Otherwise he got out and stayed out as much as possible. Part of the routine was to go early to Morisa Toreza, before most of the embassy staff: in the very beginning he’d tried reversing the tables to get into the inner rezidentura to spy upon Bowyer as Bowyer was spying upon him, but it didn’t work because none of the keys he had been given opened the necessary drawers. He ignored Nigel Saxon as much as possible, who ignored him in return.
It still meant he was entombed far more than he wanted to be in his catafalque office, wishing there was the diversion of crapping pigeons at which he could fire paper clips. He was actually fashioning the prototype of such a weapon when the telephone rang. He recognized at once the voice of the anonymous woman in Popov’s secretariat.
‘The colonel would like a conference on Thursday, at noon,’ she announced. ‘It’s important.’
Charlie had to wait to be connected to James Kestler. When he was, the American said, ‘That’s why you had to hold; she must have called me immediately after you.’
Stanislav Silin supposed they would be using the Ulitza Razina apartment regularly when other robberies were planned after this first one. So he’d have to do something about furnishings and decoration: it offended him to be in surroundings like this. Marina could help. She’d enjoy doing that, like she’d enjoyed working with the interior designers who’d turned the two mansions into far better palaces than they’d been when they were first built. And it would be safe, remain their secret, if Marina was the only other person to know. Although he’d defeated Sobelov’s challenge it had still unsettled him. More even: frightened him. The conduit to unlimited nuclear materials and even more unlimited money was his absolute protection. So his knowledge had to remain a total secret and this apartment, where the conduit was to operate, an essential secret with it.
The two arrived on time and together again and on this occasion accepted the offered drink, both choosing genuine imported Scotch whisky, and the one who always did the talking said, obviously rehearsed, ‘We can afford to become accustomed to what we can really afford.’
Taking his cue, Silin slid their respective bank deposit documents to each man. Neither spoke for several moments, clearly overwhelmed by the size of their fortune.
‘Just the beginning,’ reminded Silin.
‘Just the beginning,’ echoed the spokesman. ‘You’ve already got buyers?’
‘Of course.’
‘Who?’
There was protection in their not knowing, decided the newly cautious Silin: he himself only knew the nationalities, never the names. He only knew the Iraqi middleman as The Turk. ‘Does it matter?’
‘Not in the slightest,’ said the second man. Tapping the bank documents he said, ‘This is all that matters.’
‘How soon should we meet, after the robbery?’ asked the first man.
‘How about a month?’ suggested the Mafia head.
‘There’ll be the rest of the money then?’ asked the greedy man.
‘With a deposit slip to prove it,’ assured Silin. ‘Will that be too soon to discuss another robbery?’
‘I don’t see why it should,’ smiled the man.
chapter 12
T he Interior and Foreign ministers before whom Natalia was summoned separately and then during a following day joint session agreed the political benefits of foreign involvement. Their agreement was, however, weighted with conditions. There were repeated warnings that jurisdiction should be kept strictly separated from foreign observer status and equally positive insistences that while both could participate in final planning, it was out of the question for either to be allowed on the ground at Kirs during the interception.
Natalia led every meeting but ensured she was accompanied to each by Aleksai Popov, to whom she deferred during any operational discussion. But in which he, with equal consideration in front of their superiors, took care to include her as if she was as experienced as he was in practical policing. Natalia was impressed by the speed and comprehension of Popov’s organization and knew both ministers were, too. Within a day of their return from Kirov he’d supplemented his personally chosen squad of Militia rapid response commandoes with two platoons of spetznaz Special Forces and taken over disused army barracks close to Moscow’s Vnukovo airport for cohesive group training. Air Force helicopters arrived the following day, to be assimilated into the planning.
Natalia’s pride at the politicians’ obvious admiration jerked into immediate alarm when, in answer to a question from Interior Minister Radomir Badim at the joint ministerial session, Popov announced he would be the overall ground commander.
‘There’ll be shooting?’ she said, when they returned to her office.
‘Almost inevitably, although when they realize what they’re up against they might just give up. It’ll be amateurs against professionals. They’d be annihilated. If they’ve got any sense they’ll realize it.’
‘Where will you be?’
Popov frowned. ‘There! That’s what I said at the meeting.’
‘I know what you said at the meeting. You could get killed.’ Her throat almost blocked at the word.
‘I have to be there.’
‘I don’t think you do! Not actually taking part! You’re the director of operations, not the commander of them. Stopping what’s going to happen at Kirs is different! A specialized job for specialized, trained people. Killers in uniform.’ She couldn’t risk losing him! She’d lost twice, for other reasons, and was determined she wouldn’t – couldn’t – lose again. She wouldn’t get another chance, not with someone as special as Aleksai. Not with anyone.
‘I’ve done it before,’ he reminded, lightly. ‘Do you want to see my medals?’
‘I’m not joking!’
He came around the desk, putting both hands on her shoulders and holding her at arms’ length. ‘Hey, calm down.’
‘I won’t have you in a war situation!’ she said, frightened anger driving the careless exaggeration.
But it wasn’t the hyperbole he picked up on. ‘ Won’t?’
‘You heard what I said.’
‘I wish I hadn’t.’
Natalia hadn’t intended it to become a matter of superior authority, of her rank superseding his; hadn’t meant to shout or argue irrationally or create the confrontation building like a wall between them. The only obstruction of rank had been at the beginning, which had held Aleksai back from making the first move until Natalia had agreed to dinner after an embassy reception and accepted a second halting invitation when there wasn’t the excuse of an official function to justify it and about which they had often laughed, since. Natalia wondered how long it would take them to laugh about this. ‘I don’t want an argument,’ she said, willing to retreat.
‘Neither do I.’
‘I can’t…’ she started badly, changing in mid-sentence. ‘… you can’t take the risk. It’s ridiculous. Unnecessary.’
‘You’re being ridiculous,’ he said, openly challenging. ‘It’s this conversation that’s unnecessary.’
‘I don’t want officially to forbid it,’ she said, refusing to retreat any further.
‘Then don’t.’
‘We should have talked about it!’
‘I didn’t think we had to.’ Popov smiled, a satisfied expression. ‘This conversation is unnecessary. It’s already decided: the ministers have approved.’
‘No!’ Natalia refused, wishing her voice had not been so loud. ‘ You decided, without discussing it with me. And then you announced it to the ministers.’
Popov had taken his hands from her shoulders some time before. Now he stood looking steadily at her, letting the accusing silence grow ‘To countermand it would completely undermine my position And my authority.’
‘It would do nothing of the sort! There are two operations, one at the plant, the other to seize as many of the Yatisyna Family as possible. You’re the controller of both. If you concentrate on one – the nuclear complex – you neglect the other.’
‘One’s more important than the other.’