Her selfless warrior, p.8
Her Selfless Warrior, page 8
They immediately put on their helmets, facemasks, and goggles, and if Kostya hadn’t taken note of where they’d been seated, he wouldn’t have been able to tell them apart.
“What’s up?” Nolan asked through their comm system.
“Trouble,” Ryker answered with a laugh. “The question is, how bad. So how bad, Lieutenant?”
“Nothing that should require a gun,” Kostya answered as he climbed in the back and grabbed his goggles and face mask. He’d already been wearing his comm device around his neck, he just hadn’t activated it.
Kostya heard Lincoln mutter, “Should.” That was Lincoln Hart; his man was as pessimistic as he was. He liked that about the man. He and all of his men would be locked and loaded as they vacated the truck, because should didn’t mean jackshit.
“We’ve got a semi blocking a good part of the road. The good news is it isn’t tipped, the bad news is, we can’t tell if other cars or trucks are involved, or if there are injuries. Don’t see any emergency vehicles,” Gideon explained.
It didn’t matter how fucking sweet their arctic gear was—the second the doors to the SUSI opened, it was fucking cold. Kostya jumped out and led the way to the semi. They spread out, Gideon took the right followed by half the team and Kostya took the left. It took just moments to assess the situation and realize there was nothing they could do for the driver of the truck, or for the family of three in the car that had been partially crushed underneath the backend of the full trailer.
Kostya insisted on handling the body of the little boy who couldn’t be more than ten years old. As he held the fragile figure surrounded by the swirling snow, it was as if he was back in time, seeing the snowflakes crystallize on Roman’s eyelashes, the only color on his face the blue of his lips.
Sebastian broke open the lock of the trailer and his men pulled out boxes of appliances to make room for the bodies.
“I got ahold of the authorities in Joensuu,” Gideon told them over the comm system. “Come daylight they’ll send someone to pick up the bodies and notify next-of-kin.”
The men were all subdued as they climbed back into the SUSI. Kostya drove around the wreck and continued down Route 74. The snow had tapered off, just a little. Now Kostya was able to increase his speed to eighteen kilometers an hour. Who knew, he might get to the Koivusuo Strict Nature Reserve within the week.
Okay, fine, we’ll be there by tomorrow evening, it’ll just feel like a week.
7
Lincoln was driving again when they made it to the west side of Ozero Yulya-Viyeks”Yarvi, in Russia. It had taken five days from the time they’d left Helsinki. They could have made it there faster if they hadn’t needed to take a day and scout out where the cameras, guard towers, and landmines were and ensure that they circumvented them.
Right now there was a break in the storm and the sun was shining, but according to the International Weather Bureau, it wasn’t going to last for long. Besides it not snowing, Kostya was also thankful that the howling wind was silent for a change, too. It made it easier to think.
They were all taking a break from being cooped up in the all-terrain vehicle, God knew they needed a chance to stretch their legs.
“It’s beautiful,” Ryker said in a hushed tone. He’d grown up in Southern California. Kostya managed not to roll his eyes. He took a deep breath. He could swear that the air smelled different; it was as if he could taste Russia.
Gideon looked over at Kostya. Even behind his polarized goggles, Kostya could feel his piercing gaze. His friend didn’t know his entire story. He knew that his parents died in Russia and that he and his sister were Russian refugees, but he didn’t know about Kostya’s brother, Roman. It was a story he couldn’t bring himself to tell.
“Do you have a lock on where Commander Clark said the Russians were building?” Kostya asked Gideon as he came closer.
Gideon pushed up his goggles and peered down at the device in his hands and nodded. “It’s fifteen kilometers southeast of the lake.” Kostya held out his hand and Gideon gave him the device.
Before examining the GPS, Kostya took another look around and studied his men. They all looked in good shape, some even had the good sense to be putting on sunscreen. Gideon looked around and smirked.
“There’s one thing I won’t be needing.”
Kostya looked at his friend’s mahogany skin. “Still isn’t going to make up for the burning sensation you suffered from losing the pool to Ryker. Wasn’t that two hundred dollars?” Kostya grinned.
Gideon shrugged. “I forgot to factor in that Ryker more than likely plays Call of Duty with Landon regularly.”
Kostya snorted. “Seems to me that was a pretty major oversight.”
“Yeah, well, I noticed you lost out on the pool, too.” Gideon smirked.
Kostya sighed. What could he say, Ryker had snookered them all. He looked down at the upgraded navigation device and hit the toggle button.
“So, fifteen kilometers southeast of the lake?” he asked Gideon again.
“That’s what the satellite images showed two months ago.” Gideon nodded. “They saw the trucks going in, but never coming out.”
“What the hell kind of trucks made it into the forest? Are you telling me there are roads in there?”
Gideon unbuckled his arctic backpack and fished out his tablet. They went back to the SUSI and bent over the hood. After spending days in it, neither of them was eager to get back into the vehicle. Gideon pulled up a map of Western Russia and zoomed in on their location. “This road encircles the lake and will eventually get to a highway that leads into St. Petersburg. The trucks went into the forest here.” Gideon pointed to a spot where there was no discernable road breaking off into the forest.
“Do you have the sat images on your tablet?” Kostya asked.
They immediately flashed on the screen. Apparently, Gideon had once again anticipated his request.
“Can you zoom in?” Kostya asked.
“Nope, this was as good as it got. I already asked the techs to get clearer images and they couldn’t.”
“So we have no idea what they were hauling or what they were driving,” Kostya said in disgust.
“Nope.”
“And when the satellite passed again?”
“Nothing.”
“What are you thinking we can do with your magic box?” Kostya asked Gideon.
“Go to where they drove in, then do a grid search and see if anything solid pings. Not trees or rocks, but more like a building.” Gideon grinned at him. “But you already knew that.”
“Seemed like the logical thing to do,” Kostya agreed.
Gideon sobered up. “Do you think they’re alive?”
“I really don’t know. But I think somebody in there,” Kostya said pointing to the screen, “knows. I intend to go in there and shake things up and get some answers.”
“How far are you willing to go to get answers?” Gideon asked quietly.
Kostya gave Gideon a penetrating stare. “Things in Russia have supposedly changed since I was a child. The Soviet Empire collapsed and now we’re all friends and on the same side, right?”
Gideon nodded. “Sure, we share a space station.”
Kostya’s jaw tightened. “Don’t you fucking believe it. Leopards don’t change their spots. Sure, some of Russia embraces the West, but there is a part of Russia that will always be a power-hungry autocracy. It might smile to the world, but deep down there will always be a small dark underbelly that can’t be trusted.”
Gideon frowned. “Kostya, that’s cold.”
“No, that’s real. I’ll know who we’re dealing with when we get there. It’ll be on me to decide how I play things. You will all be out of it.”
Gideon snorted. “So sorry, Boss. That is so not how things work. I believe we are called a team. I know English isn’t your first language and all, so you might want to go look that up, but in a team, we work together.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry, Chief Petty Officer, didn’t you hear? I’m what is called a lieutenant. That’s an officer, which means I outrank you. That’s a word you might want to look up. You and all of the other enlisted men might want to remember that when I give orders tomorrow. You got that?”
Gideon rolled his eyes. “Sure I do.”
Asshole.
The good weather lasted exactly two seconds as far as Kostya was concerned. How in the hell had that happened he wanted to know as he glared up at the dark sky that was spitting a blanket of snow down on him.
“Got anything yet?”
“You asked that thirty seconds ago, Lieutenant,” Gideon muttered into his mic. Kostya didn’t bother to respond. His second-in-command knew damn good and well that Kostya had not asked thirty seconds ago—it had been precisely ten minutes since he’d asked for an update. Kostya and his men were in the forest following a grid pattern search and rescue protocol, being directed by Gideon. They’d been at this since sunset and it was nearing midnight. Seriously, Gideon should be in a better mood since his happy ass was planted back in the SUSI coordinating things while the rest of them were balls-deep in slush.
Kostya tramped past the clearing and was once again under the deep, aged forest growth where he was protected from the snow. It was eerily quiet and sent his mind spinning backward in time to when he had been a shivering seven-year-old carrying his baby sister and cajoling his older brother to keep up, glaring at the big man who had greedily taken their diamonds to get them over the Russian border but unwilling to do more than lead them.
Gideon’s voice jerked him to the present. “Got something. It’s big and it’s square, underneath the trees.” He gave out the coordinates. Kostya calculated where his men were and realized that Sebastian was the closest. Hell, he was almost on top of whatever the Russians had built.
“Sebastian, halt,” Kostya commanded. “Linc, Landon, you’re closest to him. When you’re together, reconnoiter and report. Gideon, can you pinpoint any smaller items, like the number of vehicles?”
“Give me a few and I’ll have a diagram flushed out of what’s there and I’ll send it to all of you via your hand-helds.”
“Sebastian, did you see any sign of a path that led to the facility?” Kostya asked.
“Negative.”
“I’ve got something, Lieutenant,” Landon answered. He must be crossing over tracks to get to Sebastian.
“What?” Kostya asked.
“No discernable path, what with all the snow, but you can see the cut trees.”
“We’ll stay far away from that entry point, Boss, as we enter,” Linc said.
While Kostya waited for another report from that trio, he turned his attention to his other men.
“Mateo and Nolan, you head northwest one kilometer around the back of the coordinates. Ryker, I’ll meet you a kilometer southwest from the coordinates. Gideon, get us that map, STAT.”
“On it,” Gideon replied.
“Linc and Landon are with me,” Sebastian reported.
Kostya breathed a sigh of relief as he started jogging to where he was going to meet Ryker. He was happy the team went back to radio silence. He knew that their new communication frequency was supposed to be tighter than a gnat’s ass, but it was his job to worry. Of course, the new magic box—
Kostya shook his head, he needed to start referring to it by its proper name; Muometric Positioning System, aka muPS, which only made him think of the frickin’ Muppets.
He felt his handheld vibrate against his thermals and stopped so he could fish it out from under his parka. He looked over the map that Gideon had sent, which looked pretty damn good, and spoke into his mic. “How accurate are the dimensions?” he shot out to Gideon.
“Spot on. You’ve got two T-90s.”
Kostya winced; that was exactly what he’d deduced.
“Shit,” Ryker muttered. “They have tanks.”
“Who cares, we have Semtex!” Landon said with glee.
“What’s this we shit? Lincoln, tell me you haven’t given the kid any of the Play-Doh, I don’t trust him.” Sebastian’s Cajun accent came over the receiver loud and clear.
Kostya heard Linc snort. “Not bloody well likely.”
“Ah, come on, be cool. I’m dating this new woman. She’s a sculptor and she works with clay all the time. I’d rock it with Semtex.”
“Shut up, all of you,” Mateo snarled. “We have tanks. It looks like one main building and three outbuildings. Do you hear dogs?”
“Negative,” Linc answered.
“Well, that’s something, at least,” Mateo muttered.
Mateo needs to learn how to ease up just a little. I’ll have to talk to him when we get home.
Kostya watched as Ryker jogged up close to him. Ryker pulled down part of his face covering. “He’s dating a sculptor?” Ryker mouthed.
Kostya shrugged. His head hurt just thinking about it. He twirled his finger, then pulled out his binoculars and Ryker followed suit. First, he looked to see if he could spot Mateo and Nolan, but he couldn’t. He grunted in satisfaction; it meant that the arctic camouflage gear was working. He then turned his attention to the buildings. There wasn’t even a fence around the perimeter.
Hmm, so they’re that sure of their security out in the middle of nowhere.
“You’d think we would be seeing some kind of smokestack for heating,” Sebastian said over the comm.
“It’s got to be an underground geothermal system,” Gideon explained. “The whole thing sounds pretty damned sophisticated for being in the middle of nowhere.”
That’s what Kostya was thinking too. This wasn’t just some station set up to spy on Finland, this was a major operation that Russia wanted to protect. He wasn’t so sure it had anything to do with being close to their Scandinavian neighbors.
This is not good, not good at all.
“Can you report this to Commander Clark?” Kostya asked Gideon. With the shitstorm snowstorm, he had no idea how good the satellite phones to the US were going to be. Hell, the only reason the commlinks between the eight of them were working was because of proximity.
“It’s a no-go,” Gideon said.
Kostya had figured as much. He just wanted command to know they were onto something big, not that he was going to let either the brass or the suits get in the way of his mission. He knew in his gut that this place knew something about the scientists’ disappearance and he was going to get to the bottom of it, no matter what he had to do.
8
“No sign of tracks,” Linc reported.
Ryker swept his glove over his goggles so he could peer at Kostya.
“That’s because they’re not dumb enough to be out playing in the snow at the butt-crack of dawn,” Ryker said.
Kostya nodded in agreement. “Go in slow, men, we have time. I want to take this nice and easy, no mistakes. Give reports as soon as you get to a building or one of the vehicles.”
He listened for everyone’s agreement before he and Ryker started forward.
Kostya held back and let Ryker take point. His man’s lean-muscled body ate up the distance and they were soon at the first outbuilding.
“Team, hold up.”
“What is it?” Gideon asked.
“This outbuilding is made out of cement blocks. Does anyone else have eyes on any of the buildings? Are you close enough to see what kind of building material was used?”
“We’re not close enough,” Linc reported. “But besides the tanks, I’ve got one humongous two-sectioned tracked truck. And when I say humongous, I’m talking Hulk-sized. Lieutenant, if you’re saying the buildings were made out of cement blocks, trucks like this sure as hell could have hauled them in.”
“Do you think this could be a Vityaz?” Gideon asked. Kostya could hear the excitement in his second-in-command’s voice. Shit, his man was geeking out again.
“Gideon, I don’t know what the fuck a Vityaz is,” Lincoln answered. “But if it is an all-terrain vehicle that looks like it might even have amphibious capabilities, this might be your guy.”
“Shhieeeyt!”
Yep, new tech did it for Gideon Smith every damn time.
“Kostya, what’s the significance of the cement blocks?” Gideon asked.
“It would be a pain in the ass to haul in. Normally in this part of the world, everything is built with wood. This is some heavy-duty protection.”
“You would have thought that being in the middle of butt-fuck-nowhere would have been protection enough,” Linc said. “And hell, building an electric fence would have been far easier.”
“Or maybe it’s more about keeping something in,” Kostya said slowly. He didn’t like this. What were they hiding?
“Way to shit all over a sunny day, Boss.” Gideon sighed into his microphone. Kostya heard the others laugh.
“We’re at an outbuilding,” Nolan reported. “Mateo and I will check out all sides and report what we find.”
“We’re here at the vehicles,” Seb reported. “We’re going to check them all out and report back.”
“Take pictures and send them to me,” Gideon told them. “I want to know what we’re up against.”
“Why not just disable them now?” Nolan asked.
“Boss?” Sebastian queried.
“I would love to, but there’s no way to do it quietly. Set the charge so we’re set up to take them out at a moment’s notice. As for the new love in Gideon’s life, the Vityaz set something up that you can easily take off. My gut’s telling me we might need it later.”
“Roger that.”
Kostya tilted his head toward the outbuilding he and Ryker were coming up to and his man immediately moved to the left to scout out the north side of the building. They’d meet up on the east side.
As Kostya went around the south side it was easy to see that whoever built the place wasn’t much for aesthetics. All the windows were close to the roofline. They were only to let in some light, not for the occupants to enjoy the view. Normally, it would be tough for somebody from the outside to peek into, but they didn’t take into consideration that someone would be standing on days and days of snow accumulation, which made it easy for Kostya to peer inside.
