“Are we going to be okay?” Tanya asked when she got back to the room.
“We’ll be fine,” Mikhail promised. “As long as you don’t talk about anything you do or are asked. Okay?”
“Yes,” the girl answered.
“I’d like to go back to what we were doing,” he added. “But we’ll have to wait until later. How long have you been in Club Aldaris?”
“Three months,” Tanya said. “Why?”
“Have you spent much time in the club?” Mikhail asked, pulling out some sheets of paper.
“Yes,” she replied. “All the girls spend time working in club. Why?”
“Because I need to ask you some questions about it,” Mikhail said, unrolling the sheets and pointing to a spot on the floorplan. “What is this room used for?”
“There, you see?” Katya asked when she came back in the room.
Tom was sitting on the bed, looking at Natalya, who was crouched in the corner, rocking.
“Is she okay?” Tom asked, nervously. “She came out of the shower and seemed just fine. Then she screamed and she’s been over there ever since.”
“Bad man,” Natalya was muttering, appearing to draw on her leg with her finger. “Bad man’s going to come…”
“Some girls, they don’t do well here,” Katya said, carefully. “I talk to her, I get her calm down. She still be very good to you.”
“I like her,” Tom said, his face twisted. “She seems so… fragile. So do you, but not like her. I wish I could take both of you away from here.”
“It cannot happen,” Katya said, sighing and approaching the rocking girl. “Natalya?”
“Bad man is coming,” the girl was singing to herself. “Coming back for you…”
“Natalya!” Katya said, sharply. “There’s no bad man, here. Is he the bad man?” she added, darting a glance at “Tom.”
“No, not here,” Natalya said, still drawing on her leg.
“Natalya, go suck on Tom,” Katya ordered.
The girl quickly scurried across the bed and began opening the doctor’s fly.
“She was worried she hadn’t been good enough for you,” Katya said, letting out a sigh of relief that sounded very real because it was. “That was all. She let it worry her too much. If you don’t do well enough for the pimps, well, they beat you and other things.”
“Oh,” Tom said, shaking his head as the hooker began fellating him. “I don’t think I can… you know, right now.”
“Maybe we get some schoolgirl outfits?” Katya asked. “Some makeup? Am told can look very much like Britney Spears… You want rape Britney?”
Chapter Thirty-Eight
“Kildar,” Anastasia said, looking in the door. “Father Kulcyanov wishes to see you.”
“Send him in,” Mike said, trying not to sigh and clearing the screen on his computer. The operation had turned out to be almost nightmarishly complex and making sure all the strands were in place had become a day-by-day struggle. The last thing he needed was to deal with the often long-winded Father Kulcyanov.
It had ended up making more sense to move in stages. The freighter didn’t need much in the way of modification for the mission so, since the one they’d hired had been in the western Med when the deal was made, it had headed directly for Albanian waters.
The helicopter company, Russkiya Heavy Lift, had often operated in and around Macedonia and Albania, supplying implementation forces and humanitarian operations. With a few words in the right ears, getting permission for the helicopters to pick up an “oil rig relief team” hadn’t been hard.
The teams were, thus, to be flown into Hellenica airport, board busses and drive to the Greek coast, then be picked up by the choppers and flown out to the freighter.
The biggest hassle had been getting the equipment to them. This had required the services of another freighter and a mid-ocean transfer managed by Chief Adams.
Pulling it all together had been a constant struggle with logistics while maintaining security. Vanner had ended up going to Spain to arrange the freighter, Chief Adams had put more pages into his passport flying to Turkey and Greece to ensure the arms made it through, and even Nielson had had to fly to Germany for an updated intel brief. Carlson-Smith had smoothed the way in Greece and found a rather respectable looking fellow who knew an enormous amount about the safe industry. He had turned out to be unwilling to actually put his life in jeopardy, but he had determined the actual safe that the Albanians had installed, its location, and carefully drilled some of the Keldara women in the opening method.
And if it turned out to be the wrong safe, Mike was planning on using the chief’s method and the hell with the contents.
Mike admitted that without the chief and Nielson, not to mention Carlson-Smith, he would have been lost. Hell, even Daria had been doing dog work keeping up with all the paperwork. She had a better ground-level feel for what was where at any time than the rest of them.
This level of organization and support was so far beyond his previous training he half the time had no clue what people were talking about in the, frequent, meetings. But he doggedly asked questions until he understood, came up with a series of checkpoints and times for people to make and then ensured they did. And Daria kept up with those without batting an eye.
Russell had turned out to be a keeper. The big former Ranger had apparently soaked up everything the U.S. Army had to tell about airmobile operations and had drilled the Keldara mercilessly. In less than a week he had every one of the teams fully trained on everything from fast-rope work to sling-lift. They wouldn’t need the latter as far as Mike could tell, but it was nice that they were trained.
If things slowed down for a while he might just get a plane and start training them on parachute work. What the hell.
“Kildar, it is good to see you,” Father Kulcyanov said, entering the office at a dignified pace.
“And you, Father Kulcyanov,” Mike said, pulling a chair around to the coffee table in the office. “How are the crops?”
“They are well, Kildar,” the elder replied as Anastasia directed one of the harem girls to lay out tea. “It is difficult with the young men all engaged in preparing for the mission, but we persevere. This mission is important to the Keldara and to you and we are your followers.”
“And the Family is well?” Mike asked picking up one of the teacups and taking a sip.
“The Family is well,” Father Kulcyanov said, sipping at the tea and nodding. “Well. But to support you and yours through the generations, we must increase, Kildar.”
“I hope that all is well with the women?” Mike asked, confused.
“All is well,” Father Kulcyanov said, nodding sagely. “Women are a trial, but we must have them to support the home, yes?” He nodded at the girl who was still standing by in case the Kildar needed anything.
“And support the militia,” Mike pointed out. “The girls on the mission were invaluable. The Keldara are amazing people.”
“But to have more Keldara,” Father Kulcyanov said, “we must have marriages, Kildar.”
“Oh,” Mike said, shaking his head. “This is the Kardane thing, isn’t it? Thank you, Lida, that will be all,” Mike added, gesturing with his chin for the girl to leave the room.
“The wedding is in only four weeks, Kildar,” Father Kulcyanov said, regally. “You will be gone for two of those, at least…”
“And it’s not a good idea to have the ceremony on the day before the wedding, huh?” Mike said. “Father, we are very busy—”
“We have secured the horses you requested,” Father Kulcyanov said, ignoring the argument. “All is prepared, Kildar. When can you perform the Rite of Kardane?”