by Alex Lukeman
The section of road that went through Russia began in a small village named Lutepää, a little less than ten kilometers from the hotel. The road to the village from the hotel was gravel, well maintained. An endless forest of birch trees stretched to either side. There wasn't much to see except the trees.
"We're in the boonies now," Lamont said.
"Not exactly the Beltway, is it?" Selena said.
They came to the village in fifteen minutes, a tiny cluster of houses and a church.
"You see any pizza joints, Shadow?" Ronnie asked.
Lamont's last name was Cranston, the same as the Shadow of radio fame. The nickname was a natural.
"You say something?"
Ronnie pretended to study the houses as they drove through.
"Nope. Not even a Pizza Hut."
"There's a border guard station," Selena said.
They passed a small building with a window looking out on the road. Two uniformed men inside watched them drive by.
Just past the village they came to a large, yellow sign with warnings in Lithuanian, English, and Russian. Nick stopped the car. The gravel road continued on through the birches.
YOU ARE ENTERING THE TERRITORY
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION!
STOPPING VEHICLES AND PASSAGE ON FOOT
PROHIBITED WITHIN 1 KM!
"What's at the other end?" Ronnie said.
"A village called Kundruse," Nick said. "The road goes from there to Saatse, about ten minutes away. That's why they call it the Saatse Boot."
The bit of road that ran through Russian territory was only three thousand feet long. An agreement had been made between Moscow and Tallin to incorporate the piece of land called the Saatse Boot into Estonia, but it hadn't been put into effect.
Nick put the car in gear. "Let's visit Russia."
They drove into the Federation. It was just another gravel country road in the middle of nowhere.
"No fences," Ronnie said. "There must be Russian border guards, somewhere."
"There have to be, but I don't see them," Selena said.
Nick pointed at a path paralleling the road.
"They wouldn't leave it up to the Estonians. They must have a station nearby and patrol it on foot."
"The trees aren't that thick. She's going to have to come through at night and there's no cover to speak of. The only break is that there isn't a fence."
"Better than none at all," Lamont said.
They passed out of Federation territory and back into Estonia. They drove by an abandoned farmstead and came to the village of Kundruse. Nick turned the car around. They passed another of the trilingual warning signs. It was strange to enter Russia without passport checks and all the other formalities normal to international travel.
Nick had never been in Russia without being armed. Russia was an enemy nation, or at least an unfriendly one. It felt wrong to be there without so much as a pistol. Then they were back in Estonia again, and he realized he'd been holding his breath.
"Let's get something to eat," he said.
CHAPTER 42
Police General Maxsimov Borosovich stood at uncomfortable attention in front of the president of the Russian Federation. Vladimir Orlov waited for an explanation.
"Well? What happened? And where is Colonel Antipova?"
"Mister President, we have determined that Director Vysotsky was on his way to his dacha, accompanied by Colonel Antipova and his driver. For an unknown reason, he diverted from the M10 to a secondary road that is seldom used. Approximately thirty kilometers from the turnoff, the car was ambushed by men using automatic weapons. There were many empty casings at the scene. We discovered the director's body and the body of his driver. We found four others, all dead. They were shot with a Makarov pistol, probably by Colonel Antipova."
"What about the car?"
"The car was not at the scene of the ambush. We found it in an abandoned barn some eighty kilometers away, badly damaged by gunfire. The front and back seats were covered in blood. There was no sign of the Colonel. We found her uniform in the trunk. The shirt was torn and bloody and the tunic had a bullet hole in it. The skirt was stained with blood as well."
"She's wounded?"
"Yes, sir, I believe she is.
"Colonel Antipova left the ambush in the car and drove it eighty kilometers, then concealed it?"
"Yes, Mister President. There is no other possible explanation. Her body was not with the others."
"That does not make sense," Orlov said. "If you were wounded, what would you do in her position?"
"If the car was still operable, I would drive to the nearest hospital for treatment."
"Did you find General Vysotsky's phone?"
"No, Mister President."
"Vysotsky always had his phone with him. Colonel Antipova must have taken it. But why didn't she immediately call for assistance?"
"I don't know, sir."
"What further steps are being taken?"
"We are conducting an extensive search for the Colonel, widening out from the location where we found the car. One of the attackers had a satellite phone. We are analyzing it now. I am hopeful it will lead us to whoever sent these people against Director Vysotsky."
"What else?"
"Each of the attackers had military tattoos indicating they were part of an elite Spetsnaz unit."
"Spetsnaz! What unit?"
"The Fourteenth Special Purpose Brigade. They are in support of the Pacific Fleet."
Stationed in Ussuriysk. Who sent them? Orlov thought. Not many have that authority. Whoever it was, he's a traitor.
Out loud he said, "Very well, General. You are dismissed. Keep me informed. And find Colonel Antipova. You understand?"
"Yes, Mister President."
Outside the Kremlin Senate building where Orlov had his office, General Borosovich paused to blot sweat away from his brow.
What if I don't find her?
He knew the answer to that. It would be his job. He'd be lucky if he retained staff rank and didn't end up in Irkutsk, policing drunken factory workers. With luck, they'd find Antipova soon. The bitch was causing a lot of trouble. It would have been better if she'd had the decency to die with the others.
The only bright spot was the phone they'd recovered. There was a chance it would lead to whoever had set up the ambush. That, and the dead Spetsnaz criminals. If he could find who had sent them, it would go a long way toward placating Orlov, whether Antipova was found or not.
I'll find her and the man who tried to kill her as well. I do that, Orlov may promote me. Then I will be in charge of all the police.
His mood brightened at the thought.
CHAPTER 43
Admiral Petroff's office was situated high in a building overlooking the harbor at Fokino on the Peter the Great Gulf, home base for the Pacific Fleet. The day was hot and clear, the temperature in the nineties. The sun glinted off long, slow rollers coming in from the Pacific.
Petroff picked up a pair of binoculars from his desk and scanned the harbor. The heavy cruiser Varyag was taking on supplies. Beyond her, the destroyers Marshal Sheposhnikov, Admiral Tributs and Admiral Panteleyev rode easy at anchor. The newest addition to the fleet, the Corvette Sovershenny, was a long, gray arrow of destruction on the other side of the destroyers.
Of course none of his submarines were visible. They were either out on patrol or safely hidden from the American satellites in their pens.
Usually the sight of his command was a comforting reminder of the high position Petroff had reached and the power at his disposal. Today it was a mocking reminder that even the best laid plans could fail.
Petroff had obtained transcripts of Akhmadov's interrogation. Damn Vysotsky and his interference. He was dead and could no longer interfere, but it wasn't over. His aide was implicated. Colonel Antipova was privy to Vysotsky's thinking and would suspect Petroff's involvement with the terrorists.
Petroff had to admit a grudging admiration for Valentina. N
ot many could do what she'd done, escape the ambush and kill an experienced Spetsnaz team. She was hiding out there somewhere, a disaster waiting to happen. In time she'd be found and eliminated. Until then he was at risk of being exposed.
Soon all this aggravation would be left behind. He was leaving for Argentina tomorrow. It was important that nothing get in the way. The day picked for activating Status 6 was not far off.
No one knew precisely what would happen when such a large nuclear explosion was detonated on the ocean floor. What they did know was that the weight of millions of tons of water overhead would compress the explosion downward toward the ocean bed. In effect, the ocean would create a shaped charge.
A very large shaped charge.
The principle of a shaped charge was simple. By directing the force of the explosion in a single direction and preventing dispersion, the power of the blast was exponentially multiplied. One hundred megatons was an enormous explosion. The biggest nuclear blast to date had been the famous Tsar Bomba of the Soviet era. That one had been fifty-three megatons, an almost inconceivable destructive force. Status 6 made the Tsar Bomba seem small.
Status 6 had been conceived by the military. The generals thought detonating the bombs would send enormous tidal waves over the American coasts, to be followed by a conventional attack. The physicists squashed the idea, since even a very large bomb detonated underwater would not produce the desired effect. There would be smaller waves and a great deal of steam, little else. But using the bomb to apply enormous force to the ocean floor was a different story entirely.
The Americans were not prepared for what was going to happen.
The bomb would be placed directly over the Murray Fracture Zone, at a point where three fracture lines in the ocean floor came together. When it detonated, it would trigger an earthquake along the San Andreas fault line. The damage would be enormous, destruction widespread. Critical military and civilian infrastructure would be in ruins. As soon as the Pentagon realized the earthquake was no act of nature, retaliation was certain. War would begin.
By then, Petroff would be safe in Argentina. Everything was arranged.
His reverie was interrupted when the door to his office opened without knocking. Five men in civilian clothes came into the room, pushing Petroff's aide, Captain Lieutenant Denisovitch, in front of them.
"Who are you?" Petroff said. "How dare you come in here like this?"
"I tried to stop them, Admiral," Denisovitch said.
The leader of the group was a large man with shoulders like a brick layer and an unfriendly expression. His broad face revealed his peasant roots. His skin was coarse, dark with the stubble of his beard.
He gestured at Denisovitch.
"Igor. Dmitri. Take him outside. If he makes trouble, shut him up."
One of the men grabbed the aide's arm. "Yes, Colonel. You, come with me."
They dragged him from the room and shut the door. Petroff heard Denisovitch yelling. There was the sound of a blow landing, then silence.
"You are Admiral Pyotr Petroff?"
"I am. Who are you?"
"I am Colonel Yevgeny Kerensky. You are under arrest."
"On what charge?"
"High treason. I advise you to come quietly."
Petroff looked at him, then at the two thugs with him. He was trapped. With a quick movement he reached for the pistol he kept in his drawer. Before he could take it out, the men were on him. One of them slammed down on Petroff's arm while it was still in the drawer. The bones broke with an audible sound.
Petroff screamed.
It wouldn't be the last time.
CHAPTER 44
Valentina was at the end of her endurance. A day and a night had passed since she'd slept in the hayloft, and she could go no farther.
Her wound was infected, an angry red splotch under the bandage. Every breath she took was like breathing fire. Always, there was a taste of blood in her mouth. Sometimes it felt as though she were burning up, sometimes she was wracked by chills.
The first day after leaving the barn she'd stolen a car. She'd gone as far as she could before it ran out of gas, then left it by the side of the road. She'd walked the rest of the way. Now she was on the outskirts of the town of Pechory, hiding in an abandoned church, close to the border with Estonia and the Saatse Boot.
Her only chance was Selena and her friends, if they could get her out of Russia before the hunters found her.
She fumbled with the phone, dropped it, picked it up.
"Sister."
"Valentina. Where are you? Are you all right?"
"I am not so good, sister. I am afraid you will have to come get me."
Selena turned to Nick. They were in their hotel room at the spa.
"She sounds bad. She wants us to come get her."
"Shit. I was afraid something like this would happen. Where is she?"
"Where are you?" Selena asked.
"I am quite close. I am in an old church outside of Pechory. It is right across the border from you."
Valentina's voice was weak. Selena could hear her ragged breathing.
"She's in a town nearby, hiding in a church."
"You know we're not supposed to go into Russia," Nick said. "Harker will shit a brick if we cross the border."
"She's injured, she can't make it any closer. We have to get her, Nick."
"If we risk going over the border, we have to know exactly where she is."
"Then you'll do it? You'll go for her?"
"Not if she's in the town. We'd never pull it off. If she can make it as far as the woods along that road in the boot, we could do it there. There's no other way."
Selena turned back to the phone.
"Valentina, we can't risk going into a town. Can you get to the woods in the boot?"
"The church is on the edge of town by the woods, perhaps two kilometers from the border. I can try to walk a little more, but I am weak. I cannot be sure of going very far."
"We'll never find her unless she turns on her GPS. If she does that, Freddie can pinpoint her in a minute."
"You'll have to turn on your GPS," Selena said.
"They will be watching for the location of this phone. As soon as I turn on GPS, they will know where I am."
"She says they'll be monitoring the phone. They'll know where she is."
"Tell her to get into the woods as far she can, then turn it on. We'll be ready for the signal."
"Nick says go into the woods as far as you can before you turn on the phone. We'll be waiting for the signal and come get you."
Valentina coughed and gasped with pain.
"All right. I will wait until night and call when I leave the church."
"We'll get you out of there," Selena said.
"Perhaps. Goodbye, sister."
"She hung up. She'll wait until dark and call when she leaves the church."
"It's still two hours until then."
"I'll call Stephanie. We'll need her help."
"If Harker knows about this, she'll say we can't go."
"Are you going to let that stop you?"
"You know better than that."
"Go get Ronnie and Lamont."
Selena called Stephanie.
"Hi, Selena. What's up? How's Estonia?"
"Steph, I need your help. I need Freddie to help us get Valentina out of Russia."
"What do you need?"
"In about two hours she's going to turn on the GPS on her phone. Right now she's outside the town of Pechory, on the border with Estonia. I need Freddie to pinpoint her location and tell us where it is."
"You're not going in after her, are you? Wait a minute. You are. I know how you all think."
"Steph, we have to. She's wounded. She can't get across on her own. Nick thinks we can get in and out without being noticed, but we need to know exactly where she is. That's why we need Freddie to help us."
"Elizabeth isn't going to like this," Steph said.
"It can't be helped. Sh
e's just going to have to live with it."
I have been monitoring the conversation, Selena. I will watch for the GPS signal and transfer it to your units. I can also interfere with Russian communications in the area. Would that be helpful?
"That would be a great help, Freddie. Thank you."
You are welcome, Selena.
"You mustn't be caught," Stephanie said. "We can't get you out."
"We know that. Valentina is going to call when she leaves her hiding place. She'll turn on her GPS soon after that. I'll let you know when she does."
"All right."
"Listen, Steph, we're going to need to get out of here fast. Make sure the plane is ready. We can't take Valentina to a hospital. She'd be arrested. You don't have to tell Elizabeth we're going in after her, just that we need help getting out of the country."
"She won't buy it, Selena. Just be ready for the explosion when you get back."
"Elizabeth is the least of my worries right now. Thanks, Steph."
Be careful, Selena.
Selena put the phone down. Things were getting serious when even a computer was telling her to be careful.
CHAPTER 45
Three hours later it was dark. Selena sat behind the wheel of the car, the engine idling. They were a few minutes away from the warning sign on the road running through Russian territory, waiting for Valentina's call. It was a moonless night, black except for faint light from the stars. Nick wished they had night vision gear to see the way through the trees.
The plan was simple, mostly because there weren't any alternatives. When the call came, Selena would let Stephanie know. Freddie would locate the GPS signal and jam Russian communications in the area. Selena would then drive slowly through the Saatse Boot without stopping. Nick, Ronnie, and Lamont would roll out of the car onto the gravel road and move into the birches.
They didn't know if the Russians monitored the road at night with electronics. If they did, there was nothing they could do about it except hope Freddie's jamming signal would keep them from being detected.
Selena's phone vibrated.
