“Why?”
“Because he already knew. He has connections.”
“He told me that Pyotr is on Dmitri’s payroll.”
Anya looked surprised. “Really? I wouldn’t have thought that. Then why would he want to talk to you?”
“According to Andrei, so I’d incriminate myself.”
Anya gnawed at her lower lip and thought for a moment. “Perhaps, if they knew they couldn’t get at you another way. I’d think they’d try something more…direct first, though.”
“Like just shoot me?”
“Yes. A bullet in your head as you walked the streets.”
“That would raise questions, and get the American embassy involved.”
“Throwing you in jail would also get your embassy involved,” Anya replied. “You must be very careful. I think you have stirred up a, how do you say it, a bee’s nest?”
“A hornet’s nest, yeah,” Nick replied. He released her hands and they started walking again. “I need to talk to Andrei.”
She stopped and looked at him. “No, you don’t, Nick. Andrei is one of the hornets! Please just stay away from him.”
Nick shook his head. “I wish I could, Anya, but I need to know what he knows about that guy.” He hooked a thumb behind him, in the direction of Archipenko. “Pyotr is one smart man. If he wants to arrest me, it’s gonna happen no matter what I say or do. I need to know what his plans are.”
She put a hand on his arm. “Just be careful.”
Nick smiled and nodded. “Always. And do you want to know something interesting?”
“What?”
“Pyotr never mentioned Maxsim’s body.”
Chapter 23
The chime rang as Nick pushed through the door to the candy store. Andrei was standing on a step stool against a wall, stocking chocolate bars. A man with brown hair, larger than Andrei and with a dour expression on his face, glanced up as Nick entered the candy store. He didn’t look happy at the intrusion.
Andrei looked over his shoulder, candy in both hands, and grinned when he saw Nick. “Ahh, Nick!” he boomed. “I’m glad to see you’re not in jail. One moment, please.”
He stepped off the stool, put the bars in a small cardboard box on the glass counter, wiped his hands on his apron, and motioned Nick to sit down. “Would you like some chocolate?” he asked. “I have some new stuff come in from Hershey’s. Caramel in the middle.”
“No, thanks,” Nick replied. He remained standing, staring uneasily at the third man. Andrei followed his gaze. “Nick, this is Ilia, a comrade of mine. Anything you say to me you can say in front of him.”
Nick wasn’t so sure of that, but he didn’t have time to argue. “I want to know about this cop, Archipenko.”
Andrei grabbed two bottles of water out of a small glass case and handed one to Nick. Nick ran the cold bottle across his hot forehead before opening it, and both men sat down at one of the small round tables. Ilia remained standing, looking annoyed. Nick wondered if he had any other expressions.
“Ahh, Archipenko,” Andrei said. “He’s a bad one. Very smart, sees everything. He and Dmitri are tight, like this.” He clasped his hands together and squeezed hard.
“So if Dmitry wants revenge for Maxsim, then Archipenko is probably a good way to do it.”
Andrei nodded and drained half the bottle. He wiped his mouth. “Da. They find something on you and you end up in Lubyanka.”
Nick groaned. “Lubyanka prison is not a place I’d care to visit,” he said.
“So, what will you do about it?”
Nick absently picked at the label on the plastic bottle. For some reason the company put a picture of the Kremlin on the label. Authentic Russian water, maybe. Nick worked it until a spire was missing before he spoke.
“I plan to stay quiet. Don’t do anything to provoke them for three days, then I take Nonna and get the hell out of this madhouse.” He looked up at Andrei. “No offense.”
Andrei smiled thinly. “Of course. I’m sure it seems like a madhouse to you. It’s life to me.”
“I just want to get Nonna out of here.”
“You know it might not be that easy,” Andrei said. He was uncharacteristically grim. “Think of it from Dmitri’s point of view. You killed one of his men—“
“Where did you hear that?” Nick cut in. He glanced quickly at Ilia but the man looked like he wasn’t paying much attention to their conversation.
Andrei smiled. “Word gets around quickly here. An American walks into the brothel and disappears with a girl. Minutes later two Russians, including your friend Maxsim, are dead. The American is not seen leaving.”
“I didn’t kill Maxsim, his bodyguard killed him,” Nick broke in.
“Oh? That’s quite interesting. I doubt Dmitri has that information,” Andrei said. He glanced at Ilia. “What do you think, my friend?”
Ilia stirred. “I think no matter what you say, Dmitri will want you dead,” he said to Nick, his voice a low rumble. Nick glared at the man while Andrei nodded.
“He thinks you killed Maxsim, one of his men,” Andrei said. “And he knows that everybody else knows it. What would you do if you were Dmitri?”
“Make an example out of me,” Nick said grimly.
“Exactly. Do you really think hiding will deter him?”
“Probably not. But I’m not going to parade around the streets of Rostov, waiting for him to knock me off.”
Andrei got a curious look on his face. “I agree. So maybe you take the offensive.”
Nick sighed and continued to pick at the sticker. “Andrei, we’ve been through this before. I didn’t come to Russia to kill people, I just came to adopt my daughter.” He leaned forward and raised his voice. “I have no interest in getting caught up in a gang war. Tomorrow I’m going to see my daughter. I’m going to play with her and bring her a nice stuffed toy. I’m going to bring my Glock. If anybody hassles her or me, I will shoot them. But I’m not going to go out looking for trouble. Three days, Andrei. Three days and then I’m out of everybody’s hair. Then Dmitri can say he scared me so much I left the country, I don’t care.”
He sat back, breathing hard. Andrei just looked sad.
“Nick,” he said, “Do what you need to do, but be careful. I think in three days either you or Dmitri will be alive, but not both.”
Nick caught a slight smirk on Ilia’s face out of the corner of his eye. He grabbed the edge of the label and pulled hard. The label came off and water sloshed out of the bottle and onto the table.
The next morning Nick took the long way to the orphanage again, and double-backed several times to make sure he wasn’t followed. He planned to do the same thing on the way home, since they’d stake out the orphanage if they were serious about going after him.
It had briefly occurred to Nick to skip seeing Nonna today, but he immediately rejected the idea. He didn’t see her yesterday and he wasn’t about to make it two in a row. He’d just deal with the mob later.
He walked through the gate casually, staring straight ahead. He saw a few parents in the courtyard, sitting or walking around with their babies. Everything seemed normal and his spirit began to pick up. This is the important part, he told himself. All the rest is temporary.
He opened the door and was greeted with the orphanage odor he had come to know and like. Food, baby powder, probably some other unsavory smells but together they made a nice mix that reminded him of Nonna. He looked forward to seeing her and forgetting about everything else for ninety minutes.
The door to the nurse’s station was open so he let himself him. The head nurse, Olga, was the only one there. She was bent over a table, writing something in a ledger. Probably feeding or changing times.
She looked up and smiled, but her smile faded as she recognized him. She suddenly looked afraid. The brown hair under her cap was matted with sweat, and her uniform was dirty.
But she was scared. Nick began to get a bad feeling.
“You want see Nonna?” sh
e asked. Her English was not good, but they got by with pantomimes so it didn’t seem to matter. Typically laughter accompanied the communication, but not today.
Nick nodded.
She straightened up and brushed down her uniform. “Moment, please,” she said, and quickly walked out.
Nick stood in the room, alone, confused. He could hear a few babies crying in the crib room. He wondered if one of them was Nonna. There were four buildings in the orphanage, with the main one holding the babies. He had never been in the other three but hoped they were as well kept as this one.
The nurse quickly returned with the director of the orphanage. Nick tried to remember her name. Marina, he thought. He had met her on the first day when they were introduced to Nonna. She was tall, blonde, maybe fifty years old. Right now she wore a worried expression.
“Follow me, please, Mr. Wallace,” she said, which didn’t make Nick feel one damn bit better. They walked down the short hallway to her office, not talking. Nick began to sweat. Was Nonna OK?
“Please sit,” Marina said, and motioned to a wooden chair in front of her desk. He sat down obediently and waited as she crossed over to her side of the desk.
She sat down, clasped her hands in front of her, and looked at Nick. He could tell it was bad news. Please let Nonna be OK, he thought.
“Mr. Wallace, your adoption has been revoked,” Marina said.
“What?” Nick exclaimed. He leaned forward. “Why?”
She looked uncomfortable. “There have been…complications. I do not know the exact nature, but your request has been turned down.”
Nick sprang to his feet. Marina shrank back, obviously afraid. “No way,” he said. “We did our paperwork, the court approved us. The only problem we could have now is if her parents came forward, and we know damn well that her parents didn’t come forward.” He leaned forward, knuckles on the desk, and glared at Marina. “So what really happened?”
She hesitated.
He leaned forward, his face inches from her, and she could obviously read his anger. “Tell me,” he said, more softly.
She sighed and closed her eyes. “We had a request from…higher up. You’re not to be allowed to adopt Nonna.”
“Why?”
“They didn’t say.”
“And how do you feel about that?”
“It’s not my decision to make,” Marina replied.
“Are you aware of what’s happened to me these past few days?” Nick asked. He felt like a prosecutor.
“No.”
“But you do know a woman was found dead outside the orphanage.”
She looked at him, eyes suddenly flashing with fear. “Yes,” she said.
Nick leaned back. “No, I didn’t kill her. But I think whoever did was the person who wants to stop this adoption.”
Marina looked away and chewed her lip. “I know nothing about such things,” she said softly. “But I know you cannot see Nonna. I’m truly sorry.”
Nick felt the frustration well up inside of him. He fought it down. She was not the person keeping him from Nonna, not really. And scaring the hell out of her was not going to solve anything. He closed his eyes and willed calm. Deep breaths. You’re not defeated yet, he told himself.
“May I at least see Nonna?” he asked Marina. He gave her his best sad look.
“No, I’m sorry. You must leave.”
“Please?” he asked. “One minute, then I promise I’ll leave peacefully.”
She shook her head, but he knew she’d give in even before she said, “OK, one minute only. Then you must go and not return.”
Nick smiled. “Thank you, Marina.”
With another huge sigh, she stood up and led him into the crib room. He had never been there before; they had always brought Nonna out to him. Now he could see where she lived.
It wasn’t pretty. At least fifteen cribs were stored in the room, most of them around the outside of the room but several in the center, side-to-side. Babies slept or sat in all of them, hardly making a sound. Nick had read about that: babies in orphanages were generally very quiet, since they had learned at an early age that crying doesn’t bring help. After a few weeks, they’d quit crying. Kelli had actually cried herself when she showed him the clipping.
Nonna was in one of the cribs against a wall. She sat in the middle of the crib in a white shirt that snapped closed between her legs. She looked at Nick with interest as they walked up, but held out her arms to Marina.
Marina smiled, reached into the crib, and tussled Nonna’s short black hair while she deftly avoided the baby’s hands. She cooed something in Russian to the baby.
“I’m really very sorry,” she said to Nick without looking at him. “I can tell how much you love her. Please know she will find a good home and be happy.”
Damn right she will, Nick thought. Out loud he said, “Thank you. I’m sure she will.”
“I’ll leave you alone to say goodbye,” Marina said. “I’ll be just outside.” Nick wasn’t sure if that was a statement or a warning. He nodded and she walked out.
Nick reached in the crib and picked Nonna up. She weighed practically nothing. He gave her a big kiss on the cheek and she wiggled a bit. He thought she smiled, but at eight months he wasn’t sure that was possible. Maybe it was gas. At any rate, he could tell she was happy to see him. At least a little. Perhaps.
“Hi, honey,” he said to her and held her up in front of him so he could look her in the eyes. She gazed back at him impassively.
“I’ll be gone for a few days,” he said quietly. Marina had left the room but he didn’t put them above bugging the place. “But I’ll come back for you, I promise.”
She looked at him, and he blew a bronx cheer on her cheek. She wiggled again, he was sure in happiness.
“I have to fix some things before I can take you home. But soon you’ll be home with your brother and your mother.” He hugged her tight. “I promise,” he said again.
“Go kick some ass, daddy,” he could almost hear her say. “Then come back and get me and we’ll blow this place.”
Nick smiled, gently placed her back in the crib, and kissed the top of her head. “I’ll be back soon, honey.” She reached out for him as he drew back, and he felt a surge go through his body.
No way in hell was he leaving her here.
Chapter 24
Nick left the orphanage quietly. His first thought was, keep Kelli out of the loop for now. As much as he wanted to tell her, as much as he needed to keep her informed, as much as he needed her advice, this was not the time to get a mother, five thousand miles away from her cub, involved.
His second thought was to call Nadia, his adoption coordinator. Perhaps she could do something to get the adoption moving again. But as quickly as the thought came up, he discarded it. She had to work through official channels, which would involve the courts and potentially the police. Everything would become very public, very quickly. Nick wasn’t exactly an innocent in all of this, and he saw very few scenarios where he went home with Nonna as if nothing had happened. No, this was his mess to fix.
He was not upset. He was beyond upset. The Calm had returned.
Somebody would die.
He walked and walked, not caring where he went, but knowing where he was at all times. He wasn’t concerned about tails. In fact, he kind of hoped one of Dmitri’s men was following him, as he needed an outlet for his aggression.
Nick thought about what he needed to do next. The end result was that he was going to leave the country with Nonna in his arms. He didn’t care if he left a trail of dead bodies behind him, although he’d try to avoid that situation if for no other reason than to keep the cops off him. However, at this point the fate of anybody who stepped in front of his adoption was irrelevant to him.
As of this moment they were dead men walking, even if they didn’t know it yet. Nobody took his daughter away from him and lived.
After a few hours, with a plan formed in his mind, he found a familiar landm
ark, turned left, and a short time later ended up in front of Andrei’s candy shop.
“Dmitri?” Andrei’s eyes widened. “You changed your mind, then.”
“I had it changed for me,” Nick replied. He explained what had happened at the orphanage. Andrei frowned, his mouth forming a thin line, and Nick saw his left hand was clenched tightly.
They sat at the same table as before. Andrei jumped up and brought out two bottles of beer. Nick accepted one gratefully, even though it was only shortly after noon.
“That bastard,” Andrei muttered between gulps. “You need to be careful with him. He’s one bad mother.”
“Doesn’t matter,” Nick said. “He stopped the adoption. It had to be him. I don’t see too many other options.”
“He won’t talk to you, you know.”
“I know,” Nick replied.
“So you’re going to do…what?”
Nick clenched his teeth as he thought about it. “I’m going to have to reason with him.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means, dammit, that he’s going to undo whatever the hell he did to stop the adoption. I’m going to hit him where it hurts, so he has no choice.”
Andrei looked worried. “You’re a brave man, Nick.”
“Are you kidding me?” Nick said. He took a deep pull from the brown bottle. “No, I’m not. I’m desperate. If I could snatch Nonna and leave the country, I’d do that in a heartbeat.”
Andrei nodded and tapped his fingernails on his beer bottle. “So, what do you need from me?” He still looked concerned.
“Just information, Andrei,” Nick said. “I don’t want you to get involved. You live here.”
“Thank you,” the Russian said, relief on his face. “We’re a small operation, one that Dmitri could gobble up without blinking. I can’t afford to confront him.”
“And you won’t,” Nick replied. “I just need information. Where can I find him? What kinds of operations does he run?”
Andrei smiled. “That I can give you,” he said. He got up and grabbed a map of Rostov from behind the counter. He sat down again and spread the map out on the little round table. “Dmitri mainly works the western part of the city,” he said. “Where you are—were—staying. He has several brothels and liquor stores, and provides protection for many small businesses.”
Worth The Risk Page 15