“OK. What about the institute security officer that had been shot? Is he dead? Is this a murder case as well as a kidnapping case?”
“No,” was the unexpected reply. “He was seriously injured and is recovering at the institute where he is being treated by one of their doctors.”
The captain heard a ding and looked at his e-mail in-box. The message from the MOD had arrived. “I’ve got your e-mail. I’ll get back to you as soon as I can,” he said and then ended the call.
It didn’t take long for him to review the video, but some aspects of the recording seemed ominously familiar. He called Serge and asked him to bring the transcripts of the Saint Petersburg activity. Serge hustled into the captain’s office, handed them to him, and turned to leave.
“More activity going on that I need to get back to. Let me know if you need anything else.”
“Thanks,” Lubikov said. He began by rereading some of the transcripts that contained sentences or phrases structured with coded words that were intended to convey information to the recipient without using precise language. The more he read, the more Lubikov realized that that there was a connection. He reviewed the video again, this time holding the transcript close and reading passages as the video played on his monitor. After completing the second review, he took a pen and modified the coded phrases in the transcript with words that he believed accurately reflected what was being discussed or conveyed. After he finished, it became clear that the intercepts were calls being made by the people who had abducted the MOD scientist. He picked up the phone and called Captain Kasikov to tell him what he had discovered.
“It’s information that’s just a bit too late,” Kasikov replied. “The police had them on the run, but they managed to get away, and they are no longer using their phones.”
“Well, it’s still an active investigation,” replied Lubikov. “They’ve kidnapped an MOD scientist. I’ll send you the video, but in the meantime, call the police to see what information you can get from them, and call me back. I’ve got to make a report for the director.” He hung up the phone and sat thinking about the video.
What did they want with a demented old scientist? They made their getaway in a beige van, but where were they going? He looked at the last transcript again. What did the woman mean when she said they were heading to the county line? There are no counties in Russia, just districts and oblasts. Was it code to indicate that the kidnappers were heading to the border? It was possible since that was the direction they were heading by crossing over the Liteyniy Bridge.
A few minutes later his phone rang. He picked it up. It was Kasikov calling back.
“Yes, it was a beige van they were chasing. The police believe one of the occupants was a woman by the name Nina Pukhova Lubikov. That name ring a bell for you? It’s funny that she should have your last name.”
“No shit,” Lubikov replied. He knew the name, but couldn’t put a face to it. “Have you taken any more action regarding her or the others involved in the kidnapping?”
“No, no need to. The police have had a BOLO out on her since early this afternoon. She’s wanted in connection with the murder of Alexander Brzezinski, a senior executive who worked with RT News here in Saint Petersburg. A witness saw her, the beige van, and two other men, a Caucasian and an African, at the crime scene. It all jives with the video. The action is back in OCC’s court until I get some new direction,” concluded Kasikov.
“OK. Thanks,” replied Lubikov, hanging up the phone.
He had heard the name mentioned before by his father. He decided to conduct a name trace and typed her name into the FSB database. The captain got a hit, but was surprised by the access denied script that appeared on the screen. It meant that he didn’t have clearance to read the concealed information on the woman’s background. He was surprised to learn that the information had been blocked, but didn’t want to waste any more time. He called the Counterintelligence Service Department, the equivalent of the CIA’s Directorate of Operations, and informed the deputy chief of everything that had happened regarding the abduction of the MOD scientist. The deputy listened and then ran a name check on Nina. Seconds later, he told Lubikov to issue a nationwide alert for the people involved in the abduction. The notice went out a few minutes later to all law enforcement departments, every branch of the military, and the border guard service.
Having completed the alert, Captain Lubikov sat back in his chair, patting himself on the back for the good job he had done. The feeling of accomplishment lasted just a few seconds when he suddenly sat upright in his chair.
Why didn’t I think of that before?
The fact that he may have missed something about the case gave the captain cause for concern. He opened the video sent by MOD official and captured facial images of the four men involved in the abduction operation. One by one, he ran a facial recognition scan against a multitude of images stored in the OCC database. He ran the black man’s face first and didn’t get a hit. He ran three more without any results. Finally, on the last scan, he got a hit. Two images popped up on his monitor—both of the same man. One showed the man dressed in military fatigues with a weapon slung over his shoulder. The other was a close-up image of his face. He read the captions. Photo Date: 2008. Location: Baghdad. Source: Iranian VEVAK Agent. Subject Identity: Special Forces Operator, US Navy SEAL.
“Holy shit,” he mumbled. “The Americans are behind the abduction.”
***
After being sure that the team had eluded the police, Allison stopped on a side street and tore all her phones apart and removed the SIM cards. She then headed home to send Randy a COVCOM report. In it she brought him up to date on everything that had happened and informed him of the BOLO, which she had just ostensibly heard. She requested a response within the hour and waited. Randy was surprised when he read her report and immediately called Brandson.
“I don’t think the team can possibly make it back to Checkpoint Charlie in a van that is now well known to the police and them being hunted by the local authorities,” he told the COS.
“You’re right,” interjected Brandson, “especially knowing that an arrest warrant has been issued for Nina. I think the best thing for them to do is to get to the warehouse if they can do it safely without being pursued. We need time to assess the situation. Pass that word to Allison ASAP.”
“No need to. According to her report, that’s where they were heading after crossing the bridge into Sector D. We don’t have much time to work this out. They need to be at Checkpoint Bravo by 0400 Tuesday morning, and there’s a wounded man in the group; we don’t know his condition. Also, what about Nina? She’s wanted by the police now and in a precarious situation.”
“I understand. Get Allison working on getting them some new transportation.”
“OK. Talk to you later.”
Randy quickly sent Allison a COVCOM response. She read it and left for the warehouse.
***
The NRO duty supervisor could not keep track of the team van as it sped away from the institute and around the streets of Saint Petersburg. He called the CIA Ops Center to request permission to terminate coverage.
“NRO’s requesting permission to terminate coverage, Mrs. Windstrum. I agreed, as it’s not possible to keep track of them speeding around the city.”
“Thanks,” she said. “That’s the correct decision, especially since we don’t know where they’re heading or trying to get to.”
Claire knew that it would take time for Brandson to wrap his hands around what had happened there in the field. She decided to give him an hour before making a call.
“I’m heading back to my office,” she told the duty supervisor. “Put through a call to the COS in Moscow at 0730 and patch it through to my office. Where’s that coffee pot?” she asked.
“This way, ma’am.”
***
Mike, still in pain, asked for an update during their getaway.
“What’s happening, Charlie?”
&nbs
p; “The police have been chasing us. We’ve just crossed the Liteyniy Bridge, and we’re on our way out of Dodge.”
“That much I could tell from listening to the network. What I want to know is where are we heading?” He looked at the needle held by Charlie. “What’s that?”
“Penicillin. We don’t need that wound of yours turning into an infection.”
Nina watched as Charlie injected Mike with the needle. “We’re heading to the warehouse to await word from Allison. Can you get to your ops phone?”
Mike struggled to remove it from his pocket and handed it to Nina, who was in the process of removing the battery from hers. She took the sim cards out and handed the phone parts to Rick. He wiped them down in an attempt to remove fingerprints before tossing them out the window.
Chapter Eighteen
Back at Echo
Ron turned into the warehouse yard. Nina still had the remote. She clicked it and the door was nearly open before they came to a full stop. He drove in, parked, and turned off the engine. Mike continued to rest in the back of the van with Mauldin as the others got out.
“Where are we at, Charlie?” Nina heard Mike ask, as she was getting out.
“It was a close call, but we’re back at the warehouse. I think we’re in the clear for a while.”
“Good. Allison should be here soon. Let me know when she arrives.”
“You got it, boss. Get some rest.”
Allison was taking her time and running a surveillance detection route to ensure that she was clean before getting close to the warehouse. She was very cautious and continually looked to see if anyone was tailing her. She arrived, drove into the yard, and stopped in front of the warehouse door. It was almost five in the afternoon and a lot had happened in the three hours since the team had walked through the gate at the institute. She clicked the remote that was attached to the sun visor and waited for the door to open. It was a large warehouse with plenty of room. She looked for the best angle to park and drove in. She got out to see some of the men standing around and chatting with Nina.
“Whose Mike’s second?” she asked.
Rick raised his hand.
“I guess that would be me. I take it that you’re Allison,” he said, walking over to greet her.
“That’s right,” she said, reaching out to shake his hand. “Where is he?”
“Inside the van being attended to.”
“The chain doesn’t believe that you guys can get back to Checkpoint Charlie driving the van. I’ve got to let them know that you’ve made it here safely, so I need to know Mike’s status.”
“We’re fortunate to have a very good medic with us. Let’s check with him. Charlie, front and center.”
Charlie came out the back of the van and walked over to join Allison and Rick.
“This is Allison. She needs to know how Mike is doing. Give us an update.”
“Sure thing. It’s just a flesh wound in his side, ma’am. Nothing too serious. He’s tough, but it’s going to cause him some pain for a while. I just gave him a shot of morphine and was about to put in a few stitches. He’ll be able to walk afterward, but he’ll still need to rest.”
They heard a noise and looked to see Mike attempting to get out of the back of the van. He sat on the edge holding his side.
“Don’t make me walk. Come on over here so I can join the conversation.”
They walked over to Mike. Allison extended her hand.
“Hi, I’m—”
“No need for introductions,” Mike interrupted. “I know who you are. Was hoping that you’d show up,” he said, releasing her hand.
Allison looked past him to see one of the SEALs sitting beside Mauldin, who was lying closer to the front of the van with the hood now removed from his head.
“How long will he be out?” she asked, looking back at Mike.
“One injection is supposed to keep him out for four hours, but we can’t keep him that way all the time. He’ll need to be ambulatory when we leave Charlie for the border.”
“The chain wants an update on you, but that will have to wait until after I can get you guys some different transportation. My contact is the number two at the station. He’s in Helsinki, at the office. I was keeping him updated by phone, and he’s been relaying the information to the COS via a secure line. What happened back there?”
“A man with a pistol came out of nowhere, yelled at us as we were about to leave with Mauldin, and fired on us. I was the unfortunate recipient of the bullet before Frank could take him out. I don’t know, but he could be dead. We didn’t stick around to find out.”
“Well, I guess we can be thankful that it wasn’t Mauldin that he hit. It would have been a terrible blow after everything you guys have been through to get here. Say, they’ve asked me to get a truck, a lorry if possible, for your use in getting back to Checkpoint Charlie. Also, I didn’t broadcast this over the net, but the police have issued a BOLO for Nina, stating that she is wanted for being involved in a murder case. What are your thoughts about her?”
“I don’t think we’ve got a choice now, based on the BOLO, but to take her with us—if she wants out, but that will take headquarters approval. I think the COS probably knows that, but once we get out of here and on the road with new transportation, pass the request up the chain. I’ll hold off on telling Nina about the BOLO until we hear back from headquarters, which will have to be over the SatCom link.”
“OK, but you know it will take time to get headquarters approval for what you’re asking. Also, it’s going to take time for me to get you some different transportation lined up, so be prepared; it could possibly take several hours before I get back.”
“Thanks. Also, let them know that a security camera was mounted inside the institute garden away from the bench toward the main building. I saw it, but not until after being shot. I noticed it while lying on the ground looking back at the man who pulled the trigger. If the camera is connected to a recorder, they probably have footage of everything that we did—including me getting shot.”
“You’re shitting me. The camera wasn’t there a week ago, or at least if it was, it couldn’t be seen from the street when I did the pre-op recon.”
Mike thought about that for a moment. He knew, given what had happened, that institute authorities would soon be reporting Mauldin’s abduction. The video coverage of them taking Mauldin would soon be in the hands of the security services. Mentally, he was pissed. They should have worn masks to conceal their faces, but there had been no need to, based on the reporting provided by the station. Now their faces, principally his, if stowed in the FSB’s extensive database, would be evidence that the CIA had abducted Mauldin and they’d have a digital image of the man responsible for possibly killing the security guard.
“Yeah, let’s just hope the FSB and officials at MINOBOROVY don’t put the pieces of the puzzle together before we can get out of here and across the border.”
“OK. I’ve gotta go. Be back as soon as I can.” Allison turned, looked at the others, and then got into her car. She opened the warehouse door and backed out. Charlie walked over to the back of the van to visit with Mike.
“You ready for those stitches now?”
***
Claire answered the phone; it was the duty supervisor at the Ops Center.
“We’re connected with Moscow Station, ma’am.”
“Good, patch him through.”
“Hello, Claire,” Brandson said.
“Hello, Bill. I don’t have much time before my meeting with the director, and he’s going to want an update. What’s their status?”
“They’re probably at the warehouse as we speak. Mike was shot, by whom, we don’t know, but he’ll be OK. They have Mauldin. The support team is in the process of getting them another vehicle, a truck they can use to get from Echo to Charlie. Don’t know how long that is going to take, but hopefully, by nightfall, they’ll be on their way.”
“That’s good news. From watching the satellite f
eed, I couldn’t tell how badly he’d been hurt. Is there anything that we here at headquarters need to do?”
“Nina’s cover has been blown. It’s a long story that involves the death of her boss, who she accidentally shot during the operation. I don’t think you have enough time for me to tell you the whole story before your meeting with the director, so I’ll put it into an ops cable and send it in later today. I’ve already started on the report. The important thing to know is that the police have a BOLO out for her. I think we need to consider bringing her out with the team.”
“That will mean getting the director’s approval to have her processed as a ‘priority-one’ asylum case with permanent residency status.”
“I know that it will take time, but Mike will need an answer before they leave Charlie for the border.”
“I’ll take it up with the director this morning and get back to you with written approval—if he agrees, which he may not without knowing more about what happened out there. The sooner you get me that written report, the quicker I’m likely to get you an answer. How are you going to handle her disappearance if we do get his approval?”
“Don’t know yet, but we’ll think of something.”
Claire had heard enough, and she knew that Brandson wasn’t going to elaborate any further. She wanted a report to share with the director and knew how to get it.
“Got to go. Get me that report if you want an answer anytime soon.”
She ended the call, and Brandson sat thinking about her response. He knew she could probably get the director’s approval without the report. He imagined her request for the report was just a way to get even with him for not responding to the birthday wish she had sent—a ploy he considered, at the time, to get an update from him on how the op was going down. However, he cared more about the safety of Nina than he did about Claire’s penchant for getting even with him. He pulled up Randy’s ops cable and added the latest information. He reformatted it to be an “eyes only” ops cable from him to the DDO with an info copy to the chief of SE Division. Within thirty minutes of her call, the report landed in Windstrum’s classified e-mail in-box.
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