Change of Heart by Jack Allen

by Unknown

  The grin on his face widened.

  Mironov appeared in the doorway, coming off the floor of Change of Heart

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  Parliament. He walked with a long, confident stride, as if the entire building was his palace. Mironov wasn’t alone. A young woman walked beside him. She was elegantly beautiful, with a small, pert nose and long, black hair. She walked with a haughty air, like she was someone important. Who the hell was she?

  Mironov wouldn’t bring his own mistress, would he?

  He looked at Kobalev and Valeria and stopped. The young woman with the black hair said something to Mironov, but Josh couldn’t hear. He looked at Josh and a grin broke on his face, too.

  Josh dropped back a step. What the hell did this all mean?

  Was Valeria working for him or not?

  Mironov stepped toward Josh with that same proud strut, his arms swinging at his sides. He stopped, glanced back at Valeria and Kobalev, then at Josh.

  “You are too late, McGowan,” Mironov said in English.

  “Nothing you to do now. It seems I have won this time.” Josh tried to think of something to say. He needed some sort of snappy comeback, but his pulse was racing, and he could think of nothing. He looked at Valeria. Her sad eyes broke his heart.

  Mironov went on. “You see, I am next.” He pointed toward the doorway. “The electorate await my appearance, I and Valeria.” He chuckled. “Nothing you can do to stop me.”

  “You bluff poorly, old man,” Josh said.

  Mironov’s smug expression turned sour. “I do not bluff, McGowan. You should know that.”

  Valeria screamed. Every head in the room turned in her direction. Both guards were looking at her. Kobalev winced and jerked her by the arm. Valeria struggled to get free and screamed again. One of the guards started toward her.

  “Relax, relax,” Mironov said, switching to Russian. He moved to intercept the guard. “It’s a simple disagreement.” The guard hesitated, looking at him. Josh drew his pistol. It looked like there might be a way out of this and he might be able to keep Valeria alive.

  Someone else screamed. Josh turned and saw a woman with 302

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  her hand over her mouth, pointing at him. She had seen his pistol.

  The guard turned.

  Valeria jerked her arm from Kobalev’s hand, shoved him in the chest with both hands, and ran. Kobalev stumbled backward, then ran after her.

  “Bring her back,” Mironov shouted, pointing after Valeria.

  The guard was only a step away from Josh, between him and Kobalev. He took a step backward and drew his pistol from the holster on his hip as Kobalev bolted after Valeria.

  “Drop the weapon,” the guard said.

  As his hand came up with the pistol, Josh stepped to his inside and grabbed him by the wrist with his right hand, forcing the arm up. A shot fired into the ceiling, and more people screamed. Josh brought his left hand up and cracked the butt of his gun against the side of his head. The guard groaned. Josh ducked under his arm and flipped him over his shoulder. The guard landed on his face at Josh’s feet and did not move.

  Two more guards were coming toward him, drawing their guns. Mironov was shouting and pointing at him. The rest of the people in the room had backed away or dropped to the floor and covered their heads.

  The door at the side where Kobalev had gone through was swinging shut. Josh jumped over the body of the unconscious guard and ran for the door. He heard voices behind him, but did not look back.

  Through the door was a stairwell. He heard footsteps below and looked over the rail. Kobalev stopped and looked up, then leaped for the bottom.

  The door behind him squeaked. Josh saw a hand with a gun cautiously coming through. He slammed his shoulder into the door, crushing the guard on the other side. The guard slumped to the floor, laying halfway through the door. Another shot fired, punching a neat hole through the door. Josh ducked and ran down the stairs.

  The steel door at the bottom opened onto a narrow basement corridor. The floor was white tile, the walls were gray painted Change of Heart

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  cinder block, and the stark lighting came from single bulb lights in the ceiling, evenly spaced down the length of the corridor. It was as silent as a tomb.

  Josh raised his pistol. Kobalev would be down there somewhere, looking for Valeria and waiting for him, unless they had found a stairway leading up to another part of the building. From the other side of the steel door, Josh heard the hard click of boots on the stairs. The guards were coming down right behind him.

  He didn’t want to kill them. He’d probably already pissed off half the Russian Army.

  He sprinted down the corridor, looking for someplace to hide. The corridor broke off to the right into a dark, cluttered storage area. Josh slipped around the corner just as the steel door squeaked open. He heard an officer’s voice speaking in Russian, and the scuffle of boots on the tiled floor. On the left side of the storage area was a door with a plastic sign engraved with the word

  “maintenance” in Russian. The right side of the area was crowded with dusty old desks, broken chairs, shelving units, and other used office furniture. Josh opened the door to the maintenance closet a couple of inches and quickly ducked behind one of the huge, wooden bookcases.

  The sound of the boots grew louder. Josh raised his pistol, waiting for the guards to come around the corner.

  Three of them appeared, all carrying Makarov’s. One was an officer, pointing and giving orders. He looked straight in Josh’s direction, but must not have seen him in the darkness.

  “Check that door,” the officer said, pointing to the maintenance closet.

  The guard stepped into the darkness of the storage area and approached the closet cautiously. The officer and the other guard moved on down the corridor, trying the handles of each door.

  Josh crouched behind a dusty desk and pointed his pistol at the back of the guard on the other side of the storage area, ready to fire a shot into him if he turned. The guard pushed the closet door open with his foot, holding the pistol in both hands at arm’s length. He inched carefully into the tiny, dark room, swinging his 304

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  pistol side to side.

  The officer’s voice shouted from somewhere farther down the corridor. The guard rushed out of the closet, knocking over an office chair, and ran down the cooridor to catch up.

  Josh let out a deep breath. His heart was pounding and drops of sweat ran down his cheeks from his forehead. He wiped it away and climbed out from behind the desk and bookshelf, being careful not to make any noise or knock anything over.

  He paused at the opening of the corridor, brushing the dust from his pants, waiting for any more guards who might come down the stairs, but the only thing he heard were the echoes of the voice of the officer growing fainter.

  Now what? How was he supposed to find Valeria before Kobalev or those guards, and how the hell was he going to get her out of there without a gunfight?

  At least he didn’t have to worry about Kobalev killing Valeria, not yet, anyway. Mironov wanted her back, so he must still need her, and she was better to him alive than dead. That meant he could still carry out his promise to Yuri and bring her back.

  It wasn’t fair. He was the one who went to all this trouble, risking his neck to keep her alive, only to hand her over to another man. He wanted to take her back home with him. He wanted to be the one she loved.

  He started off down the corridor, staying out of sight of the guards. They had rounded a corner somewhere up ahead, but they could double back any time. Josh had no idea where to begin looking for Valeria. For all he knew, Kobalev already had her and they were making their petition to Parliament on the floor directly over his head. The basement could turn out to be a maze of tight corridors, and he would probably be lost in them until the guards hunted him down.

  A door squeaked just as he went past. He slid to a stop and swung the pistol around in both hands. A
wooden door opened an inch. Through the crack, he saw a single, frightened eye peer-ing back.

  “Joshua?” Valeria’s weak voice said.

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  Josh lowered his pistol and held out his hand. “Valeria. Let’s get out of here before Kobalev finds us.” She opened the door a few more inches, and he saw more of her face in the light from the hall, like a terrified child. Her wide eyes flickered past Josh and her mouth fell open.

  Josh turned just in time to get a mouthful of hard steel. He dropped to the tile floor on his hands and knees. His pistol slipped from his hands and skittered across the floor between Kobalev’s feet.

  “You were very close, McGowan. Very close,” Kobalev said.

  Josh looked up at his face, feeling in his mouth with his tongue for any loose teeth. Kobalev stood over him, his Makarov pointed at his head.

  “You were stupid to come here,” Kobalev went on. “You had no chance of success, not while I am in control.” He chuckled.

  “Your body will only serve as a trophy for the Communist Party, an American spy caught in the bowels of the Kremlin by the best of the KGB. More proof of the impotence of the democratic system.”

  The door creaked. Kobalev looked at it, grinning with his crooked teeth. He circled Josh, inching toward the door, and reached back to push it open. He put his hand on the edge of the door and it slammed shut on his fingers. Kobalev screamed.

  Josh leaped up under his arm and hit Kobalev in the midsection with his shoulder. They crashed backward through the door.

  Valeria screamed and fell on her bottom. Josh landed on top of Kobalev. He glanced at Valeria and Kobalev hit him on the side of the head with the Makarov.

  Josh grabbed Kobalev’s wrist and forced it down. The back of his hand smacked on the tiled floor and he released the Makarov, which slid over to Valeria. Josh saw her pick it up, but Kobalev’s wrist wiggled free of his grip and his fist struck Josh in the jaw.

  As he rolled off Kobalev, Valeria ran past them to the open door. Kobalev got up, using his good hand. Josh noticed two fingers on his left hand were bent backward. Kobalev kicked Josh 306

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  in the stomach. Josh doubled over on the floor, blinded with pain.

  Kobalev kicked him again and Josh grabbed his ankle before he could pull his leg back.

  Kobalev shouted a curse, hopping on one leg to keep his balance. Josh swept his leg out and kicked Kobalev’s leg from under him. He dropped like a bag of rocks on his back and his head bounced on the floor. Josh jumped on top of him while he was dazed and locked his arm around his neck, squeezing until Kobalev went limp.

  “Val?” Josh said, gasping for breath.

  He heard a noise and froze like a statue.

  “I give you credit, McGowan. You have courage of a lion,” Mironov said.

  Josh turned around on his knees. Mironov was behind Valeria.

  His left hand was clamped over her mouth and his right hand held Josh’s Smith & Wesson to her temple.

  “You don’t know how I wait for this moment,” Mironov said.

  “I am to execute you with my hands. You should be honored.

  I wouldn’t think of leaving such opportunity to a mere soldier.” He nodded toward Kobalev’s body on the floor. “He is dead?”

  “I thinks he’s still alive.”

  Mironov frowned. “Pity.”

  Valeria’s wide eyes stared at Josh. He could see how terrified she was. What he couldn’t see was how he was going to get them out of this. Mironov needed Valeria, but he would not hesitate to kill her to prevent them both from escaping. On the other hand, she had a good chance of surviving if he let Mironov kill him, but he didn’t like that idea. He had to come up with something, somehow.

  “Shoot me,” Josh said, wondering what the hell he was doing as he rose to his feet.

  Mironov balked. He was taken aback. His left eyebrow arched up as if he was intrigued by Josh’s actions. Josh slapped his chest.

  “Come on! Do it!”

  The woman with the long black hair appeared in the doorway Change of Heart

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  behind Mironov. She gasped and shouted in Russian, “What’s going on here?”

  Mironov heard her, but was not distracted. He pointed the Smith & Wesson at Josh and fired. Josh dropped to the floor.

  The woman in the doorway screamed. Her voice pierced his eardrums.

  Valeria pried her wrist from Mironov’s grip. Her small foot hooked on the inside of his big feet, and she lost her balance and fell on her butt with a grunt.

  Mironov grasped for Valeria as she fell. Josh noticed it the instant it happened. It was a crucial mistake. Mironov pointed the gun down at Valeria, forgetting Josh for not more than a second.

  By the time Mironov realized his mistake and attempted to bring the gun back up, Josh had already lunged forward.

  Mironov was a large man. Josh stuck his good shoulder into Mironov’s middle with all the strength he had left, despite his injuries. It was like tackling a tree.

  Mironov’s body stopped Josh’s momentum immediately, knocking the wind out of him. Mironov toppled, much like a tree, seeming to hover on one foot like a rotund ballerina, then falling and landing hard on his side. Valeria scrambled to get out from under him before he crushed her. The Smith & Wesson came out of Mironov’s hand, bounced once, and came to a stop a foot from his fingers.

  Josh picked himself up, gasping for air. Mironov reached for the gun. Josh’s mind blanked. He had assumed the fight was over and let up. He was standing over Mironov when he turned, raised the gun, and fired.

  Josh twisted his body sideways to avoid the shot. He felt a sudden, searing pain in his midsection. Blinded by the pain and the fear that he had taken a large caliber slug to his gut from his own gun, he grabbed Mironov’s wrist with his right hand and pushed it away. There was another searing pain in his forearm that felt like the stitches in his cut were being ripped out.

  Mironov fired another shot into the ceiling. The look on Mironov’s face was desperation. One moment he was in com-308

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  plete control of the situation, and the next he had completely lost control to a more determined opponent. Josh felt no compassion for him. Gritting his teeth, he squeezed Mironov’s wrist tighter.

  On the contrary. He was furious.

  Josh pushed his knee against Mironov’s elbow and bent his arm back. Mironov cried out in pain, but refused to drop the gun. Josh was angry enough to snap the arm in two.

  The screaming woman creeped into his consciousness, as if he noticed her for the first time. Josh looked at her. How long had she been screaming like that?

  “Who is she?” Josh shouted at Mironov.

  His ears were ringing from the young woman’s screams.

  Mironov did not answer.

  “Who is she?” Josh repeated, as loud as he could.

  Mironov looked at her, then looked away.

  “She is my daughter,” he said.

  Josh stiffened inside. His mouth would have fallen open, but he didn’t want his shock to show. He did not anticipate this. His mouth opened to speak as if on its own. The words that came out did not sound like his own.

  “She picked a bad day to visit you at the office,” he said, and was ashamed of himself.

  It sounded like bravado he did not feel. He pried the Smith

  & Wesson from Mironov’s weakened grip and jammed the end of the barrel firmly to his temple. The old man shook with fear.

  “This is it, Mironov. It ends here,” Josh growled.

  “Then end it.”

  Josh pulled the trigger. The muffled gun made a whispery

  ‘whump’ sound. Mironov’s head jerked to the side like it had been hit with a baseball bat. A red shower of blood and bits of flesh splattered over the tiled floor and the wall.

  Mironov’s daughter stopped screaming, and a silence fell over the room. Mironov went limp. Josh released him and h
is dead body dropped to the floor.

  “Nyet. Nyet,” Mironov’s daughter cried.

  Her head shook side to side. Josh backed away, feeling uneasy Change of Heart

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  about executing the man in front of his daughter. She ran to her father’s body and fell over it, weeping.

  Josh leaned back against a shelving unit, feeling weak. Valeria was staring at him in horror. He’d seen the look in her eyes before in other people. It was the look they got when they saw him for the first time as a monster. Josh turned his eyes down.

  He wished she hadn’t seen him like this.

  A hole was ripped in the front of his jacket. The edges of the hole were burned and stained with blood. Josh unbuttoned the jacket and his shirt with his trembling fingers. How ironic to be shot by his own gun after all he’d been through.

  Across the left side of his abdomen, just below his rib cage, was a big, red gash, but no entry wound. Josh sighed, and cool perspiration washed over his face.

  Valeria cringed. “Did the bullet go in?”

  “No,” Josh said. He closed the shirt and jacket. “I’ll live another day.” He grabbed Valeria’s hand. “Come on, we’ve got to find a way out of here.”

  “I know a way,” Valeria said.

  “Good, good.” Josh paused. “How do you know something like that?”

  Valeria looked straight at him. “I did some of my best work in this building,” she said.

  Josh nodded, remembering what she did for the KGB.

  Mironov’s daughter jumped up, screaming curses in Russian, and ran at him. Josh pointed his gun at her, then lowered it when he saw she wasn’t armed. She pounded on his chest with her fists, cursing him in Russian.

  She looked up at him with black eyes. Her tears had stopped.

  There was nothing but hatred in them. When she spoke, her voice was low and cold, like ice water.

  “I swear to God I will make you pay for this if it takes my entire life. I will kill you,” she said.

  Josh studied her face for a second, then nodded. “Maybe you’ll get that chance,” he said, and dragged Valeria out.

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  * * * *

  Josh shivered. The air was much cooler that late at night. He and Valeria stood in the shadows of a pine tree, watching the road. She wore his jacket, and she, too, shivered. They had been standing there for a long time.