by David Archer
Out on the dance floor, Neil and Lacey were actually talking more than dancing. She told him that she had read his entire file, but that what had really gotten her interested was watching the hours of video interviews he had been put through as part of his recruitment and initial training.
“You have the quickest comebacks of anyone I've ever known,” she said. “I almost fell out of my chair, I was laughing so hard when I watched the one of you and Doctor Parker. Doc can be one of the most cantankerous old buzzards in the world, but you had him so flustered that he figured he had to pass you just to find out what you might do in the future. When he asked about your time in the juvenile jail, and you told him it was a great place to hone your criminal skills, I literally laughed so hard I almost hit the floor.”
Neil, who was slowly gaining his confidence back, shrugged and smiled. “Hey, what can I say? I'm a guy who never lets an opportunity for higher learning get away. I learned a few pretty neat tricks in there, like how to beat someone with a bar of soap in a sock. It doesn't leave a mark, but boy, can they feel it the next day!”
They continued to chat as they danced, and Neil found himself relaxing. He was terrified of getting his hopes up, but he wondered if he might have finally found a girl who would actually like him.
FIFTEEN
Because they had a flight the next morning, Noah insisted they leave by ten o'clock that night. The Jacksons stayed until then, as well, since Lacey and Neil seemed to be getting along so well. Mrs. Jackson confided in Sarah at one point that Lacey's problem was that she wanted a guy who was taller than she was, and since the girl actually stood six foot one, they weren't all that easy to come by. They were delighted that she had finally found one.
Ten o'clock arrived, however, and Neil had to say goodnight. Lacey walked him out to the car and stood with him for a final few moments.
“Well,” she said, “I hope I get to see you again sometime. Maybe, if you want, you could give me a call?”
Neil's eyes lit up and he snatched out his phone. “I'd like that,” he said, and then swallowed hard as Lacey took his phone and put her number into his contact list.
“I know you're going out on a mission tomorrow,” she said, “but call me anytime, whenever you can. At least, call me as soon as you get back, okay?”
Still grinning, Neil promised that he would. Lacey handed his phone back and let her fingers linger on his for a moment before she turned and walked back into the bar.
Moose, of course, couldn't let the opportunity to tease the kid go by. “Well, I'll be doggone if Neil isn't growing up,” he said. “Did you see that, Boss? I think he even has a girlfriend! Maybe now he'll stop whining about you and me having somebody to snuggle with, you think?”
“Leave him alone, Moose,” Sarah said. “Neil, just ignore him. Lacey seems like a very sweet girl, and hopefully you too will hit it off. We can triple date sometime, that would be cool.”
Noah didn't say anything, but Sarah noticed a bemused expression on his face. She leaned close to him and whispered, “What?” Noah glanced at her but didn't say anything. He let one eyelid droop in a wink, which she took to mean that he would tell her later.
They arrived back at Noah's place, and since they had to leave for Denver by seven AM, Moose just crashed on Noah's couch. Neil went across to his trailer, promising to be wide awake and ready to go on time.
When they got into the bedroom, Sarah stripped down quickly. “Who knows when we'll get another chance? I'm not going to skip this one, so get your butt in bed, Mister.”
Noah grinned at her, something she had noticed him doing more often lately, and quickly got out of his own clothes. After a quick trip to the bathroom, he slid in under the covers with her.
“Oh! Stop that, your hands are cold!”
They were both up at four, and got a quick shower before getting dressed. When they came out of the bedroom, they could hear the shower in the main bathroom running as Moose got ready to go, so they went into the kitchen and put on a pot of coffee. Moments later, a tap on the door signaled Neil's arrival. He joined them in the kitchen for coffee, but Sarah didn't think he needed any. Neil was more lively and cheerful than she had ever seen him before. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Lacey had a lot to do with that.
Moose joined them only a few minutes later, and guzzled a cup of coffee as they all got ready to go. Neil had brought over his big Hummer, and they put their bags into the back and then climbed inside. Neil started the SUV and put it into gear, and they were off to the airport.
When they arrived, Neil drove right up to the charter flight gate so that their luggage could be loaded onto the plane, and then a courtesy driver with a golf cart followed Neil out to long-term parking and brought them back. Five minutes later, they were all inside the big Gulfstream and getting comfortable as the pilot started up its engines.
Within another fifteen minutes, they were in the air and the big jet was banking toward the east. All four of the team members sank into their seats and drifted off to sleep.
Noah and the team woke several hours later, and the flight attendant served them a rather delicious meal. The plane landed at London's Heathrow Airport an hour later, at just after one AM local time, and they made their way down the steps. An airport employee was putting chocks under the wheels, and looked up as they stepped onto the tarmac.
“Morning, mate,” the man said, and Noah nodded in response. He started to speak, but he heard footsteps behind him and turned to see a familiar face.
“Mister Colson,” Catherine Potts said with a smile. “I was surprised when I was notified that you'd be coming back in tonight. I was told to get a car ready for you; I hope a Land Rover will be right.”
Noah put on a smile. “It's good to see you again, Catherine,” he said. “I take it you weren't left with any problems after our last visit?”
She laughed. “Oh, there might have been a wee fuss amongst the locals, trying to figure out who snatched up one of our favorite sources of information, but I was able to steer some of the investigators in the wrong direction. Speaking of Mister Pendergrast, I understand he arrived home today, with one arm in a sling. I appreciate you leaving him relatively intact, he really is valuable at times.”
“My pleasure,” Noah said. “He was rather useful to me, and he probably will be again. I'll be paying him a visit in just a little while. Am I going to run into any problems at his place, do you think?”
Catherine's brow furrowed slightly. “It's possible,” she said. “I know that both NSA and MI6 are keeping pretty close tabs on him, right now.” She chewed her bottom lip for a moment. “Are you going after him right away?”
Noah nodded his head. “Yes, I don't want to take a chance on him either getting away or finding out that I'm here. Any suggestions on how I should go about it?”
It was Catherine's turn to nod. “Actually, yes. It will take you 'round half an hour to get there, and I'll put the time to good use. I'll use a chatter channel I have that doesn't trace back to me, by which I can send out an urgent alert claiming that two suspects on our major terrorist watch list have just arrived at Heathrow. That will draw our boys off, and the NSA will intercept the message so theirs will follow. I can't do anything about the Germans or Italians, they watch him too, but they won't interfere with you. Just do try not to get yourselves killed, that could be so embarrassing.”
Noah let his smile get even wider. “You're just a grab bag of surprises, aren't you, Catherine? Okay, I appreciate it.” He accepted the keys to the Land Rover that Catherine held out to him, and instantly passed them to Sarah. Catherine turned and walked away without another word, and Noah slid into the front passenger seat, while Neil and Moose took the back.
The Land Rover had built-in GPS, and Sarah punched in the address for Pendergrast's flat. Twenty seconds later she put the car in gear and they were on the way. Traffic was light at that hour, and they had no trouble getting to the place. As Catherine had predicted
, they arrived on the block where Pendergrast lived almost exactly 30 minutes later.
All four of them looked around as they cruised down the street, but saw no sign of anyone watching his apartment. At Noah's instruction, Sarah parked directly in front of the building and Neil got into the front seat as Noah and Moose got out.
Having arrived on a private flight, they had managed to bring weapons along, concealed in their bags. Moose had gotten their new special handguns out while they were on the way, and they were tucked neatly into their waistbands. Their light jackets covered the weapons, so that they were not readily visible as the two men approached the building.
This time, they didn't even attempt to pretend to have business in the building. Moose grabbed the door and yanked it twice, snapping loose the lock and pulling it open. Noah led the way inside and directly to Pendergrast's door.
Guns drawn, they burst into the flat immediately after Moose kicked the door open. Pendergrast could be heard somewhere further inside, and it sounded like he was in a panic. They hurried as quickly as they could through the apartment, and found the open door to his bedroom, where he was sitting up in his bed and staring toward the door. His eyes went wide as soon as he saw Noah and Moose, but rather than panic as Noah had expected, he flicked his eyes to the door that stood open.
Noah, who was the first to enter, instantly threw himself against the door. It crashed into someone standing behind it and there was a loud grunt and a thud. Noah snatched the door away and aimed his gun directly between the eyes of a tall, dark-haired man. The fellow raised his hands in surrender, and Moose snatched up the pistol he had dropped to the floor.
“Holy geez, am I glad to see you guys!” Pendergrast said. “He was about to kill me!”
Noah grabbed the stranger by his shirt and yanked him away from the wall, throwing him onto the foot of Pendergrast's bed. “Well, well,” he said. “And just who might you be, my friend?”
The man simply sat on the bed, and did not respond. Pendergrast volunteered, “He's one of Nicolaich Andropov's people. Apparently, Nicolaich is a little pissed at you, and he's going to great lengths to try to track you down. This guy was sent to question me, and he wasn't happy about my lack of information regarding your whereabouts. I don't know how you managed to pick this moment to show up, but you couldn't have planned it any better if you'd tried.” He threw off the covers and spun to put his feet on the floor, but Noah pointed at him and said, “Stop!”
“What the hell?” Pendergrast asked angrily. “You save my neck and then you get all pissy?”
“Saving your neck was an accident,” Noah said, keeping his eyes on the stranger. “Tell me what you know about this guy.”
Pendergrast gave a shrug and looked irritated. “I already did, he was sent here to try to get me to tell him how to find you. Just in case you didn't know it, that kid you killed in Kubinka was Vasily Andropov, as in son of Nicolaich Andropov. The old man didn't take kindly to you whacking his kid, and he wants your head on a platter.”
Noah looked into the eyes of the Russian. “If you don't speak English, you're useless to me. If you're useless, I put a bullet in your head. Got anything to say?”
The man stared back at him for a moment, then shrugged his own shoulders. “You're going to kill me no matter what I say,” he said. “At least I will die with the satisfaction of knowing that Nicolaich will make your death a long, slow and painful one.”
“Don't be such a pessimist,” Noah said. “If you're interested, I might be willing to bargain for your life.”
The Russian rolled his eyes. “There can be no bargain,” he said. “I have my orders, I am to either kill you or die in the attempt.”
“And those orders came from Andropov?”
“They did, and I dare not disobey them.” He narrowed his eyes. “I would very much like to know, however, how you knew that I was here. I know that I was not seen by those bunglers who sit outside in cars all day and night. Would you tell me that, before I die?”
“I didn't have the slightest clue that you were here,” Noah said, “but let's not end our conversation too quickly, tovarisch, okay? As it happens, I'm here because I'm looking for your boss just as hot as he's looking for me. You help me find him, and I might decide the world is better off with you in it. Care to deal?”
The Russian gave him a sad smile, and shook his head. “You are a madman,” he said. “No one goes looking for Nicolaich, not if he wishes to live. As for me, I am not the average SVR operative; I am a former Officer with the 45th Guards Spetsnaz Brigade, forced into service with Nicolaich because he keeps my wife and daughters under his control. If I disobey or desert, they will die. He may kill them anyway, since I have failed in my mission.”
Moose, who still had his gun pointed at Pendergrast, snorted. “Doesn't sound like you got much to lose, either way. You help us, maybe we get Nicolaich and your family could be free.”
The man flicked his eyes to Moose, then turned back to Noah. “I wonder if you have any idea how many people have tried to get to Nicolaich? He is always guarded, always protected, and he never allows himself to be exposed in any way that can make him a target. He will not stand near windows, he will not walk out of any building into the open; if there is no garage structure that he can enter with his armored limousine, he simply will not go into any place. He is alive only because he never takes any chances. More than three-dozen have tried to kill him in the past few years, and not one has ever even seen his face. It is arrogant of you to think you might be the exception.”
“But I am the exception. I killed his son, right? Do you think he'll be satisfied with just hearing that I've been killed? He wants to see me die, maybe even pull the trigger himself. I'm right, aren't I? Is he going to let someone else perform my execution?”
There was a brief flicker of brightness in the Russian's eyes, but it faded almost as quickly as it came. “I will tell you that it is true he demands that you be taken alive and held for his arrival, but if you think you might turn the tables on him, you are insane, as I have said. He will not come alone, but with enough of his killers that it would take a battalion to stop him. I do not think you have a battalion.”
Noah winked at him. “I don't need one,” he said. “Do you have any idea who I am?”
Another shrug. “You are an American killer. That is all anyone needs to know.”
“Now, that's where you're wrong. I'm not just an American killer; I'm the number one, all-around-best, top-of-the-line American killer. It doesn't matter who I'm assigned to kill, I'm going to always carry out my mission, and I have the most capable support team in the world behind me. I'm going to give you one more chance. You can help me get Nicolaich, and I'll let you live, or I'll have no choice but to terminate you right now. Which way will it be?”
The Russian sat there and stared at him for a long moment, and Noah could see the wheels turning in his head. At last he spoke. “Your friend is correct, I don't have much to lose. As long as I am alive and do what Nicolaich wants, my family would be safe. If I die, however, then they will have no protection from him. I do not want them to suffer; my daughters are but children and my wife is young and beautiful.” He stared into Noah's eyes for another ninety seconds, and then leaned forward. “My name is Dimitri Konstantinov, and if it is possible, I will assist you. I have only one request, however. If we succeed, will you help me seek asylum in America? It is for my children, not for myself. I do not think your country would welcome someone like me.”
Noah watched his face as he spoke, and then lowered his gun. He tucked it back under his jacket and extended a hand to Dimitri. “I'll do the best I can,” he said. “And you might be surprised about whether they let you in or not. I suspect you have a lot of information our side would like to hear.”
“Hey! What gives here, guys?” Pendergrast was still sitting on the bed, his eyes wide and his face twisted in anger. “If you didn't come here to rescue me from this jackass, then why are you here? And for
that matter, why are you kicking in my door?”
Noah turned to look at him. “Because, Jeremy old friend, you and I are going to have another little talk. I think maybe you knew more about what was going on with that girl than you admitted to me, and that kind of pisses me off.”
Pendergrast's eyes went wide, and he began shaking his head from side to side. “Whoa, no way,” he said. “Look, man, I figured out real quick that you are not a guy I want mad at me. There's no way I would've held anything back.”
“Jeremy, you were bait. We were meant to find you, and find you quickly. I'm guessing that whoever was behind that harebrained scheme thought that we would simply come in, snatch the girl and everything would be over. What they didn't count on was the trail of bodies I left behind. To be perfectly honest, I'm surprised they didn't kill you themselves. The fact that I left you alive, it seems to me, would make it pretty obvious that you were helpful to me. Don't you think?”
Pendergrast was still shaking his head, trying to appear innocent. “You shot me! I think they just figured I got lucky, and that's why I was still alive.”
Noah started to answer, but Dimitri turned and looked at Pendergrast. “No one thought anything like that,” he said. “Orders were given to allow you to return home to England, in order to leave you with a false sense of security. It was obvious that you were involved in the rescue, and I was specifically ordered to come here and do whatever was necessary to learn about this man.”
Noah shrugged. “See? Jeremy, Jeremy, it looks to me like you're running out of friends in a hurry. Now, I can be a friend, or I can be an enemy. Which column would you like to put me in?”
Pendergrast let his head sag, and muttered something under his breath. When he looked up again, he said, “So what do you want to talk about this time? And can you do anything to keep me safe?”
