Chapter 6 #2
“Maybe he’ll forget what he saw.” Idris could hope.
Svetlana dashed it. “Oh, he saw and most likely will hear about the pair of bears that escaped the hotel and realize there are two of you.” Her lips pressed tight. “That’s a problem.”
“Only if he lives long enough to tell someone,” Yuri stated.
“And how are you going to find him? We have no idea where he went or who he might have already contacted,” Idris pointed out.
“I could return to the hotel and see if I can pick up his trail,” Yuri offered, but Idris dashed the idea.
“There’s no point. Even if the place wasn’t crawling with cops, the trail will most likely end in the parking lot.
He could be anywhere blabbing about our secret.
” Idris clenched his fists. “And he’s only one half of the problem.
If someone has pockets deep enough to bribe someone high enough up to order the KGB around, then that means they have the resources to keep hunting for Yuri’s ass. ”
“And yours,” Svetlana reminded.
“At least I’ll be hard to find since they don’t know what I look like when I am not a bear.
You, on the other hand, might have a problem.
You don’t look very Russian.” Idris’ brown skin wasn’t all that made him stand out; add in his size and uncharacteristic hairiness, and he was a figure most wouldn’t easily forget.
Annoyed at the astute assessment, Idris couldn’t help but wipe the smug smile. “Don’t be so sure they haven’t seen your face. All it would take is a hacker scouring social media footage for images of Svetlana, of which I’ll bet there are plenty from the shows.”
“Her, yes. Me? I was a bear.”
Idris crossed his arms. “Are you saying you never went out with your sister when you weren’t a bear?
Because I guarantee the pair of you have been recorded somewhere, and with today’s technology and facial-recognition software, it won’t be long before they know what you look like.
” At their suddenly grim expressions, Idris sighed. “The reality is, none of us are safe.”
“What is this word safe?” scoffed Yuri. “Life is a series of never-ending hardships to overcome.”
The bleakness of his claim hit Idris hard. Was this going to be his life now? Never being able to let down his guard?
“What are the chances Ivan decides to report what he’s learned to the KGB?” A question by Idris that turned Svetlana pensive.
“He might, if only to access their resources, but I doubt he’ll admit the entire truth.
After all, how crazy will he sound when he tries to claim he saw a man turn into a bear?
” Svetlana stated with a lilt, only to turn more serious as she added, “It’s possible he won’t tell anyone about that part, not that it matters.
Agents are dead. They’ll be on the hunt for the killers. Us.”
Idris arched a brow. “Bears killed them, not people.”
“It wouldn’t be hard for Ivan to spin a story that I’ve got bears under my command who are a menace to society and that I’m working with two accomplices.”
“Menace? I’m an adorable teddy,” Yuri huffed.
“Yes, you are,” Svetlana soothed. “But given what happened, I doubt the public will agree, which means no more bears, at least until we get out of this town.”
“We can’t leave yet. Not while Ivan lives. Our focus should be finding him before he can blab about us,” Yuri stated.
“And as I said before, you’re talking about the impossible,” Idris reminded. “Your sister is right. We’d be better off getting out of town, rather than wasting time trying to locate one man in a city of thousands.”
“The question then is, where should we go?” Svetlana lifted her hands and shrugged. “The KGB have eyes and ears everywhere.”
“Ever thought of leaving Russia?”
Judging by their dropped-jaw expressions, that would be a no.
“This is our country,” Yuri exclaimed. “Our home.”
“Home?” Idris couldn’t help but inject a sarcastic note. “You said it yourself, you don’t have one. You constantly roam about trying to not have your secret revealed.”
“Fine, then how would we even go elsewhere? We have no money. Nothing.” Yuri’s lips turned down.
“Not nothing.” Svetlana dug into her pocket and pulled out a wad of cash. “I still have the money Boris gave me.”
“Which is a start, but not enough to get us passports to cross the border,” Yuri pointed out. “And do we really dare? If we’re recognized at a crossing, we’re screwed.”
Idris rubbed his jaw. “Fuck me, this is complicated.”
“It’s late, and I’m tired,” Svetlana announced. “I need at least an hour of sleep before I can think properly.”
“Is that wise? What if the KGB track us here?”
“Doubtful,” Yuri stated. “But just in case, I will stand on watch. I’m not tired.”
Idris was and wasn’t. Having been in tense situations before, though, he knew how much good even a short napping stint could do.
So he tried to get some sleep, letting Svetlana take the master bedroom, while he braved the second cluttered bedroom.
The bed, with its stained mattress and no sheets, needed replacing ages ago, but it beat the hard ground.
It felt as if he’d only just shut his eyes when Yuri woke him, not intentionally. Idris popped out of bed upon hearing the other man yelling in Russian. He bolted into the living room, ready to do battle, only to see no enemy, just the television on, showing a man with a serious mien talking.
“What’s going on?” Idris asked, rubbing his face.
“We’re fucked,” Yuri exclaimed before going off in Russian again. As for Svetlana, she pursed her lips.
The television flipped from the male announcer to an image of the hotel they’d visited the night before with a police officer standing out front giving a statement.
“I see the news is reporting on the agents we took out.”
Svetlana had her arms crossed and replied in a low murmur, “Yes, which was to be expected. They’re even admitting they were killed by bears.
Not that they had a choice. Someone got a picture of us escaping.
” As she said it, a blurry image appeared on the screen showing two large furry bodies and a distinctly feminine person clinging to the back of one.
“We didn’t exactly leave discreetly.”
“I’m aware. However, that’s not why Yuri is upset,” she grumbled. “I’m being blamed for it.”
“What? You’re not a bear,” he exclaimed.
She rolled her eyes. “No, but who else is in town doing an act with one? What other woman would be riding the back of one?” As she spoke, a grainy image popped up on the screen of Svetlana doing her act with Yuri the bear.
“Shit.”
The footage continued, this time showing caution tape and whirling lights around a different crime scene.
A picture of Ivan appeared next, in full uniform, obviously borrowed from his official KGB profile.
“What’s he saying?” Idris asked as the announcer returned.
A grim Yuri translated. “Ivan was found dead early this morning in the warehouse district.”
Idris’ momentary relief at the news that the witness to his transformation would no longer be a problem led to him murmuring aloud, “How did he die?”
“Gunshot to the head, which they’re also blaming on me.” Svetlana sighed. “Yuri’s right. We’re fucked.”
Times a zillion. Now they didn’t just have a mystery person seeking Svetlana and her bear. The KGB were on the hunt as well.