Andrei rode with a silent Galina to meet Rhiannon in Strelna. Vladimir had called on his mobile and told him what had happened at Viktor’s. From a tactical standpoint, the evening’s operations had been a resounding success. All of the enemy were vanquished and the allied forces hadn’t suffered a single casualty. But from any other point of view, the results were as horrifying as the Battle of Leningrad sixty years before. It had been a massacre. He thought about what Rhiannon had done at Ayr.
He decided he should talk to Collin. It was time to retire and find another career. Before some woman killed him.
As the bus slowed and pulled into Viktor’s estate, Galina turned to him. “I’m sorry. It got away from me. I really didn’t mean to kill all those people.”
She looked miserable, as though she was ready to burst into tears. Andrei had a daughter her age, and his heart melted. Without thinking, he spread his arms. To his shock, she stepped into him, her arms around his back, and laid her head on his shoulder. She was as tall as he was. He held her for a minute or so before she pulled away. Her eyes were dry, and her face was more relaxed.
“Thank you,” she said. “Your children are lucky to have you.” Then she turned and walked away.
“Status?” Andrei asked Rhiannon and Vladimir as he stepped off the bus.
“No idea of total enemy casualties,” Vladimir reported. “We found about ninety bodies, including those we retrieved from the Gulf. There are over a hundred prisoners, and our healers have their hands full with them. Some of the buildings are still intact, but the main house is a total loss.”
“Total loss,” Andrei repeated, looking around at the wreckage. “You haven’t seen a total loss. Alexander’s compound is nonexistent. I’m not even worried about containment. I brought all of our force with me. I’ll let the authorities try to figure out what happened there, and good luck to them.”
“Now you know why they name hurricanes after women,” Collin said as he stepped from the darkness with Jill and Rebecca. Rebecca punched him in the arm.
He held out a mobile phone. “Galina, your stepmother has been trying to call you.”
They all knew that Maria, her stepmother and Leonid’s mother, was her only ally in her family. Maria knew that Alexander’s older sons would either kill Leonid or at best exile him. She had pledged her support to Galina in exchange for a pledge of her son’s safety.
Galina snatched the phone from him and punched buttons. She walked away from them, holding the phone to her ear.
When she came back, she said, “Maria says my father died a couple of hours ago. Dmitri, my father’s head of security, is holding her prisoner. He’s trying to contact Viktor, but hasn’t been able to reach him.”
“Viktor’s mobile probably doesn’t work underwater,” Vladimir said, waving toward the wreckage of the house. “We did find his body, though. He wasn’t one of the ones who washed away.”
Rhiannon looked at Andrei. *Did you find Alexander’s?*
*We didn’t even look. There were some body parts mixed in with the match sticks that were left of the house. The only way he would have survived is if he wasn’t home.*
“She also said that she received a call from Leonid’s house,” Galina continued. “Alexander’s men were there looking for him. But there was another raid a couple of weeks ago, and Leonid decided it would be safer in Paris until things were settled here.”
Rhiannon exchanged looks with Vladimir and Andrei.
“What is the situation at your father’s place?” Collin asked.
“Dmitri holds the estate. He has about a thousand men.”
“Do you think he’ll see reason, or will we have to assault the place?”
“I don’t know,” Galina said. “If we tell him that Viktor is dead, he may decide to accept my authority. Or he may hold out hoping to get a better deal from Alexander.”
“Well, let’s you and me go talk to him,” Rhiannon said. She looked at Jill. “Can I talk you into coming?”
“Wait a second,” Vladimir said. “You’re not going alone. You may be the strongest set of telepaths here, but you need someone to watch your back.”
Rhiannon started to object, but Jill placed a hand on her arm and gave a small shake of her head. *We don’t have time to argue.*
“Pick two men and let’s go,” Jill said to Vladimir.
To her surprise, Collin stepped forward, holding Rebecca’s arm. “If you get killed, Seamus will use my hide for a sofa cover. I might as well make sure I go down before you do. Getting shot will probably be less painful.”
Galina contacted her stepmother telepathically, and then gave Jill the image for a landing spot. The party linked hands and Jill teleported with them into Maria’s bedroom, every nerve on edge and ready to jump them out again. Through her link to Andrei, she heard him move their troops into position around the estate.
Maria Romanova wasn’t much older than her stepdaughter. Tall and blonde, she spoke Russian with a Czech accent. Obviously distraught, she sent a beseeching look toward Galina. It wasn’t just Leonid’s survival that worried her, Rhiannon realized, but also her own.
“This is very risky,” Maria said. “I’m sure Viktor and Alexander are looking for you, too. And Dmitri might try to use you to bargain himself a deal.”
“Your husband’s sons are dead,” Rhiannon told her in Czech. “We’re here to ensure Galina becomes Clan Chief, and we have over a thousand men waiting to assault the estate. The only bargaining Dmitri will do is with us.”
The blood drained from Maria’s face and she staggered to a chair.
“Who are you?” she asked.
“I’m the heir to the Irish O’Neill Clan. The other women are Seamus O’Donnell’s daughter and granddaughter. Are you going to help us?”
Maria looked to Galina. “Will you protect us? You promised.”
“Jill, why don’t you take her to Andrei and then come back?” Rhiannon said. “If things get sticky here, she could get hurt.”
“That’s a good idea,” Galina said. Jill strode over to Maria, grasped her elbow, and disappeared. She returned to her original landing spot less than a minute later.
“Okay,” Jill said. “What do we do next? I assume you had some sort of plan prior to dropping into the lion’s den.”
“If I had a plan, I wouldn’t need you,” Rhiannon said with a grin. “What is it that Brenna calls it, Plan T? If everything goes to hell, teleport out.”
“If that’s the case, you’d better stay close to me. I’m not Brenna, and I can only take you with me if we’re in physical contact.”
Wrapping themselves in air shields, Rhiannon picked the lock to the door and stepped out into the hall. The guards stationed there startled and reached for her. She downed them both with light shocks of Neural Disruption, not enough to do lasting damage. Turning to the other women, she motioned them to follow her and strode off down the hall, looking for Dmitri.
As she walked, Rhiannon drew her pistol and held it against her leg. Looking over her shoulder, she saw that the rest, including Galina, were also armed. Vladimir carried an assault rifle. Drawing on the household electricity, she filled her reserves and kept the link to the lines in the walls.
Rhiannon and Galina walked in front with Rebecca and Jill behind them. Collin and Vladimir formed their rear guard. Taking a turn into another hallway, they met two women.
“Hello, Olga,” Galina said. The other woman responded, but since Galina kept going, the women didn’t look back.
They came to an open, circular room filled with plush furniture and potted plants. Two men were sitting there talking, but they stopped abruptly and sprang to their feet.
“Where is Dimitri?” Galina demanded. “I need to talk to him.”
“Who is that?” one of the men said, motioning to Rhiannon and the others.
“My friend Ekaterina,” Galina replied. “Where’s Dmitri?”
“Who are these people?” the man demanded again.
“Re
ally?” Galina said, putting her hand on her hip and trying to stare him down. “It’s her boyfriend, my cousin and her husband, and her sister. Look, I don’t have time for this. I need to talk to Dmitri. Something’s happening at Viktor’s.”
“We’ve been trying to reach Viktor for the past three hours. His communications are down. We’ve sent men over there, but no one has returned.”
*We’ve captured all the men who came out of here,* Rhiannon sent.
“I guess my communications are better than yours,” Galina said. “There’s been an attack at Viktor’s. Probably that bastard Alexander. Now, where is Dmitri?”
“He’s in his office,” the other man replied.
“Thank you,” Galina said, spinning on her heel and heading for another hallway. Rhiannon went with her. Behind them, there was a dual thump, and when they turned back, they saw the two men sprawl on the floor. Collin and Vladimir hurriedly dragged them to two of the couches and dumped them. They looked like they were sleeping.
*Collin slammed them into the ceiling telekinetically,* Rebecca sent.
Rhiannon looked up. The ceiling was made of birch planks held up with heavy beams.
They crossed into another wing of the house, and here there were more people, mostly armed men. The men eyed Galina’s party, but no one tried to stop them. Eventually, they came to a large office with an open door. The six of them walked in, and Vladimir closed the door. Sitting behind a desk and surrounded with computer monitors sat a thin man with gray hair.
“I heard a rumor that my father has died,” Galina said. “I also heard that you are looking for me. Well, here I am. Let’s talk.”
Dmitri Sholokhov regarded her, his eyes shifting to her entourage and back. “Yes, Alexander is dead. I’ve been trying to contact all of his children. We need to ensure that the succession is smooth. The other Clans are probably waiting to pounce. All of these ridiculous rumors about a succession squabble must be put to rest.”
“Oh, is that all?” Galina said, flopping into a chair. “Well, that’s all taken care of. Viktor and Alexander are dead, and Leonid is out of the country. The other Clans, at least those that know, are backing my claim. So everything is taken care of. You can tell your security personnel to stand down. I’ll begin going through the rosters and deciding who I’ll keep in the morning. For now, my guard will take over here.”
Rhiannon slipped through the keyhole into Galina’s mind. The woman was as nervous as a cat trapped in a dog kennel, but outwardly, one would never know it.
“How do I know Viktor is dead?” Sholokhov asked, his hand slowly slipping into a drawer out of Galina’s sight. Rhiannon slammed the drawer shut using Telekinesis.
“Ahhhh!” Sholokhov shrieked, jumping backward.
“That would be a very silly thing to do,” Rhiannon said, raising her pistol from her side and showing it to him. “As to Viktor, his dacha was hit by ... a tidal wave earlier this evening.” She turned to Vladimir. “Did he drown?”
“Crushed. He was in an upstairs bedroom with a young woman when the roof collapsed. The healers think she’ll live, but she’ll probably never walk again,” Vladimir said.
“And Alexander’s dacha was hit by a tornado earlier this evening,” Galina said.
“A tornado or an ice storm?” Jill asked.
“Well, a frozen tornado. It doesn’t really matter. We haven’t recovered his body, but there were eight hundred and thirty-two people in the compound. As far as we know, there were no survivors,” Galina said. “So even if he wasn’t there, he doesn’t have much to back him up.”
She stood. “Dmitri, please cooperate. Call your men and tell them to stand down. If they don’t, we’ll open the gates,” she nodded toward the control panel for the security systems next to him, “and signal our forces to take the compound. I’d really prefer to keep the house from damage.”
“You said other Clans were backing you. Which ones?” Sholokhov said with a sneer.
“Donald and I are from O’Neill,” Rhiannon said. Pointing to Jill, she said, “She’s representing O’Donnell.” She looked at Rebecca. “Who’s representing O’Byrne?”
*I guess you are. Lady O’Byrne is your aunt,* Rebecca sent.
“Oh. And I’m also representing O’Byrne.”
“You sold us out to the Irish?” Sholokhov snarled.
“We also have a representative from Gorbachev,” Rhiannon said. “But she needed to get a manicure, so she isn’t with us tonight.”
“Who do you think will protect you when your friends go home?” Sholokhov asked.
“The loyal members of the Romanov Clan,” Galina answered. “But you and your thugs won’t be around to challenge them. I’ll give you one more chance. You can walk out of here with your mind intact, out of deference to the service you gave my father, or I’ll burn out your Gifts before I exile you. You have five seconds to order your men to stand down.”
Rhiannon had been working on the man’s shields since she walked in the room. She was almost in when Rebecca said, “Screw this.” The English words were jarring.
Dimitri’s eyes flew wide and he stiffened. A panicked look crossed his face, then he slumped. Turning toward his console, he flipped a switch and began speaking. At the same time, he sent out a mental broadcast.
Both messages told everyone that the elder Alexander was dead, and that attacks by the Gorbachev Clan had killed Viktor and the younger Alexander. Luckily, said Dmitri, Galina had rallied the Romanov forces and dealt with the intruders. Galina now was assuming the leadership of the Clan and her orders were to be followed without question. In the light of the treachery by Gorbachev, her security forces would be assuming control of the compound until everyone could be checked for loyalty. Then he turned off all the security systems and opened all the gates to the compound.
“Do you mind explaining that?” Collin asked.
“Take a look in his mind,” Rebecca answered. “The son of a bitch has been planning this for years. He wasn’t looking for Viktor to secure the seat. Dmitri planned to kill him. Then he’d tell Alexander that Galina did it, and tell Galina that Alexander did it. Play them off against each other and kill them both. Then this would become the Sholokhov Clan.”
Looking in Dmitri’s mind, Rhiannon confirmed what Rebecca told them. Sholokhov had been an independent Clan that was absorbed after it was almost destroyed during the Battle of Leningrad.
“Okay,” Jill said after reading Sholokhov’s mind, “but why did you implicate Gorbachev?”
“Galina needs an external enemy to rally her people. She can’t just say that she killed all the opposition and have people trust her. But if they were killed by outsiders, and she prevented the Clan being conquered by the nasty Gorbachevs, she’s a hero.”
Galina looked startled, and then smiled. “Are you sure you’re not Russian? That is a masterful piece of Soviet-era propaganda you’re spinning.”
“Thank you,” Rebecca said, returning the smile. “The other thing is that after the losses tonight, and the purge that’s coming, Romanov will be severely weakened. The Gorbachev threat provides cover for the alliance with the Irish Clans. And the whole story justifies us moving against Gorbachev to protect an ally.”
“Tell me you had this all planned out,” Rhiannon said. “If you tell me you came up with this spiel in the last few minutes, I’m going to be terrified.” She paused. “Actually, the fact that you thought it up at all terrifies me. Have you been studying Machiavelli?”
“Every night before I go to bed.”
“Give me a break,” Collin said. “She plans better than you or Brenna do, and I’m willing to concede that she probably had bits and pieces of this swirling around in her head, trying to figure out how it all fit, but it came together after we reached this office.”
“Shhh,” Rebecca said, putting a finger to her lips. “You’re blowing my cover as a master strategist.”
“Any problem with any of this?” Jill asked Galina. Receiving an enthusiast
ic shake of the head as an answer, she said, “Tell your people to come in and take charge. We’ll keep our people out unless you need us.”
Jill stayed with Andrei and a contingent of O’Donnell Protectors. The rest of their force withdrew to Viktor’s estate for the night. Rhiannon and Vladimir accompanied Rebecca and Collin back to the city.
“You really figured all of that out in a few minutes?” Rhiannon asked as they shared a bottle of vodka on the bus.
“There were a lot of possible outcomes to this thing,” Rebecca said. “You have to see the endgame to figure out what the final spin is going to be. With you and Galina going off script, we need to go for the big lie. You’re a telekinetic. Don’t you know how much water weighs? And Galina had to do you one better and freeze the damn water. I envisioned a hammer to lessen casualties. You two used a fucking howitzer to drive a nail.”
~~~
Chapter 17
A woman is like a tea bag - you can't tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water. - Eleanor Roosevelt
“What do you plan to do with the Gorbachev turncoat that led Galina to Irina?” Andrei asked one evening over dinner.
“Turn him into a sock puppet,” Rhiannon said. Vladimir choked on his drink, and Irina broke into giggles.
“And?” Andrei pursued the subject.
“Let him go back to Moscow with his new girlfriend.”
All eyes at the table turned to her.
“You want someone inside, right? Well, does anyone have a better idea?”
A few days later, Irina sat tied to a chair, several shots of vodka in her to make her appear drugged while Galina made a video. She told Sergei that she was Clan Chief now and she needed Gorbachev to stay out of Romanov business. The camera cut to Irina, who tried to mumble something, and then a voice over by Galina saying that Romanov had Sergei’s granddaughter. If he didn’t play ball, Galina would give her to the sharks.
The original purpose of the video wasn’t a concern anymore, but Irina hoped it would draw Sergei out of hiding. Rhiannon’s new ‘boyfriend’, Vasily Lapin, would deliver the disk.
To reinforce the boyfriend perception, after Rebecca implanted a construct and a new set of memories in his mind, Rhiannon had taken Vasily to the bank and emptied his account. Then he’d taken her shopping, where she bought presents, mostly amber jewelry, for Brenna, Morrighan, Rebecca and Lady O’Byrne. She also bought some jewelry and clothes for herself, including a sable coat. She sent the gifts with Rebecca and Collin when they flew back to Ireland with the majority of the Protectors.
Succubus Ascendant: An Urban Fantasy (The Telepathic Clans Saga Book 4) Page 18