Chapter 7

"So Nate do you have a plan?" Don Morero asked as he entered the room. Nate had now been with him for two weeks working on a way to extract his son from the clutches of the men who had him.

"Yes but it is dangerous, and it is tricky. I need people who can follow orders and who can play their parts. I do not need people who are trigger happy and will not play the game understand." Nate said as he stood up from his desk and walked over to the wet bar.

"That I will provide." Morero said. "What is the plan?"

"Well firstly as you know we have no idea where exactly your son is being held, just that he is being held by the Russian mob probably somewhere in or around Moscow. Now the only way I am going to find out where your son is, is to go in as a man who can either help them or hurt them, I prefer the help them version of events. Understand this may take some time to accomplish, I need to earn their trust first and get to the right person, without making it too obvious that I am looking for your son." Nate said as he returned to the desk and sat down again with the Don standing in front of him.

"So you need…"

"I need passports and other documents, I need a solid and reliable alias as a gun runner, and of course the goods to trade with, I also need transport and a team to go with me, people who will obey my instructions and not second guess me because if that happens we are all going to end up dead including your son."

"Then you will infiltrate and extract."

"Well it is not as easy as that, but yes that is the concept in principal." Nate said smiling at the man. "Now before I go any further, I want to speak to my wife again."

"No."

"Fine then go and rescue your son on your own." Nate said locking eyes with the man and taking a sip of his whiskey.

He was not averse to doing this job, the man obviously loved his son and wanted him back and Nate could understand that. From everything he had read Juan was nothing like his father. He worked for an organisation that helped refugees and orphans in the worst of circumstances in Russia and in Eastern Europe get out of their situations and to a new life elsewhere. He was not doing anything illegal when he was taken, he was trying to help people, but things went wrong and he got on the wrong side of the mob and now he was being held somewhere, probably not in the best of conditions. The other probability was of course was that the boy was dead, but he had not raised that scenario with the Don, he did not think it would go down to well.

"Look Morero I will help you retrieve your son, I will do it willingly, but I have to speak to my wife before I do this because…"

"Because it may not end well." Morero said softly.

Nate nodded to him his eyes fixed on the man. Morero nodded indicating to his man to fetch Nate a phone so that he could call Sophie.

"Again I warn you…"

"I am going to speak to my wife and I will not tell her anything about the job itself, but understand, my son has just been born and I…I may never see him so I am going to speak to her because it may be the last time I do and you are not going to tell me what I can or cannot say understand." Nate smiled at him.

"You will not tell her where you are."

"No I won't and I will keep it short, but you will not interfere."" Nate agreed.

Morero nodded in agreement and then when the man returned he handed Nate the same phone that he had used two weeks previously to contact Sophie with. It was obviously a burner phone and nobody else had used it since then. He pressed redial and waited.

Sophie picked up after just one ring and put the phone on speaker for the other three to hear what was said. Hardison immediately started a trace on the phone.

"Nate…Nate is that you?"

"Yes Sophie it's me?" Nate said hearing the angst in her voice.

"Where are you Nate?" Sophie asked without answering his question.

"Sophie are you and Michael alright?" Nate said again.

"We are fine Nate. Please just tell me what is going on."

"I can't do that Sophie." He said softly. "I just wanted to tell you that…that I love you so very much. I am not going to be able to speak to you again for a while Sophie."

"Nate please what is going on?" Sophie said softly as she listened to him.

"I can't explain Sophie. Just know that no matter what happens, no matter if…" Nate swallowed hard before continuing. "I love you Sophie, you have made me the happiest man on earth. Please take care of yourself, take care of our son, you are always in my thoughts, always with me and…and I will try to make it back to you."

"Try and…what the hell is going on Nate." Eliot growled out as he realised what Nate was saying.

"Take care of them Eliot, both of them, and take care of yourself and each other. I…I love you all." Nate said softly and then the phone was taken from him and the call ended.

"I am sorry Nate, I could not risk any longer, your Hardison is very good and I cannot take that chance."

"Yes I understand." Nate said picking up his glass of whiskey again and sitting back he had said what he needed to say.

Morero stared at him and Nate could see the fear in his eyes, not that he would be in danger if he spoke to his people and they found him, but that he would not try to get his son back for him.

"I do understand Nate." Morero said. "It is hard to be without your family. Now I will get what you need. When do you wish to leave?"

"Well it will take a little more time but in three days I should be ready to go. I want to meet the people you intend sending with me."

"Of course."

"Good." Nate said.

He was now committed. He would do this job to the best of his ability and then he would go home to his wife and son. That is if he did not get himself killed in the process he thought. That is why he had to speak to Sophie, had to let her know he loved and missed her and his son, even though he had barely met him he thought and a sadness settled over him as he thought about that. He might never really meet his son, never know him and he would never know his father. No he thought shaking his head, he would make sure he got home shaking off the despair that threatened to overwhelm him. He would get back to her, to his son and to his family. But if he didn't he knew that Eliot and the others would make sure Sophie and Michael were safe, always safe, that is why he had taken the chance to talk to them too, he had to make sure that the others understood he was trusting them to take care of his family, their family if he did not make it back from this. He knew that Eliot would surmise from his words and that he thought he might not make it back, and he knew the others would too, but it was best they be prepared. He did not think they could find him here and once he was in Russia less so. He could probably make a break for it when they got to Russia but it was a risk and, besides, the more he had read about Juan, the more he realised he had to try and help the boy get out of the situation he was in. It was not fair to Sophie what was happening, but it was happening and now he was going to have to go through with it and hope that he was good enough to get himself out alive.