Chapter 43
Chapter Forty-Three
“You have the transcript,” Branislav said flatly.
“Yes.” There was no point in denying it. “I don’t understand it and I’m guessing Aurelia didn’t either. So why did you have her killed?”
He said nothing for a moment, then, “Why don’t you come in to see me? Bring the transcript, I can explain everything.”
“I’m not going to do that. I’ve already emailed a copy to my cousin so if anything happens to me, he’ll know.”
She frantically tried to do exactly as she’d just told him she’d already done, but the file was too large for email.
Fuck, fuck. What to do? Oh, the family photo gallery.
It was a private server where the Kobas uploaded their family photos for the others to see.
Only Leeza used it to upload pictures of her children, but it would work.
“… come to the office for a meeting. Bring Jozef if you’re more comfortable, but we should talk about this. You can’t go around saying I had something to do with….”
Branislav was still trying to convince her to come in, but she wasn’t listening. She logged into the family server and hit the upload button on the transcript file, breathing a little easier when it finished.
“I’m not coming in, but you can probably expect a visit from Jozef,” she told him in a flat voice. “When I tell him about all this, he’ll want these questions answered as badly as I do.”
“You haven’t told him yet?” Branislav asked sharply.
Fuck. She shouldn’t have told him that. Damn it, this is why she’d wanted a boring life as a translator. She was bad at intrigue, which was such a large part of the family business.
“I’m telling him right now.” And indeed, she was texting Jozef at that very moment.
I need to talk to you. I’m going to find Shola and come out to the mansion.
Branislav was still talking. “I’m sorry, I really didn’t want to do this while there was a baby in the picture. I’m not a monster. If you’d kept your nose out of it, I would’ve left you and the baby alone.” A cold shiver went down her spine. “I’m sorry, Saskia.”
Sorry for what?
She heard a loud whistling sound through her open kitchen window; a sound she’d heard before on the Koba weapons range. A rocket-propelled grenade was headed her way.
Dropping her phone, she threw herself at the couch as hard as she could, protecting her stomach as she hit. It tipped over and she huddled on the other side, arms wrapped around her head, knees pulled up in a fetal position, as her apartment exploded around her.
She’d covered her ears, but they were still ringing. Smoke and dust filled the air.
Coughing, she peeked around her couch. “Holy shit!” Her apartment was in shambles, her kitchen unrecognizable.
The shooter must have launched the RPG from the rooftop opposite hers. She had to move before they struck again.
She crawled out from behind the couch just as Shola rushed in the door holding an AR15, looking around frantically.
When she caught sight of Saskia, she shouted, “Come to me!” Saskia threw herself at Shola, who grabbed her arm and dragged her into the hall outside her apartment. “Stay behind me.”
“I need a gun,” Saskia said, still coughing.
Shola unholstered her sidearm and handed it to Saskia who checked the chamber and slid the safety off.
“We need to go to the estate,” Saskia said.
“Guard Dog is closer,” Shola argued.
Saskia shook her head. “Not Guard Dog, we can’t have a shootout on a busy street. Besides, I need to get to Jozef.”
Shola looked torn, then nodded. “Okay, we’ll go to Jozef.” Her eyes landed on Saskia’s stomach. “Are you okay?”
“Just shaken up, but I think we’re fine.”
“Someone launched a grenade through your kitchen window,” Shola said, looking stricken.
Saskia held in a sarcastic ‘yeah, I know, I was there’ and said the thing Shola needed to hear. “There’s nothing you could have done. If you’d been with me, you might’ve been killed.”
“It’s good you thought to use the couch for protection.” Shola covered Saskia as she checked the stairwell, her gun at the ready. “Let’s go. You stay behind me. We have four people in the building and two outside. Someone’s bringing the car around. We’ll meet them on the street.”
“Isn’t the parking garage more sheltered?” Saskia didn’t want to go to the street where there could be another rocket launcher aimed at her.
“Too easy to trap us in there,” Shola said, then added, “Jozef’s fleet are outfitted for this sort of thing. The car can take as many hits as it needs. We just need to get there.”
They took the stairs quickly, but carefully. As Shola came to each corner, she peeked around, gun at the ready before waving Saskia down another floor.
When they reached the ground floor, Shola told Saskia to stay inside the stairwell where she’d be protected by thick concrete. “I’ll go see if the car is here. Shoot anyone you don’t recognize.”
“Stay back!” Someone shouted, followed by the sound of shattering glass.
Shola rushed to rejoin Saskia. “They’ve engaged our security.”
“I’m so stupid,” Saskia moaned. “I shouldn’t have called Branislav. What if someone gets hurt?”
“We’ve killed one of them,” Shola said. “So someone has definitely been hurt. You called the Prime Minister?” She put her hand to her earpiece and listened. “Guard Dog is sending more people to cover us so we can get you to the car.”
“Havel?” Saskia asked hopefully.
Shola shook her head. “Havel is at the estate. He and Jozef agree you should go there.”
Saskia rolled her eyes. “Good thing we got their permission.” A spray of bullets struck the wall they were hiding behind.
Shola returned fire, then said to Saskia, “The car’s here. Get ready to move.”
“I’m ready.”
She shoved Saskia’s head down and gripped her collar.
Saskia wrapped one arm around her stomach, while holding her gun against her thigh with the other.
“Now,” Shola said.
It was as though they’d practiced the move a thousand times even though they’d never done it before. They ran in unison, racing through the lobby. Shola’s gun hand was extended, her eyes scanning the area for cover if things went sideways.
Glass crunched under their shoes as they rushed past Cooper who was holding the lobby door open for them. “Straight into the car,” he ordered. “Halil is driving.”
“Thank you,” Saskia said, her tone heartfelt. She knew both men and was grateful they’d come for her.
“Stay safe,” Cooper replied grimly. “I’ll be in the vehicle right behind–” He was flung backwards as a bullet struck him in the chest. He hit the tiled floor, sliding away from them.
“No!” Saskia screamed, trying to run to him.
Shola yanked her back by the collar. “Get in the car now!” She shoved Saskia at the vehicle where she scrambled inside before turning around to reach for Shola.
“Now you!” She dragged Shola in by her shirt, yanking so hard Shola smacked her head on the doorframe.
“Ouch, I’m in,” Shola said, pulling the door closed behind her. “Let go of me.”
Bullets struck the back of the car.
“Go!” Shola screamed at Halil, but the car was already moving. “Keep your head down,” she snapped at Saskia, pushing her until she was laying prone on the back seat.
The car rocked back and forth as Halil raced through downtown Prague. Saskia peeked between the seats, watching cars and people scramble out of his way.
At a clogged intersection he maneuvered the car onto the sidewalk, hitting the horn as pedestrians leapt out of his way.
“How is Cooper?” Saskia asked desperately. “Is he alive?”
“He was wearing a vest,” Halil said dismissively. “It’ll take more than a hit to the Kevlar to put him down.”
Saskia was relieved, but it only lasted a second.
“We have two vehicles in pursuit,” Shola said grimly.
“One of them is ours,” Halil assured her.
“Good.” She slumped in the seat next to Saskia. Her eyes travelled down Saskia, landing on her stomach. “How’s the baby?”
Saskia bit her lip. Her timing was shit, but she didn’t have much choice. “I think my water broke when my apartment was firebombed.” She thought about it for a second, then added, “Or I peed myself, but pretty sure it’s the other thing.”
Shola’s eyes widened. “That’s not funny.”
“It’s not,” Saskia agreed, then lifted her sweater to show Shola the wet crotch of her leggings.
“Fuck,” Shola breathed.
“Hey, this is supposed to be a joyful event,” Saskia said sarcastically. “Remember what the birth instructor said.”
“You fired your birth instructor for asking about baby’s the father.” Shola gripped the handle above the door as Halil took a corner way too fast.
“I got a bad vibe from her,” Saskia defended herself. “I didn’t know I’d need another one this soon. Before I fired her, do you remember what she said we’re supposed to do when my water breaks?”
“How can you not know?” Shola shouted at her. “Don’t you know how to use Google? If I was about to push out a watermelon, I’d have Googled it by now.”
“I’ve been busy!”
“Ladies!” Halil shouted, gaining their attention. “We’re about to hit the freeway and we have two in pursuit now, along with our guys. Put your seatbelts on.”
Saskia tried to push herself up so she could put her seatbelt on, but a sharp pain in her abdomen had her crying out and slumping back against the passenger door.
“What’s wrong?” Shola asked sharply. “You’re pale.”
The pain continued, gripping her with such intensity she couldn’t breathe let alone answer Shola’s question. The urge to push was strong, but she resisted as hard as she could. Now was not the time.
Unfortunately, the baby had a different plan.
The pain subsided, but the pressure continued. Saskia gasped for air, sucking it in so fast she got dizzy.
“Saskia, talk to me!” Shola said desperately. “Why are you crying? What’s wrong? Is it the baby?”
She looked as panicked as Saskia felt. “I… I think she’s coming.”
“She can’t!” Shola screeched, her wide eyes focused on Saskia while clinging to her weapon. “I need my gun hand.”
It was such an absurd thing to say that Saskia burst out laughing. “Me too,” she gasped, holding up her own gun.
“Give that to me.” Shola took the gun and holstered it at her hip. “I’ll call ahead and let Dr. Koba know we’re going to need her when we arrive.”
Saskia erupted into giggles again. “The brain doctor is going to deliver my baby.”
“I’ve alerted them to the situation. They’ll be ready for you,” Halil called back, swerving in and out of the lane, rocking Saskia and Shola back and forth.
“I don’t know if we’re going to make it.” Another contraction hit Saskia, but this time she knew what it was and knew what to do because, despite what she’s implied to Shola, Saskia had engaged with Google to learn about giving birth.
Gritting her teeth, she breathed through the contraction, concentrating on counting as the seconds ticked by. “55 seconds,” she said, then began counting again. When the next contraction hit, she added, “Two minutes apart.”
Shola’s eyes were wide. “We’re not going to make it.”
That’s what Saskia had already said, but the pain was too much for her to point out that she was right.
“We have to take your leggings and panties off,” Shola said.
As soon as the contraction let up, Saskia ordered, “Do it now, quickly.”
Shola stripped Saskia quickly and efficiently. It was incredibly weird being in the back of a car, naked from her waist down, wearing only a sweatshirt, but Saskia was beyond caring.
“Motherfucking son-of-a-bitch!” She gripped the driver’s headrest in one hand while yanking on the seatbelt behind her with the other. Pain razed through her, crippling her from mid-thigh all the way up. “Kurva! Do pí?i!” She screamed in Czech. “It hurts!”
“You’re doing great,” Shola said unconvincingly, patting Saskia’s foot. “Just breathe.”
“The birth lady told you to say that,” Saskia snapped accusingly. “And I hated that judgmental… aaaaaahhhhhhh!”
Shola flinched at the volume and Saskia was confident she got her point across about speaking nonsense to her while she was trying to birth an elephant.
Her breaths were coming out in panicked gasps, but she didn’t know how to calm down.
She wasn’t expecting the pain to be so bad.
Why didn’t women talk about this? Warn each other that it was probably best if they just let the human species die out, because what the fuck?
No one could possibly expect someone to do this and survive it.
“Impossible!” she screamed. “I can’t do this.”
The car rocked again as it hit a curb and she wanted to scream at Halil to slow the fuck down except she couldn’t because they were dodging rocket-launching, gun-wielding maniacs.
The car rocked once more, then came to a screeching halt. “We’re here, but they’re right behind. Idiots are on Koba property now. Stay in the car and keep your heads down while we take care of them.”
Something hit the window above Saskia’s head. A bullet. The window held and she breathed a little easier.
Halil crawled from the driver’s seat to the passenger’s and out the door. He used the hood of the car for cover as he returned fire.
Shola looked desperate to go with him.
Saskia gripped her wrist, holding her in place. “Don’t leave me.”
Before Shola could respond, the door behind her was wrenched open and she was yanked out backwards.
Saskia opened her mouth to scream for Shola when a familiar face filled her view.
“Muhammed!” The cry of relief came from the depths of her soul. “The baby.”
“I’m here, my angel.” His gaze was steady, determined, loving. “I’ve got you. Both of you.”