Out Of The Night (7 page)

CHAPTER TEN

Moscow

Viktor Pertinolf stood outside the apartment building where Boris Gurov lived. He watched the lights go out in one room only to come on in another.

Petr Solovyov crushed out his cigarette and leaned against the parked vehicle. “What do you think?”

“That little fucker is in on the whole thing.”

“You think he knows who Archuletta is?”

“He’s too shit stupid to know anything. My guess is someone paid him to keep his mouth shut and let that bitch walk in and take the prisoner.”

Viktor wanted to blow-up the whole fucking building and kill everyone inside. How stupid could people be? He had given no orders for his prisoner to be moved, especially to the cells where common prisoners were housed. Someone all but opened the fucking doors and let Archuletta leave a free man.

“Let me go up there and bring him down for a little talk.” Petr chuckled. “I can make the pig squeal.”

“No, I think we will wait and see what the idiot does. I want this building watched.” Viktor straightened the fur ushanka on his head. “Put a tail on Gurov. If he so much as takes a shit, I want to know what it smells like.”

“That won’t be a problem.” Petr shrugged his coat tighter around his shoulder
s. “Where do you think Archuletta is?”

Hands in his pocket, Viktor kicked the concrete sidewalk with the toe of his shoe. “Hell if I know. The police have not come up with a thing I can use.” Defeat gnawed at his gut
, and his eyes burned like hot coals. “He could be safely in America for all we know.” After years of trying to capture the Falcon agent, his escape from the most notorious prison in the world shredded Viktor’s dignity.

Petr’s phone rang and he pulled it from his pocket. After a short conversation
, he looked at Viktor.

“What?”

“There were two policemen found with minor wounds outside of Proletarsky. They claim the couple who did it matched the description we sent out, except the woman has blonde hair.”

Viktor’s heart pumped loudly. “A wig.” He looked up at the apartment again. “Proletarsky? What the fuck would they be doing there?”

“I don’t know, but I’m notifying the police to be on the look-out.”

“Yes, you do that. In the meantime, I think I’ll have another conversation with Ivan Gromyko.”

“You think he knows something he didn’t mention earlier?”

“I think he’s a greedy bastard
who would sell his own daughter if the price was right.”

“Okay, let’s head back to Lubyanka. But what should we do about the policeman’s report?”

“We’ll get to that.” Viktor folded his large frame into the car and they drove away.

Once they neared Red Square
, he turned to Petr. “Before we check out the lead in Proletarsky, I want to speak with Dr. Wargo. I need to know if he’s improved the serum.” A chill made Viktor shiver, so he turned on the heater. “There is no need for us to chase Archuletta all over the country if we don’t have the goddamn formula we need.”

“
Da. But I also think that doctor is more of a mad scientist than a man of medicine. It’s his fault all this happened.”

“I agree. The doctor was over zealous and gave our guinea pig too large a dose. But we can’t blame him
, not if we plan to use him and his truth serum again.”

Proletarsky

Tony woke on a comfortable bed without
the usual headache and bitter taste in his mouth. He opened his eyes and looked around.

Mac sat in a chair next to the bed. “You feeling any better
?”

With a grunt, he lifted his shoulders to rest against the headboard. He decided to wait a few minutes before trying to sit up completely. Whatever medicine the doctor gave him last night remained in his body. The dizziness didn’t bother him, but his mouth tasted dry as a stone.
“Anything to drink?”

“Yeah.” Mac stood and walked into the kitchen only to return with an opened bottle of water. “I guessed you’d be thirsty.” He nodded toward a sleeping Abby lying next to him. “She’s going to feel the same way.”

Relief flowed over Tony’s body. For a second he’d forgotten his location, and that Abby was still with him. “She and I had a thing going at one time, didn’t we?”

“Few years back.” Mac shifted nervously. “I didn’t know much until you ended it. You went through hell.”

“Any idea why we called it quits?”

Mac shrugged then sat in the chair he’d vacated earlier. “You mentioned something about a career collision.”

If he was everything they claimed, then his line of work could easily send a woman packing. He gazed into her peaceful face. Sorrow filled his chest when he took in her beauty. Something inside him hurt, yet he had no idea why.

“I guess it was for the best.” He wondered, remembering flashes of the heat between Abby and him. Laughter danced around his thoughts. At one time
, they were a happy couple. What changed?

Mac held up his hands. “I’m not a judge of that.”

Feeling braver, Tony tossed aside the covers and put his feet on the floor. With a little help from Mac, he made it to the bathroom and washed his face and hands. He turned to his fellow agent. “Where’s A.J.?”

“He’s back in Moscow to see what Viktor is up to, then he’ll fly back to Dallas. But Jake and Arman will be helping you out as you make your way to the target.”

“What target?”

“Your memory any better?”

Tony leaned against the sink and sipped more water. Would the thirst ever go away? “I remember you, Mac. Every time I look at you, another moment in time flashes through my mind. However, I’m not sure they’re in order.”

“The doctor is confident you’ll fully regain your memory. You just need a little time.”

“Do we have time?”

Mac shook his head. “No, not really.”

“What’s my mission?”

Before Mac could object, Tony touched his shoulder. “Trust me. I’m not going to run out of here like a crazy man. I know whatever it is I do, I’m careful and meticulous.”

“How do you know that?”

Tony nodded toward the towel rack. “Notice how neatly I folded the towel? How
slowly I walked into the door last night. How I let you do all the talking? Then I carefully folded my clothes and put them neatly in a pile beside the bed.” Tony chuckled. “Do you know anyone with OCD who’s quick and careless?”

“No.”

“I think that’s why I’m good. I take my time.”

Tony watch
ed as Mac sat down and leaned forward to prop his elbows on his thighs. “A CIA operative by the name of Joe Mitchell has been kidnapped. We don’t know where he’s being held or who took him. Your job is to get him out before he spills his guts.”

“How do we know he hasn’t already?”

“It would have been all over the news. Mitchell knows too many secrets.”

“Is this the same Joe Mitchell we worked with in Iraq?”

Mac’s eyes brightened. “Yes.”

“That guy has more secrets than politicians have lies. If they ever got into his brain, lots of European and Russian agents would be exposed.”

“That’s the problem.” Mac stood and paced. “We have to get Mitchell. If we don’t save the operative, the CIA will be completely compromised.”

Tony twisted his neck to the right until it popped
. Then he turned left. Stiffness drew his body ridged as a body cast.

“Okay, we need to find a way to Cairo. I don’t know what’s there, but it’s a start.”

“I have the necessary paperwork. You can fly out of St. Petersburg this afternoon.” Mac pointed to Abby still sleeping. “What about her? Has she helped all she can?”

Tony shook his head. “I don’t know. For some reason I feel better with her around
, and I don’t think it’s love or lust. She might be useful.”

“In Cairo?”

“A woman can hide in plain sight there.”

Mac and Tony exchanged knowing smiles.

Dallas, T
exas

Zoe, Falcon’s secretary, walked into Frank’s office and announced Vince Colanglo waited in the outer
reception area. Frank took off his readers and tossed them on the desk. “Tell him to come in.”

He
stood and walked around his desk as Vince stepped through the door. They shook hands and the Director of the CIA dropped onto a chair. Frank sat at his right. “How are you holding up, Vince?” Stress and worry deepened the lines in his friend’s face.

“I keep thinking of all the collateral damage Mitchell being in the wrong hands could cause.”

Frank peered at the man he’d spent years with in the CIA. They’d been friends and coworkers back then. Now that he headed his own security team, they remained best friends with President Colin Davis. Through the years, the three had shared camaraderie and secrets.

“I know how you feel Vince
, and I hope Tony is back to his old self in time to secure Joe. He’s been a friend to both of us for many years.” Frank looked away. “If Tony can’t get Joe out of there, you know what he’ll be forced to do.”

“I know.” Vince rested his head against the back of the chair and stared at the ceiling. “I can’t understand how Mitchell got so careless. With all
his years of experience behind him, it would take a complete mastermind to abduct him.”

“That’s true. But it won’t take much to break him.” He stared at Vince and said what they both already knew, “He’s fifty-seven years old with a bad back and knees ravaged by arthritis.”

“His last physical didn’t go so well, either. Doc put him on high blood pressure medicine. I doubt he’s getting it,” he said sardonically

Frank could hardly believe the news when the president
had called him about Joe Mitchell’s capture. He immediately put Tony on the case and sent him to Syria where they suspected Mitchell might be hidden. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but according to A.J. and Mac, Tony isn’t doing much better. Somehow the Russians kidnapped him and pumped him full of truth serum. Now, Tony is walking around with an empty head.”

“It’s temporary, right?”

Frank shrugged. “We’re hoping.”

“Isn’t there anything we can do to speed up the process?”

“Mac’s filling him in today to see if the information jars his memory. Hopefully, he’ll come up with a plan.”

“I feel in my heart that
Tony’s the man for the job. But do you have other agents standing by, just in case?” Vince’s sharp brown eyes gave his tan face a slightly sinister look. He was definitely not a man to mess with. At fifty-five, he was still physically fit enough to stand his own with anyone.

“I do,” Frank said, nodding. “But I want to make absolutely sure Tony is out of the game before I pull anyone else in. I have Arman and Jake waiting for him in Cairo.”

“I agree with that. Especially Arman. Isn’t he from Pakistan?”

“Yes. He’s still familiar with the land, the people, and the customs.”

Vince straightened. “I had my sources in the Middle East do some checking. They claim there’s nothing anywhere about an American being kidnapped. So, I keep trying to figure out who wants this information so badly they’d resort to capturing a CIA operative.”

“Lots of radical groups in that area would love to kidnap any American just for the notoriety alone.”
Frank looked away. “I want to find out who turned Tony over to the Russians. He was on his way to Syria and nowhere near Russia. So, as a suspicious man, I have to ask, who knew what?”

Vince rubbed his chin and slowly nodded. “You’re right. I don’t think it’s from my department, but it’s worth looking into.”
Vince stood. “You have time for lunch?”

“You bet.” Frank grabbed his phone off the desk and turned toward the door. “Want to go to that Italian restaurant around the corner
?”

Frank noticed the
determination in Vince’s eyes. He clutched his friend’s shoulder. “It’s going to work out.”

“I
know it will,” Vince said. “If not, I’m resigning.”

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Damascus

Hussein paced his cousin’s apartment frantically. Sweat dripped off his face and soaked the back of his shirt. “Hana is getting nervous. She worries we will be caught by the Americans and punished.”

“When hasn’t she been nervous? The woman drives a man crazy.” Nadir shoved h
is cousin and wished he were a true believer in the destruction of America. A thread of disgust raced thorough him. “You’re just as scared as a woman.”

“An American CIA agent is behind my house in a cellar.” Hussein thumped his chest. “If I’m caught with him, I am dead and so is my family. We’ve had him sixteen days now. Where is el Jibar?”

Nadir raised a warning finger. “Do not speak his name. Do you hear me?”

Hussein lowered his head. “Yes.”

“He is the most powerful man in the Middle East. We are lucky to be under his command. Can you not imagine how much praise and honor he will bestow on you for your help in capturing the American?”

Hussein shrugged. “I only know what you say.”

“I say the truth and nothing else. Praise be to Allah. The infidels will soon be destroyed. Not by a bomb as they suspect, but internally. Their own spy system will blow up in President Davis’ face.”

“Let’s pray you are right.”

“I am. Now go home to your wife and tell her to stop complaining unless she wants to be sent back to her family.”

Hussein stood. “I will not say that to the mother of my children, Nadir. Never ask me to.”

Nadir chuckled. “See what falling in love with your wife does to your head?”

“I am only aware of what it does to my heart.”

That said, Hussein slid his feet into a pair of sandals and slammed the door as he left his cousin’s home.

Nadir squatted on the rug and picked up his cup of tea. All his life he’d known Hussein was weak.
Soft and easily swayed. He’d never expected him to fall under the spell of his third cousin. Even at the wedding, it was clear the two loved each other.

Nadir praised Allah that finding his sister a husband occupied his mother
’s time too much for her to worry about searching for a wife for him. He didn’t want anyone. No home. No wife. No children. He’d dedicated his life to destroying the most evil country in the world.

The phone rang and he answered immediately, knowing the call would be from Youssef el Jibar. Nadir idolized and obeyed the man for they shared the same hatred.

“Hello, Youssef.”

“Is the American still secure?”

“Yes, my cousin just left. He cannot escape. We have him too well hidden.”

“I will be there soon and when I come
, I will get all the information we need to bring America to her knees.”

Nadir’s heart raced and his pulse pounded. “I am waiting for you. All will be ready.”

“Good. Do not disappoint me, Nadir, for I have little forgiveness in my heart.”

“Oh, no, my friend. I would sooner slit my own throat.”

“I will send a messenger with all the things I need. Make sure everything is ready.”

“I obey your commands. May Allah be with you.”

Proletarsky

Abby woke with a start. She heard Mac and Tony talking, but she couldn’t understand their words. Groggy and still a little limp, she managed to pull her legs from beneath the spread and stood.

Tossing her hair out of her face, she turned to the bathroom only to find Mac and Tony inside the small room whispering. When they saw her, they stopped and cleared out so she could use the restroom.

“Morning,” she mumbled.

She closed the door and wondered what they were talking about.
This morning she simply couldn’t tolerate any more deceptions. Besides, she’d done enough for Falcon Securities. The time had come for her to get back to her real life.

When she stepped out, Tony handed her a cup of hot coffee. Suspiciously, she took the mug and smelled the deep roasted blend. It reminded her of home.

She flashed him a smile and took a sip. With a sigh, she sank onto the bed, confident her head would be back to normal in no time.

Tony and Mac continued staring at her until curiosity filled the room.

“What?”

“You want to go to Cairo?” Tony asked with a grin that would jumpstart a dead woman’s heart.

“No.”

“Why not?” Mac asked. “I hear it’s beautiful this time of year.”

Abby put the cup down on the nightstand. “Look, I owed Frank a favor for getting me an interview with the Vice President. And he and my boss are golfing buddies, so when he asked me to help get Tony out of Lubyanka, I agreed. That’s where my obligation ends.”

“Won’t you do it for me?” Tony asked. “For old times?”

She blew out a frustrated breath. “You don’t remember the old times because if you did, you’d have chosen a different line.”

“He’s going to need your help
,” Mac said.

She looked at Tony. “I have a job to get back to. Besides, it’s hard for a woman to do anything in that area of the world.
”

“
You could be useful and you might get one hell of a story out of it. At least the parts of the CIA will let you publish.” Tony stepped closer. “We’ll fly to Cairo where Mitchell was taken and then follow the leads. It could take us anywhere.”

“Well, hell.
” She rolled her eyes. “That’s reassuring.”

“I don’t remember everything about the past, but I think you know me, Abby. And you know I’m not a liar.”

She chewed her bottom lip. “I do know that.” A heartbreaker, a ghost, and a man of secrets, but not a liar. Tony had always told her exactly how things were between them. That’s why when he’d called off their relationship, she’d known it was forever. There would be no reconciliation and her denial fell on deaf ears.

She pushed away and nodded.

“You must also know I’d never endanger your life unless it was a matter of national security.”

“I know that.” She hated the words as soon as they slipped off her tongue. She’d be safe as long as he could protect her, but there were no guarantees either
one of them would walk out alive.

She remembered that reasoning
played a part in why they’d split. Then the betrayal had hit. While he’d analyzed everything under the sun, Abby had only wanted him.

Mac held out their passports and visas.

She folded her arms across her chest and stood, facing the two men. “You were pretty sure I’d agree.”

Mac smiled. “Not
really. I’m reluctant to let him go on this mission. He’s not well yet, but even impaired, Tony’s better than any other agent we have.”

“Humph,” she said
, leaning against the wall. “What next?”

“We have to get you out of h
ere and to St. Petersburg. Then on a plane to Cairo”

“Is that where Mitchell is being held?”

“We don’t know,” Tony chimed in. “That’s where he was taken. My guess is he was quickly moved somewhere else. The search starts in Egypt.”

Abby held out a strand of her blond
e hair. “Won’t I stand out over there?”

“Sometimes yes and sometimes no.” Tony reached inside a bag and took out a bagel. “Better eat up, we leave in twenty minutes.”

Abby took the offered food. It tasted like a dog biscuit. She put it back in the sack and reached for her coffee. Just as the cup touched her mouth, a loud knock sounded at the door.

She looked at Mac and Tony. “Is that A.J.?”

Mac shook his head. “He’s headed to Moscow.”

Alarm shot through her. “If it isn’t A.J., then who is it?”

Tony took her arm, spilling coffee on her hand. “Trouble.”

Dallas, Texas

Leaving the restaurant,
Frank waved good-bye to Colanglo and headed back to his office. This situation had created a royal mess. Joe Mitchell being kidnapped and in the hands of terrorists couldn’t come at a worse time.

President Davis planned to submit a bill to the House that would tighten up America’s security and prevent leaks. If Joe talked, there wouldn’t be enough left of the CIA to put that bill into action.

Joe Mitchell was old school. He’d come through the ranks and learned on his way up. Four years ago, he’d headed a special program that would determine which agents were needed and where others could be more useful.

In that process, Joe
had learned the names and locations of every agent working for the CIA, along with each agent’s expertise. No operative should have that much information. Frank had warned the CIA and the president, but times called for change and they thought Joe was the man for the job.

Turn
ed out, nothing changed and Joe ended up as one of the most informed operators in the CIA outside of Director Vince Colanglo.

Frank
had tried to think of a way they could neutralize the threat. At first, he’d wanted to pull every agent in danger. But that only meant those men and women could never be used again, and too much time and training had been put into the CIA agents to release them.

On his way to the office after having lunch with Vince,
Frank took out his cell phone and called the office. Zoe answered. “Have we heard from anyone yet?” he asked.

Papers shuffled in the background. “Mac called and said Tony’s memory was slowly getting better. He also sent A.J. back to Moscow to check on Viktor.”
She released a sigh. “Mac said he was going to try to talk Abby Williams into going with Tony to Cairo.”

“I don’t like getting her that deeply involved in this mess.”

“I know how you feel, Frank. But Tony trusts her and Mac is trying to make him as comfortable possible so he can pull off the mission.”

“You find out anything else?”

“I spoke with the agent you sent to watch Joe Mitchell’s house. Mia Mendoza is still on site.”

“I want her t
here. Joe’s wife, Anita, might know nothing, but if she does, we need to know when she makes a move.”

“She already has
, according to Mendoza. She slept with her husband’s co-worker.”

“I’ve know the couple for years.
I can’t believe she’d do something like that, especially now that Joe’s missing.”

Langley, Virginia

Brad Hall sat at his desk
, reliving last night with Anita. He fought the urge to come in his pants. Anita might be in her early fifties, but she knew how to fuck.

And they had all night long. It’d
been years since Brad had enjoyed himself so much between a woman’s legs. After his divorce three years ago, there had been long dry periods since he’d spent any real time with a female companion.

He
’d made up for that last night.

From his glass-encased office
, he watched his secretary heading toward him. What a bitch. That old fart had been with the CIA so long she smelled like the place. Rancid.

“What is it, Bea
?” Brad said. “I have a meeting with the director in ten minutes.”

She straightened her spine and looked down her skinny little nose at him. “I came to inform you Director Colanglo wouldn’t be holding any meetings today.”

That bit of news surprised him. “Why not?”

“I’m not at liberty to say.” His secretary turned and clomped her way back to her desk. Dressed in a tailored gray suit and practical shoes, she returned to her area and went about her work.

That pissed Brad off royally. Bea had been around the agency long enough to know everything. Hell, she was the best internal person they had, and her lips were tight as a virgin’s cunt.

The bitch.

Brad stormed out of his office. “What the hell do you mean you’re not at liberty to say?” He looked around at those staring at him then lowered his voice. “I’m your boss, Bea. I’d like to know what’s going on.”

She slowly turned to him and said, “All I know is his secretary called me and said the director wasn’t available.”

“And,
you’re
not at liberty to say?” He leaned his thighs against her desk and folded his arms. He wasn’t going to take that kind of insubordination from some GS-12 secretary.

“I helped Karla compile several briefs earlier. They were confidential
, and I won’t repeat what classified information they contained.”

“So, I assume the reason he’s not at my meeting was in the brief?”

Bea took off her glasses and looked at him, her stare as icy as the Potomac in winter. He wouldn’t be able to pry her mouth open with a crowbar.

God, he hated her.

Angry and determined to get her fired, he stomped to his office and slammed the door. Since Director Colanglo had sent her to his division, the woman had been like a damn drill sergeant out of uniform. She might have the director’s respect, but Brad couldn’t stand the dinosaur.