Fate Intended (The Coulter Men Series Book 3) (19 page)

“Jane, I love you. Come with me. We’ll go see Sasha and ask her to explain what I heard.”

Jane’s eyes narrowed and she backed away from him. “How do I know where you might take me? Go to hell, Trip.”

“Jane.” He breathed and stepped toward her cautiously like he was coaxing a jumper from a ledge.

“Take another step and I will scream.”

“Please,” he begged.

Jane took another step back, then spun on her heel and ran. Trip started after her, but was instantly grabbed by security.

Chapter 25

“What do you mean, ‘she’s dead’?” Frankie demanded.

“She is dead,” Sasha answered matter-of-factly. “Legally dead. She died last year. Announced in papers, she was put in coffin and buried. Dead. To the world? She is dead.”

Frankie frowned, and his eyes narrowed. “Don’t play games with me Sasha. What the hell are you talking about? Are you telling me Jane’s an imposter?”

“No, Jane is who she says she is—well, with the exception of her name. It’s really Anya, not Jane. And her last name isn’t Mitchell, it’s Sarkhov. She was drugged, then revived, then I took her from the country where she would be safe.”

“Safe from who?”

Sasha shrugged. “Viktor’s not certain. He has suspicions, but he needs proof.”

“And Viktor is Jane’s father?”

Sasha nodded. Frankie went to open his mouth, but shut it with a snap as his phone rang. He shot Sasha a look of annoyance. She folded her arms over her chest and looked away. She pretended not to listen, but she couldn’t help but hold her breath and focus on Frankie’s low voice. She could barely hear, his head was dropped and his words were few. A couple of
are you sures?
and that was about all. He snapped his phone closed and looked up at her and took a deep breath. “So, Viktor Sarkhov is dead too, eh?”

She bit her cheek and nodded. “Legally.”

“So we got two goddam dead people running around…the question is why? And who the hell was Mr. Black, who seems to be the only son of a bitch who’s truly dead.”

“Mr. Black isn’t dead.”

“The hell he isn’t. They found him floating in the Potomac.”

Her head shook. “No. That’s not….”

“I just talked to my inside guy at the CIA. Viktor Sarhkov—shot dead by a KGB informant…. Or well, so the official story says. And Mr. Black dead by suffocation probably three days ago, body recovered this morning.”

“But I talked to him a few hours ago.”

“Black ain’t talkin’ to anybody, sweetheart. I suggest you tell me everything, and you tell me fast. Your contact could be a double agent or God knows who.”

Sasha stared at the walls as if she expected a solution to materialize on them. “I was asked to keep Jane safe.”

“And you will…if you trust me.”

Frankie grabbed her arm. “There’s no time for this, and you know it.”

“I should call Viktor.” Sasha grabbed her phone and dialed. Her foot tapped on the floor as she waited. No answer. She dialed the number again. Still, no answer. “I don’t understand. I talked to Viktor right before you came. He always answers.”

“Holy shit, lady. Don’t you get it? Whoever you talked to this morning wasn’t Black. Whoever it was is probably the same guy who killed the real Black. I’m assuming he knows where to find you?”

Sasha nodded slowly. “The courier brought me Jane’s new passport.”

“So, whoever killed Black knows exactly where Jane is headed?”

“Oh my God.” She paced, her mind swirled. “Oh, I…I have to get to Jane.”

“Hopefully, Trip has her by now.”

“But I told him the wrong airport!”

“We figured it out. Nice try, by the way.”

“I promised I’d keep her safe. I owe Viktor. I’d be dead or worse if it weren’t for him. He bribed party members to get me set free, even after three arrests.”

“So, that’s how you made it out. I figured as much. Beautiful woman like you…”

“It wasn’t like that. Not Viktor. He treated me like a daughter, or a niece. He was good to me. He just wanted someone he could trust to be there for Jane. His compound was all men. He worried Jane would get too rough; thought she needed a woman around.”

“So he springs a thief and a….”

“Whore?” She grabbed her pack of cigarettes and dropped into the couch. She picked at the cellophane wrapper. “I don’t know why Viktor trusted me. Especially not with his daughter. I wouldn’t.”

“I wasn’t going to say that.” He sat beside her. “And you have kept her safe.”

“Until now.” Tears burned in her eyes. Her hands were twitchy, and she tried to pull a smoke out, but she couldn’t settle them enough to be useful.

Frankie took them from her, pulled one out, lit it, and handed it back. Taking it with a nod, she reached for the ashtray on the end table and cradled it in her lap.

“Any idea who might want Jane dead? For real dead?”

“Any number of people would kidnap her for ransom, but the only one that would want her dead, to just be dead.”

He tapped himself out a smoke. “And that would be?”

“Damn it. I hate to say. If I am wrong, then Viktor would be pissed I ever said it.”

Frankie made an exaggerated sweep of the room. “It’s just you and me, babe.”

Sasha snorted.

“Bugs? You think the place is bugged?”

“Of course not!” she whispered.

“Then who? God damn it! How long do you think we have until someone comes for you? When Trip gets Jane off that plane, whoever is looking for Jane will come up empty-handed and they’ll come where?”

“Here.”

“Of course here. And they’ll find us sharing smokes and talking about the mysteries of the free freaking world. What the hell is going on?”

Sasha’s hands shook. “Viktor is a Russian businessman.” She cleared her throat. “But some of his businesses are less than totally legal. But he is good man.”

“Get to the meat, Sasha. We may not have a lot of time.”

“Okay, okay. I’m not sure what you want to know.”

“Why is Viktor dead?”

“His business was being corrupted. Someone within was trafficking in little girls and women. KGB came to Viktor and told him their suspicions. Viktor was furious, and he wanted to the bottom of the problem quickly, so KGB starts to work with Viktor…under disguise.”

“So, he was working with the KGB?”

Sasha nodded. “Yes. And they were following the threads back…from brothels to orphanages to Viktor’s business. Viktor told me he was pretty sure who was involved, then strange things started to happen…weird accidents for him and Jane. Viktor told me it was getting too dangerous, that he was closing in on the guilty, but couldn’t say unless he was absolutely certain.” Sasha took another drag.

She closed her eyes a moment and tried to stay focused. “The KGB agent, he suggested the fake death. They figured with Viktor gone, whoever was involved would be bolder. Viktor wasn’t convinced.” Sasha sighed. “But then, the last day…Jane’s dog, Oslo, ate a plate of cookies off of Viktor’s desk, and the dog fell over dead.” Sasha’s closed her eyes at the memory. “The little thing didn’t even twitch. Just died. Cookies were filled with poison.”

“So, of course, Viktor decided to die.” Her leg continued to bounce, but it slowed a little. “Viktor and Demetry quickly hatched a plan. They
fought
over wages…the commotion brought Jane to the room in time to see Demetry fire at Viktor. Well, then Jane launches herself at Demetry and out the window they both go. Jane was knocked unconscious.

“KGB gave her drugs to make her look dead. She even had a funeral with casket and all.” Sasha rubbed her forehead. “She wasn’t supposed to remember any of that, but she’s been plagued by nightmares ever since, I wanted to explain but I couldn’t. All that really mattered was that she stay hidden.”

Sasha looked up at him, her voice clear and strong, “Viktor told me to get Jane out of Russia. To keep her safe until he said everything was all right. And everything was all right until she met your friend.” Her eyes narrowed. “I told her none of you could be trusted.”

“So, Jane has been hiding here while the world thinks she’s dead?”

“Yes. But Jane doesn’t know she’s dead. She thinks she’s wanted for Demetry’s murder.”

Frankie shook his head and grunted. “Why the hell would you guys lie to her?”

“To protect her. You don’t know Jane. She lunged at a man with a gun! If she thought people were getting hurt, she’d try to help.” Sasha’s head shook. “And that would be dangerous for her. She is not capable of dealing with such evil.” She looked at Frankie hard. “And these people…who steal children and women? They are pure evil.”

“I agree. It was actually a pretty good plan.”

“Yeah! Until that bitch ran her fingerprints!”

Frankie rubbed his eyes with the palms of his hands and asked, “So, who is Mr.Black, and why would someone want him dead?”

“He is our CIA contact. He gets me passports and money when I need it. He brought the stuff for Jane a while ago; said his liaison, Mr. White, would bring me one in a bit.”

Frankie leaped from his seat and dragged Sasha with him. “Pack your things, Sasha. I need to get you the hell out of here.”

Sasha paled. “I…don’t….”

“Get what you need. I mean it.” Frankie pulled a gun from a holster behind his back. He checked the clip and took it off safety. He went to the front door, stepping over and crunching the glass on the floor as he walked. Locking it, he slid the chain lock in place. “How soon did he say he’d be here?”

Sasha looked at the clock on the wall. She chewed her lips as she thought. “He said two hours…and that was over an hour….”

“Just get a bag and let’s go.”

Sasha headed to her room, stopped and called, “Frosty. Frosty! Come to Auntie Sash.” The dog came squirming out from under a chair. “Come on, baby. We’ve got to go.” Sasha grabbed at the dog, who in turn grabbed a ball, growled, and took off. He hid under Jane’s bed. Sasha’s voice was brittle as she got down on her knees and begged, “Please, Frosty. We must go!”

*****

Jane kept looking over her shoulder. She expected Trip to reappear, to confuse her even more than she already was.

Jane’s heart pounded in her chest, and she was having difficulty taking a deep breath. She stood in the ticket line, her hands shaking so badly she had to grip the straps of her purse to still them.

She kept repeating Trip’s words in her head. He tapped Sasha’s phone. That made him a spy, which made Sasha right. She bit her lip. So he was probably using her. But for what? Did he know she was wanted for murder? And if so, why not just arrest her?

He had to be after something else, but what? Maybe they thought she knew something about her father’s business. And the millions of dollars he had tied up in it. But wouldn’t Nikki be a better person to check into? Or could Trip be with the Bratva? Maybe Poppa had done something to anger them? No. Not Poppa. He was loyal and trusted, even his rival red fellas respected him. He was a name to know, even by public officials. No one would have anything against him.

No one but Nikki.

Jane’s mind raced putting the clues together. Maybe, just maybe, Nikki didn’t have Poppa’s money. Maybe he thought she had it. Maybe he was using Trip to weasel his way into her life and find out if she had the money.

That would explain getting between her and Sasha. Sasha was too clever and would see through ruses and lies. But why would he tell her Poppa was alive? In the midst of all of her current turmoil, the little girl in her had a tiny spring of hope. What if he was alive?

But what would make him hide from her? Make her suffer from the loss?

No, he wouldn’t do that to her. If he was alive, he would get her out of trouble with the KGB. Jane remembered their last night together. Poppa had asked her to walk with him.

“You are a grown woman, Anya. Grown enough to understand a few things. Things you must accept to be safe should something happen to your poppa.”

“Don’t talk like that, Poppa. It’s depressing. Let’s talk of a holiday…maybe go see Aunt Tilley?”

“No. Anya. You need to listen. Nikki is returning home tomorrow. He has gotten himself in trouble with some very bad people.” He stopped walking as if they revelation wore the strength from him. “He has done some things that are unforgivable. He is coming to me to have me clean it all up, but I don’t know if I can. And if rumors are true….” He shook his head and started walking again.

Jane grabbed him by the arm. “What rumors, Poppa?”

“Terrible things,
dorogaya dochka
. Terrible things. If these things are true…” He shook his head and looked to the horizon with a sigh, “then I can think only that your brother is pure evil. A demon.” Tears clouded his eyes. He cursed and looked away. Jane grabbed him and gave him a hug. He squeezed her tight. He was strong for an older man, his body hard from boxing in the gym.

“No, Poppa,” she assured him. “Nikki is just a man.”

He nodded, his whiskered chin rubbing her cheek. “I hope you are right, little one.” He stepped back and smiled at her. He wrapped an arm across her shoulder and walked on toward the pond. “Still, I have an ill omen for the future. Hopefully it is just the imagination of an old man. But I want you to promise me that no matter what happens, you will be strong and be smart. Trust Poppa, eh? No matter what, trust Poppa.”

She smiled up at him. “Of course.”

“You are my light, little Anya. As much as Nikki is my dark, you are my light. But both of you are my children so I have to try and save your brother.”

“I understand. We will help him together.”