And with that, Gabriel’s urgency when it came to getting rid of his family took on a new meaning to Justin. He wasn’t accustomed to being a target as a means of inflicting pain or getting revenge. But when it came to Gabriel, that was what he was. He thought of Gabriel’s master list as a gateway to freedom and closure. It was also a means of keeping Justin safe from his family.
Of course, he’d made that entire mission more complicated for Gabriel by showing up and tagging along. But if Gabriel was going to risk his life to keep Justin safe from his murderous family, then he was going to do whatever it took to keep Gabriel safe along the way.
“Can you help us?” Justin asked.
“It depends on what you’re looking for. I won’t go into Moscow. That place will always be too risky for me.”
Gabriel shook his head. “I just want information. We’re handling this.”
Grunt stared at Gabriel for several seconds, a sad expression furrowing his brow and shining in his dark eyes. Justin started to fear that the old man was going to brush them off, but he nodded at last. “I think I might have some things that could help you. Anything you’re specifically looking for?”
“Nadia.”
Pushing away from the counter, Grunt led the way into the living room with Gabriel and Justin trailing after him. He walked over to the long desk built out of an old door and placed a pair of glasses on his nose. With a sigh, he dropped into the seat and started flipping through some papers. “She moved out of Moscow about three, four years ago. She’s got a place in the country. Lots of security. Looks like it’s two different teams, though. Thought that was strange. Checked the info twice and it came back the same. There’s a perimeter team that works the exterior and gate. Then she’s got two or three people that work the inside of the house. I think she managed to find people who are loyal to her over your father.”
“That’s…interesting, but I guess not too surprising,” Gabriel murmured. “Nadia might like to please our father, but she also hated him exerting his will over her. She’d find ways to put in a buffer of space so she could operate without his complete knowledge.”
“Would she be secretly planning her own coup over your father?” Justin asked.
“Yes.”
“Doubtful,” Grunt corrected. “She’s kept a distance from your father over the past several years as well as his old party contacts. She does some charity work and has a seat on a hospital board, but from what I can tell, she works remote, spends most of her time at home.”
“You’re missing something,” Gabriel snapped. “She’s just like my father, just as ambitious. Nadia doesn’t change. Where is she? At her home?”
“Mykonos,” Grunt said sharply, and Justin couldn’t blame him. Grunt’s description of Nadia was throwing up some red flags that Justin wanted to pursue further, but Gabriel wasn’t listening. He’d marked her as a target, and nothing Grunt said was going to change his mind.
“Mykonos? As in the Greek island,” Justin said.
Grunt twisted in his seat and flashed Justin a wry look. “You know of another Mykonos?”
“Nope.”
“That’s not her usual vacation spot,” Gabriel grumbled. He didn’t sound pleased by her change in behavior, which made Justin happy. It meant that he was still using his head. If he was thinking about her changes in behavior, then he could still be reasoned with. Maybe.
“From what I can tell, it’s her third year at this spot. Rents a house on the island for a couple of months. Keeps to herself.” Grunt grabbed a scrap of paper and started to scratch out some quick notes with a pencil. “If she keeps to her previous schedule, she should be there for another month or so. Unless the news of poor Uncle Sacha has her running home,” he added, grinning up at Gabriel.
“What about Nicolai?”
“Not much has changed for him, arrogant prick,” Grunt muttered. He reached across his desk and grabbed a battered black notebook. He flipped through the pages that held copious notes, diagrams, and hand-drawn maps. A life’s work. “Still in the same house. Security has been upgraded, naturally. Last intelligence I had, he doubled the number of people he keeps on the grounds. Looked like he was going to remarry for a while.”
“Poor woman,” Gabriel mumbled.
“But they separated about six months ago,” Grunt continued. He made some more notes on the scrap paper. “He’s not seeing anyone now. There’s no quick and easy way to get access to him, unfortunately.”
About six months ago, Gabriel had started his hunt in earnest. Nicolai would have begun tightening up his own defenses against his son. A girlfriend would have left him vulnerable. It was a cold way of thinking about it, but Justin was getting the feeling that cold was an excellent way to describe Nicolai Krestyanov.
“We’ll take whatever you can provide. We’re not expecting this to be quick or easy,” Justin said.
Turning in his chair, he handed the piece of paper to Gabriel. “You’ll be lucky to get out of this alive.”
Gabriel nodded and shoved it into his pocket. “We have no choice.”
Grunt made a noise in the back of his throat in agreement before he got to his feet. “Get comfortable. You’re not leaving here until dark. I’ll go make up some breakfast. I’ll also put some clean towels in the bathroom if you want to shower. Keep it short. The water tank is small.”
Justin watched Grunt head into the kitchen, leaving him alone with Gabriel, who was staring at one of the maps on the wall of Moscow.
“Do we really have no choice?” Justin asked, his voice barely over a whisper so Grunt couldn’t overhear them.
Gabriel’s jaw hardened like he was clenching his teeth. He didn’t look away from the map, but he’d stiffened. “Even if you walked away from me right now, this would still be my course.”
“You know that’s not going to fucking happen.”
“They’ll come after you because you’ve been spotted with me more than once. You’re a target because of me.”
“Still not going anywhere, G Love,” Justin said in a singsong voice. “Is that a song? That sounds like it’s a song.”
Gabriel finally graced him with the half smile Justin had been working so hard for. “If we walk away now, we’re living a life like this.” He motioned around him with one hand, toward the small cabin with excellent defenses. “Hiding. Running. Always looking over our shoulders. It’s not the life we wanted.”
Justin stepped close and bumped his nose against Gabriel’s whisker-rough chin. “Alone with you in a cabin in the middle of nowhere? I’ve heard worse fates.”
“If we end up in a cabin in the middle of nowhere, I want it to be because we chose to do that. Not because we’re running and hiding, fearing for our lives.”
Justin could agree with that. There was being smart and building a solid defense. But he’d never lived his life on the run, hiding from something. He always faced his demons head on. He wasn’t going to build a life with Gabriel like that either.
“So, it sounds like we’re going to Greece. I bet the weather is better there than in Moscow. Didn’t realize I needed to pack swim trunks.”
Gabriel leaned in and gently kissed him. “Next time, my love.”
Fuck…if Gabriel kept whispering such things and kissing him like that, Justin would happily take out the entire Russian army for the man. He was getting in so deep, and he didn’t give a shit. He wanted his G Love safe and happy. And he was going to deliver it.
Chapter 9
A loud explosion rocked the little house. Justin reached out to catch himself against the doorjamb. He’d fallen asleep in Grunt’s uncomfortable bed and was just now stumbling out to locate Gabriel and coffee…preferably in that order. As he got his feet under him, Grunt raced past him down the hall toward the living room and his computers, moving far faster than he thought possible for the older man. Gabriel was right behind him, nearly colliding with Justin as he tried to set out into the hall.
“What the fuck was that?” Justin
demanded. At first he’d thought he’d imagined it, though he wasn’t quite sure how. His brain was still coming online.
“Grenade,” Gabriel called as he continued into the living room.
“Are you shitting me?” Justin said, but no one was paying attention to him. He turned back into the bedroom and scooped up his boots before hurrying after his two companions. He found them both glaring at a monitor that looked like it was showing a shadowy view of the forest.
“How many?” Gabriel asked.
“Looks like half a dozen.” Grunt shook his head and swore under his breath. “Looks like your father has finally figured out that he needs to send them in higher numbers if he’s gonna get me.”
Gabriel frowned and looked over his shoulder at Justin as he sat on the couch to pull on his boots. They were likely thinking the same thing—Nicolai had found a way to track them. They’d led these fuckers to Grunt’s door. Not that he had a clue as to how. They’d been careful on the drive from Vienna. There had been zero sign of a tail.
“You’ve gotta make a run for it,” Grunt continued.
“Whoa! Wait! We’re not leaving you,” Justin said, standing with one boot in his hand. “You’ve got to have to weapons around here. We can make a stand. It’s three against six. I have definitely faced worse odds.”
“Don’t you worry about me, boy.” Grunt cackled and it sounded more than a little insane. “I’ve got plenty of surprises for these assholes.”
Gabriel placed a hand on his shoulder. “I agree with Justin. We stay and help fight. They could be here because of us.”
“And which of us has a better chance of taking out your family? Giving me a chance to get a little house on the beach with a big island lady?”
Gabriel looked back at Justin again, his expression twisted with indecision. He didn’t want to leave the man who’d protected and helped him after Ivan’s murder, and Justin couldn’t blame him. This looked bad. But neither of them knew what kind of booby traps and other tricks Grunt had up his sleeve.
But he had a point. They had the best chance at getting rid of Nicolai. If Grunt could just survive this one attack, then he had a shot at true freedom at last. And Justin had to admit that he liked the idea of a sunburned Grunt relaxing on some distant beach with a large wife who complained that he was too skinny.
“What’s the best way out of here? Front door?” Justin asked, taking the decision out of Gabriel’s hands.
“Get your shit. You’re going out the back.”
They both jumped to their feet, grabbing their coats and backpacks. Guns were checked and spare magazines were slid into place, so they could be quickly grabbed for reload. At the same time, Grunt typed frantically away at his keyboard. Another loud explosion went off, but this one was slightly muffled and sounded farther in the distance.
Grunt cackled again and shouted, “Landmine, motherfuckers!”
Gabriel rolled his eyes and Justin smirked, though he shouldn’t have. The lunatic had put landmines in a public forest reserve. Anyone could have stumbled across them. But this time it worked in his favor, worked for all of them.
Hopping up from his workstation, Grunt waved them over to the couch. They pushed it aside several feet, and Grunt kicked back the rug to reveal a trapdoor. Grabbing the ring, he and Gabriel pulled it open. Cold air drifted up from the opening, chilling the immediate area. A ladder was visible for only the first few feet, and darkness swallowed up the rest.
“Tunnel?”
“Yeah. It stretches about two hundred yards to the north of the house and lets out on the side of a hill among some rocks. Should put you behind all the assholes out there.” He hurried over to his desk and grabbed a piece of paper. With a red grease pencil, he started to sketch out a crude map.
“Then we can take them out from behind,” Gabriel countered.
“No!” Grunt pointed the red pencil at him, eyes narrowed in warning. “I want my damn beach house. You leave these assholes to me. I don’t want you getting in my way.” He stared at Gabriel for an extra second, like he was daring the man to argue with him. When Gabriel clamped his mouth shut and frowned, Grunt turned back to the paper, finishing his map. “This route will take you outside the rest of the landmines and other traps. Head east from the exit about two clicks and cut south. It should put you right by your car unless you’re an idiot.” Turning, he surprised Justin by handing him the map. “And you aren’t an idiot, are you boy?”
“No, sir,” Justin said with a grin. He was really starting to like this lunatic.
“Then get his ass out of here,” he said, jerking his head toward Gabriel.
With their packs in place, Gabriel led the way down the ladder. At the bottom, he flicked on the flashlight app on his phone, gripping it out with one hand while holding his gun at the ready in the other. Justin followed him down. His feet had barely touched the dirt when Grunt closed the door above his head. The muffled sound of the carpet flopping back into place was followed by the scrape of couch legs. There would be no backtracking to the cabin that way, but it also meant that it was unlikely anyone would come up behind them if they made it into the house.
Flicking on the flashlight on his phone, Justin turned toward the tunnel and nearly groaned. Thank fuck he wasn’t claustrophobic, but there was a good chance he was going to be if he got out of this alive. The tunnel was only a couple of feet wide, meaning that he had to sort of turn sideways to make it through, and less than six feet tall so he also had to squat down as he walked. But then, considering that Grunt was a crazy hermit hiding from Russian intelligence, Justin was pretty sure that the old man had dug this tunnel out by hand himself, one bucket of dirt at a time.
“Gotta say, I’m kind of surprised,” Justin said.
“By what?” Gabriel replied.
“That you’ve got a crazy friend. I didn’t imagine you to have any crazy friends.”
“Grunt is not crazy,” Gabriel muttered. “He’s been hunted by my father for years. He’s learned to be creative and resourceful. It’s kept him alive all this time.”
“Very true. But he’s still crazy. I mean landmines in a national park? That’s insane.”
A soft noise came from Gabriel, and Justin thought he might have huffed a muffled laugh. “That’s the least of the shit he’s got hidden in the woods for those men. They have a very slim chance of coming out alive at the end of this.”
“Is that why we didn’t trek through the woods last night?”
“Yes.”
“Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.”
This time, Gabriel did laugh, the sound reaching above the rubbing of his coat and backpack against the dirt wall. “I didn’t want to see you blown up or covered in little poison darts.”
“Crazy fucker,” Justin muttered, not caring if Gabriel heard him or not. “How did they manage to sneak up on the house? I thought he’d have some kind of warning system in place.”
“Not sure.” Gabriel sighed. “He mentioned something about a sensor being taken out.”
“Do you think this was because of us?”
Gabriel paused in his forward motion for a moment, his shoulder’s slumped. “I don’t know.” He started walking again and Justin wanted to reach out, touch Gabriel, but his hands were full with his phone and gun. Guilt weighed heavily on them. There was no telling if they’d fucked up somewhere along the way, leading the assassins straight to Grunt.
But Grunt didn’t seem to mind, and Justin understood his rationale. He’d been hiding for what appeared to be two decades. If he and Gabriel succeeded in taking down Nadia and Nicolai, Grunt could finally leave this life of hiding behind. He could have something that resembled a normal life before he was dead. Nicolai was going to be a damn hard target, but their odds were better together than anything Grunt could get working alone.
The pitch-black tunnel seemed to stretch on forever. They made slow progress with each shuffling step. There was only the sound of their breathing and their clothes scraping agains
t the walls. Dirt would fall in large clumps, and the knot in Justin’s stomach would tighten a little more, his heart speeding up. His mind kept trying to wander to what it knew about cave-ins and being buried alive, but he would quickly redirect it to the little leather patch sewn to the back of Gabriel’s pack. He’d think about the machine that quickly stitched that patch into place, the machine that cut the leather for the patch, the machine that cut the canvas material that made the bag, the person who looked over the bag or fed the various pieces into the machine.
By the time he got to the person and what he likely packed in his bag for lunch each day, the rising panic would have receded enough that he wasn’t in danger of trying to run toward the cabin. He couldn’t tell if they’d reached the halfway point.
“What were the names of your dogs?” Gabriel asked after what felt like several minutes of silence.
“What?” Justin nearly shook his head to clear away the clutter of thoughts. He was lost somewhere in a Malaysian factory putting together a backpack.
“You said you grew up with dogs. What were their names?”
“All of them?”
“Yes!”
Justin smiled at Gabriel, though the man couldn’t see it. There was a lot of frustration in that reply. He wasn’t sure if it was because he was also struggling with the closed in feeling created by the endless tunnel or if he’d finally had enough of Justin not volunteering any personal information about his past. He wouldn’t be surprised if it was the latter, considering that Justin had received a close-up look at Gabriel’s past recently.
“Um…we had some with the typical names.”
“What’s that?” Gabriel snapped.
“We had a Max and an Ace. Oh, and a Mike.”
“Mike is a typical dog name?”
“Definitely. Lots of people have dogs named Mike,” Justin said, ridiculously proud of the fact that he managed to sound adamant.
Gabriel sighed loudly. “What else?”
Justin could feel Gabriel’s eyes roll, and he wanted to laugh but he was afraid he’d hit his head on the wall or ceiling of the tunnel. “We had this little Yorkie that we called Killer. When we got a second one, I wanted to name it Ball-Muncher, but my mom wouldn’t let me. I think it ended up being called Mitzi. There were so many dogs growing up. We had a boxer mix that I can only remember calling Dumb Ass. I don’t know what his real name was.”
The Exit Strategy Bundle Page 35