Birth of an Assassin Read online

  From what he could see, she seemed as nervous as he was, spun a beer mat between her hands and tapped it on the table – generally fidgeting. Jez craned his neck, but couldn’t see her face. She messed around for the whole minute without making an order and then stood up and returned inside. He willed some kind of recognition but her head was covered by a snood. The waiter came to the table and she ordered. He wrote down the order, nodded and went to people at another table. She removed the head piece, and his heart almost stopped.

  Anna!

  Chapter 40

  He rested his elbows on the table and stared at the declarations of love carved into the top of it. But doubts emerged. How could Petrichov possibly know he trusted Anna? Jez hadn’t been aware he’d even known her. And why should it be necessary to send someone he trusted anyway? This was surrender, not negotiation.

  A thrill rushed through him and he shook away the misgivings. Who cared what the general had in mind? He tilted his head and peered over to where she sat. Though she expected him, she clearly had no idea he was there.

  She stood, shrugged off a three-quarter-length leather coat, glanced round the saloon, tidied her hair and pulled the shoulders of her white blouse out straight. Her trim, muscular figure looked pretty much the same as he remembered, but her breasts were larger. Her features, as definite as ever, had a few cynical lines around the mouth – yet still so beautiful. She wore a long blonde plait coiled into a chignon. She looked left to right, smoothed her slim-fit blue skirt and sat. Jez stood crouched, put his hands in his pockets and shuffled to the door head down, moved past and worked his way to one side of her.

  She hadn’t yet settled when a young barman brought a tray, took a small blonde lager from it, wiped the froth from the bottom of the glass and placed it on a beer mat. She must have been thirsty and sipped at it greedily before the beer had time to rest. Froth covered her lower face. Nervousness moved to one side as he suppressed a laugh.

  “Hello, Anna… no, don’t turn around. Tell me how Petrichov knew that I would trust you.”

  She ignored the words, hurriedly and clumsily cuffed the froth from her face, stood, and turned to face him. “Don’t be so melodramatic,” she said stiffly and sighed.

  Why his love should flood his veins after that kind of retort he didn’t know, but it did. A boyish smile broke through, but then he felt awkward. He wanted to pull her to him, smother her with kisses. But that would be stupid: they had never had that sort of relationship. Instead, he hovered and grinned like a fool.

  Anna had no such misgivings and rushed to him. The stern façade had melted and she made no attempt to hide her excitement. She threw her arms around his neck, and Jez felt a charge pass between them as the contours of their bodies fused into a single unit. Then his mind came back to reality and he was conscious of his arms around a woman he hadn’t seen in almost twenty years. She seemed pleased to see him, but… maybe she’d married and had children; maybe she hugged him because of an old friendship; or, well, maybe... But then her body stiffened. He stood back, looked her up and down.

  “You’re even lovelier than I remember,” he said. “And you’re still in the army... I tried to track you down, but you’d vanished from the records.”

  Her eyebrows drew together and her brow knitted. “I know. We have a lot to talk about. Sit down – do you want a drink? Something to eat?”

  Jez picked up a menu, which made a signal for the barman to come to the table. “I’ll have a small beer, the same as my friend’s, then give us five minutes and we’ll order food.”

  The menu featured a number of home-brewed light and dark beers and traditional Belarusian dishes. Jez’s mouth watered: suddenly he had an appetite.

  “Yes, I’m still in the army, and like you I’m a lieutenant. I’ve been working as General Petrichov’s aide for a couple of years, but I’m still attached to special ops.”

  “You’re in a special unit, but I’ve been in Spetsnaz and Osnaz my whole career. Why couldn’t I contact you…? Oh, or are you married and working under your new name?” Heat radiated in his face.

  “No, I never married.”

  A wave of relief engulfed him – still unmarried.

  Her gaze dropped to her lap and her shoulders followed suit. “And there are reasons you couldn’t find me…”

  The hard-boiled façade slipped as Anna brought him up to speed on how the general had separated them because the bond they’d forged might interfere with their progress.

  “He can be a bastard,” Jez said – without malice – but he knew he was entitled to exactly that.

  She continued, telling him how she’d followed him and his sisters to Rostov, and squirmed as she did.

  Jez felt blown away. “You followed me – then it was you I saw at the station in Rostov.”

  “Yes, but I couldn’t let you know what I was up to. I couldn’t be sure it wasn’t me being tested. I did break cover and let you see me, hoping you would get off the train and come over; we might have sorted something out, but while you stared you didn’t seem to recognize me.”

  “I did recognize you and I tried to get off the train. But I hesitated until the train moved off. I left my seat, and a guard blocked my exit. I was afraid to make a fuss because I wasn’t supposed to be there.”

  Thoughts raced and awareness came.

  “A report, you must have written a report. That would be how Mitrokhin knew of my route. Somehow he got hold of the file.”

  At last he could put to rest his non-stop questions of how anyone had known the route. At last he could feel safe that his sisters hadn’t been caught.

  “The task you say you were given: Mitrokhin was ordered to carry out the investigation personally… because corruption was suspected within the ranks and he was the one under suspicion. The general gave him the mission to keep him in Moscow, and he also hoped he would make a mistake.”

  She was hesitant, nervous even, and Jez thought he saw her jaw quiver.

  “Yes, you’re right, I did write a report. The general decided to take no further action, marked the file Top Secret and stored it in the Kremlin. But we believe Mitrokhin has high-ranking associates, so it is possible he got to see it.”

  He set his back against the chair, looked skyward and sighed. “Ooh, Mitrokhin has cunning, no doubt. He must have thought me a complete idiot the way I jumped from square to square for him – like a pawn.” And then his heart dropped. He’d been right all along, for now he knew Anna didn’t have the same feelings as him. He couldn’t have made a report against her, not for any reason. He sighed. “What now?”

  She stared softly into his eyes, and then as quickly hardened.

  “Right now,” she said, “we have to talk to the Korbet family, but even if they verify what you say, it’s not enough to put you in the clear. However, winning the general over would be...”

  “You haven’t spoken to the Korbets, and it wouldn’t be enough to put me in the clear?” His bewilderment must have sounded pitiful.

  “Under interrogation, Mitrokhin would merely say that he sent Sergeant Sharansky with you to the Korbets to see if the girl knew you, to see if she would identify you as one of the traffickers. He’s not stupid. Up to now he’s had a plausible explanation for everything. We must build a case, a case he can’t squirm out of. To begin with, we stay in Minsk for debriefing. After that, I have to contact the general. You being in custody must be kept secret until proof is solid.”

  A forlorn smile crossed his face. It seemed surreal that events could take such a turn. When he’d started the task, he’d hoped it meant a change in career. But this certainly wasn’t the change he had in mind. Now, he’d be lucky to duck a firing squad. And worse, much worse, his friend had been murdered. With Viktor coming to mind, grief flooded him. His eyes burned and he averted his gaze. If she noticed, she said nothing.

  They had a meal, then walked the banks of the Svislach River, going over memories, recalling details, everything as if it was only yesterday
. Without thinking it through, he reached for her hand – she squeezed his in return.

  “Has there been anyone?” he asked.

  “Well, pure isn’t the word I’d use to describe myself, duty has demanded I make certain sacrifices,” she said matter-of-factly, “but no, no serious relationships. As you know, the army meant, and means, everything to me. I’ve been too busy with my career to think of men. Besides, I thought the relationship we had was special… What about you, you’ve grown well? You must’ve put a few girls’ heads into a spin.”

  He’d been wrong, she did think that what they’d had was special!

  “No more than a man’s need,” he said, but fretted at her words, not caring for the fact she’d let herself be used. Although in her role, he knew he would have done the same. “And have you made many of these sacrifices?”

  “Don’t worry, most of them are no longer with us. And don’t start going silly on me,” she said, and pushed his arm playfully.

  She changed the subject.

  “We have three days to go over what happened,” she confided, “and then we go to KGB headquarters in Belarus to contact the general for further instructions.”

  He nodded. “It’s getting late,” he said, and looked at Mayakovski’s watch. “Where is your hotel? I’ll walk you back.”

  “I’m staying at a new hotel overlooking the river. It’s the other way,” she said, and pointed back the way they’d come. “The Yubileiny Hotel in Pobediteley Avenue, near the old town.”

  “I know it.”

  They retraced their steps and walked the embankment in silence until they got to her hotel.

  “I’ll meet you in the lobby tomorrow morning,” he said and kissed her on each cheek. As he did, he pulled her gently to him and hugged her lightly. She pressed her face to his and drew back.

  He watched her retrieve her room key and go up in the caged lift, then dragged himself from the foyer. Of late, everything had gone wrong; but now he had Anna back in his life. It had to mean something. Things would change, things would get better; he felt it in his bones.

  Outside the hotel, he picked up on someone, a big man, way taller than average, dressed in a black, box-cut leather jacket that had seen better days, and grey trousers – a typical, covert KGB uniform. And he had wide shoulders that narrowed to slim hips. Partially hidden by a grey fedora hat, Jez couldn’t make out the facial features, but the man most certainly had the physical characteristics of armed services personnel.

  It was late and the trolleybus service had ended. Jez took a metro to the southern outskirts of town, changed platform, travelled back through the city centre and on to the northern limits, but he still got glimpses of the man. Somehow, Mitrokhin’s people had picked up his trail! From the station he ran back to the town center, occasionally veering off through narrow alleyways. He doubled back to the old town and took more backstreets and side lanes. And then, enough was enough. Back at the riverside, he hid in bushes and watched. The man didn’t show. He’d lost him.

  Chapter 41

  Early the next morning, Jez found a place where he could wait unnoticed. Fifteen minutes after that, Anna came out of the hotel onto the street. He whistled, caught her attention, and ducked back behind the shrubbery.

  “Aren’t you being a bit theatrical?” she said, shaking her head like a disgruntled matron. “No one knows we’re here.”

  “You think,” he said. “I was followed after I left last night.”

  “Oh.” She appeared hesitant. “No one knows I’m here, and I made sure no one had followed me from Moscow.”

  “A man who looked like military personnel came after me when I left the hotel. I took a couple of metros, but he stayed with me. It’s the only possibility.”

  “Maybe,” she mused. “But it might have been someone killing time for some reason. Have you seen him today? Obviously you lost him last night, but if he followed us to the hotel, surely he would have hung around?”

  “I know… and I have watched. I must admit, he hasn’t been about and neither has anyone else, come to that. Oh I don’t know, maybe I’m being jumpy.”

  She nodded. “Yes, and that would be understandable. Take it easy, I’m sure only the general and I know we’re here.”

  She was right, the misgivings sounded exaggerated out loud. He turned and smiled admiringly. She wore a full-length purple and azure coat with fur trim that overlapped from the lining. It hung low, and almost swallowed her high-heeled black leather boots. Her fur hat covered the main part of her hair, but blonde braided pigtails hung over the front of her shoulders. She looked beautiful.

  They walked east. A bank of thin cloud lingered on the horizon and smeared what would otherwise have been a clear blue sky. The sun squeezed through and threads speared into the heavens like golden spikes. He shivered, pulled his collar up and pulled his jacket tighter to him.

  They wandered the length and breadth of downtown Minsk, him with a watchful eye, and her like a tourist. They walked by the KGB building on Skoriny Avenue, and came to the House of Trade Unions.

  Jez pointed beyond it. “See the stronghold on the rise – that’s Pischalovskij Castle. Apparently, it can only be seen in the winter months. The trees fill with greenery and hide it for the rest of the year. Keep your fingers crossed I don’t have to visit. It’s the Minsk penitentiary.” He grinned, but Anna didn’t look amused.

  By the time they reached the winter theatre, he’d gone over every detail of how Mitrokhin had manipulated his belief system.

  Anna looked at him incredulously. “I know you think you’ve been gullible, Jez, but I think anyone would have taken it onboard.”

  But he didn’t want pity or understanding. Not even from Anna. He wanted justice... Cross-examined at every twist and turn of his story, she asked the same questions from different angles. It seemed unending. Of course, he understood the need for interrogation, but couldn’t help but tire of it.

  He frowned. “Look, I know this is all very necessary, but can we call it a day? Enjoy the rest of it as friends? From what you said earlier, we still have a couple of days for debriefing, and there will certainly be more of the same on our return to Moscow. Please.”

  She agreed and they walked for pleasure, talk, laughter and rejoicing in each other’s company. Late evening arrived and he dropped her at the hotel; taking a chance, he kissed her goodnight. Her slightly parted lips were soft, inviting, and her mouth fresh.

  The return journey to the hotel took no effort, as he floated there on air. And she hadn’t asked where he lived or about the ID he hid under: she trusted him. Fresh snow lay thick and crisp, cold air frosted his breath, but for him it was the end of a fairytale day – and no one followed.

  The next couple of days passed slowly, or maybe too quickly, but with inevitability the time passed. At the hotel he kissed her goodnight again, but this time the kiss lingered and passion grew. She looked deeply into his large chestnut brown eyes and then buried her head against his shoulder.

  “Jez, we must go to Belarus KGB tomorrow, and when we get there the orders I receive might require immediate action. Stay with me tonight.”

  His eyes popped. He wanted to make love to Anna, of course. He’d envisaged it a thousand times. But she’d be compromised; or then, there might never be another chance. He turned her face up to him. “I don’t want you regretting this.”

  They closed the door behind them and shut out the rest of the world. His arms embraced her and their bodies melded. He tingled to her touch. They kissed feverishly, as they removed one another’s clothes in hurried frenzy. Naked, Jez pulled Anna down onto the bed and whispered “I love you” into her neck. They made love, gently, tenderly, but passionately.

  *

  Jez woke to find Anna folded into his arms. Snugly asleep, she nestled into him and breathed the warm air of slumber against his chest. She clearly kept to a strict regime of exercise but managed to keep a firm grip on her femininity. With his free hand, he traced the shape of her s
houlder and arm, reached for her hand, squeezed gently to reaffirm his love. He concentrated on the parts of her body that made contact: her breasts against his side, her flat stomach as it pushed on his hip, and the inside of her thigh on his leg. He committed the memory to his brain and bathed in the ecstasy of her touch.

  He’d never known real love-making; there’d been no thunder, the ground didn’t move beneath him, no poetry, and fireworks didn’t go off in his head, just the sweetness and contentment of what was meant to be. He’d become complete and knew that the true meaning of his existence had emerged.

  Anna moved sleepily against him, then opened her eyes and looked up. “I would ask you to make love to me again,” she whispered, her voice thick and husky, “but we have things to do. This could be an important day.”

  “It’s already been an important day,” he answered, kissing her brow, “the most important of my life.”

  She laughed appreciatively, pulled herself up onto an elbow and kissed his lips. And whether there was time or no, they took enough of it to make love again.

  *

  “This is the third time I’ve come to this KGB headquarters,” he said, hurrying along Skoriny Avenue by her side. “I must say, the other times I felt jittery, but those feelings have just changed to morbid apprehension.”

  Anna laughed, but Jez had never been more serious.

  “Now my life has come together, I’m afraid.”

  She linked up with him and snuggled against his arm. “Things will work out, you’ll see,” she said, and Miriam came to mind.

  “Maybe, but when Mitrokhin imprisoned me, I thought all I had to do was talk to the general. Now, I have somehow to convince everyone that killing the cell guard was an accident… What a mistake, if only I’d taken my sisters back to Vladimir, I wouldn’t be in this mess.”