by John Bowers
“Okay. Go find Nicola and make sure she’s all right. We’ll do what we can here until help arrives.”
Nick was so rattled that it didn’t occur to him right then to wonder why Kozel didn’t ask more questions, but the man had said they saw everything from the control room, so he probably knew that Nick and a few others had blunted the attack. As he made his way toward the bar, stepping over and around bodies, the biggest question in his mind was: Who?
Of course he knew the answer. It was the Patushkins. They were making their play in a big way, and the Petreykins’ attempt to round them up had come too late.
Shaking it off, he entered the bar area. Patrons were huddled together in fear, women crying, men shaking, everyone numb with horror. He didn’t see Nicola, but she spotted him and rushed to meet him. She hit him like a solarball lineman, almost knocking him over, and wrapped her arms around his neck. She buried her face in his shoulder and sobbed.
“Oh, Nick! I was so scared!”
“Are you hurt?”
“No, I—I don’t think so. I saw the flame coming and went under the table, but it d-died out before it—reached the b-bar. Then—then they started sh-shooting…” She retreated into more sobs, her body convulsing with emotion.
“Shh, it’s okay now. It’s over. Come on, let’s sit you down and get you some water. Come on.”
He spent several minutes helping Nicola calm down. Most of the bartenders had fled, but two remained and were passing out drinks free of charge. Nick ordered ice water for himself and Nicola and after five or six minutes she got herself under control.
“What happened? Who was that?”
“I don’t know, but it was probably the Patushkins.”
At that moment he heard the first sirens, and they began to swell as they drew closer in large numbers. A glance out the front of the building and he saw hover vehicles setting down wherever they could, dozens of them. Police units, fire units, medical units. Police hoversleds circled the parking lot, some of them mounting machine guns and laser tripods. He felt a sense of relief in that another attack was unlikely. He squeezed Nicola to comfort her and kissed her on the temple.
“Stay here. I’ll be back.”
She clutched at him. “Where are you going?”
“To see if I can help. Kozel survived and he may need me.”
*
The first people into the casino were police. Dressed very similar to the terrorists, they came in with guns drawn, demanding that everyone freeze or lie down. Those with weapons were ordered to drop them and raise their hands. They were rough, no-nonsense, and insistent.
Nick laid his guns down, got to his knees, and held his hands in the air. Within seconds he found himself E-cuffed and lying on his stomach. Harsh commands were shouted back and forth, mostly in Rukranian. No one asked who he was, but his shaven head and tattoos were probably a pretty good indication that he worked for Bratva. Still, he didn’t volunteer any information.
Kozel Petreykin intercepted the officer in charge and explained what had happened. He pointed at Nick and two other soldiers.
“These are my men. They killed most of the attackers and probably saved everyone who is still alive. You should release them.”
“All in good time.” The ranking cop didn’t seem impressed by Kozel’s reputation. “You said you have it on video?”
“Yes, the whole thing. I can show you.”
“Let’s do that.”
He turned and barked orders that Nick couldn’t understand, then went upstairs with Kozel. Two cops grabbed Nick’s arms and hauled him to his feet, shoving him back toward the bar. They planted him in a corner booth from which there was no escape and two other men stood guard as others were brought in. Within a couple of minutes, Nick was joined by four other Bratva soldiers and told to stay put. Their guards glared at them as if they might sprout wings and fly away.
“Who are you?” one of the Bratva asked Nick. “I don’t recognize you.” He was the same one who had brought Nick the money bag.
“Nick Russo. I just started last week.”
The other man grunted.
“Good work out there. They had me pinned down and I couldn’t get a shot until you starting taking out kneecaps.”
“Tihom!” one of the guards ordered. “Net razgovor.”
Nick glared at him, but fell silent.
The pandemonium level had dropped considerably. Nick still heard cries and wails, but as paramedics were allowed inside and began to treat the wounded, a sense of control returned. Nick closed his eyes and tried to think, but at the moment his mind was still scrambled.
“What is going on here!”
Nick turned to see Nicola advancing toward the two guards. One of them turned to meet her and held up a restraining hand.
“Why are these men being held? They saved our lives!”
“It’s okay, Nicola. They’re just being careful.”
“Step back, Miss,” the guard told her. “If what you say is true, they will be released. Until then, I have to follow orders.”
Still scowling, she glanced at Nick, who nodded. She retreated to the table where he had left her.
Five or six minutes later, with the casino floor covered by police and paramedics, Nick heard a cry of surprise and looked toward the entrance. Diana, flanked by Sasha and Aleksandr, was stepping through the wreckage, her face a mask of horror. She pressed both hands against her temples and moved forward as if in shock. A steady wail of despair issued from her throat.
Nick saw Kozel rush forward to intercept her; she threw her arms around him and wailed even louder. Sasha and Aleksandr looked every bit as shaken as Diana; both men were pale and trembling.
Firemen spread through the building, invading every room on all levels, looking for any hint of fire threat that might remain. Nick sat with his fellow captives for more than two hours until the ranking police officer, accompanied by Kozel, ordered them released. As soon as the E-cuffs came off, Nicola joined him. The officers retreated and Kozel turned to the five men.
“I saw what you men did, and I thank you. I think those bastards would have murdered everyone if you hadn’t stopped them.” He squeezed each man’s shoulder. “You will be rewarded for this. All of you.”
The men looked embarrassed and no one spoke. Nicola hugged each one and delivered a kiss on the cheek.
“You saved our lives,” she told them. “Thank you.”
After another awkward moment, Kozel cleared his throat.
“Everyone back to Rodina,” he said. “We’re going to have another meeting. Be there within the hour.”
***
The entire island was under lockdown, no one arriving or leaving without police permission. Petreykin employees were cleared one by one to return to the city, and as Nicola lifted off in her hovercar, Nick gazed around at the scene. A few tendrils of smoke still drifted from the casino, but the fire suppression equipment had ended any real threat; the parking lot was littered with colored vehicles of all kinds—police, fire, and medical—that would remain there all night. The casino was clearly out of business for the foreseeable future.
“Are you okay to pilot this thing?” he asked as Nicola headed back for the city. The car was wobbling a little.
“Yeah, I can handle it.” She glanced at him. “Nick, can I stay with you tonight? I don’t want to be alone.”
“I don’t have a problem with it, but it’s a little early to make that decision. I have a feeling I may be very busy tonight.”
They reached the Rodina without incident. Nicola managed to land the hovercar in the parking garage and they took a lift down to the fourth floor. In the lift, Nicola begged another hug; as Nick held her for a few seconds, he could feel the tremble in her body. She was still traumatized.
“I have to go see the bosses,” he told her when the elevator door opened. “Why don’t you wait for me in the bar? I doubt they will have anything much for you to do right now.”
She nodded, and as he stepped out, s
he continued on down.
The two soldiers who guarded the executive door recognized him and waved him inside. Inside the room, he found all five cousins standing around more or less in shock. He moved into a corner of the room and stood there, arms crossed, waiting for instructions.
Orel was talking.
“The Rodina will be closed tonight,” he said. “Maybe longer. Until we find out who did this, we can’t risk exposing our customers to the possibility of another attack.”
“I think we know who did it,” Stepan said. “Two of the men that Russo killed were known Patushkin soldiers. We knew they were going to make a play, especially after the bombings last night, but who would have dreamed they would hit the casino with so many innocent people inside?”
“I could have told you that,” Lebed replied. “It’s what I would have done if we were going after them.”
Diana frowned at him. “Why? Why would you take out people who have nothing to do with the business?”
“To send a message.”
“What message? That you’re a barbarian?”
Lebed’s face darkened. “To send a message that doing business with the Patushkins might be fatal. To put them out of business!”
“What I don’t understand,” Stepan said, “is why now? We knew they were trying to pirate our turf—they’ve been doing that for years—but what prompted such a violent attack at this particular time?”
“Maybe they figured out what happened to that airliner,” Kozel said.
“What airliner?” Orel looked blank.
“The one that crashed two weeks ago.”
Orel stared at him, failing to comprehend.
“You mean the one at the airport? Here in Periscope Harbor? That was an accident.” He looked at each cousin in turn. “Wasn’t it?”
Nick felt the hair prickle on his neck. His heart suddenly pounded. He saw Diana and Kozel exchange glances, then Diana took a deep breath.
“Not exactly,” she said. “We, uh…gave it a little assist.”
Orel Petreykin’s mouth fell open and his face changed colors twice. He stared from one cousin to the other.
“You did what!!?”
Lebed and Stepan looked just as shocked.
“And you called me a barbarian?” Lebed shouted.
He headed for the wet bar and poured himself a vodka.
“It was a preemptive strike,” Diana said. “Kozel and I decided that if we took out Gregor Patushkin, it might quiet things down for a while. He was the brains behind the Patushkins and he was the one trying to push us out of Periscope Harbor.”
Orel was so stunned his voice all but failed him.
“Are you telling me that Gregor was on that plane?”
“Da.”
Orel sat heavily in his chair. He was so apoplectic that Nick wondered if he would curl up and die on the spot.
“Since when do you and Kozel make all the decisions for this family?” he demanded. “We never do anything without a council meeting first!”
“You would never have approved it,” Diana said with ice in her voice. “You’ve lost your nerve.”
“What!”
“It was the right decision,” Kozel added. “Gregor was a serious threat. I have a couple of informants inside his organization, and they confirmed that Gregor was planning a major move against us in the near future.”
“A major move? You mean, like bombing our casino? Great work, Kozel! You and Diana saved us!”
Kozel ground his teeth. “What happened today may already have been in planning. It would have happened anyway.”
“You don’t know that! You don’t know that!”
Diana lit a cigarette, sucking smoke. She was still shaking.
“Orel, we’ll rebuild. Six months from now the casino will be up and running.”
“And nobody will come! Who would dare visit a casino that might get bombed again? And the liability! Can you imagine the lawsuits we’re going to face?”
“We have insurance—”
“Which we’ll lose! Even if they do pay—and it will be in the millions—they will cancel our policy and nobody on the planet will ever cover us again. I can’t believe the two of you could be so stupid!” Orel wheeled to look at Lebed, who was Kozel’s and Diana’s brother. “Did you know about any of this?”
“Nyet. I am just as shocked as you.” Lebed poured himself another vodka.
“Calm down, Orel,” Diana said. “You are going to have a heart attack.”
Orel leaned back in his chair. He slid a hand down over his face.
“Oh, my God! Oh, Bože moj! I can’t believe any of this.”
Lebed poured him a vodka and set it on his desk, then poured another for himself. Orel didn’t touch his. The other cousins stared at each other in silence.
“Okay, then,” Diana said. “I’m going to check downstairs, make sure we have enough security for tonight. Nick, come with me?”
Nick nodded and pushed away from the wall. What he had seen and heard in the last ten minutes more than justified his trip to Periscope Harbor, with one exception—he now knew that Allesandro Federico had not been the target when the airliner crashed. And recent developments did nothing to dissuade the Sirians from allying with Beta Centauri.
Things were heating up, but his mission was far from complete.
In the lift, Diana seemed calmer. She fired another cigarette and spewed smoke into the air. Her trembling had stopped and she seemed almost relaxed.
“Nick, you obviously cannot tell anyone outside that office what you heard in there. Do you understand?”
He nodded. “Absolutely. I wouldn’t dare repeat any of it.”
“Good. Kozel told me that you saved the situation at the casino. You will be well rewarded.”
“That isn’t necessary. It was a life or death situation.”
“Just the same, never let anyone say the Petreykins are not grateful.”
“Thank you.” Nick smiled, then shook his head in wonder.
Diana noticed. She locked gazes with him. She had beautiful eyes.
“What?”
He shook his head again.
“I probably shouldn’t ask.”
“Why not? You already know more than anybody else.”
“Well, I mean—I’m impressed. Did you really bring down an airliner? I mean, how do you do that without leaving a trace?”
Her eyes twinkled and she smiled.
“We have an electronic device powerful enough to overwhelm an airplane’s systems. It shuts down the onboard computers and leaves the pilots helpless. It also creates a short circuit that causes the controls to react in an erratic manner; in this case, the plane veered off course and crashed into the mountain. The yellow boxes may have detected it, but they can’t tell where it came from or who did it.” Her smile became a smirk. “I am rather proud of that little stunt.”
“I’ve never heard of anything like that.”
“We got it from the Sirians. They are developing all kinds of kinky little gadgets.”
Nick wanted to ask her where the device had been placed, but had already pushed his luck. Too many questions might trigger her suspicious nature.
“Well, all I can say is that it was genius. I can think of a couple of occasions when we could have used something like that back in Joisey.”
She laughed and wrapped an arm around him, giving him a squeeze.
“I am glad you are here, Nick Russo. I think you have a great future with us.”
“I certainly hope so. As long as the cops don’t track me down.”
“You don’t need to worry about them. Boris will make sure of it.” She reached up and touched the burn on his cheek. “Why don’t you go get a shower and put something on that burn; we still have prisoners for you to interrogate, but you can do it tomorrow.”
“Are you sure?” Nick had been wondering about the prisoners, but hadn’t known how to ask.
“Da.” She glanced at her watch. It was late aft
ernoon. “I have some things to do, and I won’t need you, so take the rest of the day off. Meet me for breakfast tomorrow at seven.”
“What about the cops?”
“What about them?” She looked surprised.
“I was a witness at the casino today. I even took part in the shooting. Aren’t they going to want to interview me?”
“Kozel will handle that. He has video of the attack. I doubt the cops will ask to speak to you.”
Nick nodded. “Okay.”
To his surprise, she stood on tiptoe and kissed him. When she stepped off the lift, he pushed the button for his apartment floor.
Chapter 23
Nick was happy to get away from Diana. What a cold-blooded bitch!
His mind racing, he followed her advice about the shower and the burn. Half an hour later, he checked the keycard in his shoe and found a message waiting from Connie Ventura. He took a different lift down to the underground mall and walked to his usual spot to call her.
Connie sounded excited.
“Nick, are you all right? I heard about the casino.”
“Yeah, still standing. What have you got?”
“Okay…” She sounded breathless. “I don’t know what this means yet, but FIA just discovered that Gregor Patushkin was on that airliner when the Ambassador was killed. We are now wondering if he might have been the real target.”
Nick glanced around to ensure his privacy.
“I’m way ahead of you. I just sat in on a meeting where the subject came up. Patushkin was definitely the target, and Diana admitted to me privately that they brought the plane down with electronic interference. You need to notify the President of this right away.”
“So Bratva was behind it! You’re sure?”
“Not Bratva…Diana. And her brother, Kozel.”
“Oh, my god! Nick, that isn’t all—FIA has also learned that Diana may be making a play to take over the Petreykin family.”
“How do they know that?”
“I don’t really know, but the local office has a street network. This information just now turned up.”
“Is Kozel in on it?”
“He wasn’t mentioned, but based on what you just told me, he might be. You need to watch your back.”
