Chapter Twenty #3
That Deutsche International had been invited as one of the VIP visitors today illustrated its influence within the political circles.
A conference filled with the emerging powers of Eastern European countries slowly coming out from the umbrella of the former Soviet Union and their internal strife, watched by the media of the world community, was the perfect place for D.I.
to find financiers and supporters for its main cause.
But of course, as Jed very well knew and understood, there were covert political deals being haggled by different powers even as the front was a united coalition.
There were many different kinds of warfare.
He just needed to find the connection that would click the whole puzzle into place.
According to Weber, there was something more than business treaties afoot at this convention and it was something troubling enough that he approached Jed, of whom he seldom had direct contact.
They had an understanding, the kind that allowed covert information to be exchanged without too many questions.
“Surely you can tell me who you want disposed without showing files? You have never needed to give me the background so thoroughly,” Jed mused, speaking in German.
Weber furtively looked around. There were no late arrivals.
“This is not for me. It is for the foundation and its future.” He paused, nodding to his bodyguard to walk ahead toward the waiting car.
He added, lowering his voice, “Stefan, there are only two copies of what I am going to show you, one in that car, and the other in a special security box in a Swiss bank. It will be worth a fortune in the market if it is released by the right person.”
Jed lifted his brows. “And what’s the catch?” he asked cynically.
“You’ll understand once you see what I have.”
“Number Nine,” De Clerq’s voice came over Jed’s micro-earpiece. “Hell instructs not to enter any vehicle. Repeat. Code Red. Stay away from vehicle. She’s heading your way, right behind two men. She said to tell you they’re from Stratter’s, that you’ll understand.”
Jed didn’t miss a step as he walked alongside Weber toward the limousine, his gaze measuring the distance between him and the vehicle. His word for today had been providence. Indeed, it looked like he needed some quick intervention right now.
HELEN HEARD A CRASH and, pulling out a weapon, ran even faster toward its direction. Curses, men barking orders at each other. A thin high cry from further left, beyond a wall that acted as a buffer for VIPs arriving or leaving in their vehicles. That didn’t sound like Jed.
Since it was already late, there were no moving cars in the vicinity. Everyone who had to be in the auditorium should already be there, ready for the treaty speech. Everyone but Jed and those who had tricked him to come down here.
“Jed signaled. We created a short power outage, elevators included. You have twelve minutes to get Jed out before Macedonian security reach you, over,” de Clerq instructed.
“Ten-four,” Helen acknowledged, peering around the corner. Semi-darkness.
It was silent now. From memory, she retraced the underground parking schematics in her head. Buffer wall. That meant the elevator was ten feet from her, closer to her than that first yelp of pain.
She stepped into the darkness that was illuminated by the strips of emergency lights here and there on the walls.
Danger. She sensed rather than saw the movement behind her and reflex kicked in as she bent forward and moved sideways.
Air whooshed where her head had been. She heard the snick of a weapon being cocked.
Making a rapid judgment call, she turned, and fired hers.
Its silencer emitted a quiet “pop” and the dark shadow before her crumpled to the ground. Helen crouched behind a column.
One down. There was at least one more close by. Where the hell was Jed? She couldn’t just shoot at every moving shadow, not without knowing his location.
In answer, a familiar shape dropped down next to her.
It would have startled her if she hadn’t trusted the instincts that usually warned her of danger.
She smiled grimly in the darkness. Easy.
She thought of Jed, and he just appeared, silent as death itself.
He leaned forward, his lips brushing her ear.
“Weber’s driver sold him out. Shot the bodyguard. He’s out of the vehicle, looking for Weber. Possibly two hostiles without yours.”
Okay, so Weber wasn’t one of the bad guys. Helen moved closer and whispered back, “I shot one of mine. Pretty sure it’s one of the CIA operatives. One more.”
His hand touched the nape of her neck briefly. “I have to get to Weber. They want him as well. We need him alive. Cover me.”
He didn’t wait for an answer, standing and disappearing into the darkness in seconds. Helen frowned. How was she supposed to cover him? She didn’t know where he was heading and it was too dark to tell one shape from another.
She blinked, realization dawning. Of course.
Today was the day for decoys. She stood and started to run noisily toward the elevator, making scraping sounds with her shoes.
Almost immediately, footsteps came from behind her.
She ducked behind another post, pulled out a piece of metal and flipped it at the wall across from her.
It hit, thudding loudly. She repeated this, each time aiming a little further, as if “she” were going that direction. Bait.
The man tracking her followed in that direction too, but he was dodging behind vehicles and columns, just as she had been. He wasn’t taking the bait that easily. He suddenly turned and started shooting in her direction, sweeping a wide path of bullets that bounced and rained around her.
Helen crouched lower, trying to make herself as small as possible.
That was no small firearm. It was something a lot bigger with powerful, and a two-and-a-half-foot cement column wasn’t going to be much protection, especially if she betrayed her location.
Obviously, her hostile had decided that the darkness meant he hadn’t the time to play cat and mouse, deducing Security would be on the way down here soon.
But heck, Jed wanted her to cover him, didn’t he?
She hoped he got to Weber because she didn’t think Security was going to be fooled by a short-circuited blackout any more, not with this racket.
She took a deep breath and started running to the back wall, rolling and tumbling, still using the columns for protection, as sprays of gunfire followed her. He was coming after her in earnest, the staccato rat-tat-tat stopping and starting as he searched for her moving shadow.
Bait. She had only a few minutes left before the authorities showed up.
He was right behind her now, confident because she wouldn’t have anywhere else to run once she reached the back wall.
Her timing had to be just right. The main radiators to heat the building should be right ahead.
She needed him to aim in that direction.
One more column. Her hostile would think this was it, and he’d move in for the kill. Helen darted right, then cut left. Bullets hit the pipes and sparks flew, burning her arms as she launched into the air, across the hood of one vehicle, and slid under.
Metallic pops reverberated as the damaged radiators exploded from the gunfire. She heard the powerful whoosh of compressed steam and hot water gushing out. A horrific scream echoed in the darkness. She scrunched her face at the sound. That couldn’t have felt good.
“Elena.”
She rolled out the other side of the car, her body hitting a pair of shoes.
She found herself pulled onto her feet. The roar of rushing steam drowned out Jed’s words.
He started running, her hand still in his, so she had no choice but to follow.
She didn’t have time to look back at the man who had been targeting her.
They reached the elevator just as the lights started to come back on. Elena blinked, trying to focus. The elevator doors opened and she found herself pushed gently inside.
“Up, follow de Clerq’s instructions, and back to the hotel,” Jed ordered.
Helen looked at him. His nice suit was torn and dirty, as if he’d been rolling on a bit of floor himself. There was blood on his hands. The look in his eyes made her shiver—cold and aloof. Unemotional. The eyes of a killer.
She nodded. “Weber?”
“He’s okay. But he and I have some explaining to do. I don’t want to explain right now. I’ll see you back at the hotel soon.”
She could hear shouts heading down the walkway where she’d come from. “I’m okay,” she answered his unspoken question as she ran her hand lightly up one bloodied arm. “Scrapes.”
There was no outward response at all from Jed. “Good decoy. Too much noise,” he said, pressed the button for the second floor and stepped back, letting the doors close.
“Wait a minute! That wasn’t me—” the doors cut off the rest of her sentence “—using a machine gun!” she finished, and stamped her foot. “Damn it, he always gets the last word.”