, took a deep breath, and headed down to the mezzanine.
*
The first person he saw in the mezzanine was Nicola. She was seated at a table sipping a vodka. He stopped and grinned at her.
“Do they pay you to just sit around and drink the good stuff?”
She shrugged.
“Nothing else much to do. The Rodina is shut down, the casino is shut down…I’m just waiting for orders. What about you?”
“Oh, there’s always something for me to do. Diana can be very creative.”
“Yes, she can. How are you getting along with her?”
“Well enough. I discovered the secret to her heart—absolute obedience.”
Nicola laughed.
“That sounds exactly right.” She lowered her voice, her gaze drifting to the corridor. “Speaking of the she-devil…”
Nick turned. Diana was striding toward them, her normally neutral expression slightly flushed. He turned to meet her.
“Is everything set?”
Diana glanced at Nicola, then inclined her head toward the corridor.
“Walk with me?”
“Of course.” He nodded to Nicola. “See you later.”
Diana was silent until they reached the lift. Once inside, she heaved a sigh.
“Stepan just arrived. I told him we needed an emergency meeting.”
“What about the other two?”
“They are waiting for us.”
Nick didn’t ask any more questions, but moved the .45 from its holster to his windbreaker pocket, keeping his hand on the grip; in his other pocket were three spare clips, fully loaded. Two minutes later they approached Orel’s office; the two guards nodded in deference and moved aside to let them pass.
As they entered Orel’s office, Nick felt a strange sensation. This was totally new territory for him. It wasn’t like battle, where you killed people who were shooting back at you. It wasn’t like law enforcement, where you sometimes had to kill people in a gunfight. It wasn’t even like the Sirian he had shot at the casino, whom he had killed under orders. This was premeditated, cold-blooded murder. Assassination. It was a new experience for him, something he had never done before.
His only consolation was that these people richly deserved it…
…but so did Kozel and Diana.
Orel, as usual, was seated at his desk, a worried look on his face. Lebed was in his usual chair a few feet from Orel, and Stepan, who had just arrived, was standing in front of the desk. Nick moved to the left side of the room, keeping Diana a few feet to his right. In spite of everything, he still didn’t trust her.
Orel spoke first.
“What is big emergency? Things are not bad enough?”
Without a word, Nick drew his .45 and pointed it straight at Orel, whose face bleached white in shock.
“What is meaning of this?”
Diana also drew her small, ladylike weapon.
“Shut up, Orel. I have something to say, and you are all going to listen.”
All three men were caught flat and unprepared. Their faces registered a combination of shock and fear. Orel was staring at Diana, as was Lebed. Stepan took a step back, but Nick pushed the .45 into his back.
“Don’t move. Put your gun on the desk.”
As Stepan obeyed, Orel began to pant, then to hyperventilate. Nick saw his right hand move slowly toward his desk drawer, palm upward, fingers splayed. No doubt he had a panic button underneath.
“Don’t do that!” Nick warned. “Just listen to what the lady has to say.”
Orel’s expression darkened.
“You will pay for this, Russo!”
Diana took a step back and shoved Stepan around the desk so that all three cousins were bunched together, facing her.
“What is meaning of this?” Lebed demanded.
“This is revenge,” she told him. “You murdered Josef. All of you.”
“That is ridiculous!” Orel shouted. “Who tell you this?”
“I always knew. Deep in my heart, I always knew.”
“You know nothing! Where is proof?”
“Kozel told me. He confirmed it.”
Orel and Lebed exchanged glances, then turned back to Diana.
“Josef was traitor!” Lebed snarled. “I warned you not to marry him.”
“Yes, you did, and you made his life a living hell, right up until the day you killed him.”
“He was traitor. Did not obey orders! Ran his own business! He had to go.”
Tears slid down Diana’s cheeks.
“I loved him, Lebed! That is what you never understood, never tried to understand. I loved him!”
Lebed glared at her a moment, shaking hard.
“And what, you kill me now? I am your brother!”
“Da, you are my brother. But you should have acted like one, and you never did. Now it is too late.”
Nick jumped when she pulled the trigger. Her bullet hit Lebed just under the chin, ripping through his throat and spinal column. Hot blood sprayed across the room and he collapsed with a gurgle, both hands clutching at his throat.
Before anyone else could react, Nick shot Orel through the forehead, then Stepan in the heart. It was over in two seconds, three men dead or dying as powder smoke rolled through the room. Nick heard a shout from outside the door and pivoted just as the two guards tried to push their way inside; they both tried to enter at the same time and ended up blocking each other. One had a gun in his hand, but never got a chance to use it. Nick fired four rounds and cut them both down.
Just like that, his mission was accomplished.
Most of it, anyway.
He popped his clip and inserted another, rammed it home with the heel of his left hand, and turned to face Diana. His blood was running cold, he felt frozen inside. For a moment he was tempted to kill her now; she was the coldest woman he had ever met, responsible for an airliner with almost two hundred innocent people on board, and if permitted, would continue to operate a criminal organization that would prey on thousands of honest BC citizens.
But he couldn’t quite bring himself to do it. Diana had dropped her weapon, covered her face with both hands, and was sobbing brokenly. She was looking at Lebed, the only one in the room who was actually her brother, and Nick saw real remorse in her eyes. Real sorrow. Instead of shooting her, he crossed the room and put an arm around her.
She pressed her face into his shoulder and put her arms around him, her body racked with emotion. He stroked her back, then her hair.
“It’s okay,” he said gently. “It’s done.”
She didn’t reply, but continued to weep. Nick glanced at the door, wondering how soon someone would arrive. How far had the shots carried?
He held her another few seconds, then gently lowered her into an empty chair.
“Stay put for a few minutes.”
She still didn’t say anything. He went to the door and pulled the two guards inside. Both were dead, with two bullets in each. He picked up their weapons, searched them for more, then shoved them against a wall away from the door. He straightened up and peered down at the dead men, neith
er of whom had ever done anything to him.
He took a deep, shaky breath, not sure what happened next. To his annoyance, he suddenly had the shakes, a curse that always plagued him after a gun battle. He turned back to Diana, but fresh adrenaline shot through him as he detected motion in the doorway. He drew his weapon and almost fired, but held just in time. Nicola stepped into the room, stopped short, and looked around in horror.
She screamed.
Nick grabbed her and pulled her into the room, then shut the door.
She screamed again.
“Nicola! Nicola!” He shook her to break through her shock. She stared at him with wide, disbelieving eyes.
“Nick!” She sucked in her breath. “What—what happened here?”
He glanced at Diana, who was getting shakily to her feet, still tear-stained but regaining control. He looked at Nicola.
“It’s the Patushkins,” he told her. “They must have paid these two off. They broke in here and murdered the cousins; they must not have seen me in the corner. I managed to kill them before they could shoot Diana.”
Nicola stared at him, shaking her head. For a second he thought she hadn’t heard him…or didn’t believe him. She shook her head again.
“Oh my god! Oh my god!”
“Listen, we don’t know if there are any others. I want you to go up to my apartment and stay there. Lock the door and don’t answer it for anyone but me. Understand?”
“What? Okay. Yeah, okay.”
“You have your gun?”
“Da.”
“Keep it handy. Shoot whoever you have to, but make sure you don’t kill anyone you don’t want to kill.”
She took a step back. He produced the keycard to his apartment and handed it to her.
“Use this. Get up there right now. Don’t stop for anybody. Don’t talk to anybody. Wait for me.”
“O-Okay. How—how long will you be?”
“I don’t know. It might be a while. I have to get Diana to safety, in case anyone is hunting her. Just do what I say, please. I don’t want to have to worry about you, too.”