An Aegean Prophecy ak-3

by Jeffrey Siger

  He stared at the bottle and touched himself again.

  ‘You were terrific, darling. Can only imagine how great you must be when you’re awake.’ Barbara was talking with her head in the pillow. ‘Consider it payment in full for driving me crazy all night.’ She rolled onto her back, pulled her knees up toward her hips, and said, ‘But in case you can’t remember what it feels like to be inside me… bare.’ She spread open her arms and smiled. Andreas stared at her, holding personal lubricant in his one hand and a very hard dick in the other.

  ‘I think I’ll take a shower.’

  ‘Lucky woman.’ Barbara rolled back onto her belly.

  The conversation was so awkward for Andreas that he didn’t know what to do next. He showered for twenty minutes, trying to think of something to say. By the time he came out of the bathroom, Barbara was gone. A note was on her pillow. He picked it up.

  Ran off to town. Regards to Lila. Thanks. B.

  Who the hell is ever going to believe this? He called Tassos.

  ‘And how are we this morning, my little party animal?’

  ‘Do not ask.’

  ‘That bad?’

  ‘Worse. So, what happened?’

  ‘I think we picked most of it up on tape. Good idea you had to talk over the woman’s back all night. She muffled out a lot of the background noise. Surprised she didn’t mind. A real trouper.’

  Andreas didn’t dare respond. Tassos had been a cop too long; a tone of voice would tell all.

  ‘They took the bait. Right after you told him about the stuff at Barbara’s, Vladimir said something to one of his guys in Russian. It had to be to find and search her house. My Syros boys tailed them there. They were real efficient, in and out in less than ten minutes. Bet you didn’t notice they ever were there.’

  ‘In my condition I wouldn’t have noticed a herd of elephants camped out in the living room. Did your boys check to see if they planted any bugs in the house?’

  ‘Yes. It’s clean.’

  Andreas walked into the living room and looked at his briefcase. ‘Did your guys touch my briefcase?’ He rarely carried one but did for this trip.

  ‘I told them if they even breathed on it they’d be singing castrato at Easter services.’

  The briefcase was sitting on a patterned chair exactly where Andreas had set it down… almost. Just one half a flower too far back on the seat cushion. ‘Yeah, these guys were good, not perfect, but good.’ He opened the case. Again, everything almost where it should be. The flash drive was not exactly at the same spot on the newspaper as he’d placed it before going out, nor was the folder with copies of the articles and photographs exactly where he’d left it.

  ‘Looks like they got to everything, and took care I wouldn’t notice.’

  ‘Any chance they missed it?’ asked Tassos.

  ‘If they were blind and dumb.’

  ‘Not those guys. So now what?’

  ‘Don’t know about you, but for once I’ll be spending my holiday at home. Let the other guys do the work.’ ‘Kalo Paska.’

  Andreas paused. ‘How do you say “Happy Easter” in Russian?’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘Well, that guy Vladimir wasn’t so bad. The fact he wanted to screw Barbara only made him human. I thought I’d call and say thanks. He did pick up the check.’

  ‘Probably not a good idea. The only reason he’d want to talk to you — unless you can get him laid — is to make sure this whole thing wasn’t a setup. If I were you, I’d avoid him.’

  Andreas nodded at the phone. ‘Good advice. I’m off to the airport.’

  ‘I wonder what they’re going to do with what they took?’

  ‘My guess is, start off by ruining a lot of people’s holiday.’

  ‘As long as it’s not ours.’

  ‘Amen to that, my friend.’

  The area of Costa Ilios was not far from the center of town, but trying to get a taxi from there to the airport at six in the afternoon on the Saturday before Easter required a bit of a miracle. In Andreas’ case, it took a call from the current Mykonos police chief. Andreas hoped to get a seat on the 7:30 flight. It was the first one to Athens since he’d gotten up. He was banking on everyone being where they intended to be by now, what with Saturday night being the main event of Greek Easter.

  Andreas was in the midst of a heated argument with a particularly belligerent ticket agent who kept insisting that despite a virtually deserted departures area there were no seats available on the flight, even for a GADA chief inspector.

  ‘Chief Kaldis.’

  The voice was behind him. Andreas turned. ‘Yes?’

  ‘Mr Brusko would like you to join him for coffee.’ The accent was Russian but the man was not someone he recognized from last night. He was stocky, five-foot-ten, around sixty, and dressed like a college professor on holiday.

  Andreas looked around. ‘I don’t see him.’

  ‘He’s at his home.’

  Andreas nodded. ‘I see. Well, please thank him, but I have a plane to catch.’ He looked at his watch. ‘In thirty minutes.’

  ‘It is very important.’

  ‘So is getting home in time for Easter.’

  ‘He can arrange to fly you there.’

  ‘I’m sure he can, but my family is expecting me on this plane. Please thank him, especially for last night, but I must respectfully decline.’

  The man studied him for a moment. ‘It’s about Zacharias.’

  Andreas shrugged.

  The man smiled. ‘Very good.’

  ‘“Very good” what? I don’t know any “Zacharias.”’ Andreas looked at his watch and turned back to the ticket agent. The agent looked right past him as if expecting a sign from Vladimir’s man. Andreas leaned in. ‘Bad move, numbnuts. If I don’t have a ticket in my hand in fifteen seconds, I’m coming behind this counter and kicking the fucking shit out of you. And just try getting a cop to help you.’

  The guy started to stammer.

  ‘Eleven… ten… no talk… just a ticket… seven-’

  The agent frantically punched away at his keyboard, yanked out a ticket from the printer, and handed it to Andreas.

  Andreas turned and faced the Russian man behind him. ‘Your turn. Just how long a holiday would you like to spend in Greece? Ever see Midnight Express? Would you like to experience the Greek version? Consider your next move carefully.’ Andreas stepped toward him.

  The man stepped aside.

  Andreas leaned over and whispered in his ear, ‘Smart move. And tell your boss sitting in the Hummer outside not to be so conspicuous next time.’

  Andreas walked to the check-in counter at the north end of the room. By the time he’d checked in and turned around, Vladimir was standing by the door to the departure gates.

  Andreas walked straight toward him. ‘I see you missed my company.’

  Vladimir nodded. ‘Yes, but this is far more serious than drinks at a bar and playing with a woman’s back.’

  ‘Maybe for you, but for me it’s a hell of a lot less exciting.’

  Vladimir smiled. ‘May we talk outside?’

  They went out and stood by the entrance to the parking area.

  ‘What you told me last night could have severe implications.’

  ‘About what?’

  ‘You know exactly what I’m talking about.’

  ‘Vladimir, you’re a nice guy, and I know you want to bury your cock about as deep as it can go in Barbara, but aside from that I have no idea what you’re talking about.’

  Vladimir smiled again. ‘You’re right about point one, but I don’t believe your second.’

  Andreas placed his arm over Vladimir’s shoulder and locked eyes with him. ‘For the life of me Vladimir, I really want to help you out here, so if there is something on your mind just tell me directly, otherwise please stop with all this bullshit and let me catch my plane.’

  ‘If you don’t confirm, nothing will happen.’

  Andreas dropped his arm from Vladim
ir’s shoulder and shook his head. ‘I just bought the ticket, there is nothing to confirm.’

  Vladimir nodded. ‘Okay, have it your way. Your elaborate ruse of last night will have been a total waste of time.’

  Andreas patted him on the arm. ‘Obviously you’ve never slept with Barbara. Gotta run. Happy Easter.’ He never looked back. Just walked into the terminal, through the metal detector and out to the plane. He had no idea if he’d handled this test correctly but he’d gone with his instincts. What happened next was out of his hands anyway. And certainly not in God’s.

  20

  Vladimir and the other Russian sat in the back of the Hummer. It hadn’t moved from in front of the terminal.

  ‘What do you think?’ Vladimir asked.

  ‘He demonstrated the inborn, aggressive traits of an animal under stress. It’s called the “fight or flight response.”’

  ‘Okay, Anatoly, I know you’re a psychologist, but I’m asking for your KGB instincts. You dealt with these sorts all the time. Do you think he’s for real, or is all this some sort of setup?’

  ‘Does he have a motive for setting you up?’

  ‘Who knows, a lot of people would like to see me fall. He could be working for any one of them.’

  ‘I know, even paranoids have enemies, Vladimir, but he reacted like someone who feared he’d told you something he shouldn’t have. And the guy’s a cop. He knew that the best way to deal with that sort of confrontation was with absolute, flat-out denials. Assuming of course there was no other way to prove he was lying. You get in trouble when you try building a story. An experienced examiner will tear you to shreds.’

  ‘Or he really didn’t know what we were talking about.’

  Anatoly nodded. ‘Yes, but do you believe that?’

  Vladimir shook his head no. ‘I heard him, I know what he said. I know what he planned on giving me.’

  ‘Then he’s frightened.’

  ‘Could it be just another part of the con, a way of reinforcing what he said last night?’

  ‘Anything’s possible, but he didn’t seek you out. He was trying to get on a plane and off the island. We stopped him.’

  Vladimir let out a breath. ‘This is all so risky. I’m tempted to just walk away. Did you mention Zacharias? That’s not something he told me last night. We figured it out from the documents.’

  ‘Yes, but he never reacted.’

  Vladimir shook his head. ‘Damn it, if he really was as drunk as he appeared he probably doesn’t remember what he told me. That would be consistent with your “fear” scenario. Deny everything.’

  ‘Or he really doesn’t know who Zacharias might be.’

  Vladimir shrugged. ‘Maybe.’

  ‘Perhaps I should ask some colleagues from the old days to check out this Zacharias monk, and if he turns out to be who we think he is, this could be a very serious matter indeed.’

  ‘Why do you think I had you flown here from Moscow?’ Bringing in the former head of counterintelligence for the KGB’s First Chief Directorate foreign intelligence service was not a decision he’d made lightly. It brought with it all the risks of petting an attack dog trained by another.

  ‘The presumably dead man in the clippings was very clever, very ruthless, and very Machiavellian. His intrigues became Balkan legend. At the time of his death he was very angry with us. He claimed we weren’t supportive enough against the Americans. Even blamed us for his capture. I can assure you we did not regret his passing.’

  ‘So, like I said, what should I do with everything that cop dumped in my lap?’

  ‘Good question. You could ignore it, which is what I assume you’d prefer. If Zacharias is living out his days as a monk in some out of the way place, no one will care. Even if he is who I think he might be. But if he is the one behind these efforts to embarrass our country with the church, that is a very different story.’

  ‘A lot of people are trying to do the same thing to us with the whole world,’ said Vladimir.

  ‘But no one like the man in the clippings. Few are as ruthless as he, thank God.’

  ‘Even if he’s Attila the Hun reborn, what can some low-level monk in a mountain wilderness in northern Greece do to seriously harm Mother Russia? What?’ Vladimir’s frustration was showing.

  Anatoly smiled. ‘I think your current status has you forgetting how the meek still can bring down the mighty. But to answer your question, if somehow this “low-level monk” succeeds, and word ever gets out that you knew and didn’t inform the proper authorities…’ He shrugged. ‘The old ways are old, but not all forgotten.’

  Vladimir felt a shiver. He’d been thinking only in terms of how to turn this information to his advantage, use it to ingratiate himself with Russia’s ultimate power. He never thought of the downside. And having brought this man into his tent, if anything should go wrong, Anatoly wouldn’t hesitate to use it for the same ingratiating purpose or to blackmail him for the rest of his days. After all, you can take the man out of KGB, but you can’t take… ‘Is there any other choice?’

  ‘Prayer.’

  Vladimir unconsciously ran the fingers of his right hand through his hair. ‘Let’s get everything we have to whoever you think should see it ASAP.’

  ‘It’s the right decision. I’ll transmit it as soon as I get to a computer.’

  Vladimir leaned forward, pressed a button and a laptop station descended from the back of the front seat. ‘So you don’t waste time.’ And so Vladimir could verify the information actually was sent. The smart play for this guy was to compromise Vladimir by not sending it on, while allowing him to think that he had.

  ‘Great, but I don’t have the information with me.’

  Vladimir pulled a flash drive from his shirt pocket. ‘Everything’s been transferred to this. All you need to do is the cover letter. Please, it’s getting late, and I’m certain they’ll want to get started on this right away.’

  Vladimir made no effort to conceal that he was reading every word Anatoly typed. It was his not-so-subtle way of reminding him who had the real power in that car, and that there would be no role reversal coming out of this affair. Once that e-mail was sent, Vladimir’s hands were washed of this mess, and he was making damn sure there’d be no comebacks.

  Anatoly finished typing. ‘Is this okay?’

  Vladimir carefully read it, then smiled. ‘Perfect my friend, with one slight typo. The name in the e-mail address ends with an “n,” not an “m.”’

  ‘Sorry about that.’

  ‘No problem, but we wouldn’t want it going out like that, we might never know that it wasn’t received.’ I certainly wouldn’t know, because it wasn’t my e-mail. Vladimir leaned over and made the correction, then reread the e-mail and verified that all the attachments were there.

  Vladimir sat back, turned toward Anatoly and smiled in a manner reminiscent of a shark about to strike. ‘That would be a terrible tragedy.’ He stretched for the keyboard and hit send. ‘For everyone.’

  Just one more sunrise until the monastery opened its gates. Zacharias was prepared for another long night of prayer. The epitaphios service had begun at one in the morning, the procession at four, and more prayer ran on past dawn. Now they were in the midst of celebrating the resurrection as was done in ancient times, with a vigil that began that afternoon and would not end until mid-morning, with only a cup of blessed wine, some bread, and dried fruit to give them strength. This was a period of intense fasting. Some had eaten nothing. It was as the abbot wished it to be, and so it was. It was a time to rejoice, he said.

  But until his three monks returned, Zacharias could not rejoice. It wasn’t that he cared for them, but they had arranged for the messenger, and the messenger was expecting to deliver the package to at least one of the three. It was not the sort of package one could just claim was being picked up on someone else’s behalf. And he must have it before tomorrow evening. That was when he would be dining with the Russian abbot.

  He shook his head. Another obs
tacle. He’d taken such care to isolate himself from this transaction, yet now he might have to step forward and not just claim but plead for the prize. But nothing in life was easy. He would do what must be done. This was too important. They had succeeded in obtaining the exact formulation of dioxin used on the Ukrainian. Even though there were far better and faster working poisons, nothing would change the world as quickly as this death by pure 2,3,7,8-TCDD.

  Evening church services in Athens on Holy Saturday generally started at ten. Andreas knew Lila would use his late flight back from Mykonos as the excuse to her parents and his mother for why they’d probably not be there on time. As long as they made it to the church by midnight. That was the high point of the service, when church bells rang out across Greece and even total strangers exchanged the traditional Christos Anesti and Alithos Anesti greetings that Christ had risen, kissed each other, and lit each other’s candles to share the light and joy of the occasion.

  Andreas was not feeling, nor in the mood for, joy. He’d been biting away at his lower lip since boarding the plane, a long-dormant nervous habit from childhood. He didn’t realize he was doing it until he saw his reflection in the plane’s window. He shook his head. How could I have been so stupid? How could I have ruined everything? He stared out the window.

  Should I tell Lila? How can I tell her now? She’s about to give birth to our baby. The betrayal, and with her best friend, I can’t tell her, I just can’t. He tried to justify what happened, but instead kept coming back to what he did wrong. He got drunk, he agreed to follow Barbara into the bedroom after promising Lila he’d sleep on the couch. It was his fault. Even though he didn’t remember a thing and refused when she offered herself again that morning. He was ashamed, and for one of the few times in his life utterly confused.

  ‘Sir.’ It was the flight attendant.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘We’ve landed, you must get off, you’re holding up the bus to the terminal.’

  Andreas mumbled, ‘I’m sorry,’ and hurried off the plane. He couldn’t go home like this. Maybe he just shouldn’t show up. Run away. Stay with Kouros for a few days. He couldn’t bear to face Lila.