Kate's Gifts
Then she’d been given her first glimpse of hope; the gift of desperation, bought by the distant memory of whom she once was, a beautiful little ballerina, innocently begging in a whisper. “Please, Kati, don’t kill us. I love you.”
“I love you too,” she whispered then.
“And I still do.” she whispers now.
She thanks the manager on the way out with her little bag of tricks, filled with all sorts of nasty surprises. The nastiest and dangerous of them all is the one Katrina slipped in when Kate wasn’t thinking.
Kate has taken the bottle.
Chapter 14
Pennsylvania State Police Homicide Division 4
Stress affects one’s ability to think. The old saying haste makes waste is especially true when someone is trying to hide evidence. Cops say that even the biggest of schemes can come undone by the smallest of trifles. In Moody’s case, it is a piece of paper. Although he did his best in a rushed state to leave Vanya without any ID, he missed his Amtrak receipt in a back pocket. Vanya used his real name.
The investigators quickly figure out who Vanya is, and that he was on the same train as another murder victim. From there, they get the surveillance tapes from NJ Transit and the first pictures of a suspect, seen walking out of the station with Vanya. This leads to Moody’s second mistake. By cross-referencing the passenger list they easily come up with a name to go along with the face— because he used his own name. By midday every cop along the Northeast Corridor has Moody in his sights, and their preparedness is about to become a major headache for Bob.
Chapter 15
King of Prussia, Pa
For Elayna and the boys, it’s show time.
They pause outside the hotel entrance in the sparkling fall morning and look around, not knowing exactly how many eyes are on them. “Come on, gents. Time we got a little privacy,” she says with disgust, putting on a red Phillies cap and her big sunglasses.
They hop into Elayna’s SUV, leading the FBI on a well-planned tour of the Philadelphia suburbs. She meanders west along the Pennsylvania Turnpike in the heavy morning traffic, and then turns south on I-476.
The FBI agents, mostly from the Philly office, diligently follow in five different vehicles, constantly switching position, but never losing sight of their quarry. They have to rough it today because no chopper is available and the UAV, well, it’s not really supposed to be used for this anyway. The front car sees Elayna put her turn signal on.
“Taking the next exit, Mall Boulevard,” the lead agent announces.
“Roger that, Mall Boulevard,” Haddad repeats over the encrypted channel, just in case anyone happens to be listening in.
“A little shopping, perhaps?” an agents laughs. They can afford to be laid back. The GPS tracking device on Elayna’s truck is showing their precise location, along with the tail cars, on several of the many big screens now set up in the hangar.
“Perhaps,” Haddad says.
The King of Prussia Mall is one of the world’s biggest shopping areas. Two huge malls sit side by side, creating one enormous cathedral of capitalism, big enough that it has its own zip code and almost fifteen thousand parking spots.
“Stay tight on them. I don’t care if they make you.” Haddad says over the radio.
Elayna dials a number into her cell phone. A woman’s voice answers, “Hello, this is Anna.”
“This is Elayna, are you ready for us?”
“Yes, level three, middle lane. A white Honda mini-van. Good luck.”
“Thank you for your help,” Elayna says as she turns into a big parking garage placed between the two malls. “Grab your stuff, boys, time for some fun.”
“They’re going into a garage!” the lead agent says. “I’m going in after them. Cover the exits!”
Hearing the Russians are on the move, Mayo, Freaks and Edwards show up just in time to see the GPS signal on the truck flicker out as it enters the multi-level concrete garage.
“Oops,” Freaks says.
Haddad has begun to sweat.
Inside, Anna’s husband Steven starts their white Honda mini-van. After a minute, Elayna’s SUV turns into their lane. With a flash of high beams, Steven knows what to do. They hope it’s important, because there is a good chance their cover will be blown. They are just two of well over a hundred Russian immigrants in the U.S. still connected with the SVR. They are more observers than spies, gathering information and sending it back. They’ve been living a quiet life, raising a family in Marlton, New Jersey, home of the giant defense contractor Lockheed Martin. Anna’s a homemaker and Steven is in real estate. Between the PTA and the Kiwanis club, BBQs and bowling leagues, they gather whatever they can on the people they meet in the community from Lockheed Martin, and anything they can use.
With a sad look, Anna gets out of the van and disappears into the sea of cars. Steven watches as Elayna’s truck passes behind him.
He sees the car following, throws the van into reverse, then guns it.
His timing is perfect.
BANG
He T-bones the Chevy Malibu violently and deep into the cars across the aisle.
“FUCK!” the agent screams! “It’s a pick! She set us up!”
The driver gets out of the car and starts walking towards him. He looks for a gun in the man’s hands, forgetting the chase and now thinking of his own skin. He tries to muscle his way out of the mess, spinning rubber and crunching metal. The man comes closer, his hands raised in contrition.
“I’m losing them, I’m stuck! Who’s got them? Anyone have them?”
“What’s going on, people? Talk to me!” Haddad demands.
“We’re on the exits!” a voice calls out.
“Blue two on foot in the garage.”
“Kevin, what floor are you stuck on?”
“Third floor! Third floor!”
“This is six! I got them, South exit. South exit!”
“Do you have a positive ID, six?” Haddad shouts, as if the volume will help matters.
“Stand by,” says the voice over the speakers. On the tracking screen, the target reappears.
“Got her!”
“Are you sure? You have a visual on the driver?” Haddad asks.
“Yes, same truck, same hat, glasses, confidence is high. Turning onto Route 202 northbound.”
“You’ll have to pull them over if you want a positive ID, you know,” Edwards warns.
“No, you think?” Haddad says.
Back in the garage, another FBI vehicle picks up the trapped agent, forced to crawl out of the window. He hops in, leaving the car and the other driver for later. They speed out of the garage to follow in the chase. Steven shrugs. He isn’t going to run without Anna. He’s not terribly worried. The worst that will happen if they’re captured is a few weeks in jail and then sent home.
In the hangar, the team watches the display as the FBI vehicles begin to converge behind Elayna’s SUV.
“Blue two and three, stay with the garage,” Haddad orders.
“Not enough coverage,” Freaks says to Edwards under his breath.
“Shelly, pull them over. You’ve got to make sure, dude!” Edwards warns.
“FUCK!” Haddad surrenders to the obvious. The operation is blown anyway. “Blue team, pull them over to confirm IDs.”
“Ten-four. Taking them down,” a voice says.
Anna knows cop cars when she sees them, having noticed the unmarked vehicles as soon as they pulled in behind her. Suddenly, they all turn on their lights and sirens. One pulls up alongside. The man in the passenger seat gestures to her to pull over. She doesn’t turn to look, only watching him out of the corner of her eye. Another passes and pulls directly in front and puts on the brakes. Her tour of duty in the States seems to be at an end. She decides she might as well have some fun doing it and perhaps be on TV.
She slams on the brakes, then cuts a sudden right turn into a parking lot, then hits the gas. The b
ig SUV flies across the lot and onto a side street, swiping a parked car or two along the way.
“Shit! We’ve got a runner,” the lead car says into the radio.
The situation has gone from bad to real bad. A discreet surveillance job is quickly morphing into an episode of Wildest Police Chases. Anna has turned the truck into a cop magnet as she barrels down the busy streets. At the intersection of Gulph Mill and 202 South, a local police cruiser has positioned itself in the middle of the street. It doesn’t stop Anna. She plows into the back of the car, spinning it around and keeps on moving. This changes everything. Now it’s a case of assault with a deadly weapon against a police officer.
Haddad can’t believe this is happening and begins to curse in Arabic. One of the agents manning the radio has some sickening news for him. “Local news choppers are going up.”
“End it now!” Haddad orders coolly.
The driver of the lead FBI car nods to his partner. “Tires.”
The agent pulls out his gun, and as the car pulls alongside, he takes careful aim at the front driver’s side wheel. Just as he squeezes off a round, they hit a pothole. The shot goes high into the door.
The round tears through the door and into Anna, making the truck suddenly veer to the right, onto the sidewalk, across a parking lot and crash into the glass display wall of a Crate & Barrel store, finally coming to a smoking stop. Seeing the blood pouring from her side, she passes out.
Cars swam the location, and two dozen cops and agents, guns drawn, rush the truck through the shattered glassware and kitchen fixtures, shouting a chorus of “Hands up!” and “Out of the vehicle!”
The driver doesn’t comply. One nervous rookie local cop lets off a round by accident. Not knowing where the shot came from, all of the locals open fire, some of them emptying their magazines. Once the downpour of lead ends, an agent moves in and violently opens the door, grabs the driver and drags her out and onto the glass-strewn floor. That’s when her hat and dark colored wig come off. Anna doesn’t resist as they cuff her. She’s already moved on to a better place.
“Decoy! Decoy!” the agent shouts into his radio.
They don’t have to hear anymore. They have grossly underestimated the suspects. As a result, they have a full-blown cluster fuck on their hands, and nothing to show for it, but just when they think things can’t get any worse, they do.
It comes over the speakers. “Cancel the bus. Notify the M.E.”
Chapter 16
Woodcrest Road
Having lost their American watchers, Elayna and the boys have a look at the first location on the list, the “housewife” living in a nice suburban neighborhood.
Elayna smiles, relieved that the first part of her plan went so well. She has a tinge of remorse over having to use the SVR couple, but that’s what they’re there for. They certainly threw the Americans totally off guard, probably because of a lack of experience of dealing with skilled operators.
Now, they just have to be smart about what they do, like right now. A strange car in a quiet neighborhood eventually stands out.
“We’ve been here too long, Elayna.” Kreichek says as a dog walker passes them for a second time.
“I think she likes this one,” Hutnikov teases.
“Ebyona mat!” Elayna snaps in a vicious cat like spit that takes both of men aback.
“You may have struck a nerve Nicky,” Kreichek chuckles.
“Look!” Hutnikov says, ducking lower in his seat.
Emerging from the house on the corner is a well-dressed blonde woman.
“Katrina!” Elayna grins to herself.
“Is that her?” Kreichek asks with surprise. “She doesn’t look that old.”
“Too pretty for me to kill,” Hutnikov says.
“I doubt you could if you tried,” Elayna warns.
They watch as she gets into the car and drives off.
“Do you think she made us?” Hutnikov asks.
“No, she would have come this way if she had,” Elayna concludes. “And probably killed us all.”
Chapter 17
Mills & Sons Funeral Home
“Hello, Ms. Kate,” Boo says shyly, waiting outside and glad to escape the stifling scent of flowers and formaldehyde inside the funeral home. It’s been a busy day so far and he’s happy to see her. Kate is genuinely happy to see that he has a faint smile.
“How you doing, James?”
“Okay, I guess, I’ll make it.”
“I think so too, thank God,” she concludes, touching him lightly on the sleeve.
“You certainly look handsome,” she says, complimenting him on his dark blue suit. It’s always so sad for her to see fine young men dressed so nicely for a funeral. Suddenly, her mind pictures Tom and Robbie dressed the same way, standing over her box. A pang of dread hits her.
“We’ll talk in a little bit, but first I’d like to chat with your grandma.”
“Come in, I’ll get her.”
The place is drowning in flowers, and Kate realizes that a visit to a funeral home isn’t such a good idea after all, given her own her potentially impending doom. “It’s not about you,” she reminds herself.
Ellen Washington comes out of the viewing room to greet her. “Hello, Ms. Wilson,” she says warmly.
Kate corrects her with a laugh. “Please, Kate.”
“That’s right, Kate,” Ellen blushes. “Let’s go in here.”
She ushers Kate into an adjoining empty room. She too is ready for a break. “The Lord knows I love my son, but this is getting to be a little too much!” she sighs, sitting down on one of the folding chairs, looking tired but still together after the long day.
Kate sits next to her, smiling at her strength. “They say He only gives you as much as you can take.”
“We’ll see about that,” Ellen says with skepticism. “I want to thank you for your help. I don’t know what you said to that boy, but it made a world of difference. He’s even talking with Reverend Wall.”
Ellen tells her about the past, filling in the family history, and the sad spiral downward of James’ mother.
“It truly isn’t anyone’s fault,” Kate explains. “Some cross that line where nothing else, children, family, self worth, is more important than the next buzz. It takes something special to get back across that line.”
“A gift,” Ellen tells her.
Kate smiles. “Yes, a gift. It’s there for the asking, but sadly not everyone asks.”
Ellen sighs again, touching a tissue to her eye, the painful understanding of her daughter-in-law now a little clearer. “Well, it seems as if James has accepted your gift.”
“No, not mine, but we just have to make sure he doesn’t lose it.”
“Will you help us, Kate?”
“That’s why I’m here,” Kate assures her, taking her hand. “As long as I can.”
Ellen hesitates before saying what she’s thinking. “May I ask you a personal question, dear?”
“Of course, you can ask. I may not answer though,” Kate warns.
“I see something in you I haven’t seen in a long time.” She squeezes Kate’s hand with a puzzled look, trying to come up with the right words. “I saw it in my daughter-in –law, this profound sadness. I see it in you.”
It would have knocked Kate back had she been standing. This woman can see right through her.
“Aren’t I supposed to be helping you?”
“Sometimes, the best way to help yourself is to help another.”
Kate nods. The concept is one of the very foundations of the program; you can’t keep it if you don’t give it away.
“Is it that obvious?”
“You hide it real well, like you’re used to it, but even the smallest burden eventually becomes too heavy to bear.”
“I know, and I’m grateful for your concern, but it is a burden I must carry alone.”
“Kate,
you can only be so strong. If there’s anything I can do, please, just ask.”
“Thanks, Ellen, I will.” Kate smiles, thinking that it might just be a good idea.
“Will we be seeing you at the service tomorrow?” Ellen smiles sadly.
“I’m sorry, Ellen, I have a meeting I can’t get out of.”
“What a shame,” Ellen says.
“It is, isn’t it?” Kate thinks, of how much she’d rather go to a funeral, than do what needed to be done.
Chapter 18
Washington, DC
Moody has a plane to catch. He comes out of the door of his town home with his wheeled carry-on in tow. He doesn’t make it more that ten feet down the sidewalk.
“Mahmoud Barabi?” a man with an earphone and wearing a flak jacket asks, walking up to him. Moody sees cars pull up from both ends of the street. Bob hangs back halfway down the block.
The man shows a badge. “We’re with the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Sir, would you come with us please, we have some questions about your visa.” It is total bullshit, and the “cops” are actually CIA. Bob has to grab him before anyone else. If Moody entered the system, it would be a mess. Everyone from the FBI to the Morrisville, PA, police would want to get their hooks into him, so Bob jumps the line.
“Am I under arrest?”
“Just get in the vehicle, sir,” the man insists.
A couple of cops gently but firmly guide Moody to the black SUV and deposit him inside, despite his protests.
Chapter 19
Willow Grove N.A.S.
Without any solid leads to follow, the team is forced to dig. They’ve pulled stills from the hotel video cameras of the Russians woman and her pals and distributed them across the state, but they are so normal-looking that unless they break the law, there’s little chance they’ll be spotted.
McDowd, Mayo, Freaks and Edwards are engaging in data mining, trolling the Internet and databases.