The Secret Gift
Page 11
I took more photos of these maps then made a speedy exit from the apartment. Getting out of the building was even more nerve-racking than breaking in. I kept imagining that Brofeldt and Wilson would appear at the next bend in the corridor or behind the next door we pushed open. I didn’t breathe properly until we were making our way up the stairs of the hotel.
‘Well?’ Hunter asked as we got back to room 408. ‘Did you find anything of interest?’
I sat on the side of the bed, took the phone out and opened the photo gallery. ‘I found lots of interesting stuff. I don’t know what the hell we’ve stumbled on here, Hunter. This is big. This is far too big for the two of us. You need to contact the Guild immediately.’
‘What did you find?’
‘Collections of confidential documents from the British, Irish and Icelandic governments. Lots of information on the true gifts. Maps of remote areas with blueprints for office buildings and industrial premises.’ I took the laptop from his bag and powered it up. ‘That’s not what has me concerned. It seems like we’re the ones being hunted, not Brofeldt and Wilson.’
As soon as the laptop was powered up I uploaded the images from the phone and showed them to Hunter. The first five pages were filled with information on the Guild and its history. This could be easily explained away; Brofeldt had been a member of the organisation for a number of years and would have been aware of this information.
What came after that was what had me so worried.
Notice for all operatives.
11 December.
MAIN GUILD TARGETS.
All high priority targets are to be exterminated with immediate effect.
Target One
Name: Elizabeth Armitage.
Code name: Queen.
Age: 35.
Nationality: English.
Gift Level: 9.
Known Gifts: Mind-Switcher (Mutated).
Status: High Priority Target.
Location: Last sighted in London on the 3rd of August.
Guild Classification: Deep Black.
Target Two
Name: Michael Huntington.
Code name: Rogue.
Age: 43.
Nationality: Scottish.
Gift Level: 8.
Known Gifts: Psychokinesis (Partial). Electro-psych (Pure). Light-Tuner (Pure).
Status: High Priority Target.
Location: Last sighted in Ireland on the 9th of December.
Guild Classification: Deep Black.
Target Three
Name: Dominic Ballentine.
Code name: Chimera.
Age: 45.
Nationality: French.
Gift Level: 8.
Known Gifts: Psychokinesis (Pure).
Status: Undetermined.
Location: Last sighted in London on the 28th of November.
Guild Classification: Deep Black.
Target Four
Name: James Tucker.
Code name: Furnace.
Age: 30.
Nationality: American.
Gift Level: 7.
Known Gifts: Pyrokinesis (Pure).
Status: High Priority Target.
Location: Last sighted in Kiev, Ukraine on the 2nd of May.
Guild Classification: Deep Black.
Target Five
Name: Cathy Atkinson.
Code name: Dolittle.
Age: 20.
Nationality: English.
Gift Level: 7.
Known Gifts: Mind-Switcher (Pure).
Status: Mid Priority Target.
Location: Unconfirmed sighting in London, England on the 9th of December.
Guild Classification: White.
Target Six
Name: Amanda Ellenberger.
Code name: Singer.
Age: 51.
Nationality: Swiss.
Gift Level: 9.
Known Gifts: Precognitive (Pure), Siren (Pure).
Status: Mid Priority Target.
Location: Last sighted in Glasgow, Scotland on the 20th of November.
Guild Classification: Red.
Target Seven
Name: Joshua Carlebach.
Code name: Ranger.
Age: 22.
Nationality: Israeli.
Gift Level: 7.
Known Gifts: Emotomagnet (Pure), Light-Tuner (Pure).
Status: Mid Priority Target.
Location: Last sighted in New York, United States on the 8th of January.
Guild Classification: Black.
Target Eight
Name: Ross Bentley.
Code name: Devil.
Age: 19.
Nationality: Irish.
Gift Level: 9.
Known Gifts: Psychokinesis (Pure), Precognitive (Pure), Time-scanner (Pure).
Status: Mid Priority Target.
Location: No reported sightings in the last twelve months.
Guild Classification: Deep Black.
Target Nine
Name: Janice Powell.
Code name: Pilot.
Age: 19.
Nationality: Unknown.
Gift Level: 7.
Gifts: Space Rupter (Pure).
Status: Mid Priority Target.
Location: Last sighted in London, England on the 15th of October.
Guild Classification: White.
Target Ten
Name: Anne Wilkins.
Code name: Thief.
Age: 18.
Nationality: Welsh.
Gift Level: 8.
Gifts: Electro-Psych (Pure), Light-Tuner (Pure), Siren (Pure).
Status: Undetermined.
Location: Last sighted in Cardiff, Wales on the 10th of November.
Guild Classification: White.
That was just the first page. There were four more pages that were filled with Guild profiles. I recognised a few of the names. The rest I had never heard of before. I didn’t really care about most of the people mentioned; what had me so worried was that Cathy and I were both on the list. I couldn’t understand why we would even feature on such a list.
‘It’s a hit list, right?’ I asked Hunter while he examined the other pages. ‘They’re hunting everyone on that list.’
‘That would appear to be the case. Some of the most important people in the Guild are included in these lists.’
‘It says there are sightings of Guild agents as recently as yesterday. That means the list must have been made, or at least updated, today. They’re watching everyone in the Guild and they know where the agents are. At the top it says an order went out to start killing us off!’
‘I know. This is very worrying indeed …’
‘And why am I on the list? I’m not even a part of the Guild anymore.’
‘You’re loosely allied to the Guild and you are very powerful when your head isn’t stuck up your arse. If sides were to be chosen, you would likely side with us. That makes you a threat to these people.’
‘And why on earth is Cathy a target? That makes no sense at all. Cathy wouldn’t hurt a fly and she’s dead set against the Guild – has been for a long time.’
‘Perhaps some of their information is inaccurate.’
‘It doesn’t matter if it’s accurate or not. Cathy is in grave danger because she’s on that list.’
‘We’re all in danger. The entire Guild is under threat.’
‘Why would they try to destroy the Guild?’
‘Why do humans destroy anything? Usually because it’s in the way of them getting what they want.’
‘What do they want?’
‘Impossible to say at this juncture. The only thing that’s clear to me now is that Wilson and Brofeldt are part of another gifted organisation. And they seem to have a head start on us. They know a lot about the Guild. We know virtually nothing about them. They even have information that could have only come from within the Guild …’
‘You’re talking about the Guild Classifications? What do they mean?’
/> ‘White indicates that the individual has never taken another human life. Yellow means the person has never killed and would refuse to kill under any circumstance. Those who are trained to kill but haven’t actually taken anyone out are classed as Red. Code Black is reserved for agents who have killed numerous times.’
‘And what the hell does deep black mean? You and I are both under that classification. Why am I deep black, Hunter?’
‘As I said earlier, this document isn’t entirely accurate, Bentley.’
‘Seems very accurate to me. Now, tell me what it means.’
‘Deep black means you’re born to kill, not just trained to do it. It means you are a killer by instinct.’
‘They know I’ve killed people in the past,’ I sighed. I paced the room and cursed myself for getting involved with the Guild again. I was now in serious danger and couldn’t see a way out. ‘That information could get me a life sentence in prison. I don’t want to go to prison.’
‘Prison?’ Hunter laughed. ‘Prison is not what you should be concerning yourself with. Not when you’re a top target for a group of gifted assassins.’
‘I’m even more concerned for Cathy!’
‘Cathy is well hidden.’
‘It says in that file that she was seen in London a couple of days ago.’
‘Wrong. It says reported sighting.’
‘What if she went to London for something and didn’t tell me? They could be following her, Hunter.’
‘Don’t let your imagination run wild, Bentley. I’m quite sure she’s safe for the moment.’
‘I’m not so sure. I should contact her. I need to warn her.’
‘Let’s calm down before we do anything stupid, eh? This is a very dangerous time and making phone calls can get people killed. You of all people should know that.’
‘I’ll never be allowed to forget that mistake, will I?’
‘I’m not blaming you for Romand’s death. I’m simply saying we need to think carefully about what we do next. All right?’
‘Whatever you say.’
‘Besides, this document is an order to assassinate all high priority targets. Cathy isn’t classed as high priority.’
‘It doesn’t mean she’s safe.’
‘No one is safe. No one will be safe until we destroy these people. Just be calm for a while and don’t do anything foolish.’
I was on the verge of losing control and Hunter was right; I needed to calm down and think rationally. Now was not the time to make decisions without thinking them through properly. I sat next to him by the window, and together we watched the street in silence. I couldn’t stop myself from thinking of the dream I’d had. The vision of Hunter’s dead body. I had to tell him about the dream. I couldn’t keep it to myself any longer.
‘Do you think dreams can come true, Hunter?’ I asked. ‘Or is that just childish superstition?’
‘They can come true if you’re a prophet. Otherwise it’s simply your subconscious mind going wild because your conscious mind is taking some time off.’
‘I had a dream last night,’ I admitted. ‘It didn’t feel like a dream at all, though. It felt more like one of those strange hallucinations I’ve been having …’
‘What did you see in this dream?’
‘You were dead. It looked like you’d been beaten to death.’
‘Lovely,’ he snorted.
‘I heard Sarah Fisher’s voice.’
Hunter reacted differently to this piece of information. He turned to me and examined my face very carefully.
‘Go on,’ he said.
‘She said: “He lives, Ross. He will find you soon.”’
‘Who lives?’
‘She never said.’ I looked him dead in the eye then. ‘Then I heard another voice.’
‘Whose voice?’
‘A man. “I am the Kematian. I am the shadow in the night. Allow me to show you what I am capable of.” That’s when I saw you lying dead on the ground.’
‘Just a dream. Pay it no heed.’ He turned back to the window and watched the apartment across the road. ‘Forget about all that. We have enough problems in the real world that need sorting out.’
There was a slight hint of worry in his expression as he turned away from me. I’d been in enough dangerous encounters with Hunter to know that he never displayed fear. This was the first time I’d ever seen Hunter afraid.
CHAPTER NINE
Fire & Light
It had been almost two hours since Hunter and I spoke. He claimed the dream had no significance, other than interrupting a much needed sleep, but I had identified a slight shift in his facial expression when I recalled the dream for him. His face had tightened when I told him I’d heard Sarah Fisher’s voice. His eyes had widened ever so slightly when I told him the part about the Kematian. These subtle facial movements told me that he did believe that this was more than just a dream, and that he feared what it represented. I didn’t bother trying to talk to him about it again; I knew when Hunter wasn’t in a talkative mood and he would have ignored me if I pestered him. Instead we sat in silence and took turns at watching over Windmill Street. Nothing happened until deep in the night.
It was almost 4am when a taxi carrying Wilson and Brofeldt pulled up outside the apartment building. They got out and loitered on the pavement until another cab appeared. Two men exited the second vehicle and spoke with Brofeldt while Wilson unlocked the main doors. Within a couple of minutes they were all seated in the sitting room of the third floor apartment and were deep in discussion.
I had recognised one of the visitors immediately as the man in the grey suit from my dream. I didn’t mention this to Hunter. I figured he’d simply say it was my imagination running wild again. I was sure it was him, though. He stood by the window at one point and I got a real good look at him. I guessed he was roughly forty years old and was muscular with dark skin and piercing black eyes. He had the look of a killer. I’d grown used to identifying them during my time in the Guild.
‘We’re out of our depth here,’ Hunter said as he watched the tall stranger. ‘We wouldn’t be able to deal with the four of them if we were to be drawn into a fight.’
‘You know these two men?’
‘I know of them. The lunatic in the grey suit is Nayden Vanev. Bulgarian born, forty-three years of age, and one of the most brutal and efficient killers you will ever come across.’
‘Another Guild runaway?’
‘No, he was never friendly. Vanev started working as a street thug for a mafia in Sofia when he was just a teenager. His bosses were quick to realise he was a skilled killer, and someone who had the knack of evading the authorities even when he was cornered. By the age of twenty he was their top assassin. Most of his victims back then were underworld competitors or threats to the mafia: drug dealers, pimps, the odd police officer, politician and judge. Within five years his reputation became known outside Bulgaria and he was often hired by other mafia groups in eastern Europe and by some shady oligarchs in Russia. We became aware of him around that time and sent some agents to take care of him. None ever returned. We started taking him seriously after that. In 2001 the Guild sent a team of trained assassins to dispose of Vanev. They searched for him for many months and never managed to locate him. Most of us thought he’d fallen victim to one of the numerous mafias he worked for. Then we got word a couple of years ago that he was very much alive and off limits – he was working for an agency in the US.’
‘What?’ I asked incredulously. ‘How could an American agency hire a man like that? Aren’t government agencies supposed to lock up people like Vanev?’
‘You’ll find that the majority of western governments would turn a blind eye to a lot of crimes in order to have someone like Vanev in their employment.’
‘If he was working for one of the agencies, it could link him to Brofeldt. You said there were rumours she was working for a shadow agency in the states.’
‘Perhaps.’
‘What’s Va
nev’s gift?’
‘He’s a space-rupter.’
‘He can make jumps through time and space?’
‘He can,’ Hunter nodded thoughtfully. ‘It’s not the purest form of the gift. He can easily make small jumps, but it would take a lot of time and concentration for him to make a significant jump.’
‘What constitutes a significant jump?’
‘From one continent to another.’
‘No wonder he could never be cornered.’
‘It would take hours for him to build up the strength to make a leap like that. Most of the time he’s confined to more modest jumps: from one room to another, or from a standing position into a moving vehicle.’
‘That would make him pretty hard to fight.’
‘He’s not got the pure gift, like Janice Powell, which does make it a little easier. When he makes a jump there will be a bright flash and he will leave a trail of light in the direction he travels. This means he can be tracked.’
‘And who’s the other guy that arrived with him?’
‘Johan Verbannk. I don’t know too much about him – other than the fact that he’s an electro-psych. The Guild never saw him as much of a threat because he has no record and has never used his gifts for criminal purposes.’
‘It would appear you were wrong to ignore him.’
‘We ignored far too much. The Guild are supposed to be aware of any gifted groups on the rise – especially ones with known murderers in their ranks. I can’t understand how they were blind to these people. Something feels very wrong about all this.’
‘What are we going to do?’
‘I’ll make a call to Ballentine and ask him to send a hit squad immediately.’
‘How long will that take?’
‘Let’s find out.’
Hunter took his mobile phone in hand and made a call to Dominic Ballentine, the man who had helped me to destroy the Golding Plaza hotel the year before. Ballentine seemed to spend most of his time operating as a trouble shooter for Guild agents. He was able to quickly organise squads of assassins and to relocate agents in time of peril. I was more than a little wary of the man; anyone who can so easily order a killing or send someone into a gifted duel is not to be taken lightly. Those who worked as full-time killers were even less appealing individuals, and I wanted to be long gone before the team of Guild assassins arrived. Taking human life in the heat of battle, or in self-defence, was hard enough for me to accept. Carrying out such tasks in cold blood was unnatural and more than a little sinister. I didn’t like being a party to it.