CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Kiev, Ukraine December 5, 2308 23:47:12
Slade arrived at the Kiev border just before midnight. There were no guards, no checkpoints. He kept his disguise in place though. He would have to be Kozel until he reached The College. It was a risk, there was no doubt about it. His dwelling would be the first place they'd look for him. But it was also the place he had hidden the key to his cache.
Hindsight's 20/20, buddy. Should have hidden the key somewhere else. He thought to himself
There was nothing he could do about that now. He deactivated Auto on his hover, and piloted toward Zhullany airport. At this hour of the night, there were next to no hovers on the highway. Which is why the flashing blue lights of the police hover seemed so bright behind him. He pulled over a lane to let them pass, but they moved in behind him. Cursing, he pulled the hover over to the shoulder, rolled down the window, and stopped the engine.
Looking in the rearview mirror, Slade saw two uniforms get out of the hover, a man and a woman. Was this the hit squad? Already? Control sure works fast. He loosened the Boom Stick in its sheath. The female officer approached the driver's side of the hover, and Slade knew that the other was flanking the hover, gun drawn.
"Good evening, sir. May I see your identification, please?"
Slade handed Kozel's ID card out the window to the officer. His right hand rested on his Boom Stick, fingers clenching and unclenching around the handle. The officer suddenly lowered her head to the window.
"Dmytro? Is that really you?"
Slade froze. This officer knew Kozel? This was going to head south very quickly.
"It is me," Slade replied in Kozel's voice. "But I have had an extremely long day. I apologize, but I have forgotten you."
The officer stood, placing her hands on her hips indignantly.
"Figures," she said. "The one person who helped you pass all those tests in the academy, and you would forget me. As if anyone could forget Vasylyna."
That name sounded familiar. Slade scanned his internal drive and made the connection - Kozel's daughter was named Vasylyna.
"I didn't completely forget you," Slade told her. "I named my daughter after you. She will be twelve this august."
She snorted, and then began to laugh.
"You named your daughter after me? That's rather bold, Dmytro. What does your wife think of that? Did you tell her about our late night study sessions?" She ran her hands down her sides, following her slender, curvaceous figure. "How you studied more than just the course material?"
Slade had no idea what she was talking about, but felt his cheeks flushing, and allowed it to show on his image of Kozel's cheeks. Vasylyna noticed immediately.
"I'll take that to mean you haven't told her." She handed him his ID card back, and stood, talking over the roof of the hover. "He's good. I know him from the academy."
"What about the plate?" The unseen officer asked.
Vasylyna leaned down again. "Yes, Dmytro, what about the plate? It is registered to the owner of a gas station more than four hundred miles from here."
"I stopped for some fuel on my way here. I was helping an Emissary. I'm now on my way home. I went inside to grab some snacks." He held up an empty soda can and sandwich wrapper as proof. "Maybe someone switched them while I was inside?"
"The security camera shows someone driving the hover beside another car, but the feed is fuzzy after that. Do you know anything about that?"
"After I fuelled, I parked beside a red junker hover to make room for the hover behind me. Then I bought these snacks. That is all I can tell you."
"When you get home, make sure that you get a plate re-issued for this hover. I'm vouching for you, Dmytro. Don't make me regret it."
"I won't. Thank you, Vasylyna." He smiled up at her.
"Go. Do some work." She walked back to the police hover, and got into the driver's seat. The blue flashing stopped, and Slade heard a second door shut. The other officer was in the hover. Time to go. He signaled, and merged back onto the highway. A sign indicated that the airport was only twenty kilometers away. He sped off toward the airport, being careful to keep the hover at the speed limit.
The rest of the trip was uneventful, but he swore that every hover that passed him looked like they were on the hunt for something - or someone. He would feel much safer in the air. As he pulled into the terminal, Slade scanned the flight boards for his flight. No delays. More good news. Relaxing slightly, Slade parked the hover, grabbed his bag from the trunk, and headed into the terminal