The Russian Deception (20 page)

CHAPTER 45

Elizabeth stood by the French doors of her office, looking out over the patio and grounds beyond. The flower gardens had retreated to brown winter mode. Except for a few withered tufts, the grass was invisible under a thin coating of snow. The weather was grim, gray and depressing. It suited her mood. She couldn't quite wrap her mind around the fact that the Russian invasion might lead to the end of the world. Anything could happen over there. None of it was good.

Once the U.S. and NATO got involved, a military confrontation with the Federation was inevitable. People would begin dying on both sides. The war drums would beat louder. What made it worse was that it wasn't just the Kremlin that had its share of hawks. There were plenty of people in the Pentagon and Washington who wanted to end Russia's potential to challenge American power once and for all. They didn't understand that a war with Russia couldn't be won. They talked in terms of sixty million civilian losses as acceptable.

As far as Elizabeth was concerned, all of the generals and politicians who thought a nuclear war could be won should be put on an island somewhere far away from civilized people and allowed to throw rocks at each other.

Her phone signaled a call from Nick.

"Yes, Nick."

"We got to Gutenberg. Selena's sister was there before us."

"You can't be serious. Why does she keep turning up?"

"It may turn out to be the best thing that could've happened."

"You'd better start at the beginning."

"We got into the hospital without any problem. When we got to Gutenberg's room we found the body of a guard outside the door, propped up in his chair. We went in the room and found Selena's sister being strangled by a guy that looked like a gorilla. He threw her aside and grabbed me. He had a buddy with a gun. Selena took him out and then she went for gorilla man and killed him."

"What about Gutenberg?"

"He slept through the whole thing. He was a real mess. That fire at his château left him looking like something out of a horror movie."

"You said he was a mess. Is he dead?"

"Yes. Selena's sister killed him."

"Please tell me you had a chance to talk to him."

"We did. Valentina was there for the same reason we were. She seemed to have a particular dislike for Gutenberg."

"She was his mistress," Elizabeth said. "She was assigned by Vysotsky to seduce him when AEON was still in business."

"That could explain it."

"What about the money Gutenberg sent to Golovkin?"

"He knew Orlov would use it to speed up his weapons program. He figured that once Orlov had the weapons he needed there wouldn't be much to hold him back. He wanted to start a war between America and Russia."

"Why?"

"We asked him that. He said we had destroyed the 'work of centuries.' He meant AEON. He was dying and he wanted revenge for what had happened to him."

"All this was to get revenge?"

"It gets worse."

Elizabeth sighed. "Go on."

"He planted fake documents where Golovkin's spies could find them. They were supposed to be notes of secret meetings of the NATO high command, proving NATO wouldn't get involved if the Federation invaded the Baltics. The documents were what Orlov needed to make him think he could get away with it."

"That means his entire strategy is based on a lie," Elizabeth said.

"That's what it looks like."

"Did you record what Gutenberg said?"

"I did, but I gave the recording to Valentina."

"What?" Elizabeth was angry.

"Director, she had a pistol pointed at me when I gave it to her. I didn't have much choice but it was the right move."

"What makes you think that?"

"She'll take it to Moscow. Her boss will find a way for Orlov to hear it. It may be the only thing that can help. Once Orlov hears that he's been set up and that NATO will honor the treaty, he might call off the invasion. Otherwise I don't see how anybody is going to stop him."

"I could have used that tape when I talk to the president," Elizabeth said.

"What difference does it make? You know what's on it. The president trusts you, he'll believe you even if he doesn't hear the tape."

"For all our sakes I hope you're right. Did anybody see you in the hospital? Is this going to come back and bite me?"

"I don't see how it can, Director."

Elizabeth thought for a moment. "All right. Come home."

She broke the connection.

*****

On the other side of the world in Moscow, Kiril Golovkin looked at the message from Germany and swore. He crumpled the paper in a ball and threw it against the wall.

The Americans. Always the Americans. They're too late this time. Gutenberg may be dead but I got what I needed from him. We'll be in Riga by tomorrow.

His stomach felt on fire. He forced himself to calm down and take a breath. He walked over to his desk and took out a bottle of antacid tablets, put two in his mouth and began chewing them. Then he sat down and thought about what he should do.

His agent in Leipzig had identified the Project team and reported that they were staying in a hotel in the city. Golovkin couldn't be sure what Gutenberg might have told them. He decided to take precautions. Knowing where they were staying presented an opportunity but they wouldn't be there for long. Now that Gutenberg was dead, they'd move on. If he wanted to act he didn't have much time.

The collapse of the Soviet Union and the reunification of Germany had ended Russian control of East Germany but it hadn't ended the presence of the GRU on German soil. Golovkin ran what he knew about the personnel of the German stations through his mind.

There was a consulate in Leipzig and an embassy in Berlin, two hours away. There were two men in Leipzig, three in Berlin. All were Spetsnaz, highly trained, used to violence, perfect for this kind of assignment. But if something went wrong and they were identified as Russian diplomatic personnel, it would create unnecessary complications.

There was another option. After the collapse of the Soviet Union the East German Secret Police had disbanded. Many of the Stasi had taken new names to avoid prosecution and disappeared into the general population. A core group joined together to form a powerful criminal gang in the part of Germany that had once been the East German Democratic Republic.

Golovkin had maintained contact with them. They'd proved useful over the years for projects that required violence. He decided to use them. If anything went wrong there would be no trail to follow back to him.

He picked up his phone and made the arrangements.

CHAPTER 46

All flights out of Leipzig were canceled because of the weather. As far as that went, most flights anywhere in Europe were canceled. A huge front had moved in from the North Atlantic and blanketed the continent with clouds, rain and snow. Nick and the others weren't getting out of Germany that evening or anytime soon. They decided to stay in the hotel and have dinner in the hotel's version of a café.

The front of the café featured a wall of paned windows looking out on the street. A bar with a gleaming espresso machine took up one end wall. Across from the bar a passage led to the main part of the hotel. Opposite the windows was a back wall with entrances at each end leading to the toilets. Round marble tables on black iron legs were placed around the room. A small stage took up a corner next to the bar.

They sat at a table against the wall in the rear, facing the windows. The lighting was bright enough to make it easy to read the menu and dim enough to be kind on looks. A candle flickered on each table. Flocked wallpaper, brass wall sconces and gold framed oil paintings of German countryside scenes adorned the walls, dispelling any thoughts that this was a typical street bistro. One look at the prices on the menu would shatter any illusions that were left.

"They got any hamburgers?" Lamont asked.

"Right there near the bottom on the second page," Ronnie said. He pointed at the listing.

"Twenty euros? That's a hell of a lot for a burger."

"Hey, it comes with ketchup. They'll probably give you onions and lettuce for a few euros more if you ask."

"Uncle Sam is paying for it," Nick said. "Might as well get cheese on it too."

"Try the beef stew," Selena said. "The Germans are good at that."

"They have beef stroganoff," Nick said. "I'm going to get that. And a glass of wine."

"Get a bottle," Selena said. "A good red?"

"Sounds about right."

The waiter came and took their order. Two minutes later he was back with water for Ronnie and a bottle of wine for the others. Nick sampled the wine and nodded. The waiter poured and left them.

It was early in the evening for dinner in Europe and the café was almost empty. An elderly couple sat by the windows, hunched over their food. Nearby, a trio of business men worked on a bottle of schnapps and talked in loud voices. Outside, the wind had picked up. Heavy rain beat on the windows The few pedestrians on the street hurried by with their heads down and their collars turned up.

"It's miserable out there," Selena said. "I'm glad we decided to stay in."

"I hope it clears up soon," Ronnie said. "I've had enough of Germany."

"The weather report wasn't good," Nick said. "We're stuck here for at least a day."

The street entrance was through a door into an enclosed foyer that kept unwelcome weather out of the café. The door opened and two large men crowded into the foyer. They opened the inner door and stood not far from the bar, looking at the room.

"Those two would be right at home in the NFL," Lamont said.

Three more men entered the café from the hotel. They wore dark coats and dark hats. They were big, like the two men who had come in from the street. One of them looked at the table where Nick and the others sat.

Nick's ear began to tingle.

"We've got trouble. The five who just came in."

"They don't seem real friendly," Ronnie said.

The tingle in his ear turned into a deep itch. Nick reached up and tugged on it.

"Aw, hell," Lamont said.

"Get ready," Nick said. "These guys aren't here for a beer."

He slipped his pistol out of the concealed holster and held it in his lap under a napkin. Adrenaline shot through his body, as though a pot of caffeine had been poured straight into his veins.

Guns came out from under the heavy coats.

"Move!" Nick shouted.

The elderly couple looked up. Nick fired at one of the two men by the bar and missed. A window in the foyer door shattered. He fired again and the man dropped his gun and fell to his knees. Nick and Lamont scrambled along the back wall firing at the other man by the bar. Behind them, Selena and Ronnie began firing at the three who had come in from the hotel.

Everything slowed down.

Nick felt his pulse pounding. Sounds were muffled. One of the old people began screaming, the sound drawn out like a record played too slowly. Bullets streaked across the room, smashing into the back bar and the espresso machine as the barman ducked behind the bar. Bottles and glassware shattered. A column of steam shot up from the punctured coffee machine. The businessmen dived for the floor.

The big man by the bar had a submachine gun. He opened up and Lamont went down hard, his pistol skittering across the floor. The man swiveled the gun and Nick felt a hammer blow on his left arm. He shot the man three times until he fell, sending the gun flying. Nick turned. One of the attackers by the hotel entrance was down. Selena and Ronnie were shooting at the two men still standing. Ronnie yelled and fell to the floor. Nick fired with Selena. Another man went down. Spent rounds ricocheted around the room, breaking windows facing the street.

The slide locked back on Nick's pistol. He reached for another magazine as Selena's pistol emptied. Her last round took down the final attacker. He collapsed and sprawled on the floor.

Sudden silence.

Time speeded up again. Nick's heart pounded in his chest. He couldn't move his left arm. Blood ran down his sleeve.

Lamont!

Lamont lay on his back a few feet away. Blood pooled around him, under him. Two bloody holes marred the front of his shirt. His eyes were wide open, his eyelids fluttering.

Nick looked at the wounds and felt fear for his friend.

"I'm here, buddy. Stay with me. Don't you quit on me."

"Nick..." Blood bubbled between Lamont's lips.

"Don't talk. Stay with me."

Sirens sounded outside, coming closer.

"Help's coming. Stay with me."

Lamont grasped Nick's arm.

"How bad?" His voice was weak, hesitant.

"You'll be all right. Keep talking to me."

"Ronnie and Selena..."

"They'll be okay. Look at me."

Lamont's eyelids fluttered.

"Lamont. Stay with me. Look at me."

Nick saw the first ambulance pull up in front of the café.

"Hey, I hear German hospitals serve really great food."

Lamont started to laugh. "Uh. Hurts."

Two paramedics came through the shattered foyer door. Police cars and another ambulance pulled up outside. One of the paramedics ran over to where Nick knelt by Lamont. The other went to where Ronnie lay on the floor.

"Okay, wir haben ihn."

"What?" Nick said.

"Okay, we have him."

Nick squeezed Lamont's hand. "You're going to be okay."

Lamont didn't hear him.