Four o'clock in the morning when the phone on Avi's bedside table starting ring and not stopping. Viviana moved a little but remained asleep as Avi lifted the receiver to his ear and with a grunting sound acknowledge he was there.
Maggie's voice came over the phone, "We are in the lobby and coming up. Open the door for us."
"Yeah sure." Avi thinking the party was going to continue but why Maggie.
Slipping out of bed, and easing on his jeans and a T-shirt, Avi half stumbled into the center living room of his suite. The knock came on the door, Avi rubbing his eyes slowly walked to the door, opening it.
"We have a problem." Maggie edged into the room followed by Hamden.
"What sort of problem."
"Where is Jess McGregor?"
"Not sure. I'll check his room." Avi not fully awake headed to Jess' room to find it empty, he even check the bathroom - also empty. "What's going on."
Hamden asking the question, "And Viviana, where is she."
"In my bed, why?"
"There has been a kidnapping, Clive Chartan is seriously hurt and in ICU. Your father is missing." Maggie had no easy way to break the news.
Avi taking a few steps back, running his hand through his hair and shaking his head, "Missing. His been kidnapped." Trying to comprehend the news.
"We think by Jess." Hamden looking for something to give Avi to drink, found a bottle of water.
Another knock on the door. Hamden stepping to the small foyer and opening the door. It was the gentleman from the party, the same one that had delivered Avi the invitation.
Coming into the room and placing his hand on Avi's arm, "Avi, I'm Ivan Dubnikov, a dear and close friend of Eyal Lavin and once a Mossad double agent in Russia."
Avi just nodded. Just about that time Viviana wearing only Avi's shirt came in to see what was going on. "Grab the bitch." Avi muttered.
Both Maggie and Hamden moved swiftly, taking hold of Viviana and quickly restraining her to a straight-back wooden desk check with zip ties.
"What the shit is going on here. Avi tell me what's happening." Viviana screaming at Avi.
"Shout your mouth woman." Avi snapped back at her. Turning to Hamden, "Tell me what happen."
It was Ivan that spoke. "I had been invited to Eyal's room after the party for a smoke and drinks. Talk about old times and past friendship. When I got there I found Clive beating half to death, the room in shambles and Eyal gone." Taking a bottle of water from Hamden and twisting off the top, "My first priority was clear the room and get help for Clive."
"That's when Ivan called Olivia and me, we had just paid the entertainers and shut the party down. We met him at the hospital. After Ivan told us what he found I call Maggie. Of course we had to report in to headquarters."
"Headquarter, what headquarters?" Viviana interrupting the conversation.
"I told you to shut up. Do it bitch." Avi was becoming angry with her and his Lavin short temper was coming to the surface.
Maggie smiled at Avi's reaction, "We got our orders, Olivia to remain with Clive, Hamden and I are to provide clean up, assistance and protection."
"Looks like we also have a prisoner." Ivan walking over to Viviana and in Russian, "You know all about this kidnapping don't you."
"No."
"Bullshit. I have experience with the SVR Special Forces for many years. You know what I can do to make you talk."
Stillness fell in the room. Avi now standing beside Ivan, he was going to get answers, one way or the other.
Maggie and Hamden seated themselves on the couch to watch. This was Avi and Ivan's ball game and what ever happen to Viviana was not done at the hands of MI6.
"You know instead of just sitting here and being witnesses we should make ourselves useful."Hamden nudging Maggie, "I going to search Jess' room, see what I can find.
Maggie notices Viviana's clutch on a table, grabs the hotel keys from the clutch and searches for any other interesting things. "I'm headed out to do some room searching myself. Hamden, let have the keys to the Land Rover."
"She has a roommate - Tara, Tara Bochinsky." Avi yells at Maggie as she leaves the room.
Maggie on her drive to the resort town of Constanta was glad the streets were relatively deserted, at close to four-thirty in the morning it was still dark but not for long, the sun would be peeking over the east horizon in a little over two hours from now. She found the hotel and pulling into the parking lot there was an empty spot near the side of the building. The head lights caught something only a trained spy or police office would notice, drag marks ever so slight. Leaving the lights on, she went to investigate, and hidden behind a thicket of bushes was a woman's body.
'Shit. I don't need this.' Maggie examining the body. 'Now I know I don't need this. I think it's Tara Bochinsky.' Maggie muse. She had watched Viviana and Tara with Avi and Jess but from a distance and wanted to make a positive ID. Snapping a picture of the dead woman's face she call Avi.
"Yeah Maggie, got some problem?" Avi answered his cell.
"Take a look at this picture. You know her?"
Avi looking at a very dead Tara took a deep breath, this entire mission was going sideways and fast. "That is Tara Bochinsky. She looks dead."
"She is. Her neck has been snapped. I'll be in touch later, have some work to do." Maggie disconnected. Shoving her phone in a pocket, she looked around to see if any other persons were about. All clear, the parking lot was empty of human activity. Leaving the body as she found it, she slipped into a side door of the hotel and took the steps to the third floor and found Viviana's room. She didn't have the luxury of a lengthily search as the sun would surely expose Tara's body and police would be all over the room and the parking lot.
Avi whispered in Ivan ear that Viviana's cohort Tara is dead, neck snapped. Ivan smiled, "Tov."
"You speak Hebrew?" Avi asked.
"Not much but enough." Ivan with a nod to Hamden as he reentered the room.
"Found a scrap piece of paper with some number written on. I was balled up and pitched into the bin."
"Let's have a look." Ivan taking the piece of paper from Hamden.
"Looks like bank transfer code numbers. Run it through your system and see if I'm not correct." Handing the piece back to Hamden.
Ivan turning back to his interrogation of Viviana and once more in Russian, "I know you can understand every word I'm saying and no more being Mr. Nice Guy. Your roommate, Tara Bochinsky is dead. Just found with her neck snapped." Ivan noticed a slight twinge in her jaw muscle which gave him the signal to go deeper. "If you hadn't been here screwing the brains out of Avi, my dear it could be you. Time for you to talk."
"I don't know anything." Viviana answered in English.
"I think you do." Ivan now bring to his side a bag, one that looks like an old, well-worn medical bag doctors would carry on house calls. "This bag was given to me by my first training field agent. He had been with the KGB and called it 'Make Anyone Talk' bag."
Avi had seen the fun and enjoyable side of being a spy and now he was about to experience the dark side. The horrid side no one wanted to acknowledge or speak off. He had known there was a darker side, an immorality side to almost being criminal. Could he handle it?
"What are you a Russian turn-coat or just a camel f..ker lover." Viviana was beginning to become defiant. So far she had not been hurt but that was about to end.
"You bitch." Avi with a strong swing of the back of his hand across her face, knocking her and the chair to the floor and drawing blood from her mouth.
"Nice move." Ivan picking her and the chair off the floor and back to the upright position. "We can do this in partnership, take turns until we get the information we need."
Hamden finished his conversation with MI6, "You were right Ivan and they are placing a trace. Now can I be a part of this partnership?" Hamden had heard the camel remark and no longer wanted to sit on the side line but he kept his cool.
"You want to find the small pliers in that bag and heat the end up for me." Ivan taking Viviana hand in his and looking at her finger tips. "Wonder if these are your real nails or the glue on women are using today." He smile at her with a devilish look on his face. "Let me explain what is going to happen. It called denailing and what I'm will be doing is individually grasping each nail and turning, ever so slowly prying it from your finger. Very, very painful my dear."
Getting no reaction for Viviana Ivan unbutton the shirt she had on and caressing her breast, "Or if you prefer, we can do flaying of your lovely breast. Do you know what flaying is? Let me tell you, better known as skinning."
Hamden returned with the heated pliers.
"Hold her shoulders Avi, don't need for her to be moving." Ivan taking the pliers from Hamden and with one hand holding her index finger and inching the pliers close until she could feel the heat.
"No. No don't. I tell you all I know, oh please don't." Tears now flowing down her cheek and beginning to tremble in fear.
"Start talking and in English so we can all understand." Ivan handing the pliers back to Hamden.
"I'm a ghost asset for Jess McGregor, a paid prostitute hired by Jess to seduce targets that at some point in time can be turned into assets for the Russian spy ring. Lots of free and great sex, amorous companionship to the lonely and small talk about how wonderful Russia is to live. Once Jess thinks the target is ready to be turned, he calls in a master handler and my job is complete. With you Avi, I was told you had a thing for redheads so I dyed my hair."
"You know who this master handler is?"
"No. Never met him or her not even sure about the gender. All I know I'm to depart before the final turning starts."
"What happen with the kidnapping of Fahd Al-Satah."
"Jess was under great pressure to turn Avi, kept saying time was running out and he got real distress when the Saudis showed up also trying to turn him. Told me to keep Avi busy for the next two days, not let the other woman get close."
"What other woman?" Ivan asked.
"The same one that was just here with you."
"Did you know Fahd Al-Satah was going to be abducted?" Avi now asking some of the questions.
Looking at Avi and seeing something, maybe for the first time she noticed how much Avi and Fahd resembled each other. She just stared, not saying anything.
"I asked you a question, did you know Fahd Al-Satah was going to be abducted?" His tone a bit sharper.
"He looks like an older version of you." She in total disbelief. "You two are related aren't you?"
Avi took a quick glance at Ivan who in turn did the answering, "Father and son. Now answer his question."
Tears rapidly returning and she going dead white with complete fear, "Oh please forgive me I'm so sorry. You have to understand, I didn't know this was going to get so ugly... I was only in it for the money."
"Calm down Viviana and tell me did you know about the kidnapping." Avi in an unbelievable calm voice himself.
"You have to believe me Avi, this is good easy money and nothing like this has ever happened before. I'm not... I'm not a criminal."
"One last time Viviana, did you know about the kidnapping."
"A little, when you picked me up last night at the hotel and I met you in the lobby it was because Tara and Jess were having a major argument. There were two other guys with them in our room. What I heard before I left to go down to the lobby to wait for you and Jess yelling at Tara that he was a valuable person, worth millions in ransom."
"Mean he is still alive." Avi with a half sigh of relief.
Ivan taking her face and turning it toward him, looking her square in the eyes, "Do you know where they have taken him?"
"No. I would tell you if I knew." She was having a difficult time holding back the flood of tears.
Maggie had returned from her excursion of finding a dead Tara and a trashed hotel room but nothing else. Standing next to Hamden she said softly, "Now what?"
Hamden stepping forward, "You think there is any more information we can get from her Ivan."
"I'm pretty sure we have it all." Ivan putting the pliers back in his bag and closing it.
"We need to transport her back to London. I call for an escort pickup." Hamden turning and walking into another room to make the call.
"Hamden also check for any border crossing but my best guess is they are still in Romania." Taking a look at a very shaken Viviana, Maggie asked, "The two guys with Jess, do you know who they are?"
"One is name Oscar but I don't know the other. They are like me, hired as needed."
"Thugs for hired, nice." Avi turning from the group and going to look out the window, the sun was now up and a beautiful day on the Black Sea coast. He mused if Viviana did have a conscience or one fantastic actress - Annie has told him many times that his father was a master of deceit and was all this lies coming from this woman. The story sounded convincing.
"Okay gang here is orders from home, we have an extraction team on their way, maybe three or four hours for Viviana Nenov pickup. Maggie, sorry girl but you are to be her female chaperone for the trip and Olivia will stay here with Clive until he is stable enough to return to London. I'm to continue with the assist and protect. Avi, headquarters is getting clearance for you not to return to post." Hamden looking at Viviana, "We may want to get some clothes on her."
"If I'm reading your orders right, that means hunt down Jess and find Eyal." Ivan with a smile for the first time.
"It does with the full back backing of MI6. They are checking satellite movement but now much hope there because of darkness."
Avi turning from the window, "I have an idea."
