Jack Higgins - A Darker Place

“Well, you won’t want the police in on this, and neither will the pride of the GRU here, so we’ll leave them and drive away. These days they’re only a mobile call away from like-minded comrades who’ll come running. Have you got one?”

Blake said, “Luckily, I always carry it in my pants pocket.”

“Well, there you are. I’ll drop you off at a service station.” He turned to Oleg. “Raise the ramp and put the clip in place on the right-hand side. I’ll do the left.”

Oleg was bitterly angry, his face said it all, but he did as he was told until, seizing a moment that Kurbsky turned, pulled out a spring-blade knife and slashed. Kurbsky only just managed to ward it off. It sliced through the sleeve of the overall and into his left arm.

Kurbsky hit him across the face. “That was very stupid, but you always were a moron.” He rammed the muzzle against Oleg’s right ear and shot half of it off. Oleg howled, and Kurbsky shoved him into Petrovich, who was trying to stop the bleeding from his knuckles with a handkerchief and failing miserably.

“Are you okay?” Blake asked. “You’re bleeding.”

“I’ve bled before.” Kurbsky put the Walther in his pocket, took off his khaki scarf, and bound it around his left arm as tightly as he could. He said to the two Russians, “You bastards better call in for room service. You’re lucky I didn’t kill you. Come on, let’s get out of here,” he said to Blake, went around, and climbed up behind the wheel of the truck.

“Have you any idea what you look like?” Blake said.

“Yes, tovarich.” Kurbsky laughed. “A bank robber or international terrorist. Take your pick. See that big roundabout up ahead? That sends us back the other way, towards London. I drop you at the first service station and you call in your people and I’m away, like I’ve never been here.”

“But you have, my friend,” Blake said. “And thank God for it.”

“No problem, tovarich,” said Kurbsky, and he laughed harshly.

TEN MINUTES LATER, Kurbsky pulled in on the edge of the approach road to a service station. “There you go,” he said, and Blake dismounted.

As Blake turned to say good-bye, the truck simply drove away, slowing only to enter the traffic stream, and Kurbsky pulled off the ski mask and pulled on the tweed cap. His arm was hurting and he didn’t know how bad it was, but that was all right. A good man had been saved from a bad end, that was the thing, and he settled down to drive back to London.

DARKNESS WAS BEGINNING to fall as he reached Marble Arch. He left the truck on a building site and simply walked away from it, once more threading his way through Mayfair until he reached the Albany Regency, and went into the parking area and found everything as he had left it.

He cleared up the cones and his sign, his arm hurting, got behind the wheel of the Ford, and drove away. He’d have a look at the arm when he got back to the house. One of those British Army wound packs that he had in his bag would take care of it.

His phone trembled as he was going up Abbey Road, and he pulled in to answer. Bounine said, “Alex, you’ve been the greatest friend of my life. In fact, in the old days, you saved my life more than once. But something’s happened here, and I’ve got to ask you if you know anything about it.”

“Well, I can’t answer until I know what it is.”

“We got a mobile call from Oleg out in the country requesting a pick-up for him and Petrovich. They tell an incredible story.”

“I’m listening.”

Bounine covered the facts pretty exactly, and when he was finished said, “Forgive me for asking you this, but considering what has happened, our conversations, your interest in the operation-could it in any way have had anything to do with you?”

“Are you asking for yourself or for Luzhkov?”

“Luzhkov is convinced this masked man must have been Sean Dillon, because he shot off half of Oleg’s right ear. He said it’s Dillon’s trademark.”

“Well, there you are, then. All the same, it’s a good man saved from a lousy fate.”

“So it was nothing to do with you?”

“My dear Yuri, I’m the man who’s had a sister rotting in Station Gorky for years, and who might-repeat, might-have a chance to bring her back to life if he’s a good boy and does as he’s told.”

Bounine’s voice changed. He said hoarsely, “Of course, old friend, forgive me. To do such a thing would be like a sentence of death for her. How could I have been so stupid?”

“Yuri, don’t worry about it.”

“But I do. It’s Luzhkov and his wild talk, always me he confides in. How he has strong contacts with Islamists, how he could bring terror to the streets of London if he wanted to.”

“Fantasyland, Yuri, dreams of power. It’s gone to his head since he found himself face-to-face with Putin. Put it out of your mind, get a decent night’s sleep. We’ll talk again.”

HE DROVE INTO the garage, switched off, and got out of the van. He went out and saw Katya watching him through the trees, arms folded against the cold. He walked toward her.

“Have you had a good afternoon?”

“I went to the safe house.”

It was a lie, and she knew it because Roper had phoned asking after him a little earlier. She said calmly, “Have you eaten? We haven’t yet.”

“I need a shower. I’m not fit for human consumption,” he joked.

“What’s wrong with your arm?” she said. “Isn’t that blood soaking through the scarf? What happened?”

“Nothing, it’s nothing,” he said. “I’ll go and get changed, have a shower. I’ll let you know how I feel.”

He went away quickly and she watched him go, waited until the lights turned on above the garage. She went in, troubled, and said to Svetlana, “He lied to me. He said he’d been to the safe house, but Roper phoned me looking for him, and he’s hurt himself in some way. I’m worried.”

“Then go and see him. Tell him you’re worried.”

IN THE KITCHEN, Kurbsky stood at the sink, the top half of his overalls hanging down. The wound could have been worse, the tip of the knife doing the damage but not too deep, but it was five or six inches long. He had one of the British Army wound packs unopened at the side of the sink when the door opened and Katya entered. She came close and was shocked.

“My God, you need the hospital.”

“Absolutely not. I’ve got everything I need here. I’m an old soldier, remember. I’ve had far worse than this.”

She examined it and shook her head. “I think you should go. It’s a knife wound, isn’t it? What happened?”

“A couple of young punks tried to mug me. One of them had a knife, and there was a struggle. I gave them a good hiding. End of story, except that in hospitals the world over, if you tell how it went, the police get involved. So I’ll see to it myself.”

“You really are very stupid. Just sit there and wait while I go and get Hitesh Patel.”

“No, I don’t want him involved.”

“Well, I do.” She got a bottle of vodka from a cupboard and a glass and filled it. “Drink that, shut up, and wait.”

SHE WAS BACK in just under fifteen minutes with Hitesh, who was wearing a blue polo shirt and blazer and carried a black bag.

“What have you got there, the tools of the trade?” Kurbsky asked.

“I have my own instruments-it’s part of the game.” He picked up the army wound pack. “My goodness, Henri, you are well prepared.” He removed his jacket and hung it on a chair and opened the bags and found some surgical gloves. “Now, let’s have a look.” He nodded. “Nasty. May I inquire if you have killed anybody?”

“I was attacked by two teenage muggers. One of them cut me, I knocked them about, and they cleared off. I’m a judo expert. I just don’t want to get involved with the police. On the other hand, you’re a young guy just into his career, and I wouldn’t want to get you in trouble.”