by Raven Rivers
The physician lives in a home in Harlem. Take FDR Drive. It turns into Harlem River Drive. We can take East 125th Street right into her neighborhood.”
“Roger that.” Shifting gears, Tony sped up. “So, are you planning to go the mile with my favorite sister or what, Alek?”
“None of your fucking business. Keep your eyes on the road and your attention on the job.”
“You’ve got a real shitty attitude. You know that, right?”
“No, what I have is a debilitating right hook. Would you like to see it?”
“Not while I’m driving, nimrod.”
“Shut the fuck up, both of you. I need to concentrate.” Victor’s stern warning marked him as an alpha among alphas.
“If it helps find this asshole, concentrate away.” Tony’s casually-flung words left Alek with the impression he wasn’t much of a thinker. Then he caught himself. Underestimating a man like Tony Nash would be an exceedingly stupid thing to do.
Alek went back to digging through any and all information on Gustov and the good Dr. Jackson.
Pulling up to the house, they discovered it was a really old brownstone that had been recently renovated. The large building was broken into four apartments, each with three floors. By Harlem standards, it was luxury living.
Chapter 22
Flesh Market
Alek
Tony approached and the moment the person cracked the door he kicked it in on them. Once breached, Victor and Alek followed. Seeing an older woman sprawled on the floor with her nose busted, Victor reached down and pulled her to her feet. Bringing one finger to his lips, he gestured for her to remain quiet. She immediately opened her mouth to scream, but Victor muffled the sound with his hand and pinned her against his chest.
Tony, ever the boy scout, pulled a small pill bottle from his pocket. Taking the lid off, he pulled out a white handkerchief and held it up to Victor. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know it was chloroformed. Grabbing it, he pressed it over her nose and mouth until she went limp in his arms.
Zip tying her hands and feet, they moved further into the house. A man’s voice called out, “Eleanor, who was at the door? Is everything alright?” The Russian accent was clear as a bell. Following the sound of his voice to a room in the back, they heard the distinct sound of a clip being loaded into the gun. The metal scraping against metal and telltale click was unmistakable.
Alek and Victor got on their knees on either side of the door and pressed their backs to the wall. Alek grabbed Tony and pulled him down. Victor’s voice rang out, “Gustov, Eleanor can’t come to the phone right now. She’s indisposed.”
Tony grinned like a mad fool, clearly impressed that Victor did, in fact, possess a sense of humor.
“What did you do to her, you sick bastard?”
Alek answered that one. “Nothing you weren’t trying to do to my woman. Come out with your hands where we can see them.”
“Fuck you!”
Gunshots began firing, splintering the wooden door. Then a series of shots fired through the walls on each side of it. If they’d been standing, they’d be riddled with holes. Alek and Victor had anticipated he’d react that way, thus the kneeling. The moment the shots stopped and they heard him unload his empty clip, Victor kicked the door in and they poured into the room.
The barrel-chested man was lying on an elevated platform that reminded Alek of the fold-up spa tables he’d been on before. A bandage covered his shoulder near his neck and the right side of his stomach. He was reaching for another clip when they all lifted their weapons.
Tony gritted out, “Drop the gun, you stupid fuck.”
Knowing he had no other choice, he stopped reaching for the clip and laid the gun down beside him on the sheet. “Where’s the doctor?” he asked, breathing heavily. He was clearly in pain from the wounds Sharon had inflicted.
“She’s resting in the living room. Don’t worry about her because, right now, you got some serious explaining to do.”
Tony’s strange choice of words cued Alek that he was missing something. Since it was probably another of his stupid jokes, Alek let it go. “Why did you attempt to take Sharon Nash earlier today?” Tony questioned.
His eyes slid away. “I didn’t.”
Victor stepped forward. “You did, and you know what the penalty for betrayal is. You can talk, or I’ll just make you talk. You know how persuasive we can be.”
“Fuck off.”
Alek moved closer. “Timur trusted you. You were bratva. Why would you turn on your own?”
Tony stormed noisily back into the room with the older woman in tow. Her face was wet and she was semi-conscious. Victor stared at him in disbelief. Tony responded snidely, “You have to keep the rag over her face for a full five minutes if you want her to be out for an hour. You didn’t do that. Anyway, maybe our new friend will be a little more talkative now that we have his… I’m gonna say woman. He looks way more freaked out than I would be if someone had their hands on my doctor.”
“Leave her out of this. I’ll tell you what you want to know.”
Shoving her down into a chair, Tony shuffled over and stared down at his captive. “The gig’s up, asshole. Spill the beans.”
Looking at Victor like he was a snake about to bite his head off, Gustov spoke. “Karl has enemies in Russia.”
“Naturally, every vory does. Don’t pretend this is interesting information.”
“It’s that American oil man, the one that’s in debt with Karl up to his eyeballs. He downloaded information from your father’s hard drive and wants to use it to break off the American operation. He sees it as the weakest link in the chain. He’s close to retirement age and wants to move back to the states.”
Victor concluded the explanation with, “What man doesn’t want to retire with a little business he can run with one hand while he enjoys his leisurely pursuits?”
“My question is why you involve yourself in such things,” Tony added.
“Why do you think? I was on track to be a champion until I got stabbed in the back by Timur.” He paused to wince in pain as he held his bandaged side. “He took away a lucrative career and gave me a middle management job in his organization. Do I look like a mid-level bureaucrat to you?”
Victor shot back darkly, “You look like a dead man to me.”
“Wait. I have information that could be useful to you in unwinding this chain of corruption,” Gustov told them, swallowing nervously.
“I’ll let my father be the judge of that,” Tony spoke up again. “But this isn’t the environment for the kind of interrogation that needs to take place. I called for a van. They’ll be here any minute.” Turning his attention to Victor and Alek, he said, “We need these two looking presentable enough to make it from the building to the curb without drawing undue suspicion.”
“Just leave Eleanor alone!” Gustov pleaded. “She’ not involved in this at all.” He tried to lunge forward and grab the clip again but Tony nailed him hard on the temple, knocking him out. Picking up the gun, he shoved it in his waistband.
Alek shook his head. “It would seem that not all doctors are virtuous, nor are all mobsters evil.”
Grasping the now unconscious man’s head in one large hand, Tony pointed to his face with the other. “What the hell are you talking about? This one is pretty fucking evil.”
“I was referring to us, nimrod.” Tossing his favorite pejorative term back at Tony got his attention.
“I don’t care for you throwing my own words back at me.”
Grinning, Alek replied with a shrug, “That may be why I enjoy it so much.”
Victor’s annoyed voice cut into their conversation. “Are we socializing or working a job here?”
Tony swore under his breath. “You are one pompous little prick, Victor. Loosen the hell up. Just because we’re having a friendly little talk does not mean we’ve lost sight of the goal.”
“You’re distracted.”
Glaring at him, Tony repl
ied, “No, I’m not.”
“What’s the deal with that wall, then?” Victor smugly asked, pointing over Tony’s shoulder.
Tony followed his finger and grinned. “Either this house has lighting in the walls or this wall has a hidden door.” His phone rang and he told his men to come in through the front door, instructing them which room they were in.
Alek quickly ran his hands over the wall, tore away a framed photograph, and they all stared in awe at an old-fashioned lever that was built right into the wall.
Jerking his chin to two of his men, Tony muttered, “This is some turn-of-the-century shit, right here.”
Alek pulled the lever down and it clicked in increments, making a small noise with each incremental movement. There was nothing but a closet-sized room with steps leading down. A single old-fashioned incandescent bulb illuminated from above.
“You have got to fucking be kidding me,” Tony said under his breath.
“Since you’re so familiar with the local area, would you care to go first?” Alek asked.
Jerking his head up to peer into Alek’s smirking face, Tony cursed softly under his breath again.
“Quiet, you fools.” Victor stepped forward with his gun in his hand and began going down the steps.
Alek had to admit the man’s strictness was a little over the top, but he had a point. They descended the stairs as Tony’s men dealt with the situation above. What they found down below did not bode well for Dr. Eleanor Jackson.
The basement was rough stone, concrete floors, and four small cells running down each wall. Inside were women in various stages of pregnancy, and all moved to the back of their cells upon seeing them.
Gazing around, Alek saw another of the fold-up exam tables, a large cabinet full of medical supplies, and a desk with a computer. His heart sank as he realized what was going on.
“What the fuck kind of sense does this even make?” Tony blurted.
Victor’s crisp voice sounded off with, “Gather the laptop and any other electronic equipment. Look for loose flash drives in the desk drawers. We need to take the intel and be gone from this place.”
Tony gaped at him and replied, “We aren’t leaving pregnant women in cages, you ass.”
“Do you know what this place is?”
“I don’t need to. I just need to know it’s wrong.”
“It is a medical farm,” Victor sneered. “Think for a moment and let it sink in.”
Alek moved to gather up the items Victor had mentioned. He rifled through drawers and tossed it all in a pillowcase from the exam table. Shoving it into Victor’s hands, he said, “Go. Leave this place. Tony and I will see to the women.”
Cursing under his breath, Victor responded with no small amount of frustration. “We have come here wearing only gloves. We’ve not been careful to cover our hair or even to come under cover of darkness. The building security has recorded our movements. We need to backtrack and clean the scene, then we can call local law enforcement to assist the women.”
Tony was already on his phone calling for another van.
“Look around, my friend. These women are likely members of our local community,” Alek replied. “They are being used in the worst possible way. Regardless of what Tony decides, I say we can serve them better than law enforcement.”
“Who the hell is going to investigate this shit? There are likely dozens of people buying babies, organs, and women from this doctor. Who is going to track them all down and hold them accountable?”
Alek looked him directly in the eye. “Me.”
“No, no, no. You still don’t understand. Each buy will lead to yet another trail of lawless, depraved thugs. This is the tip of the iceberg. The water that melts from it runs in little streams all over the world.”
“Sounds like my new hobby. Now shut the fuck up. You’re either helping or moving out of the way, ‘cause I’m not leavin’ them like this another minute.” Tony’s brusque behavior was just the kick in the pants that Victor needed to get on board.
“Fine. Did you find keys to open the cells when you were digging through the desk?”
“Unfortunately not,” Alek answered. “We will have to force them open.”
Tony headed for the closest cell. “I got this.” He pulled out a device, flipped through some key blanks, and shoved one into the keyhole. Some sparks flew and the door clicked.
Alek frowned, not having a single clue in the world what Tony was using on the doors. Honestly, the man always had a gadget for every problem. Quickly working his way through all the doors, they began pulling them open.
“Are you our new owners?” one of the women asked meekly.
“Fuck that. People don’t own people.” Shooting Alek an apologetic look, he amended his statement. “I suppose that’s not quite true. What I was trying to say is we stumbled on this place ‘cause we had a beef with the bitch keeping you here. This is a breakout, rescue, or whatever you want to call it.”
Though the women were suspicious, they edged out of their cells. All but one. Still kneeling with her hands wrapped around the bars, she hadn’t moved since they entered the room. Tony went over and crouched down in front of her.
Alek didn’t know what to think. Glancing at Victor, he could tell the other man thought this situation was getting stranger by the minute as well.
Wrapping his hands around the woman’s small brown hands, Tony stated calmly, “Hey, what’s wrong? Don’t you want to get outta here?”
“D-d-did you really come to rescue us?” she stammered. “I prayed and prayed for a way out before my baby came.”
“Yeah, I’m the fucking hero of the hour. How about you come out of there and we’ll get you back to your husband or boyfriend or whoever.”
“I don’t have any of those,” she replied, sniffling. “They made me this way.”
Alek watched Tony’s jaw tighten. “We’ll get you back to your family. I’m sure they’re worried about you.”
“Don’t have one of those either,” she said, pausing to wipe away her tears. “Maybe a shelter or something can take me in.”
“Look, sweetness, we’re spending a lot of time talking about this and I got a cleaner coming any minute now to erase every trace of us being here. Would it be possible to get our asses out of here and discuss your options over a nice cup of tea?”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to dawdle. It’s just that you look more like her henchman than the angel I prayed for.”
“I’m a mobster and damn good one, but I’m not anywhere near this depraved. Let’s get the hell outta here. This place gives me the creeps.”
Coming gracefully to her feet, she walked out the door he held open for her. Alek thought she looked embarrassed. Heading back upstairs, he quickly gave the house a thorough once-over with Victor while Tony saw to the women and the cleaner. Gustov was still unconscious on the floor. They gathered a small lockbox, all the paperwork and mail lying around, and the computers and cell phones. When the place was picked clean of anything that could give them a clue about the oil man, they headed out to the SUV.
Tilting his head sideways, Alek heard Victor cursing under his breath. Climbing into the driver’s seat, Alek sealed his lips and remained quiet. That was a feat Victor wasn’t able to manage.
“Did you pick yourself up a little party favor from this job, mister ‘let’s be heroes and save them all’?” Victor asked snidely.
“Fuck off,” Tony fired back. “She doesn’t have anywhere to go so I’m gonna look out for her for a minute until we can get her in a shelter.”
“That had better be true or I’m telling your mother.”
Alek remembered what he said at the wedding about his mother beating his ass. Laughter bubbled up and escaped his lips before he could help himself.
“Fucking stupid bastard. If you wanna emasculate me, you’re gonna have to try a lot harder than that,” Tony growled angrily.
“Whatever.” Turning to the woman, Victor introduced himself. “My name
is Victor Balakovich. These are my associates, Alek and Tony. Do you mind if I ask your name?”
“You don’t have to tell him anything, babe.” Tony wrapped his arm protectively around the woman. He was being absurd, yet Alek found himself more amused than annoyed by his behavior.
“I don’t have anything to hide. My name’s Katrina Hicks. The bald guy took me off the street one night when I was going to the bus stop after work. I worked as a barista, but that was months ago.”
“Did they say why they took you?”
Alek glanced into the rearview mirror to see her tearing up. “They called us ‘hosts.’ The best that I could figure, couples wanted babies and either the woman couldn’t get pregnant or didn’t want to be bothered with it. They used to tell us that once we gave birth, we’d be released. I think that was just to keep us from panicking and trying to hurt ourselves. I knew it wasn’t true when Sandra gave birth and they just put her right back in her cell. That’s when I knew they weren’t ever letting us go.”
“That must have horrifying.”
Turning her head to look out the window, Katrina responded hollowly, “You can’t imagine what it’s like to sit in a cage all day, wondering if you’re ever going to see the outside world again. There were days when I would have given anything just to see the sunshine.”
Tony murmured soothingly, “You’re free now. You don’t have to worry about that shit anymore.”
“Now I just have to worry about who’s going to come for my baby. Rich people always get their way. The rest of us just have to endure all the horrible things they do to us, I guess.”
“Fuck that, we’ll get to bottom of this.”
“In my life, people always make promises they can’t manage to keep. I’m grateful to the three of you for rescuing me. If things go bad later, I won’t blame you for not keeping that promise.”
A long silence spun out in the vehicle. Alek thought long and hard about what the woman said. They needed to review the hard drives, phones, and interrogate Gustov and his sick doctor.