Adrian Magson - Execution

‘All because of your sister?’

‘Yes. Our parents freaked out when she told them. It was ugly for a while. But they’ve been wonderful ever since.’ He shrugged. ‘Not that they can talk about it much. It’s fine by me, but tough for them, I suppose.’

She felt as if she were in a dream. First thinking Bronyev was a threat, then finding out he wasn’t. Now realising he’d known all along. And said nothing.

‘So what do we do now?’

‘ We do nothing. You get out of here. I, of course, like a diligent FSO officer, will scour the city for my deviant colleague who I wish wasn’t leaving because. . well, because.’ He sighed and waved a hand. ‘Of course, I won’t find her, and they’ll send another team out to look for you. I’ll get a roasting for not watching you more carefully and realising what a threat you were, but in the end what can they do?’ He looked sad once more. ‘You realise you’ll never be able to come back, don’t you?’

‘I know.’ It was something that hadn’t been voiced before; something she hadn’t even thought about. The simple enormity of hearing it now hit her like a sledgehammer. But she knew instantly that it was the right thing — the only thing — to do. Anyway, unlike Bronyev, she had no family. ‘Thank you for the warning, by the way.’

He grinned. ‘Hey — no biggie, as the Americans would say. See, I knew the numbers would come in useful some day.’

‘But not for this.’

‘No, not for this. Just you be careful and don’t get brought back in chains. I’d hate to have to stand up in court and speak out against you.’ He nodded at the street behind her. ‘I’m going to walk past you and out the other side. You go the other way.’

‘All right. Are you sure?’

‘Of course. I’ll look back when I get to the end.’ He swallowed. ‘Don’t be here when I do.’

She smiled and felt a flood of emotion, and wanted to throw her arms around him. But she knew that would be fatal. He was telling her to go. Before he changed his mind.

‘Will you be OK?’

‘Me? Hell, yes, I expect so. Once the fuss is over I’ll probably get promoted.’ He hesitated, then said, ‘I never told you who my father is.’

‘No. Does it make a difference?’

‘His name is Dmitry Alexandrovich Bronyev, General Lieutenant of the Land Army Eastern Command. Only a handful of people know that. And that’s how I’d like to keep it. Now you know, so don’t let me down. He’d be really pissed if this got out.’

She felt as if her head was in a spin. She’d never made the connection of the names before; in any case, scions of top army officers weren’t supposed to become bodyguards, willing to throw themselves in front of their charges at the first hint of danger. No wonder Bronyev was better than a normal recruit; with a father like his, he’d have been absorbing and absorbed in the military life ever since he was old enough to open his eyes.

‘I won’t tell anyone.’

There was nothing more to say. She watched as he approached her, and as he walked by, lifted a hand in a brief salute.

Then he was gone, and she walked quickly away in the opposite direction, her footsteps echoing his.

Harry jogged back into cover and waited for Katya to appear, squatting to get a view of the ground below the level of the hanging foliage. He was looking for movement where there shouldn’t be any. It was pointless going any further in search of her; she could have gone in any direction and he would have to trust her to get back to the apartment somehow. All he could do was watch for the men to return this way.

Once he was certain of being alone, he rang Rik.

‘Jesus, was that you?’ the younger man said. ‘It sounded like a war zone out there. You could have called me to help.’

‘No point. It would have given them another target. But they’re now one down and smarting, so they’ll be back.’

‘How do you think they found us?’

‘Richoux, is my bet. Them turning up here is no coincidence.’

‘Unless Katya’s carrying another tag.’

‘If so, they’d have found us earlier. But if she shows up, check her out.’

‘Will do. What do we do now?’

‘Stay put but be ready to move. There was only one car, but I doubt that will last.’

‘Got it. I suppose you didn’t manage to find Starbucks while you were out, did you? I could kill for an Americano.’

‘You and me both.’ Harry switched off and took another look around. Very quiet. And not even a police response to the shooting. That could work in their favour if they had to move; being seen out on the streets following a shooting was a sure-fire way of being picked up.

Then he saw her.

Katya was moving through the trees, stopping at intervals to scout ahead. She was heading for the apartment building. She didn’t look hurt, so he guessed she must have outrun her pursuers. He followed, angling away so that he could watch her back, until he reached the open space and the pathway leading to the building entrance.

He followed her in, then waited just inside, eyes on his back trail. No movement, but it didn’t mean they weren’t out there, watching.

He rang Rik to warn him that he was on his way, then scooted up the stairs and tapped on the door. He found Katya inside, hugging Clare unselfconsciously. They turned as he walked in.

‘There was shooting,’ Katya said. She sounded surprised. ‘What happened?’

He told them in brief detail. Katya said nothing on learning that one of the FSB men had gone down, and agreed to allow Rik to check her clothing when Harry explained about how fast the pursuers had got there.

‘I don’t think it’s you,’ he told her. ‘But we need to leave here now, and I don’t want them following us to the airport.’

‘Is that wise?’ Katya asked. ‘They will be there already, in case we try to fly out.’

‘Do they have enough men?’

‘Yes.’ She looked sombre. ‘For this they will have called in more. In any case, it is too late now to get a flight.’

She was right. With everything that had been happening, he’d lost track of time. They had to find another way.

They left the apartment and found another way down which took them through the basement and up the other side in case the Russians were waiting. Rik went ahead to scout the area leading to the main streets and pick up a taxi.

On the way, Harry’s phone rang.

It was Ballatyne.

‘What happened to you? Is everyone all right?’

‘Fine so far,’ said Harry. ‘But you need a new local asset in Vienna.’

‘I heard about Richoux.’ Ballatyne sounded tired. ‘Sorry, I’ve been a bit tied up here. We had a total shutdown and I’ve been fire-fighting most of the day. Richoux left his apartment late this afternoon and nobody’s seen him since. His girlfriend said he emptied his bank account and told her he wouldn’t be back. He didn’t say why.’

‘He’s got new friends, that’s why.’

‘It figures. We’ve already rolled up the network over there. They’ll be replaced as soon as we can get new faces in place.’

‘They know about the safe house, so we’re getting out of here now. I’ll tell you the rest later. But we can’t use the airport at Schwechat; they’ll have it sealed up tight.’

‘Hang on.’ There was a muffled silence, then he came back moments later. ‘Right. You need to get to Wiener Neustadt Ost. It’s a civilian airfield forty kilometres south of Vienna. I’ll have to use up some favours but I’ll have a military flight waiting tomorrow morning.’

‘Good. Tell them we’ll have one extra.’

‘Balenkova?’

‘Yes. She needs full entry and protection. She won’t be going home again.’