“Your theory was incorrect. Petrov is not in Iran.”
“Where—”
“Silence. You will listen and not ask any questions. I will be in contact again.”
“Wait—” Raketa knew there was really no point in trying to stop the person from ending the call.
The only thing she knew for sure was she could no longer operate under the assumption that no one had tracked her yet. More likely, United Russia, Petrov, and K19 knew exactly where she was. That they knew she would only listen and do as they wanted if they used her mother as bait, was more chilling than the phone call itself.
—:—
The first thing Shiv said when he walked in was how sorry he was about the bad intel on Orlov.
Gunner got right in his face. “I don’t give a shit about Orlov. What I want to know is where Ivashov is. Is that something you can help me with or not?”
“Yes.”
Gunner was ready to choke the man. “Do I need to keep asking, Shiv? Really?”
“We know exactly where she is.”
“How?”
“Grigor Bedrossian’s right hand is MI6.”
Gunner felt Doc’s hand on his shoulder, and it was a good thing because he was ready to go down Shiv’s throat. “You couldn’t have told me that before now?”
“I have to say I agree with him, Shiv,” said Merrigan coming to stand on the other side of Gunner and putting her arm through his.
“There were reasons.”
“What reasons?” Gunner barked.
“It’s no longer a credible threat.”
“For fuck’s sake,” Gunner spat, moving away from Doc and Merrigan. “Just tell me where she is, and I’ll be gone.”
“Wait,” Doc told him. “You’re not going out on this alone. And if you think you’re gonna bully Shiv into telling you where Raketa is, you’re wrong. Remember, it’s MI6 that knows where she is, Gunner. If you want that information, you’ll sit down, shut up, and listen to whatever Shiver wants to tell you. At this point, I doubt it’s much.”
Gunner pulled a chair away from the table and sat. Doc was right. Shiver had the information he needed, and for some reason, he had been withholding it.
“I understand that you were able to make the connection between Ivashov and Petrov.”
“Raketa is his daughter.”
“The woman who Alegria said was also being held by him is her mother.”
Gunner nodded.
“Did she tell you why Petrov took her to Azerbaijan?”
“Not exactly.”
“Gunner,” Doc warned.
“All she told me was that he wanted her to deliver his daughters. In exchange for that, he wouldn’t turn her over to UR.”
“She’s his daughter too,” said Shiv.
“Glad to hear you’re followin’ along.”
Shiver shook his head. “She had no idea why?”
“Nope, but I sure as hell don’t buy that Daddy is missing his baby girls.”
“Trust funds.”
Gunner, Shiv, and Doc all turned and looked at Merrigan.
“It makes sense, doesn’t it?” she responded to the unasked question.
It did. When they’d initially determined that Razor’s wife, Ava, and her twin sister, Aine’s father wasn’t Conor McNamara, the identity he’d been living under since before the two girls were born, and was, in fact, Makar Petrov, a black market arm’s dealer who had been thought dead for the same amount of time, Striker had immediately ensured the agency froze McNamara’s assets. Gunner had no idea what the value of the daughters’ trust funds might be, but it made sense that, regardless of their worth, Petrov would want to get his hands on as much cash as he could.
“Who’s the successor trustee?”
Gunner looked at Merrigan, Merrigan looked at Doc, and Doc looked at Shiv.
“You’re kidding me, right?” Gunner asked, incredulous that no one had thought of it before now.
Shiver ran one hand through his hair while he made a call with the other.
Gunner sat back in his chair, wishing Shiver would hurry it the hell up. Why did they need to figure all this out now? Every minute Raketa was out there on her own, brought her that much closer to someone else finding her before he did.
“You were on the right track, Gunner,” said Shiv, disconnecting the call. “But that isn’t the money he’s trying to get to.”
“What do you mean?”
“An officer of the bank where the trusts reside was named successor agent for Ava’s and Aine’s trusts. That money is being closely watched by your justice department.”
“Get to the fucking point, Shiver,” Gunner said between clenched teeth.
“I have my team looking for three other accounts.” Shiv looked at Doc. “You should orchestrate the same.”
That was why Petrov wanted Raketa in the first place, and why he wanted her to bring Ava and Aine to him. It had nothing to do with him wanting her to abduct his daughters; he wanted their money—and hers too.
“You should be looking for four. Or maybe one that has been liquidated recently.”
“Svetlana Petrov?” asked Doc.
“Or Ivashov.”
Doc walked outside to make the call.
Before he could ask, Shiv handed Gunner a burner phone. “She’s in Chicago. There’s a plane waiting in Santa Barbara to transport you there.”
Gunner took the phone from Shiv’s hand.
“You’re welcome.”
“I would’ve thanked you if you’d given me the chance.”
“I saved you the trouble. I know how much of a hurry you’re in.”
“Thanks, Shiver. Sincerely.”
Gunner was halfway down the block when he realized that he walked out without saying goodbye to Doc or Merrigan.
—:—
The tail wasn’t a surprise. How good he was, on the other hand, was. She recognized him from the ambassador’s office, but he had to have been trained by another intelligence organization. If she hadn’t remembered seeing him, she might think he was with United Russia. Although there was still a chance he was. There were double agents everywhere.
—:—
“Sixty seconds,” Gunner heard through the headset.
“Roger that,” he answered, already in position. He counted down from fifty-nine and when he got to one, Raketa walked out the back door of the hotel and straight into his waiting arms.
He’d anticipated her struggle, but not the vehemence behind it.
“Settle the hell down,” he barked as she tried to scratch his eye out while hurling a slew of Azeri curse words at him faster than he could translate.
“I don’t want to do this, but you’re giving me no choice,” he said as he grabbed her free arm and cuffed them both behind her.
He held her tight as she tried to struggle her way out of his grasp, but she was no match for his strength, particularly in handcuffs. When he felt her fight waning, he took her back inside the door she’d come out of, up the service elevator, and to the room MI6 had booked for him.
He opened the door, went inside, and set her down on the bed. “Here we are again, Zary. We have to stop meeting like this.”
“Don’t call me that,” she spat.
“But you told me you liked it. Remember? You were naked in my arms, and we were professing our love for each other. I’m beginning to think you didn’t really mean it.”
“You didn’t mean it.”
Gunner sat in a chair and pulled it closer to the bed where she sat. He reached out and stroked her face with his finger. “You’re wrong. I meant every word I said.”
She shifted away from his touch. “Right before you betrayed me for the second time.”
“I have never betrayed you. The first time I left you on the island, it was because I believed you’d be safer there. I told you before I left the second time that what I was being called away for had nothing to do with Petrov.”
“You lied by admission.”<
br />
He tilted his head. “Omission?”
“You know what I meant.”
“Either way, it wasn’t a lie. I was called away on another matter that was of an urgent nature. I specifically told you I would be back within forty-eight hours. Even as I spoke those words, you were planning your departure.”
“You lied to me about everything. You told me you wouldn’t use sex to get answers from me, but that’s exactly what you did. You told me we’d plan together to go after Petrov. Another lie.”
“No, Raketa. I didn’t do any of those things, and I didn’t lie to you. You, on the other hand, lied about trust. You told me you’d never trusted anyone, but I begged you to believe in me, trust me. I understand now why you couldn’t.”
“Why couldn’t I?”
“The entire time, it was I who couldn’t trust you. I was just too stupid to see it.” Gunner got up and walked to the other side of the room, running his hand through his hair.
It was easy to say things like that out of anger, but he wasn’t angry anymore. He was hurt. Way down deep in his soul, he ached, knowing that he’d been right all along. He’d never find love like his partners had. Maybe it was because he didn’t deserve it. Maybe if he’d tried harder to get through to Lena, he could’ve saved her, even if she couldn’t have ever loved him the way she’d loved Doc. Maybe living his life without love was his penance for all the horrible things he’d done in his life in the name of freedom and ridding the world of evil.
He walked back and unlocked the handcuffs binding Raketa’s wrists.
“If you want to go, I won’t stop you. But first, I want you to listen to me.”
She shook her arms and then nodded.
“I do love you. I know you don’t believe me, but I’m telling the truth. It’s the reason I’m here, the reason I wanted to find you, and the reason I want to keep you safe. I can’t imagine a world without you in it. I don’t want you to have to fight Petrov and United Russia on your own. I want to help you. I want to help you find your mother. That’s why I’m here, Raketa.”
He turned his back to her. “That’s all I had to say. I don’t want you to go, but if you do, I won’t try to stop you.”
He waited a long time after he heard the door of the hotel room close before he considered turning around. He couldn’t bear the fact that she’d left without saying a word.
16
She’d opened and closed the door of the room to see if he really meant he wouldn’t try to stop her. And he didn’t. She stood perfectly still, barely breathing, waiting for him to turn around and see she was still there. She’d almost gone to him when she saw his shoulders hunch, but she couldn’t bring herself to move.
There, before her, was proof that he hadn’t lied to her. At least not about everything. He did love her.
It didn’t change the fact that, ultimately, she would have to leave. Raketa couldn’t risk going against what the voice had demanded of her when whoever it was, clearly knew every move she was making.
“Gunner,” she murmured, unable to stand watching his pain a moment longer.
He spun around. “I don’t understand. Why are you still here?”
Now that he knew she was, she had no idea what to say. Should she tell him she was sorry, but she had to go? He’d given her the opportunity to do so without explanation.
“I…”
He walked toward her.
“Talk to me, Rocket Girl.”
“You aren’t stupid.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“I believed you. When you said you’d help me, I believed you. When you said you loved me, I believed that too. When you left and wouldn’t tell me why, I told myself it was all a lie. Everything you said to me. That’s the only way I could force myself to leave—by convincing myself you were betraying me.”
“I could never. I promise.” He reached out and touched the side of her face in the way he always did.
Tears ran down her cheeks as she realized she couldn’t make him the same promise. If it came down to choosing between betraying Gunner and saving her mother, she’d betray him in a heartbeat.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “My mother…”
“Let me help you.”
Raketa shook her head as the tears streamed down her cheeks. “I work alone.”
“You don’t have to. Not anymore. You have me and the rest of the K19 team. You can trust us.”
She shook her head again and put her hand on the doorknob. “I can’t.”
She pulled the door open and was crossing the threshold when Gunner put his hand on her arm. “Stay with me. Don’t go.”
“I wish I could.” She pulled away and walked toward the elevator.
“Wait,” he shouted.
When she looked back, he was scrubbing his face with his hand.
“I know why Petrov wanted you to bring Ava and Aine to him. It’s not the reason you think.”
“Gunner…”
“You’re in the same danger they are. Or maybe it’s that they’re in the same danger you are. He’ll kill all three of you, and I’m sure, your mother too, as soon as he gets his hands on what he wants.”
Raketa slowly walked back toward him. “You said you’d let me go.”
“And I will, but first you need to know what you’re up against.”
—:—
Was he doing this for the right reasons? Gunner couldn’t honestly say one way or the other. All he knew was he couldn’t let her leave without telling her everything he’d learned since the last time they were together. He could say it was for her safety, but if he was being honest, it was so he could spend just a few more minutes with her.
Raketa came back inside the room and sat on the edge of the bed where she’d been before. He pulled up the chair and sat as close to her as he could get.
“There are bank accounts that were set up in all three of your names. He’s running out of money. That’s why he wanted Ava and Aine. I’m convinced that once he gets his hands on it, he would kill you and your half-sisters.”
“Why did you say you think he’ll kill my mother too?”
“There was a fourth account—in her name. It’s already been liquidated. I believe her only value to him now is as a means to get you to do what he wants you to do.”
“Where are Ava and Aine?”
“Somewhere safe.”
Raketa studied him. “You don’t trust me enough to tell me.”
“It isn’t that.” Wasn’t it? Did he have a valid reason for not telling her where they were? “They’re in Oregon. The same place they’ve been. They’re with Razor, and they have a great deal of protection. If we believe their safety has been compromised, they’ll be moved. Although at this point, I don’t know where that would be.”
—:—
Her burner phone buzzed in her pocket. She couldn’t risk answering it in front of Gunner, but what if the person knew she was with him and assumed she’d already told him about the earlier call? Why hadn’t she left before instead of letting him talk her into staying? She may have just signed her own mother’s death warrant.
She stood abruptly. “I have to go.”
“I’ll say it again. Please. Let me help you.”
She shook her head and walked toward the door. “I can’t.”
—:—
Gunner heard the sound of gunfire the second she opened the door, dove to cove her, and pulled her back into the room.
He fired when he saw the tip of a gun edge at the turn to the elevator.
From what he could tell, there was only one gunman. There was nowhere to go from the corridor the shooter was in but by way of the elevator. There were no rooms, no stairwell.
He eased down the hallway, staying close to the wall, with his gun pointed directly at the corner. He may not be able to hit the person firing, but if he saw the gun again, he’d hit it, and in the moments directly following, he might be able to make the turn fast enough to kill the bastard.
When he heard the elevator’s ding, he ran forward, reaching the spot where the shooter had been just as the door came to a close. He pressed the button again and again, and then watched as it descended floor by floor.
Earlier, when he thought Raketa had left, he’d slipped the earpiece of the mic off and set it on the table. He pulled his phone out instead, calling for backup.
He ran back to the room to check on Raketa while he listened to the phone continue to ring.
“Where is that sonuvabitch?” he seethed.
Raketa’s eyes were wide when he walked back in the room to find her gun leveled at him.
“Oruzhiye?”
Gunner nodded.
“He’s alive?”
“Yes.”
“Iisus Khristos,” she muttered, lowering her gun.
“We need to leave. Now.”
“There’s someone following me,” she told him. “From the embassy, but I think he might be UR.”
“He’s MI6, but that’s not important right now. We have to go.”
Gunner led Raketa the opposite way of the elevator and to the stairwell, calling for help while they made their way up.
When they reached the roof, Gunner kicked the door open and held Raketa close while they watched a helicopter land.
“I thought you were dead,” he said when he saw the man flying it.
“I thought you might be too,” he responded with a distinct English accent.
“Raketa, meet Pimm Torosyan.”
“We’ve met,” said Raketa.
“Not officially,” said Pimm.
“No. Not officially.”
“Where are we headed?” Gunner asked once they were in the air.
“We have to make a quick stop to refuel, but I heard you fancy islands.”
Gunner smiled when he saw Raketa cringe.
“How does an MI6 agent have access to a safe house in the middle of Lake Michigan?”
Pimm laughed. “It isn’t a safe house, and it belongs to my aunt and uncle.”
Gunner watched Raketa out of the corner of his eye as she assessed every word Pimm said. She was right to. He was an agent from the UK who had been undercover inside the Armenian embassy with close access to the ambassador. He could very well be a double or even triple agent. Gunner had gone through his own vetting process and was as comfortable with Pimm as he was with Onyx, Dutch, Monk, and Alegria. He was more comfortable with Pimm than Striker, but that was because he couldn’t stand the latter. He’d never liked him, not from the first day they met. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust him, he just didn’t like him.
Gunner (K19 Security Solutions Book 2) Page 13
