“The cooks or waitress must have had a cell phone,” Evgeny cried, his words lost in the motor’s howl.
“Hang on,” Mikhail warned through gritted teeth, and at the next curve downshifted and floored the throttle for traction, hoping to bait the truck into taking the bend too fast. The ruse didn’t work, but the sudden demands were too much for the Honda’s bald tires, and the rear passenger side shredded and sailed into the air.
Evgeny screamed as Mikhail lost control and the Honda slammed into the trees at better than 150 kilometers per hour, the steering wheel breaking Mikhail’s neck instantly as Evgeny flew through the windshield from sudden deceleration, his last vision the gnarled bark of a pine tree before his upper body liquefied on impact.
The police truck skidded to a stop nearby and the cops jumped from the cab, guns drawn. The driver pointed at the twisted remains of the car, the chassis almost unrecognizable, and switched on the spotlight mounted by the side mirror. The men surveyed the damage and the driver snorted humorlessly.
“Nobody walked away from that.”
The other cop nodded. “Saves the state the expense of a trial.”
The driver took another glance at the wrecked car and reached for the radio mic. “Good riddance.”
Chapter 40
Moscow, Russia
Rudolf was at his desk before dawn, as was his custom, finishing up last-minute details of his private security work for clients like Leo before starting with his official duties. Nobody dared to question the hours he kept, the assumption being that their own time would appear slothful in comparison, and Rudolf was of sufficient rank within the intelligence apparatus that his superiors left him to his own devices.
Leo’s plane had been delayed, and he’d been stuck in Africa longer than he’d hoped due to a mechanical problem. He’d lost a day as a critical but minor part had been flown from Paris along with a mechanic whose hourly rate was on par with many high-end escorts. The entire process had clearly annoyed him no end, and his last conversation with Rudolf had been terse.
He’d finally touched down an hour ago, and Rudolf was dreading the call he would soon make. That Leo would be furious went without saying. That any of the events since he’d left the woman at the jail were Rudolf’s fault wouldn’t matter, at least not initially.
Rudolf read the report that had been waiting on his desk a final time, searching for any kernel of good news but finding none. The woman had escaped from the prison and dropped off the radar. After having seen her in action at the Kosovo airport, Rudolf knew that a professional of her caliber would stay gone now that she was on alert, so any assurances he gave Leo of picking up her trail would be hollow, which they’d both know.
He lifted his cell phone to his ear and dialed Leo’s number.
“Good morning,” Leo said, sounding alert and rested in spite of the hour.
Rudolf wasted no time with pleasantries. “We’ve had an unfortunate development with the woman.”
“She’s dead?”
“Worse. As you know, we had her on ice at a sympathetic facility awaiting your return.” Rudolf paused. “Last night there was a riot at the prison. It looks like she was one of a handful of prisoners who escaped.”
The news was met with silence and then the expected explosion. “Is this some kind of joke?”
“I’m afraid not.”
“You charge me a small fortune, we actually have her in our hands, and you pick the one facility in the entire country that has a prison riot during the forty-eight hours she’s there?”
“Obviously, that wasn’t part of the selection criteria. There’s never been an escape from this prison. This is the first incidence.”
Rudolf knew Leo well enough to be able to tell that he was struggling to keep calm. “So we were just lucky? Tell me again why we had her there instead of in the basement of an abandoned building?”
“The extradition. It was delicate. I needed to make her disappear within the system.”
“I’d say you did a little too thorough a job.” Leo swore, a colorful curse that involved Rudolf’s mother and a dog. “Do we have any leads?”
“We’re still gathering data as it comes in. This was only discovered a few hours ago. The prison was on lockdown and there was no clear indication that anyone had escaped. Nine guards and twelve inmates died, and a score were injured. You can imagine the chaos that caused.”
When Leo spoke again, his voice was dangerously quiet. “I want her, Rudolf.”