Yulia didn’t break eye contact. “What do you do from here?”
“Go on with my life.”
“Do you have anything to go back to?”
Jet didn’t have to think about her response. The less information others had, the better. “Not really. It’s not important.”
Yulia smiled. “I’m very impressed with you, Sandra. I was the first time I saw you in action. I could use someone with your skills, your courage. It would be lucrative. You could name your price, within reason.”
“To do what?”
“Help us achieve our goals. The first of which is a free Ukraine. The Russians will never truly allow us to be free until the West forces them to. And I’m not sure that it’s important enough to the West to do whatever is required. Meanwhile, my country is being torn apart.”
“So how do you solve that?”
Yulia looked away. “There are ways to make the world care.” She paused for a moment and then tried again. “Consider staying with us, at least for a while. If you have nowhere to go, this could be a new beginning. You can start over as whomever you like. No past. No baggage. Think about it. Germany will be too hot for you now that the Russians have you in their system – they share information, even though on the surface they’re adversarial.” Yulia studied Jet’s unreadable expression. “You’re used to being paid to do what you’re good at. We would pay a lot.”
“I’ll need a passport and money. And the ability to leave whenever I decide to.”
“Not a problem.”
“How can I be certain? Your contact promised a lot and failed to deliver at every turn.”
Yulia nodded. “Come with me.”
They walked to another building, where a man was seated at a brightly lit worktable, focused on something before him. He glanced up as they entered and relaxed when he saw Yulia. She approached him and introduced Jet.
“Anton, this is Sandra. How long would it take to create a package for her?”
Anton studied Jet for a moment, considering. “I have an Italian and a Bulgarian I could modify. We just got them in. But I can’t do anything for a few days.” Anton surveyed the shelves in front of him and withdrew two passports. He opened the first and looked at Jet, put it back, and then opened the second. He compared Jet with the photograph and nodded. “I’d want to take a photo and replace this one, but on the surface, the description’s about right. Thirty years old, female. Even looks a little like her.” He held the Bulgarian passport up for Jet and Yulia to see. The woman staring back at them was slim enough, with dark hair with blunt-cut bangs, though she lacked Jet’s exotic features. Still, as Anton had said, similar.
“Are they stolen?” Jet asked.
“The Italian one is. The Bulgarian was purchased from the owner. She needed money and isn’t planning on traveling any time soon.”
“Well?” Yulia asked expectantly.
“I need time to think it over.”
“Take all the time you want.”
They emerged from the building and nearly ran headlong into two men carrying a pair of shoulder-fired missiles with Russian markings into the room next door.
“Oh, sorry,” one of them said.
“We just get those in?” Yulia asked.
“As you ordered.”
“Good.” Yulia addressed Jet again. “So what would it take to tip the scales in our favor?”
“What happens if I respectfully decline?”
Yulia’s expression remained impassive, but Jet could read the tension in the corners of her eyes. “Nothing. We helped each other get what we wanted. You’re free to go; although my job is to convince you that would be a mistake. For one thing, the Russians have been rattling their sabers all day, demanding my government turn over the two escaped prisoners who crossed into Ukraine.”
“The Russian patrol?”
“Yes. They didn’t like being stymied by a bunch of peasants.”
“What did the government tell them?”
“It denied knowing anything about it. Obviously we’re not cooperating, and it’s the word of the patrol, which could have mistaken a pair of innocent refugees for the prisoners, against the word of the government.” Yulia grinned. “Which has promised a thorough investigation that will never happen. We have other priorities.”
Jet looked off at the wall that ringed the compound and held a hand to her stomach. “I just realized we haven’t eaten since yesterday. I’m famished.”
“Well, let’s get that taken care of, and then we can talk price for your services. I’ll need to know more about your background to get you the best deal.”
Jet nodded. She’d play along, invent a career in the German military before going professional. But she wasn’t fooled by Yulia’s act. If Jet said no to the offer, her reward would likely be a bullet. She’d already seen too much, and she knew how things worked. From Yulia’s perspective, if she wasn’t on Yulia’s side, she was an enemy.
And Jet was only on her own side.
Which meant her stay couldn’t end well.
Chapter 46