Divide & Conquer (17 page)

With Sean out of the picture, the gunmen returned to his initial task, killing Katie. He swung his Ak47 back towards Katie who was scrabbling desperately across the floor to get to Sean.

As he took aim and prepared to fire, he stopped. She had stopped scrabbling and was looking in wonder at something in front of her.

The gunman tore his eyes from Katie, just long enough to see what she was seeing.

It was the last thing he would ever see, the barrel of the Desert Eagle as a bullet was fired from it. Both bullets flew within a microsecond of one another and exactly on the same trajectory. The memory of the Desert Eagle’s kick had been retrieved and the actions required to ensure a tight control on target had been made, as only a man expert at firing weapons knew how to. Sean watched as the gunman’s head evaporated under the force of the two massive bullets.

A clapping sound from behind cut through the silence and announced Luis’ entry into the room. ”Congratulations,” he offered.

Katie, ignoring Luis, jumped up and ran to Sean, a large bloody stain soaked his side, a hole clearly visible in his shirt. He had definitely been hit.

“Sit down,” she insisted, pushing him onto the nearest couch.

Sean was still gasping for the breath that had left him as he had it the wall and winced as Katie pushed him down onto the couch.

“It’s not bad,” he eventually managed as he caught his breath. “Just a flesh wound, really.”

Sean guided her hands away from the wound.

Katie was having none of it and pushing his hands aside, pulled his shirt back before bursting into tears.

Luis rushed forward fearing the worst at Katie’s reaction to Sean’s wound. He pushed her aside and stared in amazement at the shining metal plate that sat where pelvic bone would have normally sat, the bullet had merely removed a chunk of skin before deflecting off of the Titanium plate. It really was a flesh wound in the true sense of the term.

Luis looked at the inconsolable Katie and back at Sean and shrugged in some confusion.

Sean flicked the plate. “It took me six months to recover from the accident that caused this to be implanted and even longer to walk without any sign of a limp.”

Luis was still struggling to comprehend Katie’s reaction and shrugged again, as if so what.

“I’m definitely not her husband!” explained Sean.

Chapter 30

General Borodin could only gape in wonder as he was led through the Russian estate that would have put any State residence and most Western estates to shame. Its grandeur was exactly the reason the peasants had revolted almost a hundred years earlier. As much as he was revolted by its opulence, he loved it.

“This way, General.” Surkov led the general towards his private study.

The study was in keeping with the rest of the estate, grand, opulent but utterly captivating and Borodin immediately saw himself working happily behind the old oak desk that sat opposite a massive roaring fireplace. Two huge Chesterfields sat beckoning in front of the fire and with a wave of the hand, it was as though Surkov had read Borodin’s mind and guided him towards the sofas.

“General, please.” He waved towards the seat nearest the fire which the General readily accepted.

After pouring tea for them both which was topped up with vodka and a nod of acceptance by Borodin, Surkov sat down.

“So General, tell me what you know.”

Borodin looked at Surkov. His contempt for the man was becoming harder to contain. He was there to find out what Surkov knew. Not tell Surkov what he knew. However, Borodin was a man who was used to knowing everything. The thought that he was unaware of the bigger picture frustrated him even more.

He would play along with Surkov until he discovered what was going on.

Borodin smiled, the smile he reserved especially for politicians and foreign dignitaries that he had the displeasure of meeting. Warm and open, he had spent many years perfecting it, ensuring that it reached into his eyes and hid the darkness that lurked behind.

“I believed, until now, that Grebnevo…”

“No, what do you know about why you are here?” interrupted Surkov, struggling to hide his irritation.

Borodin squeezed the arm of the sofa. His temper was legendary as was his inability to control it. He smiled again, struggling to radiate warmth across his face. The resultant smile was more of a grimace.

“I received a call from an agent we had placed in America over thirty years ago. A deep sleeper. He was only to contact us if activated or if he believed his information was critical to Russia. To be honest, I had forgotten he even existed but he continued to receive data from us. He is a senior manager within the immigration department and was made aware of an alert that Sean Fox had entered America.”

“He was aware of our interest in this name and as such, knowing that he was probably the only Russian agent party to this information, made the calls to his handlers.”

“Calls?” queried Surkov with some confusion.

“When he was inserted, it was a joint GRU/KGB operation. He had two handlers myself and the Director of the Science division at KGB.”

“Surely two handlers doubled the chance of interception?”

“We had had a number of high profile embarrassments. The Americans had been playing GRU and KGB off against one another. The two contacts would ensure the same Intel was relayed to both agencies directly from the agent, without any political interference.”

Surkov nodded, he understood the political interference referred to in-fighting between the two agencies for control. In principle, the idea was sound.

“Of course, it was a disaster. You were right. The number of agents arrested increased dramatically and shortly after, the trial was abandoned. To be honest, this agent is probably the only one who still operates under joint control. He is of course unaware of any changes to operational procedure. This would never be sent in an update in case of interception. He is simply aware of areas of interest to us.”

Surkov shook his head in amazement. Thirty years on, this man gained information and followed the protocols learned a generation earlier and fulfilled his promise to his motherland. He was without a doubt a true hero to his country.

“So who received the other call?”

“The Director of Science Department at SVR.”

“Mikhail Beryutov?” asked Surkov, very aware of the name.

Borodin nodded.

Surkov nodded knowingly. There was no need to discuss the fact that he was no longer an issue.

“And?”

“I dispatched two agents as a matter of urgency, the closest were SVR. So, using Beryutov as cover, I ordered them to Fox’s last known location to deal with any loose ends.”

Again Surkov nodded. He understood the reference to loose ends. There was no need for Borodin to explicitly say the killing of the widow and child.

Surkov waited for Borodin to restart but he remained silent. As far as Borodin was concerned, Surkov appeared to know everything he was telling him and he was simply going over old ground.

“Continue,” commanded Surkov with an almost regal wave of his hand.

Borodin almost tore the arm off of the sofa as he fought to stop himself from ripping the old man’s throat out. He grimaced before continuing. His ability to smile had all but left his body.

“Our agents went in but as they were about to carry out their orders, Sean Fox appeared and as far as they were concerned, their orders no longer stood.”

“Why exactly?” criticized Surkov acidly.

“If Sean Fox was alive, how could they kill his widow?”

Surkov smiled wryly at the rationality of the agents’ actions.

“They have been dealt with!” explained Borodin dryly, removing Surkov’s smile.

“And what of Sean Fox?”

“He is of no concern. I have a team arriving in the next couple of hours,” replied Borodin with some conviction. He was beginning to exert his authority on the situation. He had had enough of the games and wanted some answers himself.

“Now tell me why he is of such interest?”

“He is not of any interest,” replied Surkov simply.

Borodin sat bolt upright. “Sorry?”

“I am not the least bit interested in Sean Fox.”

“But you issued the original request to have him killed if he surfaced, some five years ago?”

“Yes but he is not of interest!”

“So what is he?” asked Borodin, following on from Surkov’s hint in emphasizing interest.

“The single biggest risk to our country since the end of Communism.”

Chapter 31

Luis shook his head. These Americans always talked in riddles. They could never just say what they meant. The woman was curled in a ball crying her eyes out while the American sat hopelessly looking at her with large sad eyes. He picked up his Desert Eagle and turned his attention to the TV. The pictures of the armored personnel carriers on the bridge had just started beaming live as he joined the coverage.

As the graphic image of the Colonel’s head exploding on live TV hit the screen, he preyed to God that his uncle was not the gunman and it was some rogue imbecile that had killed the American officer. However, he knew deep in his heart that his prayers would not be answered favorably. It was exactly the type of insane stunt his uncle would pull.

“Oh fuck!” exclaimed Sean as he witnessed the killing.

Katie looked up and caught the body hitting the ground. All she cared about in the world was her son and the pictures on the screen were not of a young boy. She turned and buried her head further into the sofa, wishing everybody would leave and her son and Sean were back home and everything was back to normal. Something she knew life would never happen.

Sean stole a look at Katie, he wanted to help her, needed to help her. But he knew the last thing she wanted at that time was help from a man whom she had thought was her husband miraculously arisen from the grave.

He looked at Luis and from the look on his face, he knew things had just got even worse. “Your uncle?”

Luis didn’t even think before nodding. “Probably!” his eyes glued to the continuing coverage of the soldiers being killed.

“Fuck!!” repeated Sean with more conviction.

As the screen showed the lonely body of Colonel Masters abandoned in the middle of the Juarez-Lincoln International Bridge, Sean considered what he had just witnessed and the implications. Two things were obvious, the border was going to be shut for some time and Luis’ uncle was a fucking good shot.

***

“Jesus H Christ!!” exclaimed the Governor. It had been less than half an hour since he had spoken with the Colonel.

“Governor, what are you going to do?” came numerous shouts as the press in the room remembered their purpose.

The Governor just stared at the monitor and the man whom he had ordered to defend the honor of his state and country. The somber picture would grace many front pages that morning. Without a word, he stepped away from the monitor and began to push his way through the crowd that had gathered.

“What are you going to do, Mr Governor?” The shouts became louder and more insistent as he reached the double doors he had so nearly exited a few very different minutes earlier. He had insisted, despite Masters’ concerns that they make a big show of the National Guard. It hadn’t been needed of course. The police and border guards were more than capable of closing and securing the crossings in a far less ostentatious way. Eight fucking guardsmen. When that became public, he’d be a laughing stock.

One thing was for certain. Whoever the fucker was that had cost him the presidency was going to pay. It was a defiant Governor that turned to face the press.

“Gentlemen…Ladies,” he nodded to the two female reporters.

“I am going to make a call to our President and insist that we retaliate with the utmost force and speed to ensure that the perpetrators of this heinous crime are brought to justice.”

The Governor’s jaw wavered as he spoke, the anger and emotion clear for all to see.

“And when I say justice,” he looked directly into one of the main networks cameras. “I mean I will not rest until those murdering motherfuckers are dead!” he pointed violently towards the monitor depicting the scene on the bridge before turning and leaving the room.

***

When Sean’s cell phone began to ring just a few minutes after the governor’s speech, he wasn’t surprised it was Vincent. Although, as he thought about it, nobody else had his number, so it really couldn’t have been anyone else.

What did surprise him was the subject of the call. It was nothing to do with his request for the IMEI and SIM card numbers. Although with Luis sitting on the sofa opposite him, he would have to cancel that request as somewhat surplus to requirements.

“Sean, how are you?”

“I’ve got a new bullet wound!” replied Sean jovially.

“That’s nice,” replied Vincent, uninterested, his mind obviously elsewhere. “I’ve just had the President on the phone!”

Sean looked at the TV screen and the banner. 'Governor calls for death of murderers’. This seriously could not be happening to him. Why had he not just gone to the beach.

“Are you still in Laredo?”

“Yes and just been shot again!”

Vincent only heard the word 'yes’.

“Excellent. I told the President I had a man on location and we’d start hunting down these fuckers straight away!”

“Whoa, you do not have a man on the scene. For you to have a man on the scene would suggest you have an agent on the scene. You know a man at the rough location of the scene,” clarified Sean.

“Whatever,” he really wasn’t taking no for an answer. “Your country needs you Sean. We need to find these fuckers and bring home a world of hurt to them!”

“I have a boy to get back to his Mom and then I am hitting the beach. This is not my fight.”

“Neither is the boy but it’s the right thing to do, Sean. That’s what you do. You do the right thing!” argued Vincent very well.

“I’m sorry V,” replied Sean, the memories of two years earlier played hard on Sean. He would never forgive the man for letting him and his men down.

“I’ll have a team there in four hours. They’ll take over, I just don’t want the trail to go cold. Please Sean, we can’t let these bastards get away with this. We need to find them.”