The Warsaw Protocol

by Steve Berry

  He also caught shadows on the water.

  Movement.

  He switched off the motor and allowed only momentum to send him toward the exit. With no idea what waited beyond, he lay flat on his spine making for a low profile, one hand on the motor, the other holding the gun. The boat emerged into another lit lake, this one bordered with more steep walls on three sides, the same wooden railing stretching from one side to the other.

  He saw the other boat at the same moment Ivan fired a shot his way.

  Which whined past overhead.

  He was far enough away, and low enough, that Ivan had no clear angle without standing, which the big Russian apparently realized.

  Cotton turned the motor off and sent the moving skiff straight at Ivan, who was having trouble maintaining balance while standing in the unstable platform. He bumped his bow into the side of Ivan’s boat, which sent the Russian down. The boat wobbled but remained upright. Ivan lost his grip on the gun, which clattered into the boat and discharged. Cotton’s skiff proved Newton’s third law—that with every action there was an equal and opposite reaction—as he recoiled back across the still surface.

  He rose up and sat again on the center bench.

  Ivan worked to regain control of both himself and the boat.

  He allowed his adversary a moment.

  Then pointed his gun.

  * * *

  Eli kept moving from one chamber to another, each adorned with a variety of exhibits from the days when all this had been a working mine. He’d come across no one, which was odd.

  Where had they all gone?

  He entered another of the junction rooms, this one full of more lime-washed timbers supporting the towering walls and accommodating a staircase that led up to the next level. Ahead, past the stairs, metal doors blocked the tunnel out, which explained where the visitors had gone.

  Up.

  He should follow them and disappear into the crowd. But something told him there might be danger up there. Security personnel could be waiting. Too late to use that route for escape. Years of dealing had taught him a lot about people. That’s how he’d been able to seduce Jonty into allowing him to become part of the deal. Find what someone wants. Get control of it. Then bargain. He’d made a fortune doing just that. The whole point of him being here had been in the hope of achieving that objective once again. But he’d never suspected that the Americans or the Russians would figure things out. If he’d had even an inkling of their suspicions, he never would have come near this mine. Nothing was worth that risk.

  He and Munoz avoided the stairs and headed for the metal doors, which were merely closed and not locked. Made sense. Never would routes be locked off, made inaccessible, restricting movements.

  Except maybe with a fire.

  Which was not the case here.

  He heard what sounded like a gunshot.

  From beyond the doors.

  Ivan?

  He opened one of them.

  And they slipped into the dark on the other side.

  * * *

  Czajkowski and Sonia stayed on Eli Reinhardt and Art Munoz’s tail. Their quarry had no idea they were being followed.

  They came to a chamber that ran upward in a wide shaft to the next levels, filled with cribs of round timber logs fitted to support the walls and ceiling, all whitewashed. Between clusters of beams rose a staircase.

  Did they go up? he mouthed to Sonia.

  She shrugged and told him to wait there.

  He watched as she hustled up the wooden risers two at a time, making not a sound. At the landing where the stairs right angled upward, she stopped and listened, staring up into the shaft in which the stairs rose.

  She slipped back down.

  “No one is up there,” she whispered.

  Sonia motioned, and they headed for the metal doors.

  * * *

  Cotton watched as Ivan settled himself back into the boat. The gun had fired, but nobody had been hit. He wondered about the packet, but assumed it lay safely in the boat.

  “You’re not getting out of here,” he said.

  Ivan again held the pistol.

  He displayed his, too.

  “Neither of us is getting away.” Ivan chuckled. “You almost got me. I not able to swim.”

  “That won’t matter here. The lake is loaded with salt brine. Nothing sinks. You could walk on this water.”

  “Great comfort to know. But I still not like water.”

  “And yet here you are. On a lake.”

  Ivan shrugged. “Do what we must.”

  “I want that packet.”

  “Let’s be reasonable, Malone. Your president not reasonable. You’re not him. We use this information to do what Poland wants. No missiles. What’s the harm?”

  “You killed a lot of people to get your hands on that packet.”

  “I do job, Malone. We all do job.”

  “I just don’t commit mass murder while doing mine.”

  “You feel sorry for those people? They not your friend. They not America or Russia’s friend.”

  He was trying to decide if Ivan was stalling or just unsure as to his next move. He’d only dealt with the man once before, but he’d never known any Russian foreign intelligence officer to be either stupid or cowardly. Especially not one of Ivan’s age and stature, surely starting young with the KGB then, once the Soviet Union fell, gravitating to the SVR. At best the man was immoral, more likely amoral, which only compounded the threat.

  A lot was at stake here.

  As Ivan had told him back in Bruges, Moscow did not want to spend billions of rubles deploying missiles of their own just to counter the American move. Not when the problem could be dealt with quickly and quietly with some good old-fashioned blackmail.

  But all that was now in jeopardy.

  * * *

  Eli heard a noise from behind.

  The metal doors had squeaked open.

  He stood inside a chamber exhibiting a variety of salt sculptures, all artfully lit with floodlights casting an eerie glow.

  Was it some of the frightened tourists coming their way?

  “We need to see who this is,” he whispered to Munoz.

  Then he heard voices.

  From the opposite direction.

  Ahead.

  Trouble in both directions?

  “You see what that is,” he whispered to Munoz, finding the weapon he’d brought along in his coveralls. “I’ll check what’s behind us.”

  Munoz headed off.

  He assumed a position in the shadows, gun ready.

  And waited.

  CHAPTER SEVENTY-FOUR

  Czajkowski felt a surge of excitement, but no fear. He wasn’t a rookie to danger. For years back in the 1980s he’d walked a fine line where the government could have turned on him at any moment. Playing both ends against the middle was not something for the faint of heart. So he’d learned how to handle himself under extreme pressure. Here, nothing less than his whole life was on the line.

  He’d been a damn good president of Poland and wanted to finish what he started with five more years. They would be his last. After that, he’d become an ex-statesman and join the ranks of the irrelevant, making speeches and accomplishing nothing. But before that happened, he wanted to leave a mark on his homeland. Change things for the better. Bring Poland closer to the West and make it warier of the East.

  Thankfully, the government had matured. No longer could fringe groups, like the Polish Beer-Lovers’ Party, achieve much political success. The days of ridicule were over. Luckily, the economy was strong. He’d been fortunate to be elected during an economic upturn, and the people were far more forgiving when more money lay in their pockets. He’d taken advantage of that prosperity and introduced new, generous family benefits that helped the poor. Such a notion had once been foreign to Polish politics. But the concepts had been embraced. He’d worked hard to make Poland a regional leader in political, social, and economic development. An important
member of the EU and NATO. But there were many who wanted a much more nationalistic stand, a return to isolationism. Poland for Poles. Some of which he did not disagree with. Like stopping American missiles, aimed supposedly at Iran, from being planted on Polish soil. Missiles that could easily be redirected toward Russia. Missiles that endangered every citizen.

  That was madness.

  Talk about poking the bear.

  He and Sonia stepped past the metal door and headed through another lit chamber, finding the exit on the far side. He was grateful for the cool air, his brow beaded with sweat.

  Nerves?

  Surely.

  The gun Sonia had provided was tucked into one of the thigh pockets of his coveralls. Better to keep it there until truly needed. Hopefully, that moment would never come. The image of the president of Poland toting a weapon around a national historic site would not play well in the media.

  Sonia was armed.

  And that seemed protection enough.

  * * *

  Eli stood close to the rough wall, away from the few lights that backlit the rest of the chamber. No artifacts adorned this room, only another chapel with an altar and figurines, which was in much better shape than the one he’d seen below. He stood in blackness, watching the entrance from which he’d arrived to see who was coming.

  A woman entered.

  Sonia Draga.

  Armed.

  Behind her came a man.

  No, not any man.

  Janusz Czajkowski.

  Finally.

  Providence had smiled upon him.

  * * *

  Cotton stared over at Ivan. “Do you know about an egg-sucking dog?”

  “Sounds highly American.”

  “Not at all. They’re everywhere. Even in Russia. Every once in a while a farm dog will acquire a taste for fresh eggs. They’ll kill the chickens to get them, too. They don’t really suck the eggs. More eat them whole. But once a dog gets a taste for egg, there’s no breaking him of it.”

  “Sounds like greedy dog.”

  “Obsessed. Bewitched. That dog lives to get into other people’s henhouses. And nothing will stop it,” he paused, “short of killing.”

  Ivan chuckled. “Your president is the egg-sucking dog.”

  He shrugged. “Maybe so. But right now you’re the one I have to deal with. You’re in my henhouse. And if you don’t stop eatin’ my eggs up, though I’m not a real bad guy, I’m goin’ to get my rifle and send you to that great chicken house in the sky.”

  He sang the words to a mournful tune he recalled from long ago.

  “It’s a Johnny Cash song,” he said to Ivan. “My grandfather used to sing it when he worked.”

  “You stalling, Malone?”

  “I am.”

  “Hoping help will come.”

  “That is the plan.”

  “Maybe I have help, too.”

  “I saw Reinhardt and Munoz heading off. I suppose they could find their way here.”

  The gun rested in his right hand, his finger on the trigger, his eyes locked on Ivan’s body, watching for any move.

  “You say this lake thick with salt?” Ivan asked.

  “Pure brine. But clear and pretty, I’ll say that. They keep the brine here, then pump it to the surface and extract the salt.”

  Ivan reached down and, with his free hand, gently stroked the water. “Cold. Like Arctic Ocean.”

  It seemed a little nuts to be floating a few yards from his enemy, shooting the breeze, while they were both armed, waiting for the other to act. But he was only going to challenge this demon when he was sure of the outcome. Right now, that was in doubt.

  Like everything else.

  So be patient.

  * * *

  Eli waited until Sonia and Czajkowski were in the chamber, past him, subdued by the silence, near the chapel on the opposite wall. Then he stepped out of the blackness and nestled the barrel of his gun to the back of Czajkowski’s head.

  The president froze.

  “Stay still,” he said to his captive.

  Sonia whirled, her gun coming level.

  “Drop the weapon,” he ordered.

  And he clicked the hammer of his gun to emphasize the point. She stared at him, probably trying to decide if she could take a shot before he pulled the trigger.

  “I assure you,” he said, “you can’t.”

  She seemed to agree and lowered the gun.

  “Drop it to the ground and kick it away,” he told her.

  She did as instructed.

  “Keep your hands where I can see them,” he told her.

  CHAPTER SEVENTY-FIVE

  Cotton split his attention between Ivan and the surroundings. They floated in their respective skiffs, about fifty feet apart, the emerald-tinted lake so clear it appeared as if they were drifting on air. Around a huge wall pillar wrapped a walkway with railings, a wooden gallery running along the upper chamber wall. Ivan had been right. He was stalling, hoping Stephanie was able to convince the locals that she needed their assistance. If anyone could make that happen, she could. But there was still the matter of Reinhardt and Munoz who were loose somewhere on this level.

  “What we do?” Ivan asked.

  A good question.

  Retrieving that packet would go a long way toward easing Stephanie’s problems with the White House. Yes, he disagreed with the entire tactic Fox was trying to employ, and he’d deal with that quandary later. What he could not do was allow Ivan to leave the mine with that information. Sure, Moscow wanted the missiles gone. But as with Fox, there was no telling what else they would want from Warsaw. With that degree of blackmail, which several countries had been willing to pay huge sums to possess, anything could be possible.

  “You could give me that packet,” he said. “And we’ll call this whole thing over.”

  Ivan laughed. “I could say same to you about your gun.”

  Portions of the lake were lit, portions were not. Between those two extremes were areas that gravitated from bright to dark, the flat surface like a mirror. In one portion to the right of Ivan’s boat, he caught the reflection of the wooden railing that spanned one side.

  And Munoz.

  Who was lurking behind where he floated, higher, on the path that extended from one side of the lake to the other, part of the walkways and tunnels that visitors traversed to admire the lakes. Apparently Ivan’s allies had found them faster than his own. Munoz was staying low, using some of the stonework between the railings as a shield. He assumed the man was armed, and the good thing was he’d have to stand up to make a move.

  But there was still the matter of Ivan.

  Who had no such hindrance.

  * * *

  Eli pressed the gun close to Czajkowski’s head.

  “Where’s Ivan?” Sonia asked.

  “Nearby.”

  He needed to keep this woman off guard. She was formidable. And dangerous. She’d shot Jonty with no hesitation. She now knew he was working with Ivan, which meant he could have backup.

  “I’m getting out of here,” Eli told them.

  “Then leave,” Sonia said.

  “It is not that simple.”

  He wished it were.

  What was happening with Munoz?

  Where was he?

  * * *

  Czajkowski thought of that math professor who’d been kicked and prodded across the filthy floor of Mokotów Prison. He always did when he needed strength. That man, in the face of death, had showed nothing but courage.

  And he intended to do the same.

  “You’re done,” he said to Reinhardt.

  “Brave words from a man with a loaded gun to his head.”

  “I’ve lived my life with one right there. Every day.”

  “Don’t push him,” Sonia said.

  But he intended to do just that.

  * * *

  Cotton sat still in the skiff, not letting on he was aware they had company. Ivan was trying hard not to glance towa
rd the wooden railing, but it was clear that he was aware of Munoz’s presence, too.

  Interesting the situation he found himself in. Floating on a frigid lake of pure salt brine, hundreds of feet underground, amid total silence, two men intent on shooting him. He held the gun, and the reflection continued to offer him a viewpoint that showed Munoz trying to maneuver himself into a better position. He had to take them both out, complicated by the fact that he was sitting in an unstable skiff. The one saving grace was that one of his opponents was likewise handicapped. Reaction time would suffer. Which meant the guy on dry land represented the greater threat.

  He needed a distraction.

  Something to provide him a few precious seconds to react.

  * * *

  Eli had to find Munoz and leave.

  Staying put seemed like a bad idea. Though he had the situation under control, Sonia Draga represented a problem.

  “Move toward the other exit,” he ordered her.

  She hesitated.

  “Do you really want to test me?” he asked.

  “Do as he says,” Czajkowski said to her.

  The tone clear and direct.

  “This gun is pointed at my head, not yours,” the president said. “Don’t play games with my life. Remember, you work for me.”

  He saw that she did not appreciate the rebuke. But the man had a point. She did work for him. It was not her place to take such risks.

  “Are you ordering me to do as he says?” she asked.

  “That’s exactly what I’m doing. Move.”

  He tapped Czajkowski’s head with the gun. “Follow her.”

  * * *

  Czajkowski added a wink to his command, a gesture only Sonia could see that signaled she should play along. There was no way Reinhardt knew of any connection between them other than employer–employee. Of course he had to be wondering why the president of Poland was here, but that could easily be explained because it was his ass on the line. He did catch a moment of concern in Sonia’s eyes before she backed toward the exit, surely wondering what he was going to do next.