Retaliation

by Paul C. Middleton

  Mongolia had no problem accepting the refugees crossing their border but had no desire to make a great fanfare of it. With China weakened, Russia was now a bigger threat militarily. Still, Russia was out of position to do much to Mongolia, considering the existing tensions on its Western border with NATO and the Baltic States.

  Also unusual was that the pack leader was female. It wasn’t unheard of, but Sarangerel was an unusual woman. She and Boris had fallen out of contact since the fall of communism, and Boris knew the rebuke was for him going insular and quiet on her.

  She had sought him out to train her when she decided, at the age of thirty, that she wanted to lead the Mongolian pack. At times in history, he had been forced to take over from a vicious or stupid pack leader who crossed Peter. The idea of having that region’s pack leader indebted to him had a definite appeal. With Danislav and some of the other senior wolves assisting, he had tutored her not only in fighting but also in administration, law, and the Strictures.

  She still owed him. While he probably should have sent a message to her, he had simply forgotten. He had sent the messenger back with apologies and an assurance that the refugees would not be there long. He reminded her that the Mongolians had walked the tightrope between hiding North Korean refugees and keeping positive relations with that nation successfully for years. Promising to discuss improving their communications with his oath-sworn leader, Boris had thought that the messenger’s eyes would pop out in surprise.

  After all, he had refused for centuries to swear an oath to serve Peter. That was one thing that the Mongolian pack did know. For him to accept another as his leader was new and unsettling, he suspected.

  When they crossed the border, Boris was at the head of the column. He saw a woman on horseback and smiled. Sarangerel had come to meet them personally.

  “And how does the day treat you, Pack Mistress?” he asked her.

  She scowled at him. “If there were not relatives between my pack and yours who thought to phone ahead, you would have me in a very bad situation, Boris.” She held her hands together in front of her, tapping the thumbs together. “What excuse do you have for me, Old Bear?”

  “You’ll probably meet my excuse when the pickup for my people arrives. I suspect she’ll want to see them off.”

  Sarangerel’s eye widened “I thought you were too much of another era to oath-swear to a female. Who is she anyway?”

  His eyes darkened. “She is the woman who changed Michael, Sarangerel. That is all I really needed to know about her. The devotion that her followers show her was just the cream on the milk.”

  “You mentioned him a couple of times. My people still think he’s somewhat of a myth, you know.”

  Boris grabbed her down off her horse in a rapid movement. He shook her gently. “Don’t, whatever you do, say that to Bethany Anne. She lost him a few months ago. He now lies with the heroes. In his death, he prevented hundreds from being killed by a nuke, including myself. Swear to me you will not bring him up in front of her! I will not have you cause her pain, Sarangerel.”

  Sarangerel was startled and a bit frightened, although her only sign of that was a subtle widening of her eyes. She had never seen Boris take such an action. What had been meant to be a passing comment had invoked fear in him. Real fear. “Yes, Boris. I understand,” she said, placing her hands in placation on his wrists. They tightened even more on her shoulders, so she added, “I swear I will not bring it up unless absolutely necessary.”

  Boris released her shoulders “What do you mean ‘Absolutely necessary’”

  “China’s Weres are up to something. I cannot get a read on it. You know how explaining them, and their attitudes might bring up their general contempt for Michael and his children. They barely accepted Peter’s punishments and believed Michael to be a boogieman invented by Peter to keep them under control. Your staunch support of Peter and the number of times you defeated their attempts at expansion was all that kept them in check. Now they are moving…”

  “They will receive the same option my Czarina gave China’s government. Try to kill me, sue for peace, or die. You will not have the luxury the Mongolian pack has so often taken between me and their provocations, Sarangerel. With Bethany Anne, if you are a part of the UnknownWorld, you are on her side, or you will be hunted and eliminated. Neutrality will not be a solution for you, especially if you don’t want me to challenge for your pack and absorb it. Bethany Anne may not see it as I do, but the storm is coming. It is almost upon us. I will not leave any but allies at her back.”

  Sarangerel was shocked. This was her teacher. He had taught her that unless the situation was most dire, neutrality was the best option. He truly believed such great changes were coming to make that threat.

  She lowered her head in submission.

  Boris turned and saw a black pod dropping from the sky. The two watched in silence as it stopped and hovered a few feet above the ground. Boris was surprised to see Dan open the hatch and wave to him.“Boris, Janna asked for some help from a more experienced interrogator. They have a live one apparently. So Bethany Anne sent me to pick you up and help. Come on.”

  Boris bowed slightly to Sarangerel, “It seems other duties call. I hope to talk to you later, student.” He turned and hurried to the pod.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Command Container, Siberia.

  The pod landed two kilometers away from the container. If there was a chance that the Russians could localize the radar signature of the pod, there was no point in making the task easier for them.

  “So what is so important that you were called in? I know I don’t like rigorous interrogation techniques, but if you are getting a site or location, you can confirm it. If it’s a ticking clock situation same deal. I have done it in the past. Besides, how did they get their hands on him?” Boris asked.

  “Which question do you want to be answered first?” Dan responded with a grin.

  “How they got him.”

  “Well, they received some intelligence from one of the groups. It seems that he had a cover job as security for a brothel. One of the regular visitors came in on a set schedule accompanied by two guards in uniforms with NVG flashes. So Janna went in as if she were looking for work. After knocking out the brothel owner, she killed the two guards and with our man’s help left the building with the visitor. He was threatening her with how she’d be tortured when his boss came to retrieve him. Danislav helped her get him back to the command container.”

  “Since it isn’t moving anytime soon, outside of an emergency, the entrenched team has moved the beds to the side of the container and set up tents and camouflage netting for more concealment. Inside of all of that, they’ve left the captive chained to a chair most of the day. A heavy, metal chair. Paul wanted to interrogate him immediately, but instead Janna has been questioning him eighteen hours a day for three days straight. She’s pulled a lot of information out of him. Apparently, the leader is a man with terrifying eyes called Konrad.”

  Boris’s face took on a grim cast. He knew of only one vampire with that name. One of David’s children. Boris had personally killed two of his brothers in the Great Patriotic War which complicated things. It meant there might be a personal aspect to this whole situation. Vampires could plan for centuries before taking revenge. Peter had assured Boris he had not revealed his identity to anyone but Michael, but could it have slipped out somehow?

  Then he suddenly realized a part that was just as worrying. Janna had gone through the mission practically alone.

  His eyes stretching wide, Boris started immediately to bitch, “What in the nine hells were those diaper wearing dipstick fuckers thinking? Letting her go on a mission like that with practically no backup? It was too dangerous. I swear I will find a way to make my displeasure known about their ill-judged, reckless…” Boris’s rant was interrupted by a chuckle from Dan.

  “You have it bad, Boris,” he said.

  Boris stopped his tirade to stare at Dan. “What do yo
u mean?”

  “You are in love, my friend.” He held up his hand to forestall Boris. “I’ve seen this reaction from a Were before. When Ecatrina told Nathan that she wanted to be part of active operations, he hit the ceiling. Get it under control before you see her. Otherwise, it will get messy. I reviewed the mission and the plan was solid. They had an inside man, who has gone to ground, by the way. He was in far more danger than Janna. She’s capable and a Werebear now. The job was a piece of cake.”

  Boris blinked. After actually listening to Dan and thinking for a minute, he realized that Dan was right. But that only brought up another problem. With a hint of despair in his voice, he asked “What am I going to do? It isn’t appropriate for me to be in a relationship with my second-in-command. I’ll have to request a…”

  Dan interrupted again. “As long as you don’t let it affect your job, Bethany Anne won’t care. Think about it. Nathan and Ecaterina, John and Jean Dukes, Stephen and Jennifer, although don’t you mouth a word about that last couple. If Bethany Anne thinks I let that slip, my ass is grass. Just keep doing your jobs and it won’t be a problem.”

  Dan paused and considered his next recommendation, “I think you need to go talk to her when we get there. I can work over the man with Paul or Danislav, and if we still aren’t getting anywhere we’ll call for a bear and one of you can change and see what that does to loosen his tongue. If pain doesn’t work, fear might be just the tool we need.”

  Boris shook his head. “Ask Paul. He has some experience. Sometimes we’ve had to convince a Forsaken’s human lackey to give him up. Paul figured out early on how much I disliked it, so he offered to take the task. He doesn’t enjoy it, but views it as sometimes necessary. Danislav finds it nearly as distasteful as I do.”

  *********************************************************

  When they entered the container, it was to see Paul making a production of laying down and hanging plastic around the chair to which the prisoner fastened. He looked up to Dan and Boris and said “Okay boss, ready to go in a minute or two. Wasn’t expecting you quite yet. Just give me a bit more time so the cleanup is easier.

  Dan caught on quickly and answered “Sure. Janna, your methods didn’t work, so why don’t you take a walk with Boris? He needs to get the bear ready in case I need it. I’m not blaming you, but this rigorous stuff takes a different edge is all. You pulled a fair amount out of him your way. Now, because he's a stubborn ass, I was sent. So we do it my way now.”

  Paul looked at the prisoner and treated him to a vicious grin. “I’ve got the assistant covered, Janna. Just help Boris prepare the bear, will ya? One way or another, we’ll probably need ‘im. Either to clean up the corpse or to start at this fellow’s tootsies if he stays stubborn.”

  Dan took a pair of leather gloves out of his pocket “Yes. We need to find out where this Konrad is, after all.”

  Boris and Janna left. Janna was a little confused, and once they were out of earshot she asked “Is it really necessary? I mean, it might get us the information faster than I could, but I was hoping for one of those that can force the truth out. Like Bethany Anne did to me.”

  Boris shrugged “They were all busy I’d imagine. Dan used to assist in operations to take out Forsaken vampires. I’m sure this isn’t his first interrogation. Besides, not all vampires can do what you want. I imagine they are mostly busy, which is why they sent Dan. I have faith that he will be able to tell if someone is telling the truth or not. Vampire or not, he has the experience.”

  Paul finished hanging the plastic. He started pulling out a few things. A circular saw, a chisel, and hammer and finally a cricket bat.

  Dan looked them over, lifting an eyebrow in query. Paul shrugged and explained, “I haven’t got everything I’d like, but we can make do with this. It would be better to have a dentist on hand, to be honest. For some reason, having teeth drilled without anesthetic gets most people talking. I have one dentist on the way, but the sooner we get the information, the sooner we can act.”

  Dan pointed to the bat, “Why the cricket bat? I’ve always preferred a solid Louisville Slugger.”

  “A baseball bat is for amateurs. Look at who uses them most often. Criminals, like the mob. You can do more with a cricket bat.” Paul turned to the man tied to the chair. His knee was conveniently clear of the arms. “You see, you can cause pain without permanent incapacitation.” He swung the flat of the bat against the knee. The prisoner screamed once, but there wasn’t the sound of breaking bones. “Or you can permanently damage them.” He swung the bat edgewise at the knee. There was a solid crunch of breaking kneecap. The screams, this time, lasted a lot longer. “Besides, there are what, three or four countries where baseball is more popular than cricket? So you usually have more access to a cricket bat.” Dan thought Paul’s reasoning was impeccable, but the argument might unnerve the prisoner.

  Dan pantomimed swinging an American baseball bat, “There’s just something more balanced about a baseball bat. It’s more comfortable to use.”

  Paul shrugged his shoulders, not giving an inch to Dan’s argument, “It’s all in practice, mate. You get used to it pretty quickly once you begin.”

  Dan turned to the prisoner. “You know, we can just keep going until you volunteer the information. My boss even gave me some stuff to heal up things like that so we can go again and again. Your choice.”

  The prisoner spat on the floor “I do not fear you as much as I do Konrad. You have no idea what I’ve seen him do.”

  “What? Let me guess. Drink the blood outta someone’s neck when they failed him? Rip off someone’s arm? Yeah, I have a fair idea. I’ve been fighting people like him for more than twenty long-ass years.” Considering how much younger than his real age he appeared, there was no need to disrupt the interrogation by saying he had actually hunted them for thirty years.

  Paul swung the flat against the other knee and ignored the screams, waiting a few seconds for them to die down before he turned to Dan “Only twenty? Damn, I’ve been doing it for twenty-five.” The prisoner was trying to keep his sobs down, but failing miserably.

  The prisoner looked shaken “You are just humans. I’ve seen a man change into a wolf. Another into a leopard. Nothing you can do will scare me.”

  Paul said conversationally. “Oh, I didn’t know cats were possible. I mean Boris there can turn into a nine-hundred kilo bear, but a cat is a new one on me.”

  Dan grunted “There are rumors. Never seen one myself. Still, I think a bear is scarier. I mean fuck, Boris was flipping trucks on the last combat mission I went on.” He turned to the prisoner “You know that refinery that your boys were guarding? It only took two of us to take them out. Me and Boris. That was it. If that’s the best your Konrad can throw at us, I’m not really worried. There were ten wolves in that group - they went down like wheat at reaping time.”

  Paul chuckled and tapped the other knee with the flat of the bat again. Another set of screams. “So why did Bethany Anne send you?”

  “Need to keep my skills sharp. If we can drag the info out of this spunking fuck knuckle.” He held out his hand for the bat and drove it into the prisoner’s groin. A scream with some sobbing ensued. “After all, when we hit space we might need to resort to torture. We’re fairly sure we’ll be able to tell if someone is lying. But forcing it out of them like she can on humans? We just don’t know. And most skills tend to fall by the wayside if you don’t use them.”

  Paul turned to their prisoner, “You ready to talk yet? I’m enjoying the workout, but if you wanna talk then I’m happy to pause for a bit. At least, if it is the truth coming out of your mouth.”

  The prisoner looked at him, a mix of mild fear and great hatred in his eyes. His mouth remained firmly shut.

  “Well, looks like we keep going with the workout.” Paul slapped the guy across the face. “I’m sure once the dentist starts you’ll talk, but we may as well keep having our fun.”

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