“If that’s the case, then we can probably narrow our efforts to the succession candidates. Let’s concentrate on discovering which faction is most likely to have kidnapped her,” Rhiannon said.
“Why would any of them kidnap her?” Andrei asked. “Even if they knew who she was, what would taking her have to do with the succession?”
“Perhaps they see her as a bargaining chip,” Rhiannon answered. “They may not know why Gorbachev wants her or her relationship with him. They might offer to trade her to Gorbachev for help in backing their succession bid. Or possibly use her as a hostage to keep him out of the succession, to keep him from backing another candidate.”
“That’s pretty wild speculation,” Andrei said.
Vladimir shook his head. “Actually, that makes a lot of sense.” He cocked his head and looked at Rhiannon in a way that made her think he was really seeing her for the first time as more than a pretty girl. “That makes a hell of a lot of sense. It would be in Gorbachev’s interest to see the weakest candidate take over. Viktor could have kidnapped her to ensure Gorbachev backs him or one of the others may be trying to use her to keep Sergei on the sidelines.”
“That still doesn’t explain how they knew who she was,” Andrei said. “Hell, it could be that Gorbachev paid Romanov to snatch her. She might have already been moved to Moscow or even south.”
Rhiannon looked around the room, her eyes settling on Spencer, the O’Donnell Healer who was the surviving senior Protector from the St. Petersburg team.
“There are only three possibilities,” she said. “Either someone who recognized her from London tipped off Romanov, Sergei paid Romanov, or there’s a mole inside O’Donnell’s team. Anyone want to convince me the last option isn’t true?” She looked at Spencer.
“I’ll open my shields to a superior from O’Donnell,” he said, “but not to you. No offense, ma’am, but you’re not Clan.”
Rhiannon nodded and looked at Andrei.
“Spencer, gather your team in the dining room,” Andrei said. Spencer stood and left the room. “Do you trust me?” Andrei stiffly asked Rhiannon.
“I’m not going to insult you,” she answered. “I’m sorry about Ivan.” The dead Protector had been Andrei’s nephew. “I don’t mean to insult any of the people on our team,” she continued, “and I don’t think anyone voluntarily betrayed us. I’m simply trying to eliminate any doubts in all of our minds. But I think you should include a construct artist in your interrogation.”
Andrei’s eyes widened. “I’ll do that,” he said. He motioned to the team lead from O’Donnell’s Kiev operations and they left together.
*Lady Brenna told me that I should trust your instincts,* Vladimir sent on a spear thread. *I’m starting to see why.*
*I’m only a pretty face with big tits,* Rhiannon sent back, looking directly into his eyes. *Anyone who was at Ayr can tell you that.*
He checked his shields. They weren’t leaking. She hadn’t read his mind, but she had obviously picked up on what he was thinking, whether through Empathy, facial expressions or body language. Only a thin ring of green surrounded her pupils. He shuddered, realizing that Irina’s kidnapping had Rhiannon close to the killing edge. This wasn’t just a job for her, it was personal.
Roman’s team checked out. There weren’t any traitors in the group. When Andrei informed Rhiannon, she went to the dining room to talk to the people on that team.
“I apologize,” she told the men and women gathered there. “I hope you understand we had to do this to eliminate any suspicion.”
“It’s okay,” Spencer said. “Once I saw Mikhail, I understood what you were thinking.” The Kiev team lead was a construct artist. “No hard feelings.”
The others nodded. “Scary for us to think someone we trusted might have been compromised,” a woman said. “Better we know.”
“Thank you,” Rhiannon said and turned to leave.
“Katya,” Spencer said, using the familiar variation of her operational name. “I may be the senior person on this team now, but I don’t have any experience leading a team. As a healer, I have to think differently if we get into a scrap. Collin said you’re in charge. I know that you deferred to Roman’s experience, but I’d feel a lot better if you really take charge of this team. We saw you in action when Irina was kidnapped. You know what you’re doing.”
She looked around and saw nods of agreement and heard some soft, “I agree” comments.
“Anyone disagree?” she asked. No one spoke up.
“Shit. I really hate responsibility,” she said.
“Tough,” one woman laughed. “You’re stuck with it, and with us.”
~~~
O’Donnell had a mole inside the Gorbachev Clan in Moscow. Checking with him revealed that, to his knowledge, no one had been contacted about Irina. He hadn’t noticed any unusual activity and even Sergei’s closest lieutenants didn’t show any concern. But he also didn’t know where Sergei was. Two of the Clan Chief’s confidants were also missing. The mole assumed they were at the Black Sea estate.
It was decided that they would start with the weakest of the Romanov non-heirs. Leonid Romanov was the youngest of Alexander’s children and the only child of his second wife. A playboy who didn’t seem to harbor dynastic aspirations, he was not only the least likely suspect, but also the one with the least political power, wealth and protection.
A scouting foray of his estate outside the city provided the intelligence that he was throwing a large party the next day. Tonight, there would be numerous deliveries of food and booze to his home, along with employees of the caterer coming in to prepare. His security force appeared to be about thirty men.
One hundred Protectors positioned themselves outside Leonid’s perimeter. Andrei’s team stopped a delivery truck with a load of vodka and champagne. They captured the driver and the other two men riding with him, blanked their memories, and put them to sleep. Unloading the booze, the team climbed into the back of the truck and Andrei drove on to the compound.
Once they were inside, another truck appeared at the gate. When the guard approached the truck, Rhiannon blasted through his shields and took control of his mind. He turned and waved to his fellow guard to let the truck through. Halfway through the gate, the truck stopped. Rhiannon took control of the second guard as Protectors swarmed out of the back of the truck and spread out around the compound.
The Protectors from the first truck were now in the house, capturing and neutralizing everyone they encountered. Rhiannon heard a few scattered gunshots from inside, then a submachine gun from the front of the house. She saw the flare of light that indicated a fireball, and the gun fell silent.
*RB, we have them all,* Andrei sent from the house.
*Status?* she sent to her team outside.
*All good. No casualties on our side,* Spencer sent.
She decided not to inquire about casualties on the Romanov side. Slipping around to the front, she saw a charred spot on the side of the building with an equally charred body lying on the ground. Spencer waved her toward the front door.
“He was a bit uncooperative,” he said, following her eyes toward the dead man.
He led her into the house and up a large staircase. Upstairs, she was ushered into a room where a visibly upset man in his forties, but looking about twenty-five, was pacing the floor, shouting about how his father was going to fry them all.
*Leonid Romanov, I presume?* she asked Andrei.
*In the flesh. He hasn’t offered any resistance.*
*Have you tried his shields?*
*No, we were waiting for you.*
Rhiannon tested Leonid’s shields and he resisted. Taking a deep breath, she assaulted his shields, breaking through to his ninth level and capturing his mind. Gazing on his soul, she found that although he had a few blemishes, it wasn’t as bad as she expected. Several red spots that indicated rape or other types of coercion, a few light brown smudges that were the result of cruelties he’d inflicted, bu
t no black that would be the result of murder.
Ransacking his mind, she found that he really was just a playboy. He had no expectation of becoming Clan Chief, and had done his best to remain neutral in his siblings’ maneuverings. As to Irina, he had no idea she even existed.
“Nothing,” she announced. “Andrei, Spencer, come on in and get whatever knowledge you feel is useful. His father is dying, and he has information on locations, codes, some bank accounts, things like that. But he has no power within the Clan, and he never heard of Irina.”
It was almost morning when they returned to the safe house. Before going to bed, Rhiannon was relaxing in a warm bath when she felt a tickle in her mind. As it grew stronger, she realized that it was her link to Irina. The succubus, wherever she was, was regaining consciousness.
~~~
Chapter 13
Trust everybody, but cut the cards. - Finley Peter Dunne
The blackness gradually faded and Irina groggily fought to open her eyes. She felt terrible. Her eyes seemed crusted together, her mouth felt as though she’d swallowed a desert, and her stomach was churning. To top it all off, she couldn’t move. Trying to lift her hand, she discovered it was tied to something. Her chin rested against her chest, and it took all her strength to lift her head.
Movement in front of her drew her attention, but she couldn’t seem to bring whatever it was into focus. Her head felt as though it was filled with cotton.
“Irina Gorbacheva,” a woman’s voice said in Russian.
“Huh?” Irina’s voice came out as a rough croak.
“Give her some water,” the woman said.
Someone pulled her head up by grabbing her hair. The spout of a bottle was forced between her lips and water flooded her mouth. It tasted so good, but then she choked, coughing the liquid over the front of her dress.
“Idiot. Don’t drown her. Just a little water. Let her swallow it. Fool,” the woman said.
When Irina finished coughing, the bottle was pressed against her lips again, but only a trickle of water poured into her mouth. She greedily swallowed it.
“Irina Gorbacheva,” the woman said again. “I need you to say hello to your grandfather.”
Irina managed to bring the woman speaking into focus. Very tall and thin, large breasted with auburn hair, she could have been someone they had passed on the street, but Irina didn’t recognize her.
“My name is Larisa Orlova,” Irina managed to whisper. “I don’t know who this Irina person is.”
The woman shot a glance at someone outside of Irina’s line of sight. After a moment, she returned her attention to Irina.
“We know who you are. And if you are not Irina Gorbacheva, succubus and granddaughter of Sergei Gorbachev, then we have no reason to keep you alive. Do you understand?”
Irina attempted to touch the place in her mind where her Neural Disruption Gift was triggered. To her dismay, the drugs prevented her from touching any of her Gifts. Drawing a ragged breath, she tried to think, to concentrate on her situation. Her mind was so foggy. All she wanted to do was go back to sleep.
A small microphone was shoved in her face. Looking up, she saw a man aiming a camera at her.
“Say hello to your grandfather,” the woman said.
“I’m going to kill you,” Irina said.
“Is that really what you want to say to him?” the woman chuckled. “I think your threats are rather empty. We are in control here, not you.”
“I’m going to kill you, too,” Irina mumbled.
The expression on the woman’s face changed from amusement to dismay. “Your message for your grandfather is that you’re going to kill him?”
Irina shook her head. “Don’t want to talk to him at all. Why would I warn him?”
Although Irina couldn’t trigger her Gifts, Empathy didn’t need a trigger. The emotional feel of the room changed. The woman’s body language changed from arrogant to nervous and unsure. Irina tried to organize her thoughts, but she was so tired. She tried to start detoxifying the drugs in her system, but she couldn’t concentrate.
The basic telepathic Gifts--Telepathy, Empathy and Charisma--don’t have triggers. They are simply part of who the telepath is. But all telepathic efforts require energy, and that energy is drawn from the person’s personal life energy.
Frustrated by her own lethargy, Irina began draining the life energy of the people in the room. As she strengthened, she began to feel people outside the room and pulled energy from them as well. As her focus sharpened, she began detoxifying the drugs. She was able to identify four drugs. Testing each of them, she found the one that was blocking her telepathic abilities and concentrated on it.
Next, she cleared the drugs that caused the lethargy and sleepiness. Soon, her mind began to work again and she was able to assess her situation. At the same time, three of the men in the room had moved to sit on tables or chairs. The woman facing her leaned against the wall, weariness showing in her face.
The first thing that surfaced in Irina’s thoughts was the fact that her kidnappers had not broken down her shields and captured her mind. The only reason not to have done so was that they couldn’t. None of her captors had a Dominance Gift, and even combining their strength, they weren’t strong enough to breach her defenses. Her confidence soared.
And then, as her mind cleared, she felt Rhiannon.
*Irina? Are you there?*
*Rhi! Goddess, am I glad to hear you!*
*Are you all right?* Rhiannon asked Irina.
*Yeah, I think so. I’m really hungry and I’m tied to a chair, but I’ve cleared most of the drugs out of my system.*
*Where are you?*
*In a room without windows, tied to a chair. I realize that’s not terribly helpful.*
*What about the people holding you?*
*Everyone’s asleep,* Irina replied. *They’ll be out for a couple of days. But I don’t know if anyone else will come here.*
Rhiannon got out of the bathtub and began drying off. She sent a spear thread to Andrei. *I’ve contacted her. She’s all right!* Then what Irina had said hit her.
*They’re all asleep? How many are there?*
*Six in this room, another dozen in other rooms.*
*You shagged them all?*
Irina sent the mental equivalent of a giggle. *No, silly. I told you, I’m tied up. But I don’t have to touch someone to drain them.
Rhiannon took a few moments to process everything Irina had told her.
*If they’re all asleep, can you read any of their minds to find out where you are?* she finally asked.
*No, they’re all shielded,* Irina answered.
*Yes, I understand that. But can you break through their shields?*
*I don’t know,* Irina sent. She was silent for a few moments. *I’m not sure how to do that. I’ve never done it.*
Biting back her initial response, Rhiannon knew that she’d let some of her frustration seep through the link when Irina sent, *I never had to do it, and no one ever taught me. It’s rude, you know.*
*And you don’t think someone kidnapping you is rude?* Rhiannon chuckled. *Can you let me into your mind? I can show you how to do it.*
Irina opened her mind and Rhiannon slipped in. She directed Irina to test the shields of the sleeping people around her. The woman’s mind was locked and solid. Rhiannon might have been able to break through if she’d been there in person, but at a distance she was limited to what Irina had the power to accomplish.
Irina tested the men, and as she brushed the mind of the third one, Rhiannon detected thoughts leaking through his shield. She pointed it out to Irina, then coached her to follow the faint random thoughts back to their source. Inside the man’s mind, it didn’t take long to identify Irina’s location. Her kidnappers hadn’t taken her far. She was a five-minute walk from where they had captured her.
Rhiannon sent the information to Andrei and Vladimir while she dressed, then turned her attention back to Irina and the man’s mind. As they
burrowed down through the layers of his mind, Rhiannon picked up additional information about the organization and motives of the kidnappers. By the time she and the Protectors reached the building, Irina had breached all of the man’s shields and controlled his mind. Unfortunately, his energy levels were so low that she couldn’t wake him to untie her or let her friends into the building.
Walking down the street with the Protectors, Rhiannon looked around at the people sharing the street with them. The buildings originally had been townhouses of minor nobility or rich merchants, but now they were apartment houses, most with businesses on the first floor. A cafe was on the first floor of the building on one side of their target address and a photo shop was on the other.
*Irina, we’re here,* she sent. *Are you sure everyone in the building is asleep?*
*Yes, I’m sure.*
*You’re in an apartment house. What about the buildings on both sides?*
*There are people there, but they’re all norms.*
Rhiannon stopped, closing her eyes and getting her emotions under control. *Do you suppose any of them know where they are?*
*I’m sure they do,* Irina replied. *Why?*
*Do you suppose you could have picked your address out of their minds?*
Irina was silent, then sent, *I’m sorry. I didn’t think of that.*
It wasn’t Irina’s fault. Rhiannon could feel that the succubus’s mind was still foggy from the drugs. But Rhiannon blamed herself for not asking more questions earlier. Irina had drugs as an excuse for not thinking clearly. Rhiannon didn’t have an excuse.
She keyed in the code for the security system and walked through the metal door. She found herself in a foyer with stairs in front of her, a door to her right, and a long hallway leading away to her left. Protectors flowed up the stairs and down the hallway. A projected air shield blew down the door to the right, revealing a room that obviously served as an armory.
Searching through the building, they found Irina on the fourth floor. They untied her and Rhiannon handed her half a roasted chicken, some potato salad and a bottle of wine. Irina’s rescuers waited until she finished eating, and it didn’t take long.
Succubus Ascendant: An Urban Fantasy (The Telepathic Clans Saga Book 4) Page 14
