“I know your background in the armed services and you’ll be a valuable asset, but when it becomes general knowledge that you are alive, your life will be in constant danger.”
“I’ll disguise myself, but I’m in.”
“Michael, one last thing before we go back in. There’s something strangely familiar about John, but I can’t place him. Be careful what you say to the man.”
I nodded, and we went back into the cabin. John, Ham and Ana were on the couch watching the news. It was still dominated by the assassination attempt on Director Stancil. The reporter said that he remained in a coma.
Ana got up and turned off the TV. “It’s time we all get some sleep. Ham, open the cot in the guest room. There’s also a double bed in there and a separate bath. The Senator and John can sleep there. Agent Stewart, the couch is a sofa bed and I’ll make it up for you. You can use the bathroom over there,” she said, pointing. “Lisa is in the other guest room. Michael I know you want some privacy with her in the morning. I’ll let you know when she’s awake.”
I thanked her and John and I retired to the bedroom. Ham finished making up the cot while John took a shower. He left before John returned.
“John, you take the bed. I’ll sleep on the cot.”
“No way,” he replied, walked to the cot and sat down.
I took a hot shower. Total exhaustion consumed me. When I returned to the bedroom, John was already in bed, with his pistol on the nightstand. I turned off the lamp and collapsed in the soft bed, falling asleep immediately.
The tapping on the bedroom door and the smell of bacon frying awakened me. I sat up in bed and saw that the cot was empty. I got up, dressed, and washed my face. When I walked into the living area, John, Ham and Agent Stewart were sitting at the table drinking coffee. Ana was busy in the kitchen preparing breakfast. Ana nodded when I came in. I grabbed a cup of coffee.
“Lisa isn’t up yet. I know that you want to see her as soon as she’s awake.”
“Yes, thanks,” I replied, and gulped some black coffee. Lazarus was sitting on the other side of the room. His food bowl was untouched. Abruptly he got up and trotted over to the bedroom door where Lisa was sleeping. He sat down whining, looking up at the door.
“She must be awake,” Ana said.
I put my coffee cup on the table and walked to the door and knocked. “Yes,” I heard my daughter say.
“Lisa, it’s me.”
The door flew open and she grabbed me. I could hear her sobs as she hugged me. I was unsuccessful in holding back my tears. “Oh Daddy, I thought you were dead. I love you so much.”
“Honey let’s go in your room.” She backed up, but did not loosen her grip on me. I pushed the door shut with my foot. “Let’s sit down on the bed and talk.”
She finally loosened her grip. “I’m so glad that you’re safe. You’ve been a very brave girl, and I promise I’m here to protect you.”
“Daddy do you know what happened to me?”
“Yes, I was told. You don’t need to go over it with me. There is something else I must tell you. I’m so sorry for putting you through any more grief.”
“Wait Daddy,” she said with tear filled eyes. “I know Mother is in heaven. When no one would answer any questions I assumed it. It’s true, isn’t it?”
“Yes honey.”
She collapsed again in my arms. We both cried and held each other. After a few minutes she pulled back and looked up at me. “Mom would want us to be strong now. I’ll do my best.”
I hugged her again. “Why don’t you wash your face and come out for some breakfast. It’ll make you feel better.”
“Mr. and Mrs. Burris have been so kind to me,” she said, “and I love Lazarus.” She kissed me on the cheek and went to the bathroom.
I went wiped my eyes, walked back into the kitchen and filled my coffee cup.
“Is she okay?” Ham asked.
“Yes,” I said.
Agent Stewart’s cell phone rang. “Excuse me for a moment. I need to take a call.” He walked outside. John stared at him as he left.
Lisa came in and sat at the table. Lazarus walked with her and lay at her feet. Once again he kept his eyes fixed on John as if he expected the man to attack Lisa.
“Good morning to everyone,” she said. “I’m sorry Sir, I don’t know you,” she said to John.
“I’m here to protect your father,” he replied.
I noticed that John had his pistol stuck in his belt in the small of his back.
Ana approached the table with a large bowl of steaming grits, with melted butter in the center. After setting it down, she returned with a platter of scrambled eggs, country ham, and bacon. Homemade biscuits came next.
“Help yourself,” she said. Ana filled a glass with milk, placed it in front of Lisa and refilled all the coffee mugs.
We filled out plates and were eating when Agent Stewart came back in. I could sense instantly that he was highly distressed.
“Michael, I need to talk to you in private,” he said.
I got up to follow him out when John leaped to his feet. He jerked the pistol from his belt and pointed it at Stewart.
“Nobody leaves this room,” he roared.
Chapter 53
Six hours earlier . . .
Macy sluggishly regained consciousness. Her head throbbed from the blow from Dubov. She attempted to get to her feet, but dizziness brought her back to the floor. She tried again and got to her knees. Waiting a moment, she unsteadily rose to her feet. She attempted to open the door, and wasn’t surprised to find it locked.
Macy frantically searched her pockets and looked around the floor for her cell phone, but realized that Dubov must have taken it.
If he examines her recent calls, he would find Director Stancil’s number in Washington DC. If he called the number, her cover would be blown and Dubov would kill her. Even if he only determined that the call went to Washington DC, he would know she was an undercover agent.
Macy wobbled to the bathroom and threw water on her face. She examined the lump on her head. It was excruciatingly painful to the touch.
She searched the bathroom for a weapon, but found nothing useful. She gazed in the mirror. The glass could be a weapon. She grabbed a towel, placed it over the mirror, and slammed it with her fist several times until it cracked. Macy carefully removed a shard of glass.
She realized that her only chance of survival was to surprise Dubov when he returned. She sat by the door listening for about thirty minutes, hearing nothing. Finally she heard footsteps on the stairs. Macy lay on the floor in the same spot where Dubov had left her. She concealed the shard of glass beneath her body.
She held her breath as she heard the key entering the lock and the click.
The door opened and Dubov stepped inside. He was breathing heavily. She smelled the odor of bourbon. She had no idea how drunk he was.
“Get up you bitch,” he murmured, his voice slurred. She remained motionless. Dubov kicked her hard in the ribs. The pain was terrible, but Macy did not move. Dubov knelt to check her pulse, positioning his finger on her neck.
Macy rolled and slashed at him with the glass. He jerked his hand back, but she connected with his wrist. Dubov jumped back and grabbed his wrist. Blood was streaming through his fingers. She knew she must have cut the ulnar artery.
Macy jumped to her feet holding the shard of glass in front of her.
“I’ll kill you bitch,” Dubov snarled, and lunged toward her. Macy sidestepped him and hacked at his neck. Dubov screamed again as blood spurted. He staggered for a moment. Macy leaped forward and kicked him hard in the groin. He doubled over and fell to the floor.
She was on him instantaneously, jabbing him in the eyes. He shrieked again. She moved behind him and grabbed his hair, jerking his head back. With one forceful swipe of the glass, she severed his juggler vein. Blood sprayed, and he uttered a loud gurgling sound.
His bloody eyes rolled back and he fell head first to the carpet. He
was dead before his head crashed to the floor. Macy took a deep breath. She was covered with Dubov’s blood and sank to her knees, attempting to get her breath.
After a few moments, she made her way to the bathroom. Macy stripped off her bloody clothes and took a hot shower, treated the cuts on her hand, and dressed in fresh clothes. She took a handbag from her closet, wrapped the shard of glass in toilet paper and placed it in the bag. The murder weapon must be destroyed. Her fake identification was also in the bag. She knew that she had to escape and could not leave any evidence leading to her identity.
Macy returned to Dubov’s body, and searched his pockets for her cell phone. Nothing was there except a key ring and his wallet. The keys to the SUV were on the ring. She put both the keys and the wallet in her handbag, and proceeded downstairs. She noticed a half filled glass of bourbon on the study desk beside Dubov’s cell phone. She dropped the phone in her bag to be searched later.
Also laying beside the glass of bourbon was her cell phone. She picked it up and punched in the secured number of Director Stancil. She had to warn him that he was the government official contracted to be eliminated.
“Hello,” a strange voice answered. She knew something was wrong. The Director never allowed anyone to have possession of his secured phone. She immediately hung up.
Macy was desperate to get a message to the Director that the Russian Mafia was ordered to kill him. She remembered what he said in their last conversation. He said if he wasn’t available, then she should call Agent Gerry Stewart. He had provided her with a code and his number. She made the call.
“Stewart here,” was the answer.
“Agent Stewart, I was told to give you the code 2314.”
“Who is this?” Stewart asked.
“ This is Ahalya Verma Singh. I’m sure that the Director gave you my undercover name of Macy.”
“Yes Macy, I know who you are.”
“I tried to reach the Director, but a stranger answered his secured phone. I must get the message to him that the Russian Mafia has been ordered to kill him.”
“Macy, I’m sorry to inform you that Director Stancil was shot. He’s in critical condition at Walter Reid Hospital. I’ve dispatched several of my trusted Agents to keep him safe.”
“Oh my God.” Macy attempted to compose herself.
“Agent Stewart, my undercover position has been compromised. I’m in Chicago at the home of Ivan Dubov, who I was forced to kill. He was my contact with the Russian Mafia.
“I’ve got to get out of here. I don’t know who to trust in the FBI other than you. I know the Mafia guys I’ve been associated with are part of a conspiracy of historic magnitude. Should I go into hiding, or do you have an assignment for me?”
“Macy, before you leave that location, search that house for any information relevant to the plot and the assassination attempt on the Director. Call me if you discover anything. Then I want you to make your way to this safe house in Pecos, Texas. A former Agent and her husband own the home, and they are trustworthy. Presently Senator Roberts and his daughter are here along with a guy who’s acting as his bodyguard. Frankly the guy looks familiar to me, but I haven’t been able to place him.”
“Yes sir, but it’ll take me a couple of days. I’ll have take steps to change my identity. Give me the address.”
Stewart gave her the address and ended the phone conversation.
Macy checked the recent outgoing calls on her phone. Even though the Director’s phone number was blocked, the location of the call was in the history. She assumed that Dubov had checked the history on the phone and concluded that she had been talking to Washington DC. That was a dead giveaway that she was an undercover agent.
When he returned to her room, his intent surely was to question her and kill her.
Macy went to the study and searched the drawers in the desk. She found nothing of interest. There was a file cabinet to the left of the desk. She fished Dubov’s keys out of her bag and tried all the keys until she found the right one. She searched the files. One folder did list the names of the Russian Mafia hierarchy with locations and phone numbers. She set that file aside.
On several occasions Macy observed Dubov opening the wall safe located under a large painting of a snow-covered mountain in Russia. She removed the painting and looked at the safe. It had a combination lock. She had no idea what the combination was.
Macy lifted Dubov’s wallet from her bag. She rummaged through the wallet, but found nothing with a combination on it. She pulled out his driver’s license. She knew that Dubov was lazy and would enter a combination that he could remember. His Illinois driver’s license had the first letter of his last name followed by twelve numbers. She tried several different mixtures of the numbers to no avail.
Macy studied the license. His birthdate caught her interest, October 4, 1973. She tried 10/03/73 and was surprised when she heard the click, and she opened the safe.
Several stacks of one hundred dollar bills were laying in the front. She deposited them in her bag. She would need cash and had no way of getting anything from the FBI.
Behind the cash were numerous dated CD’s and flash drives. She removed them. Also there was an expandable folder with papers in a stack about eight inches high. She removed it and placed the folder on the desk. She reached to the back of the safe and retrieved a Mikarov semi-automatic pistol, fully loaded and with an extra box of ammunition beside it. She placed the gun on the desk along with the ammunition.
Macy inserted one of the CDs into the laptop computer on the desk. Dubov’s voice came on stating a date. Following was a conversation with Maxin Nevsky. There was discussion and speculation about a man they called The Controller. Nevsky said this guy was working with the Russian Mafia to overthrow the US Government. He said he didn’t trust anyone who concealed their identity. The conversation lasted about fifteen minutes. She played parts of several additional chats. Apparently Dubov taped all his conversations with Nevsky. He also recorded conversations with other Russian Mafia officials and other people she couldn’t identify. She didn’t know if the recordings were for blackmail purposes or for protection in case the Godfather decided that Dubov was no longer useful.
She didn’t have time to review all the CD’s and flash drives, but she was sure that they contained useful information about Director Stancil’s attempted assassination and the planned terrorist attacks.
A briefcase was on the floor by the desk. She opened it, and after determining that there was nothing useful in it, she dumped the contents on the floor. She placed the CD’s and flash drives inside, along with the thick folder of papers and extra ammunition. She closed the laptop and jammed it into the briefcase. Macy dropped the pistol in her bag.
She proceeded upstairs, grabbed a suitcase out of the closet, and packed essentials and clothing. It was time to leave.
Macy gathered the briefcase, suitcase, and handbag, then headed to the front door.
She immediately spotted the headlights of a vehicle barreling down the driveway. It screeched to a stop in the circular driveway in front of the door. Scarface got out of the vehicle, and Orin Sturgess drove it toward the detached garage.
Macy quickly locked the front door, threw the suitcase and briefcase in the study and closed the door.
Bang, bang, bang on the front door. “Open up Dubov,” Scarface bellowed.
Macy put her handbag on the table in the foyer and opened the door. Scarface stumbled in. His face was flushed, and it was apparent that he had been drinking.
“Where’s that damn Dubov? We need to call Nevsky. The assassination was not completed. The bastard is still alive!”
“What are you talking about? Ivan’s asleep.” Macy said. “What assassination?”
“None of your damn business. Get out of the way. I’m going to wake that lazy son of a bitch.” He shoved her aside and lumbered toward the stairs.
“Wait,” Macy yelled.
When he turned, she delivered a solid side pivot kick
to this face. She heard bones in his nose crack. He dropped to his knees, grabbing his face, and she followed her attack with heel kick to the jaw.
This time he fell face first to the floor. She leaped over to his body and stomped his head. Macy was trained in Muay and Hauquan, both deadly Asian martial arts. Her skill level was of a Black Belt caliber. She could have killed him on the spot, but she wanted to disable him so she could interrogate him later.
She quickly grabbed the pistol out of her bag and waited by the door for Sturgess.
Minutes later, he walked through the door.
“What the hell?” he shouted when he saw Scarface on the floor with blood flowing from this head. Those were the last words the rapist and murderer Sturgess would ever utter as Macy put a bullet in the center of his forehead.
She placed the pistol in her bag and went over to Scarface’s body. Pressing her fingers on his neck, she found a strong pulse.
“You’re a tough bastard,” she said aloud. She was pleased that he was alive because she had questions that needed answers. Macy knew that getting answers from this battle hardened Russian would be difficult. However, she had experience and training for interrogations like this. She knew that thousands of innocent lives depended on her getting answers.
She went to the utility room beside the kitchen and grabbed a roll of duct tape, a hammer, four three-inch nails, and a pair of pliers. Walking back to Scarface’s body, she turned him on his side, securely taped his hands and feet behind him. She connected the hands to his feet with two long strips of tape, effectually hog-tying him. Macy doubled another three pieces of tape, placed it around his neck, and connected it to the tape around his wrists. If he struggled, he would choke himself. She placed the hammer, nails, and pliers about twelve inches from his closed eyes.
Macy then went to the kitchen, snatched a bottle of Wesson Oil from the cabinet and poured half of it into a pot. After turning the burner on high, she set the pot of oil on the heat. She grabbed a dishtowel, wet it, and filled it with ice cubes. She also filled a pitcher with cold water and went back to Scarface. Macy dumped the cold water on his face. He groaned, but still appeared unconscious.
Lost in the Maze Page 28
