I would wake up periodically and watch Kit as she looked out the window of the train. Watching the Russian countryside pass by in blurs of black and white. For a few moments, I felt like I was in one of those old movies my mother used to watch. The couple taking a romantic train ride. A small smile fell across my face when I thought about the James Bond movie I watched a hundred times with Davidek as kids. From Russia with Love. Kit was my James Bond in a many ways, but without the hairy chest and thick accent. I snuggled deeper into her side and fell back to sleep before my thoughts went to how I could persuade her into following me to an empty car and fulfilling one of my fantasies from that movie.
"Claire, wake up, we are here." Kit's deep, gentle voice woke me up. Her hand squeezing my shoulder as I opened my eyes and looked right up into hers. Grinning, she helped me to sit up, "Davey will be back in a second, he had to call Sheehnan and tell him we were here."
I yawned, smoothing my hair out, catching the small wet spot on Kit's shirt where I had clearly drooled on her. I reached out, trying to wipe it away out of embarrassment, "I'm sorry, I drooled on you." I could feel my face heat up.
Kit bent forward, kissing me quickly, "You never have to apologize, Claire." She looked down at her shirt, "I take it as a compliment that I make you feel safe enough to sleep and drool all over me."
I smiled sheepishly, "When we get home, you can drool all over me." I shifted the think blue railway blanket off my shoulders, when I heard Kit, "Who says I don't drool over you, Claire."
I swallowed hard at the tone in her voice and the double entendre. I turned away from her, squeezing my eyes shut as my stomach fluttered. I opened them as quickly as I closed them, catching my reflection in the glass door. I was putting on weight slowly and I hoped that the next time I lost my control around Kit, she wouldn't use the previous excuse of waiting until I was well fed and well rested. I folded the blanket up, changing the subject, "Maybe after the meeting we can walk to the Kremlin, it's beautiful at night when it snows."
Kit held out her hand to take the blanket from me, smirking as she looked over her shoulder out the window. It was late afternoon, and the city lights were catching the already fallen snow, making it look like it was still daylight out. "Anything you wish, Claire."
Our eyes met as I handed the blanket to her and took my coat from her other hand. It was like time stopped for me. Kit standing there in a tiny train car adorned in rich old maple and plush leather, the city lights soaking into her hair falling around her shoulders, from behind, making her look simply radiant regardless of the thick coat and thick scarf she had wrapped around herself.
Kit made my heart skip and it felt like I was falling in love with her all over again. In a way I was, but this time it was better because there was no resistance on either part. No fumbling like we had before and holding back from openly staring, touching, holding or kissing. It was incredible and almost better than the first time. I couldn't stop my words as they rolled over my lips slowly, "Have I ever told you how beautiful you are, Kit?"
It was her turn to blush and look away, a grin still stuck on her face, "Maybe once or twice." She looked up in my eyes, "But I could hear you tell me a few more times, Claire."
We both moved cautiously at the same time, eyes locked and intentions heavy.
The hard tap on the glass door, followed by Davidek's voice pushed the void between us wider, "The car is waiting. We can head directly to the bar to meet with Sheehnan, then dinner. Vladimir has arranged for us to stay in his luxury apartment building across from the Kremlin. Discreet, protected and an incredible view." Davidek was grinning, "Best of all, heated floors, heated blankets and a hot water tank that never runs out." He rubbed his hands together, "He has it eighty five degrees for me and it's going to be glorious!"
I rolled my eyes as Kit grabbed our bags, "Not all of us are afraid of the cold temperatures."
Davidek took the bags from her, raising his eyebrow, "I know and luckily for all of us, I have the apartment next door to yours. Vlad has yours at the usual seventy two degrees." He paused, looking between the two of us before remarking, "And I think it's probably best I leave you two alone for a night. I can see that look in your eyes. The same look that resulted in the defiling of a piece of government property." He chuckled, exiting the car. I turned to see Kit's face a bright red, trying to hide under her scarf.
I shook my head, reaching back for her to take my hand. Something I had not done in a long time, but the second I felt her hand slide in mine, it felt like home. I sighed internally, agreeing to myself that Davidek was right. Tonight would be difficult. I turned to Kit as I lead us out of the car, "I think I liked him better with the beard, he seemed more grown up."
Kit laughed lightly, "He did, but I did miss the neat and prim man. Seeing him in that suit and clean shaving, makes me feel normal." Her voice dropped a little near the end of the sentence. She squeezed my hand one more time before we separated to walk down the narrow hallway, letting me go ahead of her.
I understood what she meant by normal. Everything was slowly returning to something that resembled a normal for all of us, but for Kit. It was still a long way from normal. I had witnessed her struggle with her new changes over the last week. The way she turn to the sound of something miles away, see some finite detail in the house, or when she was hesitant in touching me at times.
As if she would break me if she didn't pay attention. Kit looked normal and sounded normal, but underneath her skin, she was far from it and it was taking her awhile to adjust to a perfect body that was not affected by the normal things others would be affected by. I was now more determined to make sure Kit knew I loved her regardless of her changes, that I trusted her implicitly to not hurt me.
Pulling the collar up on my long coat when I hit the open side door of the train, I shivered at the burst of cold wind swirling in the small vortex caused by gap between the train and the train station. I looked up to see Davidek standing by a sleek black SUV, placing our bags in the back and speaking to a large man who walked away nodding.
Soon I felt Kit come to a stop to stand next to me. Her arm brushing mine, "Have I commented on how weird it is that you have one of the largest Russian crime families protecting you?"
I smiled, linking my arm in hers and pulling her towards the car, "If it makes you feel better, they are one of the better crime families in Russia. Only sticking to white collar crimes of business fronts, fraud, and money laundering." I made eye contact with my oldest friend, "But yes, it is weird and I would not have it any other way."
The interior of the bar screamed Russian. It was decorated in the same glitz and glamour of the clubs of Miami in the eighties, but with a modern twist that kept it relevant to today. I chuckled to myself when I walked in behind Claire and Davey, at how the bar reminded me of that horrible old television show my dad watched when I was a kid.
The three of us were politely greeted by another massive Russian man who escorted us to the far back and to a VIP room. Davey spoke to the tree of a man in Russian and we were left alone. He turned to Claire and I, "We have to make this a little quicker than planned. Dimitri said that the boys have spotted someone possibly following Sheehnan and Benson. They want to move us to the apartments as soon as possible and move Sheehnan and Benson to the safe house we planned on."
I felt my entire body tense up when Davey made eye contact with me, nodding once, I knew it was Halston. Halston was slowly poking her head out like a cautious rat. I nodded back and moved closer to Claire as Davey pushed open the silver painted door. I took a deep breath in, falling behind Claire when she entered the room.
I moved to the right of her immediately, old habits coming back as I scanned the room and sought out the closest exit aside from the one we entered. I heard Claire greet Sheenan, making me look towards the small round table surrounded by thick leather booth style seating.
I grinned when I saw the police sergeant, his eyes widening when he met mine, forcing him to stumble throu
gh his polite greeting to Claire and Davey. "Kit, it's. Wow." He shook his head and sat down slowly with Claire and Davey. I could tell he was thinking the same thing all the others did when they saw I had returned from the grave and was standing in front of them. Speechless with one word rotating in their head, miracle.
I sat to the right of her, smiling back at the man I called friend, "My thoughts exactly, it's great to see you again, Sheehnan."
He waved his hand at me, "Please, call me Danny. No more need for formalities after everything we've been through, Kit."
I moved to sit closer to Claire when I heard my full name come across the table in a very smooth, deep voice, "Caitriona." I swung my head to Sheehnan's right and came eye to eye with a pair of piercing dark blue eyes. I gasped slightly at the sight of the large man who looked even better in person than he did in the small photograph on the phone.
"Benson." His name came out quieter than I had hoped, bringing a small smile to the man's unscarred face.
"It's nice to see you again, Caitriona."
I felt Claire's hand fall to rest along my back, pressing down to comfort me as I continued to take in the man before me. Gone was the anger and sadness in his voice, replaced by what I imagined he always sound liked when he was just a happy man in the Marines, serving his country. He and I held a stare for a handful of seconds, both of us somehow silently communicating everything in just a stare. The silent stare that often comes when you meet a person who has changed or saved your life and there are just too many words, too many emotions, and voicing them out loud would taint the moment. Make it feel cheap and forced, it was that kind of silence. He tilted his head, slowly moving to look at Claire, "Dr. Avondale, I cannot thank you enough for your help. If there is anything I can do or continue to do when this mission is done, please, I am at your service."
Claire moved her hand from my back, "I will keep that in the back of my mind, Donald, and thank you. Thank you for agreeing to help us out."
Benson smiled softly, shifting in his seat and smoothing out his button down shirt and tie. The man was dressed in a full suit and a long coat, all of it pristine and neat like only a Marine would have even in civilian clothes, "I will always owe you for giving me this second chance, Dr. Avondale." He bowed his head, "I can only hope I can make amends for the things I have done." I could see in the large man that he had a thousand questions of how a tiny vial of blue liquid turned him human again, and that it was the blonde sitting across from him, the one he was sent to kill, who had created it. Given him this second chance he was living without a hesitation or pointing fingers at his crimes. He only saw Claire now like the rest of us did, a woman who wanted nothing more to help people.
Sheehnan, smiled at the gentle giant, "Don, I told you. You only smashed up Kit's house and took on a huge Mexican. The rest was barely accessory charges. It was primarily Halston and Cornwell who committed most of the crimes." He leaned back into the plus leather, tugging at his thick sweater, "The NSA has wiped your record and restored your military rank and honors. As soon as this is done, you can go back to work like I know you want to."
I watched Bensons, jaw tighten at the sound of his wife's name. He kept his head down, "I also want to make amends for what Jessica did, give her death an honorable purpose." He suddenly looked up in my eyes, "Anything I can do for you, Caitriona, is included in that." Benson's eyes turned glassy, his jaw tightening more to prevent the tears from making an escape.
I reached across the table, laying a hand on his knee, "You have already done more than you think." I paused as I felt my own tears rising. I smiled tightly at the man as he understood what I meant, his eyes drifting to Claire.
Claire sucked in a slow breath and when she spoke, the doctor persona was present. "I would like to sit and catch up, but we have to save that for another day." She turned to Davey, "Our sources tell us that Halston may already be here and on the prowl, sniffing out why Benson has suddenly been released into government custody." She looked at Sheehnan, "Jane briefed you on the plan?"
Sheehnan sat back up, reaching for his phone and the thick manila envelope Davey handed over to him, "She did. Benson and I head to the safe house after this meeting. I start feeding the chatter channels on open, unsecured lines. Email, phone calls, texts back to Jane and Nina. They will circle the information through the NSA's internet filter. Ensuring that Halston can see the chatter that our boy, Benson here, has escaped from San Diego and got his hands on one of your formulas through the black market. Leftovers from the Centre incident."
Claire and I both watched Sheehnan dump out a new cell phone, a set of keys and a Wi-Fi card from the envelope. Claire kept her hands folded on her lap, "Correct. Make sure you emphasize that it is a new formula that can reverse the effects from the Beekeeper project and that Benson is currently on the run from all of the agencies. Also drop hints that Kit is alive, but that it's only whispers of her survival." She looked at me, "Halston had remarked something about an employer setting a contract on you, knowing her, she will be eager to finish an incomplete job."
Claire held my eyes and I saw the flicker of her memories darken them for a second before she turned back to Benson. "Donald, you were also briefed."
He straightened up, "Yes, Dr. Avondale. I am to meet with Halston when she finds me. Direct her to the farmhouse as you and Janes requested. Tell her that it's where my contact retrieved the blue serum." Benson took a large breath, "Dr. Avondale, I have already told Sergeant Sheehnan and Jane that I will be following Halston to the farmhouse as added protection." He spoke firmly and carefully, telling me that it wasn't protection he was searching for, it was revenge.
Claire picked up on it, "I understand the need to see your own revenge, and I respect that." She paused meeting the larger man's eyes, "You can sit back with Davidek and Sheehnan with the rest of the boys. I cannot have Halston spooked, I need her to come to me under the guise that she will only be facing me and possibly Kit." Claire looked away from Benson, "I need to do this on my own." Her voice dropped to almost a whisper, but was heavy with her own desire for revenge.
I looked around the room. Three large men, all highly trained in protection and other deadly skills, all of them sitting in awkward silence afraid of what Claire was suggesting. All of them trying to figure out a way to take that burden of killing out of revenge from Claire. Including me.
Claire had never killed anyone like the rest of us and I knew it would haunt her more than it would ease the nagging pit in her stomach.
I broke the silence, looking between the three men, "Benson, as soon as you're done with Halston, meet with Sheehnan and he will make sure you hitch a ride." I glanced back at Claire, her head still down staring at her hands, "I think the more hands on deck we have the better."
Davey hopped up from his seat next to Claire, poking at his watch, "Alright, let's get this rolling. You guys head to the safe house and get settled in. I will take the girls to the apartments for the night. We will be heading back to the farmhouse by lunchtime." He raised his head, "If anything happens, call me. But I think we have at least two to three days after Halston makes contact with Benson."
Everyone in the room stood up, Claire was the last and she kept her head down as Davey escorted Sheehnan and Benson out the back door, then motioned for us to come back through the front.
I watched Claire slowly shut down with the simple movement of folding her arms over her chest, tucking her chin deep into her coat collar. She said nothing as we exited the bar and climbed back into the warm SUV. She made no move when I laid my hand on her thigh, squeezing it to comfort her.
She was falling back into the walls Halston built and it was frustrating and infuriating to see the mad woman once again affect Claire.
____________________________
The window looked directly out at the Kremlin. The bulbous tops of the old building eye level with the apartment's large glass window. The city lights and the spotlights made the tops glow, and reflected back onto the po
lished maple wood floors I stood on in the bedroom.
I stared out the window, listening to Claire in the shower. Well, I could hear the water pounding against the tile and her skin, telling me she was standing in one spot motionless and lost in her thoughts. She had been quiet the entire ride to the secured apartments, saying nothing to Davey or I as we discussed what time to leave in the afternoon and what we could eat for dinner. Claire moved silently past us, dropped her bag in the bedroom and disappeared into the shower for the last twenty minutes.
I picked at the sleeves of my long sleeved thermal shirt, alternating my stare from the gorgeous view to the bathroom. I was dreading the rest of the evening, knowing Claire would come out of the bathroom. Tug on her pajamas and crawl into bed, saying nothing about what she was struggling with. I couldn't do it tonight, there was too much to be said, and we had come too far in the last week to let it all slip back.
I dropped my arms and grumbled, looking at the small stack of carry out menus left out for us in the kitchen of the apartment. The kitchen was fully stocked with anything and everything imaginable, but I was tired of home cooked food and wanted to take Claire out to eat something other than Davey and I's feeble attempts at cooking. I picked up one for traditional Polish food, flipping through the pages when Claire exited the bathroom. A puff of steam following her.
She was wrapped in a towel, her hair wet and gathered around one side of her neck, her skin pink from the hot water. I smiled at her, holding up the menu in my hand, "Polish sound good to you?" I picked up another one, "Or do you want to try Moscow's best Italian pizza?"
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