Charade (25 page)

“It’s moot. Once we leave here, I’m going into a witness protection program and I’ll never see him again.”

“Oh, no.”
Teal bit her lip. “Will you see
me?
”

Touched, Sasha admitted, “Probably not. But Allison will make sure we always know the other is happy and healthy. That has to be enough.” Resting her hands on the girl’s shoulders, she explained simply, “I dedicated myself to helping you.
Because you deserve it.
Because you’re a sweet, wonderful, innocent person.
And once you’re safe, I’m going to dedicate myself to punishing the man who butchered my mother.
Because
she
was sweet and innocent, too.
I hope you understand that.”

“I used to be sweet,” Teal said
,
her voice suddenly choked with emotion. “But I’ve been awful to you and Jeff. Talking back and complaining, when you both risked your lives for me.”

“Hey!” Sasha pulled her into an amused embrace. “What are you talking about?”

“I pouted, too.”

“You call that a pout?” Sasha scoffed. “Remind me to give you a quick lesson after we get out of here.”

“You don’t understand. I used to be an angel. That’s what everyone said.”

“Even angels get cranky when they’re kidnapped and tormented,” Sasha told her fondly. “I like you this way, anyway. Brave and fun and flawed. That makes you perfect in my book.” She draped her arm around Teal’s shoulders. “Come on. Let’s go find those files on A—and on Zelasko’s bioweapons, too—so we can go home.”

Teal pulled free and glanced at the pressurized door. “I can find the files myself. You should help Jeff.”

Sasha gave a grateful nod. “We’ll be out as quick as we can. Pound on the door if there’s trouble, but
don’t
come in.
No matter what.”

The instructions for suiting up were prominently displayed on the wall in both English and Kestonian, complete with detailed diagrams, and as Sasha diligently checked the thick outfit, helmet and breathing hose for leaks, she realized that Jeff was right about this place. The very fact that such elaborate precautions were needed told her something awful was taking place inside.

Once she was secure in her suit, she walked through a second pressurized door and over to Jeff, who said through the speaker built into his helmet, “Big surprise. Even when I was your handler, you disobeyed me. Now that we’re partners, it’s just gonna get worse.
Right?”

“Did you find anything?”

He nodded.
“The usual suspects, plus two real scary ones.
Then the worst—an unknown.
I think this nutcase developed his own bioweapon. He calls it aero-filovirus. I have no idea what it does, but
it’s
Level Four, and that’s bad.”

“Can we destroy it? Or take it with us?”

“No way can we take it with us. We don’t know what’s going to happen on our way out of Kestonia. But we can’t just leave it, either. So destroying it, and all the records, is the only option. Problem is…” He pointed to the equipment surrounding them. “How do we do it? It looks like they deal with spills with a chemical disinfectant so bleach is a good bet. But they also have a high-tech furnace over there. Some kind of incinerator, I think.”

“So we do both,” Sasha suggested.

He nodded. “That’s my best guess, too. I’ll load the specimens into the furnace. We’ll pour the bleach in,
then
set it to the highest temperature. It could take hours, so we’ll use the dynamite to blow the doors to the lab once we’ve left. That way no one can interfere. I’ll set the charge on delay to give us a chance to reach the border before alerting them to what we’ve done up here.”

“That sounds right. Let’s get going.”

She followed him into a refrigeration unit lined with shelves, and groaned at the labels that confronted her, including anthrax, Ebola, and two other forms of hemorrhagic fever as well as the feared aero-filovirus, also labeled AFV.

When Sasha reached for the AFV specimen, Jeff protested with a sharp, “Negative, Camper!”

She arched a stern eyebrow. “I thought we were partners. Just grab that Ebola, please. We’ve got to get this done quickly.”

He growled but did as she suggested, and they gingerly transported the specimens to the incinerator. When all of the bioweapons were accounted for, Jeff poured the bleach solution over them. Then he closed the oven securely and set it for maximum heat.

“That’s all we can do,” he announced. “Let’s get cleaned up and out of these suits. I’ll help you first. That’s nonnegotiable.”

“You’re such a gentleman.” Sasha followed him into the first decontamination chamber where they were bathed by a spray of disinfectant. When the residue had drained away, they proceeded to the second chamber, where they removed and discarded their suits and helmets and donned goggles for a second round of spraying. Finally they returned to the room that held their clothing, where they squeezed together into the only shower stall, facing away from one another as they scrubbed with regular soap and water.

Then Jeff turned and murmured into her ear, “You’ve still got disinfectant on your back. Let me get it for you.”

She lifted her hair and allowed herself to enjoy his firm touch between her shoulder blades.

Finally she said, “You, too,” and he turned again so that she could wash the green residue from his strong, muscled back.

“Okay, you’re clean. Let’s get dressed.”

It seemed silly to turn her back to him in the dressing room as she toweled off and began putting her clothes back on. After all, he had just seen her naked, up close and personal, and not for the first time. Still, she felt irrationally shy, and appreciated the fact that he didn’t try to make any more physical contact with her.

But apparently, he still couldn’t resist talking to her as they dressed, because he asked her carefully, “How are you doing, Sasha? With the news about your mother, I mean.”

“The big revelation?
Once it really sank in, it was sort of anticlimactic.”

“What do you mean?”

She sighed. “In the old days, I was horrified and upset, obviously. But at least the idea of a jealous man killing his unfaithful wife in a rage was kind of understandable. But that’s not how it happened. My father murdered a rival in cold blood, and that murder led to the death of a sweet girl like Vittoria and then to the slaughter of my innocent mother. That actually makes Dad
more
of a monster, not less.” She finished dressing and turned to find Jeff looking at her with warm, understanding eyes. “Do you know what I mean?”

He patted her arm. “Yeah, it’s rough all around.
Especially because he’s a victim, too, in a really twisted sense.
Not an innocent victim, but still…I can’t imagine he finds much joy in life, knowing that the woman he loved was braver than he was, and was gunned down for that bravery.”

“That’s true,” she admitted. “This mess has more layers than an onion, doesn’t it?”

His tone grew wistful. “I was so sure that when the day came for you to face your demons, you wouldn’t be able to handle them. But look at you. You’re just like your mother. Stronger and more fearless than any ten guys I know.”

She felt her cheeks redden. “Thanks, Jeff. That means a lot. I’ll never forget how much you helped me—”

“Hey!” He caught her in a loose embrace,
then
told her bluntly, “You’re not going into witness protection. We’ll find another way. I promise.”

She gazed up at him, her heart aching for what they could have been to one another. “It has to be tonight. If we don’t grab Dante now, he’ll disappear for good. And when we
do
grab him, he and his men will know I’m the one who fingered him. If I don’t disappear, I’ll be dead in a week. And after that, they’ll watch
you.
Hoping you’ll lead them to me. You’ll have to stay away from me, or you’ll be signing my death warrant.”

His green eyes blazed. “I know you don’t believe that I love you—”

“Actually, I do believe it. And I know something else.” Her throat tightened to hold back a sob. “If I let myself feel what my heart wants to feel…” A tear trickled down her cheek, and she slipped her hands behind his neck, then pulled his head down and kissed his mouth with unrestrained hunger.

But only for a moment, and then, even though his kiss told her how great things could be with him in her life, she stepped back and repeated sadly, “If we don’t get him tonight, he’ll get away. I can’t risk that. Not for anything. Not even for you. So set the charge. Please? We’ve got to get Teal out of here.”

As they descended the mountain toward the parking lot, Sasha carefully explained her new transportation plan to Jeff. She would go to Dante in tears, telling him that Zelasko had made improper advances—violent ones—and then she’d beg her “uncle” to get her out of Kestonia right away. Dante would love playing the role of protector, and would order his driver to take Sasha across the border in the Hummer immediately. Once they were away from the cottage, Sasha would use Jeff’s pistol to make the driver pull over. Teal and Jeff would get in, and voilà—foolproof transportation. After that, even if the border guards dared to try and stop Dante’s Hummer, the vehicle could almost certainly withstand their bullets.

“You can’t pull a gun on the driver while you’re still in Kestonia. If you’re dead set on getting the Hummer, okay. But wait until you’re safely across the border before you make your move.”

Sasha bit back an argument, surprised he was accepting any part of this plan. She had expected him to insist they all grab machine guns and snowmobiles and head for the border, blasting their way across if they couldn’t find a way to sneak out of the country.

“I don’t like the idea of you seeing Dante at all, not in your present state of mind,” he explained. “But once we get across the border, we’re going to need long-term transportation. The snowmobiles won’t cut it for long distance. Once Zelasko realizes we grabbed Teal, he’ll send his goons after us.
So that Hummer is looking pretty danged good.”

“But how are you and I going to get
into
the Hummer?” Teal asked.

“Easy. We snowmobile to the border. It’ll be fun, I promise. Sasha rides in style in the Hummer. Once the driver takes her safely across the border—once we’re absolutely sure nothing can go wrong—
then
she pulls the pistol. She makes the driver stop and get out. The guards will be watching, but they won’t interfere because it’s not their jurisdiction. So it’ll be the perfect distraction, especially if Sasha puts on the kind of show I know she’s capable of. You and I will sneak over during the show, make our way a few hundred yards down the road, and she’ll pick us up in the Hummer.”

They had reached the last wooded spot before the fortress, and Sasha stopped, turned around and told Jeff coolly, “That’s the worst plan I’ve ever heard.”

“Fine.
Then all three of us take snowmobiles. I like it better that way, anyway.”

“No, no. We need the Hummer.”

He looked down at her, his expression grim. “Too many things can go wrong on this side of the border. The gun could go off accidentally. The driver could have one, too. He could be in secret communication with Dante. The last thing we want is for you to get stuck inside Kestonia. So—” He took a deep breath,
then
insisted, “I want your word you’ll wait till you’re safely across.”

“I promise,” she grumbled.

“And I want your word you won’t engage with Dante. No matter what he
says.
Just play the grateful, helpless niece. We’ll get him later. I promise. This isn’t the time. Not till Teal’s safe.
Right?”

“Right.”
Sasha nodded, then turned and gave the teenager a hug. “Do whatever Jeff says.”

“I will. Be careful, Sasha.”

When Sasha began walking toward the cottage, Teal called after her, “Sasha? Aren’t you going to kiss Jeff goodbye?”

Sasha looked into the girl’s hopeful eyes and told her with a sad smile, “Don’t worry, honey. He and I already took care of that back at the lab.”

Once Teal and Jeff were out of sight, Sasha continued toward Dante’s cottage, but not before glancing wistfully at the castle. It had suddenly hit her that she was leaving some of her favorite belongings behind, and while she was more anxious than ever to get out of Kestonia, she mourned the loss of her tango shoes, her soft black boots and her navy-blue silk suit. She had tried to bring things she didn’t care about losing, but in order to impress Zelasko, she had needed some heavy artillery, fashionwise, not to mention hundreds of dollars worth of makeup and jewelry in her carry-on bag—

And the tape recorder!

She had completely forgotten about that little item, tucked neatly under her makeup kit. Now she knew she’d have to enter Zelasko’s stronghold one last time. There was simply no way she could leave that taped confession behind, knowing it could fall into the hands of her father’s enemies.

Just make it quick. Jeff and Teal are already speeding toward the border!
she
reminded herself as she sneaked into the garden and changed into the black heels that she had hidden there. Then she covered her wet hair more completely with her stocking cap, stuffed the Kestonian oxfords into her deep pockets and reentered the fortress. The hall, which had been almost deserted when she left, was now teeming with finely dressed partygoers, some of whom sent curious looks in Sasha’s direction. But for the most part, they seemed distracted, whether by fatigue, inebriation, or upcoming romantic trysts.

Passing them confidently, she reached her room without incident, and immediately rushed over to the armoire where she had stowed her carry-on bag. Pulling it out, she transferred Jeff’s heavy pistol to it, then reached for her tango shoes. Anything else would be greedy, she warned herself, trying not to glance up at her favorite silk blouse and the black cocktail dress that could probably be squished into the bag.

“Looking for something?” a male voice demanded from behind her.