KILTED DESIRE 2 - Russian Roulette (19 page)

“It’s fine. We are both stressed,” she said, before kissing
him.

“Yer should try and sleep, tomorrow is going tae be an
important day.”

“I know. I’m exhausted,” she said, as she snuggled up to him
and rested her head on his shoulder.”

Scott was tired too. He gently stroked her hair and kissed
her forehead. She seemed to relax more when she was in his arms. Soon she was
asleep. Scott laid his head back onto the couch and closed his eyes too.

Everyone was up early on Wednesday morning, even Linda. She
was still visibly shaken but reluctantly managed to get some sleep. Jim immediately
got to work organizing the off-shore bank account. He asked Linda to help him
to give her something to do, and take her mind off things. Tiffany went out to
a local store and picked put a phone, while Scott and Chris discussed tactics
and strategies for their upcoming mission. There were a lot of intangibles that
needed to be taken into account, and contingency plans to make.

When Tiffany returned home, Scott asked her to call Alexei.
He needed to ensure the young man still planned on coming to the Robinson’s house.
Scott instructed her to tell Alexei, that they received some news about Kyle
and that they really needed his help, urgently. She called, and half expected
to need to leave a message, but he answered and she relayed what Scott had told
her to say. When she finished the call, she turned to Scott and told him that
Alexei really sounded genuinely concerned and that he would be at the house
around noon. As the morning wore on, Scott reminded everyone; especially Jim;
that they could not mention anything to Alexei about suspecting him. That it
was important to make him think they trusted him and they needed his help. Jim
completed almost all that he needed to do with the new bank account and was now
checking flights to Russia. It looked like the best option would be to leave
early the following morning from Los Angeles, change planes in London and
arrive in Moscow early on Friday afternoon. All they needed was to know whether
they would need two tickets or three.

It was nearly noon, Linda had gone for a lay down and Jim went
up with her. Scott was pleased, it was important not to scare Alexei away. He
didn’t want to see the young man mobbed on the driveway again. He was unsure
how well Jim could keep his anger hidden towards the young man. It was just
after ten past noon when Alexei’s car arrived. Tiffany went outside alone to
greet him and brought him inside. Scott and Chris were sitting in the living
room.

“So what news did you get about Kyle, is he okay?” Alexei
asked.

“We think he’s okay, but we dinnae know fer sure,” Scott
replied.

“So what was the news?” he asked, again.

“Alexei, we got a message from someone who has Kyle. They’re
holding him hostage and they will nae let him go unless they get a lot of
money.”

“Is this some kind of joke?”

“It’s nae joke bonny lad. Can yer think of anyone who may
have done this?”

“Damn. I really don’t know,” he said, clutching his head
with his hands.

“Alexei, could there possibly be anyone
involved in your casino that may have known anything about Kyle.
Someone,
who might be doing
this
?” Tiffany asked.

“Honestly I can’t think of anyone. I’m sorry.”

“Are yer sure? Can yer think of anything or anyone at all?
Scott said.

“I’m sorry. I’m telling you the truth. If I could think of
someone I’d tell you. Kyle is my best friend. Have you called the police?”

“Nae, we
cannae
call the police.
The message said
,
if the police were involved then they’d
kill Kyle.”

“So, what are you going to do?”

“We’re going tae go and get him back. Chris is coming with
me and we have a contact over there that we’re going tae meet up with.”

“That sounds dangerous.”

“Aye it is. But, Alexei none of us speak Russian. And none
of us have actually met Kyle. We’ve only seen pictures. We need someone with us
who personally
knows
him and understands the language.
Will yer come with us and help us get yer friend back?”

“I’m not a fighter. I’ve never fired a gun or hit anyone in
my life. How are you going to get him?” Alexei replied, sounding very nervous.

“We’re nae going tae fight them. Kyle’s parents are paying
the ransom. We’re just going tae give them the money and make sure Kyle is okay
afore we give it
tae
them. But as I said, we dinnae
know Kyle, we need someone who does.”

“You’re talking about a Mafia group aren’t
you.
Oh man, I thought I was going to be going to be partying
with Kyle this week not dealing with
Bratva
.”

“What’s
Bratva
?” asked Tiffany.

“It’s just a Russian mob term, it means brotherhood,” Scott
answered and quickly turned back to Alexei. He was watching his body language
to see if he could pick up any obvious signs that he was trying to cover
something up.

“Well, are yer with us lad?” Chris asked.

“We need yer Alexei. Kyle needs yer,” Scott added.

“Okay, when do we need to go?”

“First thing in the morning, hopefully we’ll only be gone a
couple of days.”

“I need to get my passport and some clothes. And do I have
to pay for the ticket?”

“No, we’ll cover the tickets,” Tiffany said.

Scott knew Alexei would have to go home to get his things,
but didn’t want to let him out of their sight. He didn’t want him to change his
mind and disappear, or make any phone calls to anyone who may be involved.

“Alexei, since yer live near the airport and the flight will
be early in the morning, can Chris and I
come
stay
tonight at yer place? So we’re close tae the airport?”

“
Uhm
sure,” he answered,
uncomfortably.

A few seconds later, Jim came into the room. Tiffany told
him that Alexei had agreed to go to Russia to help bring back Kyle. Jim thanked
him and quickly went to get the tickets booked. Soon it was all arranged, the
return flights were to leave Moscow on the upcoming Sunday afternoon. Scott
thought that it would give them plenty of time to take care of business.

He spoke to Chris and Tiffany privately and explained why he
had asked to stay over at Alexei’s house and both of them agreed it was wise.
Tiffany said she would travel down with them because she wanted to check on her
house, and needed to water her plants. Scott also made a call to a special
contact he had back in the U.K. They would need visas to be able to enter
Russia legally, and they didn’t have time to go through the normal channels. At
times like this it was good to ‘know people’ he thought. He arranged for visas
for himself and Chris. And was told someone would meet him at Heathrow.

At just after 2:00 p.m., they were all prepared and ready to
leave. Scott was given all the details of the bank account; written down; plus,
he the secret code that allowed for the money to be transferred. This wasn’t
written down on paper, he carried it written in his mind. Scott was the only
one who knew the code and he had memorized it.

Just before they left Scott asked Jim to send another
message to the kidnappers giving them the cell phone number that he carried,
and telling them that he would be arriving in Moscow on Friday afternoon to
complete the exchange. There wasn’t an immediate reply so they arranged that
Jim would call if any further email messages came through.

Soon, they were on their way. Jim and a tearful Linda wished
them well as they left the house. Tiffany bid farewell to her parent’s too, and
told them she planned to return the following morning. But, she wanted to spend
the night at home.

She was driving her bright yellow Porsche and Scott jumped in
the car with her. Alexei followed them closely down the coast in his car, with
Chris in his passenger’s seat. It took about ninety minutes to reach Santa
Monica. Both cars headed toward Tiffany’s house. She had invited them all to
come for a meal before they continued on to Alexei’s place. As they pulled in
to her driveway Scott admired the house, it was a modern structure, much
smaller than her parent’s place. It was very nice. It was a couple of blocks
from the ocean, but you could still see the waves as they rolled onto the
beach. Scott was impressed and complimented her on her residence.

Later that afternoon, after they finished eating, they sat
drinking coffee at the dinner table. Alexei was pretty quiet and hadn’t said
much all afternoon.

“Yer quiet Alexei. Are yer okay?” Scott asked.

“Yes I’m okay. I’m just not used to this kind of thing,” he
replied, shakily.

“Yer’ll be fine. I promise we’ll look after yer. We’re just
going tae get yer friend back, there should nae be any trouble.”

“Okay.”

“Hey, why don’t you guys stay the night here? I have plenty
of room. We can swing by Alexei’s house first thing in the morning and get his
things. Then, that way, I can take you to the airport,” Tiffany offered.

“Sounds guid tae me.”

“Aye, thanks Tiffany,” added Chris.

They all looked at Alexei, waiting for his answer.

“That’s fine with me, thank you. I’ll just have to grab my
passport and throw a few clothes in my bag. It will take me about five
minutes.”

“That’s settled then, I’ll make up the beds in the spare
rooms.” Tiffany said, as she started to walk away. Then, she stopped and turned
to Scott.

“Scott, what about your passport?”

“I have it with me. I always take it with me when I travel
anywhere.
Along with a few other things.
I’m always
prepared,” he replied, smiling.

They spent the evening watching TV and shared a few beers.
The alcohol seemed to relax Alexei a little and he didn’t seem quite as
concerned as the evening wore on. Scott went out onto the balcony and called
Tom. He relayed all the times and details of when they were due to arrive and
that Chris and Alexei were coming with him. It was now arranged that Tom would
meet them at the airport.

When he returned back inside with the others, he could see
Alexei was getting tired. It didn’t take long before he said he needed to sleep
so Tiffany showed him to his room. Chris was tired too and headed for bed just
after Alexei. Tiffany returned to the living room and sat next to Scott.

“I bet you’re tired too, neither of us has truly slept for a
while.”

“Aye, I am a wee bit.”

“Would you like to take a bath with me? I have a tub with
jets in my room. Then we can sleep in a real bed instead of on the couch.”

“Sounds great,” he said, taking her hand and standing up.

Her room was modern, mainly black and white décor with red
accents. Inside the adjoined bathroom was a white corner tub with jets. There
were lots of candles all around the tub. Tiffany started to run the water and
lit the candles. Scott joined her in the bathroom. He walked up behind her,
wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her on the cheek.

“Go ahead and get undressed and get in, I’m going to grab
some fresh towels,” she said, as she freed herself from his playful grip.

Scott removed his clothes and climbed into the bath. The
water was hot and there were lots of bubbles. He wasn’t really used to bubble
baths. He lay back and rested his head against the side of the tub. It was a
big tub and was easily big enough for two. After a couple of minutes Tiffany
reappeared with a pile of big fluffy towels. She walked in wearing a white bath
robe. She put the towels down and removed her robe before entering the water.
Scott slid his legs apart and she sat in between them, backing up into him and
laying her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and held her
tightly.

She reached her arm across to the far side of the tub and
turned on the jets.

“I’m scared Scott.”

“I know, I understand. We’ll bring yer brother back haem,
dinnae worry,” he whispered in her ear, as he gently stroked the side of her
neck.

“I’m trying not to worry, but it’s hard. What if something
goes wrong and I lose you and my brother?”

“We’ll be fine. We’re nae going tae try some dangerous
rescue. We’re just paying them and making sure we get him back. It’s how yer
parent’s wanted tae do this.”

“I know, but it’s still scary. Well, it is for me anyway. I
know you’re used to this kind of thing. But, I’m not Scott.”

“Aye, I guess I am used tae it. We’ll be fine. Chris and Tom
both know what they’re doing and it will be useful tae have Alexei with us. Especially,
if it is someone he knows who has Kyle.”

“Do you still think Alexei knows something that he’s not
telling us?”

“I really dinnae know. He’s hard tae read.”

“He seems genuine to me, but what do I know? I believed my
ex wasn’t cheating on me for a year.”

“Dinnae worry aboot the past Tiff. Yer
cannae
change what’s already happened. Just try tae focus on the future.”

“I know that. So, tell me, have you ever been in a hostage
situation?”