Shadow Zone (12 page)

After a couple of minutes, Eugenia finally took off the headset and turned back to Hannah and Ed. “I may have gotten a lead.”

Ed raised a hand. “Save it, please. I don’t wish to hear. For your protection and mine.”

Eugenia nodded. “I understand. I am in your debt, Ed. If there’s ever anything I can do for you . . .”

He shrugged. “My wife’s mother wants to become an American citizen, but she’s having some difficulty. Anything you can do?”

“I might.” Eugenia thought for a moment. “There are people in the State Department who owe me favors. I’m about to leave the country for a few days, but when I get back, I’ll call you and get the details.”

“Thank you, my dear.” He walked with them to the door. “I’ll tell my wife. She’ll be delighted.”

Hannah turned to Eugenia as they left the store. “When you said you’ll be out of the country, do you mean we’ll
both
be out of the country?”

“Yes. Gorecki’s brother wasn’t exactly forthcoming at first, but he and I go back a long time. He still made me swear I would never tell Kirov where I got my information.”

“He’s been in contact with Kirov?”

“He didn’t supply Kirov with a gun himself, but he recently put him in touch with someone else who did.”

“Where?”

“Dublin. This was just in the past couple of days, so there’s a good chance he’s still somewhere in Ireland.” A troubled expression crossed her face. “But I’m uneasy. I don’t like this at all . . .”

“What’s wrong?” Hannah asked. “It’s a lot more than we knew just a few minutes ago.”

“Gorecki told me something else,” Eugenia said grimly. “Kirov didn’t want only one weapon. Apparently he was looking for enough weaponry to equip a small army.”

After a quick stop at Eugenia’s Union Square apartment, they made their way to JFK Airport to catch a 10:50
P.M.
flight to Dublin. At midnight, Hannah found herself in the alcove of the 787 Dreamliner wide-body aircraft, sipping her sparkling water. She had been peppered with questions by a nearby couple who recognized her from the Discovery Channel specials, and she hoped they would be asleep by the time she returned to her seat. She checked her watch. Three and a half hours before they reached Dublin.

Eugenia approached her and leaned against the bulkhead. “You’re more famous than I thought. Your two fans are wondering where you went.”

“I usually like talking to people, but I have a lot on my mind right now. I hope I wasn’t rude.”

“No, you were quite gracious. After you left, the woman made her husband get a camera out of her carry-on bag. I think they want a picture with you before we land.”

Hannah smiled. “I’d better freshen up, then. I’m sure I look like hell.”

“Only a little bit like hell. It won’t matter to them anyway.”

Hannah finished her sparkling water. “Thank you, Eugenia. I don’t know where I’d be if you didn’t help me.”

“You would have found a way. Your whole life is about finding solutions to problems. I’m quite sure you would have found a solution to this one.”

“Well, I’m happy the solution turned out to be you.”

“I’m happy to help you, Hannah. I’m very loyal to my friends, and I count you as a true friend. But like I said, I owe Kirov my life. I would never do anything that I thought might hurt him.”

“I was afraid you would feel like you were betraying Kirov.”

She shook her head. “No. I wouldn’t be here if I thought that’s what I was doing. As much as I want to help you, my real mission here is to help Kirov. And not the way you were talking about. He’s quite capable of taking care of himself. But when you told me that he was involved in the deaths of those two men in Venice, that worried me more than anything else.”

“Why?” Hannah asked.

She was silent a moment. “After his wife was murdered, Kirov was totally consumed. You know how that feels. You went through it after your brother’s death. But for you, it was only a matter of a couple weeks. Think about what it would have been like to have that rage inside you for fifteen years. That’s how long it took Kirov to eliminate the people responsible for his wife’s killing.”

“But he succeeded. It’s over.”

“That’s what I thought. All those years he traveled the world and lived outside the law, all for the sake of vengeance. I thought he might finally find peace. But from what you’ve told me, I don’t believe he’s found it.”

“How can you be sure? We don’t know what he’s doing.”

“I’m not sure. I’m just trying to work my way through this.” Eugenia shook her head. “He may be like a man who’s spent most of his life in prison, unable to function in the real world. Kirov spent almost fifteen years in the prison he made for himself, and he may not know how to live any other way.”

“Lord, that sounds terrible. I hope that’s not true.” But that might explain why Kirov left so abruptly, she thought. Oh, what the hell, she just didn’t know, and she refused to speculate until she was face-to-face with Kirov.

“I may be wrong. But if I’m not, he needs to know he has connections in this world, people who love and care about him.” Eugenia gave her a cool smile. “And I’m very fond of you, but in my mind, that’s what all this is about. And it’s especially important that you be there, Hannah, because I know how he feels about you.”

“You don’t know any such thing. It’s all guesswork on your part.”

“I’m very good at guessing. If you’re important to him, then I’m going to do what’s necessary to bring you to him.”

“Why do I feel as if I’m being served up to Kirov on a silver platter?”

“Nonsense. I’m too much of a feminist to ever do that. But I owe him my life, and he comes first. I had to give you warning that I want Kirov to have whatever he needs or wants.”

“Including weapons to supply an army?”

“If he can convince me it’s good for him. That’s the bottom line.” She turned and started down the aisle. “Now you’d better get back to your seat and have that picture taken with your fans. I don’t want to waste any time when we reach Dublin.”

After the plane landed and they cleared Customs, Hannah stepped outside to make a phone call to Melis while Eugenia went to the business center to print out and sign some e-mailed documents. Melis answered on the first ring. She was still on the
Fair Winds,
heading home.

“Ireland?” Melis asked after getting a full update. “I didn’t think we’d find any answers there.”

“We still may not, but it’s the only lead we have. I’ll let you know what we turn up. By the way, how are Pete and Susie?”

“They left even before we moved away from the site. Their usual communion with the local dolphin population.”

“Don’t worry. They’ll find you.”

“We’ll see. By the way, Ebersole wants to find
you
. He was annoyed that you helicoptered away from the
Copernicus
without talking to him. He says you two have some unfinished AquaCorp business to discuss.”

“They have another job for me, but he wouldn’t discuss it at the time. I didn’t push him. I got the impression I wouldn’t be happy about it. Frankly, I don’t need the aggravation right now.”

“Well, I gather Ebersole’s bosses are putting a lot of pressure on him. I’m sure you’ll be getting some frantic phone calls.”

“I saw them in my voice-mail box. I’ll be sure to screen my calls while I’m here.”

“Good idea.”

Hannah could hear a somber note in Melis’s voice. She wasn’t accustomed to hearing her sounding so depressed, but between the theft of her prized artifact and the possible loss of Pete and Susie, who could blame her? “Melis, get back to your lab and work. It’s the only way you’re going to get your mind off all this. I’ll bring back that trellis, I promise.”

“Thanks, Hannah.” She paused. “But I can’t leave it entirely up to you. This is my job, my Marinth. I’ll give you another few days to locate Kirov and get some answers. After that, I’m going to let Jed hire those investigators, and I’m going hunting myself.”

Dear heaven, that was the last thing she wanted to happen. “Don’t do it, Melis.”

“My Marinth,” Melis repeated quietly. “I’ll be waiting for your call.”

Hannah cut the connection. Damn. As frustrated as she was, it was only a fraction of what Melis must have been feeling and no wonder she—

“Hannah?”

She whirled and saw Eugenia behind her. “I’ve just finished talking to Melis and—” She stopped as she saw the expression on Eugenia’s face. “What’s wrong?”

Eugenia glanced at the man who had come to stand next to her. He was a middle-aged man with a pencil-thin mustache, and his suit and overcoat made him indistinguishable from the scores of other business travelers waiting in the busy airport pickup area.

“Tell her,” he said.

Eugenia leaned closer to Hannah. “Trouble. According to this man, a sniper has you in his sights, and he’ll fire if we don’t do exactly what he says.”

Hannah turned to look at the man in astonishment. “That’s crazy. Do you believe him?”

“Look at the sign next to you,” he said quietly. “Pay particular attention to the final ‘o.’ ”

Hannah turned. The sign read
PASSENGER LOADING AND UNLOADING ONLY
. While she looked, a neat, round hole appeared in the middle of the “o” from “only.”

Hannah spun toward a building facing them, knowing that the bullet must have come from there. If there was any noise from the shot, it had been masked by the sounds of the traffic and nearby jets. No one else had even noticed it.

“George is a very good shot, an expert sniper,” the mustached man said. “It could just as well have been any part of your anatomy. Or that of this other lady.”

A black Mercedes-Benz limousine pulled to a stop in front of them. The man opened the rear door for them. “Please get in. I don’t want to signal George to give you another demonstration.”

Hannah glanced at Eugenia. She hesitated, then nodded. They climbed into the car, and he stepped back and slammed the door. The car sped away from the airport.

“How do you do? Thank you for joining me, ladies.”

The man who had spoken was sitting facing them from a rear-facing seat. He was a fiftyish, obese man who seemed to be all gray-white hair, spectacles, and pouty pink lips.

“Your sniper didn’t leave us much choice,” Hannah said dryly.

He chuckled. “Well, since your only alternative was for you to fall dead onto the sidewalk, I do see your point. So just let me commend you for your excellent decision.” The man’s Irish brogue somehow made even the threatening statement sound less intimidating.

But there couldn’t be anything more threatening than the bullet that had been fired so close to her, Hannah thought.

“Who are you and what do you want?” Eugenia asked crisply.

“Ah, the direct approach. Refreshing. I don’t get a lot of straight talk from the people in my world. Alas, you are not in a position to demand information from me. You will tell me what I need to know, and if you are still alive at the end of our car ride, I will decide what to share with you. Do you understand?”

“Ask your questions,” Hannah said.

“Excellent. What brings you two ladies to Dublin?”

Hannah glanced at Eugenia before responding. “We’re looking for a friend. We heard he was here.”

“Perhaps I can help. Your friend’s name?”

Hannah hesitated. “Nicholas Kirov.” She studied the man’s face for any flash of recognition, but there was none.

“And what is your business with this man?”

“He’s just a friend,” Eugenia interjected suddenly. “We didn’t come all this way for you, if that’s what you’re thinking, Mr. Walsh. You are Anthony Walsh, aren’t you?”

The gray-haired man chuckled. “Very good, Eugenia.”

“Look, Walsh. I spoke to Gorecki in Rome last night,” Eugenia said. “He told me that he sent Kirov your way. I suppose he told you that we would be coming to Dublin.”

“Yes, he told me as a professional courtesy. I would have done the same for him. Men in our profession can’t be too careful. In America, I know they give away guns in boxes of cereal, but here an untraceable firearm is a precious commodity.”

“I thought Gorecki would vouch for me,” Eugenia said. “He and his brother are old friends of mine.”

“Oh, he spoke very highly of you, and he promised that I could trust you. Pardon me for being cynical, but the only reason I’m still alive and in business is that I’ve learned to trust no one. And even if you mean me no harm—something of which I’m still not entirely convinced, by the way—I couldn’t risk the two of you compromising my operation by blundering into the country and asking questions about me and my whereabouts. I assume that would have been your first step in order to track down your friend.”

“Our only interest is in finding Kirov,” Hannah said. “We didn’t come here to hurt you.”

“Perhaps not intentionally, but it easily could have happened. And assuming that you’re telling me the truth, why do you think I would willingly expose a customer?”

Eugenia smiled. “I negotiate for a living. I thought we could come to a meeting of minds.”

“My clients need to stay anonymous. If it got around that I was less than discreet, I wouldn’t stay in business—or alive—for very long.”

“It won’t get around,” Hannah said. “And we only want to help your client.”

“I never said that he’s my client. Just because someone referred him to me doesn’t mean we’ve actually done business together.”

“If that was the case, why bother with the bizarre airport pickup?” Eugenia said.

“I told you. I need to protect myself. While I’m beginning to believe that you’re using me to get to Kirov, I knew it was possible that you were using Kirov to get to me.”

Eugenia nodded. “I understand.”

They were both so cool and businesslike, and it suddenly made Hannah furious. She had been frightened and threatened, and they were acting as if it was commonplace.

“I don’t understand any of this bullshit,” Hannah said. “What I do understand is that because of your paranoia, a sniper just had me lined up in his sights.”

Eugenia patted Hannah’s arm comfortingly. “The first time’s always the hardest.” She glanced back at Walsh. “Now, Mr. Walsh, how do we fix this and both get what we want?”