by Dan Latus
Her face fell. ‘Oh, how disappointing! I am so sorry to hear that, Frank. I believed you were coming with us.’
I shook my head. ‘No. I must go home.’
Looking puzzled now, she said, ‘But in that case, surely you must come with us? Prague airport will be closed for another day or so, but we are leaving this morning. Are you sure you won’t come with us?’
It was my turn to be puzzled. ‘What do you mean? How can you leave this morning if the airport is still closed?’
She smiled. ‘Ah! Leon didn’t tell you? We will travel to another airport, one that is open, and fly from there. It is agreed.’
‘Another airport? Where?’
She mentioned a town I had never heard of, and said it was more than a hundred kilometres away.
‘How will you get there?’ I asked, still puzzled. ‘The roads must be …’
‘Not by road,’ she said, shaking her head. ‘We will travel by helicopter. It will come here for us.’
That was another surprise.
‘Does Leon have such a thing, a helicopter?’
‘Yes, of course he does.’
Of course he did. He had everything. By then, I was wondering if I had decided to make my own way too hastily.
‘You should change your mind, and come with us, Frank,’ Olga said earnestly. ‘It will be no fun here – especially with only Lenka for company!’ she added with a surprising grin. ‘My sister is so very serious.’
It was a persuasive point. I hadn’t thought of that. It might even be dangerous to stay here, knowing Lenka as I did.
Olga laid one hand on top of mine and pressed. ‘Come with us, Frank,’ she pleaded.
What else could I do?
Chapter Twelve
WHEN LEON RETURNED NOT long afterwards, he looked a bit tired but he still managed a grin.
‘Everything all right?’ I asked.
He shrugged. ‘The police are investigating at the hotel, which means that it is closed until further notice. But at least repairs are underway. Charles will see to things there.’
Useful guy, Charles, I couldn’t help thinking once again.
‘He is the manager?’
‘Amongst other things, yes.’
I didn’t bother speculating about what else Charles might be responsible for.
‘Was the hotel the only thing the police were interested in?’
Leon nodded, not rising to the bait. Events overnight were obviously in the private category, not for officialdom to be concerned about.
‘So are we leaving soon?’ I asked.
‘Soon, yes.’ He glanced at his watch and frowned. ‘Today already?’ he murmured.
‘For quite some time, actually.’
He grinned again. Then he frowned and sighed. ‘My business rival wants a meeting.’
‘Your business rival? Is that the same guy who sandblasted your hotel with machine guns and had your sister abducted?’
‘Bobrik, yes. He wants to negotiate.’
‘What about?’
Leon shrugged, as if to say he hadn’t a clue.
‘What are you going to do?’
‘I don’t know. Maybe I should meet him. I’m not sure. Would you negotiate, Frank?’
Surprisingly, perhaps, it seemed like a serious question. He meant it. Would I negotiate? Given the circumstances?
‘Well, it might save more bloodshed,’ I suggested diplomatically.
‘That is not always a good thing, Frank. Sometimes …’
‘Always it is,’ I said firmly.
‘You have this experience?’
‘I do,’ I said, prepared to exaggerate like hell if necessary.
In this case, though, I had no idea who the opposition was, or what they wanted from Leon. The situation was a complete mystery to me. So there was no way in the world my opinion was worth a hill of beans, as some might say. I should keep out of it. My only real interest was in getting back to Newcastle, and then home to Risky Point on the Cleveland coast, as quickly as possible.
‘He wants to meet,’ Leon repeated with a yawn.
‘So you said. Where?’
‘Kotor.’
‘Where’s that?’
‘Montenegro.’
I wondered if I had heard correctly. ‘Montenegro?’
‘It used to be part of Yugoslavia, in Tito’s day, and for a short time afterwards when Milosovic was running things.’
‘And waging war.’
Leon nodded.
‘I know about Yugoslavia,’ I said, thinking suddenly and inappropriately of gaily coloured postage stamps in the album I had had as a boy. ‘Montenegro used to have a king, I believe. But that was a long time ago.’
‘A very long time ago,’ Leon agreed. ‘But it’s still there.’
Montenegro, he meant, not the king.
‘Why does Bobrik want to meet there?’
‘Neutral ground,’ Leon said with another of his shrugs. ‘Also we both have yachts there.’
Of course they did. Oligarchs both, presumably, as well as deadly rivals. So they had to have yachts, and maybe Montenegro was as good a place as any for people like them to moor their yachts.
Neutral, slavonic ground, too, I was thinking. And, like Serbia, akin to Russia culturally. Perhaps they both felt at home there.
‘Will you go?’
‘I don’t know.’ Then he looked me in the eye and added, ‘If I do go, will you come with me, Frank?’
After I had stopped laughing, I told him no – just in case he hadn’t got the message.
‘That’s a pity,’ he said sadly.
‘Leon, what good could I possibly be?’
‘You’re an experienced man,’ he said. ‘Calm, rational – and a good fighter if it comes to that.’
I laughed again, but I was more incredulous than amused.
‘Montenegro’s quite warm at this time of year still,’ he added, ‘even if it does rain a lot.’
‘Forget it,’ I said shortly.
He dropped the idea then. At least, I thought he did. He turned to Olga, who had been listening with rapt attention, and spoke to her in Russian. She nodded. Then he went off to do something else.
‘The helicopter will be here soon,’ Olga told me.
‘That’s good.’
I walked over to the window and stood there moodily, watching a small squall deposit a little more snow in the garden. As if there wasn’t enough already. Then I wondered if it ever snowed in Montenegro. Despite Leon’s airy comment about the weather there, I rather thought it would do. There were mountains in Montenegro, I was nearly sure, and mountains meant snow. Wasn’t it one of those regions of the old Yugoslavia with a skiing industry?
‘The helicopter is coming,’ Olga called, rousing me from my absorption in things that didn’t really matter, or concern me, very much.
It was good news. I turned, smiling gratefully at her. Escape from the mad Podolsky world suddenly looked like being possible.
The helicopter landed in the garden, on what was presumably lawn underneath the snow. By then, I had accepted Leon’s repeated offers of a lift. Not the least of my reasons was that I had satisfied myself that Prague Airport really was out of action. When I rang them, a recorded announcement in umpteen languages said all flights had been cancelled until further notice. That was enough for me to swallow my reservations and agree to travel to Newcastle with Leon and Olga.
The chopper took off without any fuss once we were aboard, raising a fresh snow storm that obliterated the view of the house – and of Lenka. Big sister was staying put, apparently, which was a relief to me. I had had enough of her disdain, bordering on contempt, and I could tell that she still wanted to shoot me. There would have been plenty of opportunities for her if she’d come with us, I suspected. I couldn’t always be on guard.
Leon had seemed to appreciate my standing by his side outside the hotel but when it came to being tough, I wasn’t in the same league as his sister. I’d never met such a
battle-hardened woman as Lenka.
The chopper whisked us away across the city and in a few minutes, we were out over open countryside and farmland. Leon had told me that it would be a twenty minute flight. I was surprised the authorities at the airport we were heading for had been able to keep their runway open. Leon said it was because it was a small airport favoured by the military, who liked to be able to depart for anywhere in the world at a moment’s notice. Useful to know, something like that.
‘And you keep a plane there?’ I asked.
‘No. I charter one from there occasionally, like now. My own plane I keep at Prague Airport.’
‘What about a pilot? Does he come with the charter?’
Leon nodded towards one of the two men who had come aboard with us without being introduced, the one that wasn’t piloting the chopper. ‘Pyotr is my pilot,’ he said. ‘He will fly us to Newcastle.’
Leon was certainly well organized. It was quite a set-up he had. I wondered if the Czech Republic was his main business base, and his country of residence now. I guessed it was. That made me wonder if he was persona non grata back in Russia. I wouldn’t have been surprised. There were plenty like him dotted around the globe, usually people who had fallen foul of the current ruling elite.
We landed, transferred from helicopter to private jet and were air-bound again in a matter of minutes, with a minimum of fuss and a lot of unseen help. I sensed Leon was a known and valued customer. No doubt he was paying hefty retainers every month for the service he received.
The plane was comfortable and afforded me lots of leg room, as Leon had promised. Olga chose to sit next to me, which I welcomed. She was a pleasant companion, and a breath of normalcy in a dangerous world. Surprisingly, she also seemed to be interested in me. She was keen to ask about my life in England, which made me wonder what Leon had told her about me. Next to nothing, probably. The truth was too complicated, and the telling of it would have taken more time than he had had to play with since last night.
So I told her a little, and tried to make my life in England sound as normal and uneventful as possible. I didn’t dare tell her the truth. She might have moved to another seat. As it was, she even wanted to know about the weather. She must have read up on the subjects that interest the English.
From the way Leon got his head down and drifted off to sleep almost immediately, I guessed he had not gone to bed at all overnight. While I had been snatching a few hours in a comfortable, warm bed, he had been talking to the police about the attacks on his hotel, arranging for repairs to be made and no doubt dealing with a great many other matters that occupy oligarchs on a daily, and a nightly, basis.
What I didn’t think – not for one moment – was that the killing of Olga’s abductors had kept him awake. He didn’t seem to be that kind of man.
But Olga and I were both rested, relatively speaking, and she was interested in conversation with me.
‘My brother tells me you are a private investigator, Frank.’
‘Sometimes,’ I admitted. ‘Also a security consultant.’
‘Really? How interesting. But you came to Prague on holiday, Leon says.’
‘I did. Just for a short break. Although Leon was reluctant to accept that.’
She laughed. ‘My brother must always be vigilant. Sometimes, perhaps, I think he overdoes it. Not everyone is a potential enemy, I tell him.’
‘Thank goodness for that, Olga! He needs an adviser like you.’
‘It is the world in which we live,’ she said philosophically. ‘But Prague is an attractive city, I think. Don’t you?’
‘I did – until yesterday afternoon.’
She shivered. ‘Oh, yes. How terrible the events at the hotel must have been.’
‘Not as bad as what you experienced.’
‘Perhaps not. But I am so sorry you have become involved in this terrible situation. Please don’t judge my family on what has happened to us this past day or two.’
I didn’t reply to that. It was hard to believe that the past twenty-four hours had been so exceptional for this family. Leon and Lenka, at least, seemed well used to this sort of life, and well equipped for it.
Not Olga, of course. She was very different.
‘What about you, Olga? How do you spend your time? Are you involved in the family business, too?’
‘In a way,’ she admitted, ‘but not like Leon and Lenka. Computers are my life. I am an IT specialist.’
That rather floored me. I had taken her for someone with an artistic leaning, an aspiring artist even, perhaps.
‘But now,’ she said, ‘I am looking forward to seeing our new house. Will you come with us to Northumberland, Frank?’
I shook my head. ‘I don’t think so, Olga. I have a lot to do when I get home.’
‘Oh?’ She sounded disappointed. ‘But you are our friend! Leon has told me. You must come to see our new English house. Please, Frank!’
I was touched, not to say moved, but my answer was still no.
‘I will be all alone, except for Martha,’ she said miserably.
‘Who’s that?’
‘Oh, you know,’ she said with a sigh.
But I didn’t. Martha? Lenka had mentioned the name, but that was all I knew.
‘You will have Leon with you.’
Olga shook her head. ‘He cannot stay. He has much to do back in Prague. The hotel, for instance. It must be repaired.’
I knew she was right. Leon would have plenty to do back there. There was no question about that. He had a business empire to defend and protect, and to keep functioning.
Right on cue, Leon woke up and entered the conversation as if he had missed nothing.
‘Come and see our house, Frank. I know you don’t want the job I offered you, but come and see it anyway. We would be very pleased if you would.’
That was Leon in best friend mode. He was hard to disappoint. Olga was even harder. They worked on me, and by the time we landed in Newcastle, I had agreed to give their new house the once-over. Why not? I thought. What was wrong with that?
Quite a lot, as it happened. Will I never learn?
Chapter Thirteen
THE CHESTERS HAD ONCE been a grand house, a wonderful palace of a house. About two hundred years ago, maybe. Perhaps longer. When I first saw it, I thought it was a total ruin.
One of Leon’s men had collected us at the airport in a Range Rover and driven us north into lonely Northumberland. Leon assured me that I would be brought back to Newcastle just as soon as I desired. As we headed out into wet, misty countryside, under a lowering dark cloud, I was tempted to say, ‘Hey! Don’t bother. Let me out now.’
The main reason I didn’t was that I wouldn’t have wanted to disappoint the luminous Olga, who was so excited it was like sitting next to a child on Christmas morning.
‘How lovely it all is!’ she exclaimed, as in the gathering gloom we sped down green lanes overhung by wildly dancing trees, not another vehicle in sight.
While Olga shivered with delight, I just thought miserably that I could be halfway home by now, instead of racing down these godforsaken roads. Early afternoon, and already the light was fading fast. The world was covered in cloud, and the new clouds coming from the west were even blacker.
‘It will snow, I think,’ Olga declared excitedly, peering out to the west.
I shook my head. ‘It’s too warm for that. Just more rain.’
‘Rain is good,’ she said confidently, the very model of positive thinking.
Then we reached The Chesters. I stared aghast as the driver edged us carefully between collapsing stone gate posts and began the run up a gravel drive that had long since been invaded by shrubs and trees, as well as grass and ferns. I focused on the building ahead of us. What had happened to the roof, I wondered? And was there glass left in any window at all?
Olga saw it differently. ‘It’s so beautiful,’ she breathed. ‘Oh, Leon! How wonderful. Martha will love it, too.’
That name agai
n. Who the hell was Martha? Not knowing was starting to drive me crazy.
Leon was non-committal when it came to his opinion about the house. He was staring ahead at it just as hard as I was.
Something occurred to me for the first time. ‘Have you been here before?’ I asked Olga, guessing what her answer would be.
‘Never,’ she said, shaking her head.
‘Leon?’ I called to her uncharacteristically quiet brother up front. ‘Have you been before?’
He, too, shook his head.
Dear God, I thought with a wince, astonished. ‘How long have you owned this property, Leon?’
‘A couple of months,’ he replied, without turning around.
‘Seven weeks and three days,’ Olga said definitively. ‘And I have been looking forward so much to seeing it for the first time.’
I gave up then and leant back in my seat. All I could think was what the hell is any of us doing here. Seriously.
The Range Rover came to a stop on a patch of overgrown gravel at the front of the ruined house.
‘Do you want the job, Frank?’ Leon asked with a grin before he opened his door.
I chuckled, without feeling at all amused. ‘We’ve been through that before, Leon.’
‘Do you want it?’ he repeated doggedly. ‘And will you stay here with Olga, or do you want to come back to Newcastle with me?’
‘You’re not staying? You’ve come all this way, but…’
‘I have to get back to Prague. There’s a lot for me to do there.’
‘Please stay, Frank,’ Olga said quietly.
I looked at her and then back at Leon. I could feel her willing me to give the answer she wanted. It was unnerving, and the situation no longer seemed so straightforward.
‘What is the job?’ I asked after a moment. ‘Remind me, Leon.’
We entered what was said to be the living accommodation, and while Olga set out to explore it, Leon quietly explained his ridiculous and all-embracing proposal to me. I was staggered.
‘First, I want you to fly to Montenegro with me, and protect my back, while I have discussions with Bobrik.’
‘Me?’ I said faintly. ‘Why me?’