PRIMAL Fury (The PRIMAL Series) (9 page)

CHAPTER 15

WEST OF THE UKRAINIAN BORDER, HUNGARY

The Mi-17 utility helicopter roared in over the trees, circled the landing area once, and touched down in a vibrant green field. The front door opened and a crew member kicked out a set of stairs. A few seconds later a figure disembarked from the aircraft and strode across the grass to a pair of waiting BMW SUVs.

Bishop was wearing a pair of chinos, a white shirt, a dark-blue blazer, and the high-tech Ray-Bans. “We in the right place, lads?” he asked the two men standing with the vehicle.

“Your name?” one of them grunted.

“Nigel, Nigel Martin.” Bishop extended his hand.

“You are in right place.” His own hand remained by his side.

“Right, OK then.” Bishop turned and waved to the crewman standing in the doorway of the helicopter. “Friendly fuckers,” he muttered.

A minute later another figure appeared. The mafia thugs turned their heads as Saneh’s long brown legs descended the aircraft’s stairs. She wore a floral dress that hugged her curves. A large sun hat and pair of sunglasses completed her outfit.

Pavel played the role of crewman and carried their luggage to one of the BMW X5s, deposited it in the trunk, and returned to the helicopter.

Bishop and Saneh climbed into the backseat and the driver raced them down a single-lane road as the helicopter climbed away. Bishop gave Saneh a sidelong glance, and she smiled back.

So far, so good.

They drove for another ten minutes into a thick forest, climbing over small rises and dropping down to cross a shallow stream. They rounded a corner and slowed. Through the windshield Bishop could see a heavy chain-link fence with an access control point. They stopped in front of the gate and the driver lowered his window to converse with the armed guards manning the security post.

Just past the checkpoint, they pulled off the road and parked behind the guardhouse.

“You get out here for security check.”

Saneh raised an eyebrow as their escorts alighted from the vehicle and pulled open their doors.

“What’s all this about?” Bishop asked one of the guards, who directed him into the run-down building.

Inside, it was dusty and decrepit. The guards led them into a room where another burly Hungarian sat on a chair behind a solid wooden table. On the table were a plastic container and a wand-style metal detector.

“You put phones in here.” He pointed at the bucket. “No phones or weapons allowed.”

“Look, champ, I need my phone. I’ve got a business to run,” said Bishop.

“NO PHONES!” the man yelled, thumping the table with his fist and sending the plastic container an inch into the air.

“Fine, fine, keep your alans on.” Bishop dropped a phone in the container. He gestured for Saneh to do the same.

Once they had surrendered the cell phones, one of the guards ran the detector wand over them both. Confident they had no weapons he gestured for the third man to enter the room.

He brought in their luggage and placed it on the table next to the plastic container.

“Hang on a second.” Bishop made as if to complain. In response, the head guard gave him the kind of threatening look he expected. He shrugged and feigned changing his mind. “Fine, go ahead. I’ve got no guns.”

They opened his bag and started looking through his belongings, using the wand to check for metal. Inside his toiletries bag they found a pair of handcuffs complete with fluffy pink covers. The guard held them up, giving Bishop a questioning look.

“What’s this for?”

“Do I have to spell it out?”

The guard’s face didn’t change.

“Clearly I fucking do.” He nodded toward Saneh. “Little bit of rough and tickle, yeah? Sometimes my assistant gets out of line.”

The guard’s blank look turned to a grin and he translated into Hungarian for the other guards. They all laughed and one of them slapped Bishop on the shoulder. Saneh shot him a withering look. The guard dropped the handcuffs into the container.

Happy with Bishop’s luggage, they moved on to Saneh’s. Despite their enjoyment of the handcuff joke they searched her belongings quickly and without comment. The only thing they scrutinized was her pink iPod; the guard inspected the small device and dropped it back into her bag.

The plastic container with their phones and the fluffy handcuffs was secured in a cabinet alongside other similar containers.

“Back to the car!” With the security procedures over the guards led them back to the BMW, loading their luggage into the trunk. With a roar they accelerated down the road and resumed their journey through the forest.

Minutes later they climbed a gentle rise and reached the edge of the forest. They slowed as the dense trees and undergrowth were replaced with a freshly mowed field.

“Wow!” Bishop looked out through the windshield at the castle.

“You’re kidding me,” whispered Saneh. “Who are these people?”

The BMW drove into the shadow of the high walls and slowed as it passed through the open gates, under the ancient stone arch, and into the courtyard. It pulled in front of the high-walled keep.

“We’re here,” grunted the driver.

A doorman dressed in traditional livery opened the car door and Bishop stepped out. He looked around, taking in the high walls and gatehouse that sat over the entrance.

“This way, sir.” The doorman had taken their bags and climbed the short staircase to the entrance of the stone fortress.

Inside, the castle had been tastefully renovated. Entire walls had been removed and the ceilings reinforced by steel girders, opening up what was once a confined space. There was a reception party waiting for them in the foyer of the now modern hotel.

“Mr. Martin, welcome to the Castle Loran.” A stocky brute of a man with dark hair, thick eyebrows, and no discernible neck extended his hand. The move almost burst the shoulder seams of his ill-fitting suit. “My name is András and I will be your host for the next twenty-four hours.” His English was heavily accented, his voice deep and authoritative.

Bishop took his hand and shook it. “Please call me Nigel.” He glanced over his shoulder at Saneh. “This is my assistant, Miss Dominique.”

“Excellent, I was very happy to hear that you would be joining us. I’m excited about discussing the business opportunities.” András ignored Saneh.

“As am I.”

“In the meantime I would ask that you follow this gentleman to your room.” He gestured to the doorman, who was waiting with their bags. “I have some pressing commitments but I look forward to seeing you at dinner in the main hall at six.” With that András walked off with a couple of his heavies in tow.

“Charming fellow,” Bishop commented as the doorman led them to the elevators.

Their room was on the fourth floor. Tastefully decorated and remarkably comfortable, the room had been spared no cost. Four-poster bed, marble-tiled bathroom, even a huge spa nestled in the corner.

The doorman placed their bags in the room and departed with a nod. Once he was gone Bishop walked across to Saneh and wrapped his arms around her.

Saneh stiffened. “Handcuffs! What the hell…?”

Bishop cut her off, whispering in her ear. “I’m almost certain they’re watching and listening to us. Try to keep up appearances, OK, Dominique?” He stroked her hair and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “The handcuffs had a built-in skeleton key,” he whispered. “Mitch’s gift, not my idea.”

With that he gave her a slap on the bottom.

“Unpack your bags. Dinner’s at six. I’m going to make full use of that tub,” he announced loudly. “Lay out our clothes and then you can join me.”

CHAPTER 16

PRIMAL SAFE HOUSE, BUDAPEST

“What is your name?” The girl was sitting up in bed, sipping from a carton of juice as Kurtz checked her bandages.

“My name is Kurtz.”

She slurped at the juice. “That’s a nice name. You’re a policeman, aren’t you?”

“
Ja
, I’m a policeman. I work for Interpol. What’s your name?”

“Kalista.”

When she had come to in the morning, Kalista had screamed for her sister. Kurtz had sat with her, holding her hand and consoling her as she sobbed. She had finally fallen into a deep sleep and he had checked on her regularly, monitoring her fever. It was only in the past few hours that her temperature had finally broken and she had started to recover.

“Your job is to find people, isn’t it, Kurtz?”

“That’s one of my jobs.”

“Can you find my sister Karla? They took her with the other girls.”

“I will try.” He made to leave the room.

“Can you stay a little longer?”

She looked so fragile and scared, wrapped in bandages and attached to an IV bag. He sat down on the chair next to her bed.

“It’s my fault, you know. I should have never let her go. I could have made her stay at home.” Tears welled in Kalista’s blue eyes.

Kurtz reached out and took her hand. “No, it is not your fault. The only people who can be blamed are the ones who took you. Those men cannot hurt you now and soon they will not be able to hurt your sister.”

“I don’t know what I will do without her. I feel so bad…My poor parents.”

A tear formed in the corner of the combat veteran’s eye. His hand shook and she held it tighter.
“I will find her, I promise you.”

There was a soft knock on the door and Aleks stuck his bearded face around it. “Hello,” he smiled pleasantly. “Kurtz, we’ve got a call from HQ.”

“I have to go, but will be back soon.” Kurtz let go of her hand and joined Aleks in the living room. Two sets of earphones were plugged into an iPRIMAL smartphone that sat on the coffee table.

The pair donned the earphones and Aleks activated the call.

“Vance, Kurtz is here.”

“Team, I’m gonna keep this real short. Forty minutes ago Bishop and Saneh inserted into Hungary. They RV’d with the crims running the next level up in the Syndicate.”

“Where?” asked Kurtz.

“Ease up, tiger. I know you wanna hit these fuckers and you’ll get your chance. We tracked them north from the RV point to an estate known as Castle Loran. Chua will flick you an intel pack once he’s finished working it up.”

“A castle?”

“That’s right. I’m not shitting you. It is an actual castle. Their phones were taken off them at a security post but Saneh kept her tracker and it’s pinging somewhere from the castle.”

“No comms?” questioned Kurtz. “Do you think they’ve been found out? Are they in trouble?”

“There’s nothing to suggest they are. Their duress procedures weren’t activated.”

“So what’s the plan?”

“I need you to infil to the area around the castle and confirm their exact location. Mitch tells me that if you can get within a thousand yards with the kit you’ve got, you should be able to pick up their transponder.”

“
Ja
, we have a receiver. Not a problem. What about kinetic options?”

“We all want these fuckers KIA, Kurtz. But this is just one more link in the chain, and we’re looking for the next level. In saying that, I want you to be prepared to reach out and touch these dirtbags if Bishop and Saneh are in trouble.”

“Understood,” said Kurtz.

“Be aware that these guys are also hooked in with the local police. They used an Interpol database to check Bishop’s cover story.”

“Don’t trust the police, got it. Is there anything else? We’re ready to move once we get the intel from Chua.”

“Nope, that’s it. What about you, Aleks? Everything good?”

“Everything is fine, no problems here.” Aleks didn’t sound convincing.

“All right then, stay out of trouble.”

Kurtz terminated the call.

“He knows about her,” Aleks whispered once he had removed his headphones.

“How?” snapped Kurtz. “He might know about the job but he doesn’t know about Kalista.”

“And what are we going to do with her? She needs to see a doctor.”

“We can’t take her to a doctor. They’ll call the police. You heard what Vance said, that could compromise the entire mission.”

“Maybe we could take her with us?”

“Take her with us? Are you serious? What happened the last time we got a woman involved?” He referred to the team’s previous mission, in which they had flown to Sudan to help rescue Bishop and a woman he was working with. The PRIMAL operative had been recovered safely but the female doctor had been gunned down as Kurtz tried to save her.

“You’re right, she will be safer here.”

“I’ll talk to her. You pack the car; make sure the sniper equipment is on top.”

“How long do you think we will be gone?” Aleks asked.

“No more than forty-eight hours.”