The loft where Russell Maynard's stealth undercover team was headquartered was dark, dank, lacked furniture and leaked like a sieve on rainy days. But it was home to Carter Shaw, Ty Curtis, Jamie Anderson/Allen, Dean Bendis and the newbie, FBI Special Agent Alex Rice, the latter now standing before Dean.
The undercover cop was slouched back into the corner of the black leather couch, his legs crossed, his left elbow resting on the arm, his thumb and two fingers supporting his head while the fingers on right hand drummed impatiently on his pant leg. Dean Bendis had worked with...well, for Alex Rice...for a couple of months now and although she was good looking, to his mind, that was about all she had going for her, that and the fact that she was banging Carter Shaw. A sardonic smile flicked momentarily across his sullen face. What a cluster fuck he thought.
Alex Rice, as impatient as ever for a career-boosting bust, had called them all in for an update on their current assignments but Dean didn't have much to give her. He had been undercover for six weeks working as a bag-man for Afonasei Konstantinov and the Mad Russian had taken a real shine to him. Thanks to his maternal grandmother Dean spoke enough Russian to get by and could always be counted on to match his boss, shot for shot, when it came to downing the Zyr Vodka Afonasei loved to knock back. But extortion was only a sideline for the Russian; he made his real money assassinating anyone and everyone for the right price.
A military trained sniper, Afonasei had grown weary of killing Chechens and had jumped at the chance to join the new and improved KGB, the FSB, a counterintelligence organization with police powers. Tiring of homegrown terror he eventually signed on with SVR where he conducted overseas espionage and shot whomever they told him to. But after ten years of weighing the disproportionate risk against the meager payoff the Russian had purchased his airtight immigration papers and had come to the United States of America, the land of opportunity.
Since arriving in Los Angeles he had killed over a dozen men, women and one child, some foreign, some domestic. Afonasei had never even been named a person of interest in any of the deaths, a situation the FBI wanted remedied...yesterday. So Rice had sent Dean in to infiltrate the group but after six weeks the only intelligence he had on the guy was that he loved the finer things in life, especially the ballet.
As he sat on the couch relaying what information there was on Konstantinov, Dean Bendis realized he was at a crossroads in his life but, unlike Robert Johnson, he wasn't willing to sell his soul just to get the job done. Dean had been offered a promotion of sorts within the assassin's organization but was loath to accept it because everybody knew that Afonasei Konstantinov, or Afon for short, was crazy in love with Elizaveta Volkova and that he was crazy jealous of anyone who even dared to look at her sideways. Everybody also knew that Afon was just plain crazy and now the FBI wanted Dean to accept the position as personal bodyguard to Elizaveta, one of the principle ballerinas of the Novosibirsk National Ballet Company. Even as they spoke she was boarding Afon's Hawker 4000 on her way to L.A. while the rest of her troupe had to make do with Aeroflot.
"I don't think me guarding this Elizaveta Volkova is such a good idea," Dean tried to explain. As always when dealing with the FBI agent who had been assigned as their C.O. Dean looked to Carter Shaw for his reaction and possible direction. It pissed Alex Rice off royally but who gave a shit? She could continue to think of him as a male chauvinist pig and Neanderthal for all he cared. What he did care about was having someone who had worked with him long enough to know his strengths and weaknesses call the shots. Alex Rice didn't know him from Adam.
Carter simply remained silent in deference to Alex's decision however misguided Dean thought it was. Had they all forgotten about his involvement with Maria Finn and how he had intentionally blown his cover to save her life? How could Rice trust him not to do the same thing, or even worse, if they were planning on using Volkova as Konstantinov's Achilles' heel?
"You've been under for a month and a half now. Konstantinov's just starting to trust you and you want to throw it all away?" Alex asked testily.
"He just wants me to baby-sit some Russian bitch while she's in town. Something about some sort of dance."
"It's the Novosibirsk National Ballet. They're performing 'Romeo and Juliet" at the DCP at the end of the month." The black undercover cop relayed the information with more enthusiasm than Dean thought was right and he gave Ty a jaundiced look. "What?" Ty asked then explained, "Melissa was a big fan of the arts. Still is."
"Maybe we could work Ty in as security instead," Carter suggested and Dean sighed.
He looked at Ty who stood beside Jamie at the 'command center', such as it was, and said, "No offense, brother, but Afon won't let you get within a hundred miles of him or this chick. He's pretty unenlightened."
Ty just shrugged his shoulders. He was used to prejudiced, "Like I said the ballet was Mel's thing."
Dean's gaze returned to Rice. "Besides, what's she to Konstantinov...besides a piece of ass?"
Alex's lips thinned as did her patience. Dean Bendis was the one wild card on her team. She knew the thirty something undercover cop bent the rules and countermanded her orders when he thought the situation warranted it so she didn't trust him as far as she could throw him. Carter Shaw had even come uncharacteristically unglued when Dean had talked Finn into turning himself into the IRS to intentionally blow the Garza bust and had threatened to "fire his skinny ass". But it had been an empty threat and when she herself had suggested it Carter had flat out refused to follow her lead. The Konstantinov case was one more chance than Bendis deserved and if he blew it she would have his balls on a silver platter.
"We think she's more than a "piece of ass" as you put it. The Bureau thinks she's the courier. She travels at will between the US and Russia and we think she delivers the remainder of Konstantinov's payments when the jobs are done along with the information on his next hit.
"Then why not just bust her at customs?" Dean wanted to know. It would be a slam-dunk and he could finally go home.
"She has diplomatic immunity," Rice told them.
Dean frowned and thought so much for the easy way out.
Jamie spoke up and suggested, "Maybe I could get in as one of the character dancers...get to know her."
"That's a good idea," Alex said and Dean breathed a sigh of relief until Carter added.
"Yeah, no one will suspect anything when you pass along the latest gossip from your bff Elizaveta to her bodyguard."
Carter looked at Dean and smiled when he saw the disgruntled look on the UC's face. He knew that, for obvious reasons, Dean didn't like this new twist in his assignment. It was too reminiscent of the Garza case. What if Elizaveta Volkova was innocent and not the go between for Afonasei Konstantinov and his old contacts in the SVR? She might just simply be a ballerina and nothing more and still end up as collateral damage.
"So you want me to go ahead and take the job?" Dean asked halfheartedly.
"Of course we do," Alex said in a humoring voice that sounded more than snotty to him, "Oh, and a word to the wise, Dean. This time keep your dick in you pants." Alex Rice dropped the subject and walked back to her desk.
"Easier said than done, brother," Ty said to Dean when Rice was out of earshot, "' cause I mean this Elizaveta Volkova is smokin' hot...and flexible as hell."