by Nic Saint
“Why did you come to America, Mister Demiakov? To meet your wife’s family?”
Finally. Their moment had come. He leaned forward and provided Dora with the perfect setup. “My wife has never met her father. He died in combat before she was born.”
On cue, Dora’s face instantly clouded, and she reached for her handkerchief.
“It has come to our attention,” Roman continued, taking Dora’s outstretched hand in his and patting it consolingly, “that her father might be alive after all. Lieutenant Nathan Callaway went missing in action, but new reports suggest he may have survived.”
“My daddy must have lost his memory,” sniffed Dora, “because he never came back to us.” Then she looked straight into the cameras, teary-eyed and with a trembling bottom lip. “Daddy? If you’re out there somewhere? Please come back. We love you and we miss you soooooo much.”
Then she broke down into desperate sobs, and it was Roman who took the ball and dunked it. “If anyone has information on the whereabouts of Nathan Callaway, I am offering a reward.” He paused for effect. “One million dollars.” He held up a picture of Nathan. Although dated, it would still help find the bastard. “Please help my wife make her family whole again,” he continued in somber tones. “Please help us be a real family again. Thank you very much.”
He’d prepared his little speech carefully, and, as expected, it was a slam dunk. Excited murmurs ran through the crowd at the mention of the magic words ‘one million dollars’, and Roman had a hard time suppressing a triumphant smirk. This was even better than if the real Ariel Cole had been here. He was pretty sure the bitch would have fucked up the show.
Looking over to Dora, he saw she was sniffling away magnificently, offering her teary face to the cameras—left profile—right profile—full frontal. Bam.
The reporters lapped it all up.
Nathan Callaway, wherever he was, would not be able to hide out much longer now. One million reasons said he wouldn’t.
CHAPTER 25
A knock at the door startled them. Dimitri was the first to spring from the bed, before ushering Ariel into the small bathroom, pressing his finger to his lips to induce her to be quiet. She nodded quickly, her eyes wide and scared. His warning about the family’s goons having eyes and ears everywhere hadn’t escaped its effect, and she was terrified she’d made a terrible bloomer by letting her mother know when they’d be arriving in New York.
She watched from a small crack in the door how Dimitri eased over to the door, taking a firm grip on some sort of bludgeon. She knew he’d made an arrangement with his friend that he would always yell out the code word ‘Harasho’ to accompany his knock.
The fact that whoever was out there hadn’t done so indicated it was some unknown—someone who possibly meant them harm.
Suddenly, before her widening eyes, Dimitri yanked the door open, and a familiar figure hovered in the doorframe, staring from Dimitri’s face to the weapon in his hand with surprising equanimity.
It was the old man they’d spotted on the deck. The one Dimi had warned her about. If the man was scared of the Russian giant who stood glowering at him, stick in hand, he certainly didn’t show it.
“Hello there,” the man spoke magnanimously, and rocked back on his heels, a friendly smile on his face.
He wore his beard long and gray, and his eyebrows, likewise, were of the same hue. A small pair of round spectacles completed the picture of a kindly old gentleman.
“What do you want?” asked Dimitri gruffly.
The man twirled his mustache, his kind eyes glittering with mirth. “Well, young man, perhaps before I state my business would you be so kind as to cover up your, ah, weapon?”
Dimitri twiddled the bludgeon dangerously. “You mean this?”
“I was actually talking about your other weapon.” And with these words, his eyes momentarily dipped to Dimitri’s waist. Only now did Ariel notice her husband was buck naked. As was she, incidentally. Quickly yanking a towel from the rack, she wrapped it around her.
Dimitri didn’t make a move, seemingly unconcerned about his obvious state of undress. “You still haven’t told me what it is you want, old man.”
“Well, see, the thing is, I have a very important question to ask of you, which I hope you will be good enough to answer.”
Dimi shrugged. “If it’s money you want, I have none to give.”
“Not… money!” the man exclaimed with a chuckle. “Of course I wouldn’t bother you with the object of lining my pocket. No, what I would like to know is…” The man’s eyes grew serious, all of a sudden, and his face darkened. “What are your intentions with my daughter?”
If Dimi was surprised by this odd question, he didn’t show it. “What nonsense are you talking about? I don’t know your daughter, old man.”
The stranger eyed him keenly, suddenly appearing more calculating than jolly. He’d taken off the glasses and now carefully tucked them away in his vest pocket, revealing clear blue eyes. “Oh, but you do, Dimitri Loginovsky. Of course you do.”
If these words were intended to induce Dimi to lower his defenses, they had quite the opposite effect. With a quick flick of his wrist, he snatched the man’s lapels and jerked him up. “What do you want, you piece of Gornakov scum?”
“I don’t work for Gornakov, Dimitri. But you do, don’t you? Or, at least, you used to before you turned tail and ran off with my daughter.”
At these words, Dimi’s grasp loosened and Ariel let out an involuntary yelp of surprise. The man’s eyes flashed to the door she was hiding behind.
His voice suddenly grew gentle, and as he carefully readjusted his rumpled suit where Dimi had upset it, he asked, “Are you this man’s prisoner, my dear?”
“Ariel, stay there!” warned Dimi, but Ariel had already made up her mind, and stepped into the room. Vaguely, beneath the beard and the mustache, she’d recognized glimpses of the man she knew to be her father.
She shook her head as she approached the strange figure. “No, I’m not.”
Dimi expelled a Russian expletive, and took her by the arm, then put himself between her and the man, effectively protecting her from this potential enemy.
She placed her arm on his back, and spoke softly. “It’s all right, Dimi. This man is—” Her voice broke as she spoke the words. “He’s my father.”
The man smiled as Ariel sidestepped her Russian protector and wearily approached the man she’d never known.
In some sort of magic act, he yanked off his beard and mustache, then removed the gray wig he’d been wearing, revealing a clean-shaven, handsome looking man in his middle forties.
“Christ,” muttered Dimi, dumbfounded by the clever disguise.
“Yes, it is me,” the man announced. “Your father.”
Ariel’s eyes flooded with tears before she could stop them, and her knees buckled. Two men reached out to offer a steadying hand, and she gratefully accepted them both. Dimi and Nathan sized each other up for a moment, then a look of understanding seemed to pass between them, and Dimitri released her arm and stepped back.
“Think I’ll put on those pants now,” he announced gruffly, and disappeared into the bathroom.
“Dad?” said Ariel in a shaky voice. “Is that really you?”
The man, also overcome by emotion, cleared his throat. “It’s me, honey. I’m sorry it took me so long to find you.”
With a cry of anguish, she threw himself into her father’s arms, and was momentarily reduced to sobs as she held onto Nathan Callaway, the father she’d never set eyes on, and he patted her back consolingly, just as undone as she was by this unexpected meeting.
CHAPTER 26
“I don’t know, honey. I figure I just thought I’d never see you again. And that was fine by me as long as you were safe.” Her father lifted his shoulders. “I couldn’t get in touch for fear of drawing out the men who would try and hurt you.”
“But now that I was already in danger…”
He smiled
a wistful smile and touched her cheek in a paternal gesture that did much to further endear her to this man.
“How did you know it was me? Did you have me followed?” His presence on the boat was obviously no coincidence.
“The agency I work for—”
“The FBI.”
“They’ve kept a close eye on you and your mother all these years. The moment you went missing, I was alerted. It wasn’t hard to trace you to the Commodore, which is owned by the Gornakovs. The physician who examined you? He’s one of our informants. When he told us that a golden-haired beauty was being kept against her will by one of the Loginovsky brothers, it was obvious what was going on.”
“Why did they have me examined in the first place? I never understood.”
“To make sure you really were my daughter. The DNA test confirmed your identity.” He gestured to Dimitri, who was seated on the bed, listening to the story without a word. “The moment you left the hotel, we had you two followed. We already had a team in place to spring you free, but we hadn’t anticipated Dimitri’s move. Nor did we know what was going on, really. Was he taking you to still another prison? Or was he breaking you free? We had no idea.”
“That’s why you kept an eye on me on the boat.”
“I was trying to figure out what was going on.”
She noticed her father’s questioning glances at Dimitri, and understood. She placed a hand on his arm. “Dimi’s fine, Dad. He’s helped me escape, and now we’re on our way to the States together.”
“You do know that his brother is—”
“Roman Loginovsky, the Gornakov family’s main enforcer. Yes, I know. That’s exactly why we ran. Dimi thinks his brother wants to have me killed.”
“You can bet he does. As soon as he managed to draw me out, your life would have been over, darling.” He still eyed Dimi suspiciously.
“Don’t worry about me, sir,” intoned her husband with a deferential smile. “I’m in love with your daughter and have decided to turn my back on my past.”
“Have you now?” said Nathan softly, the skeptical undertone clear.
“I have,” confirmed Dimi simply.
Nathan studied the man carefully, sizing him up. Finally, he inclined his head. “I like to believe you, son. Though I can’t approve of the way you handled my daughter.”
“You mean the kidnapping. I’m truly sorry about that, sir. But as I’ve explained to your daughter, I saw no other alternative than to go through with the plan devised by my brother.” He shrugged. “It was either that or handing her over to Roman himself.”
“Are you telling me you tried to protect my daughter by kidnapping her?” The edge to her father’s voice was more pronounced now, and Dimitri didn’t respond well to it. His eyes narrowed.
“That’s exactly what I’m saying, Mr. Callaway. I volunteered for the mission the moment I was informed of my brother’s plans.”
This was news to Ariel, and she knitted her brows. “You volunteered?”
“That’s right.” Dimi blinked as he recalled the details of the mission. Then he reached into his pocket and drew out a crumpled piece of paper and unfolded it reverently. Placing it on the bed before Ariel and her father, he tapped it with his finger. “When I saw this picture, I volunteered.”
Ariel stared at the picture of herself. It depicted a young woman on graduation day, her blond hair wavy in the wind, her face happy and smiling, the academic gown draped around her perfect form. She took the picture, remembering the day it had been taken as if it were yesterday.
She smiled, understanding dawning. Dimi had seen this picture of her and something must have stirred inside his heart.
“You saw this picture and…” She didn’t know how to finish the sentence.
“I decided I had to protect you from my brother,” he confirmed, looking as irritable as the day they met. It was clear her father’s accusatory tone had done much to sour his mood.
Touched, she looked into the man’s eyes, and decided he was speaking the truth. He’d seen her picture and had fallen in love.
Nathan took the picture and studied it for a moment. “You’re quite the romantic, aren’t you, Dimitri?” he finally said.
Dimi merely shrugged, looking a little flustered. “I don’t know if I would call myself romantic, sir. I just saw this beautiful girl, and listened to my brother’s plans, and thought I wanted to help her. Keep her safe.” He nodded once. “And that’s what I have done.”
“You did good, Dimi,” said her father, handing him back the picture that had brought him into her life. “You did good.”
“Thank you, sir,” he acknowledged. “Coming from you that is high praise.”
“What were you planning to do once you arrived in the States?”
“Dimi knows someone who might be able to help us.”
Nathan transferred his attention back to Dimi. “Who?”
“Vitaly Loganov. I’ve heard he’s a good man. He will help us.”
Nathan looked pensive at this information. “I know Vitaly, or at least, know of him. You’re right. He is a good man.”
“Or perhaps we can stay with you, Dad?” asked Ariel eagerly. Now that she’d met her father, she was eager to get to know him a little better.
“Yes,” agreed Dimi. “You have managed to stay out of the family’s hands for twenty years. You know what’s best for us.”
“I can make arrangements to keep you safe,” confirmed Nathan. “Only problem? These arrangements won’t extend to you, Dimitri.”
“What?” cried Ariel, aghast. “But Dimi’s my husband!”
“He’s also a member of the Gornakov crime family,” Nathan pointed out.
“But he’s turned against them! Dad, there must be something you can do!”
Nathan drew his hand through his short hair, graying at the temples. “I’m sure something can be arranged, only perhaps not on such short notice. You’re coming with me, of course, darling. But Dimitri?” He gave the young man an apologetic glance. “I’m sorry, son. I’m afraid you’re on your own for now.”
Ariel sprang from the bed, her eyes hard and her cheeks flushed. “I’m staying with Dimi, Dad.”
“But, honey…”
She shook her head, adamant. “If he can’t come, I won’t come. I’m staying with my husband.”
And with these words, she grasped Dimi’s hand and gave it a firm squeeze. For better or for worse, till death do them part, she wasn’t leaving his side. And she had the wedding ring to prove it.
To her surprise, her dad burst into laughter at these words. “Honey!” he cried. “You really are your mother’s daughter, aren’t you? Stubborn to a fault!”
She shrugged, not knowing whether to feel offended or complimented. “I guess I am.” She tilted her chin for good measure. “So what?”
Nathan’s face straightened when he saw she was serious. “All right,” he finally relented. “We’ll find you both a safe house.” He tapped his nose. “And I think I know just the place.”
CHAPTER 27
There wasn’t anything left to be said. The press conference over, Dora walked stiffly off the stage next to the man whom everyone assumed was her rich, handsome husband. One of the most powerful men in Russia.
The handsome part was true, perhaps, and also the powerful. But rich? The man was simple muscle for the biggest crime family in the former Soviet state. She’d spent so much time in his company these past few days, going from one press conference to the next, from one social function to yet another, and still she had barely even scratched the surface.
Apart from when they were parading in front of the press—correction: when he was parading her—he’d barely spoken a word, always keeping a moody silence when she was around. With his so-called parents he talked a mile a minute, purposely reverting to his native tongue so she wouldn’t know what they were talking about.
And then there were the thugs he surrounded himself with. Assistants, he called them whenever anyone as
ked. Entirely too muscular for her taste, covered in tattoos, and sporting the meanest looks she’d ever seen anyone capable of. These were thugs, pure and simple, and each time they hovered close, she shivered.
No, this was one assignment she wasn’t enjoying. Not one bit. And that louse Nikosj, after making the first introductions, had simply disappeared. She hadn’t heard from him since this whole charade had begun.
Talk about a cowardly pipsqueak. The moment she set eyes on the little mongrel, he would get an earful, that was for sure.
Cloaked in silence, they walked back to the car. Not for the first time, she wondered how much more she could take. She’d worked with difficult costars before. Lord knew the New York stage was littered with them. But Roman gave them all a run for their money.
He was, by far, the most horrible, most arrogant, most self-absorbed leading man she’d ever been paired with.
And the sooner he disappeared from her life, the better.
She stepped into the limo that had become their customary mode of transportation. Unexpectedly, Roman spoke. “You did good,” he grunted.
She looked up, surprised. Had the man just spoken to her? And, more astonishingly, had he given her a compliment? “Beg your pardon?”
He looked annoyed. “I said you did good. They bought the story hook, line, and sinker, as you Americans say.”
For a Russian, his English wasn’t too shabby, she’d deduced long before. She wondered where he’d picked it up. Not on the streets of Moscow, that was for sure.
She gave him a prim look. “Thank you. I try my best.”
“Try harder,” he grumbled. “Until we catch the fish, this mission is not over.”
Indignation spread through her like wildfire. “Try harder? Try harder!” She turned on him, quick as a flash. “I’m doing the best I can, mister! Now if your cockamamie plan isn’t working, is that my fault? No, it’s not! So don’t you go blaming me for your mistakes.”