Thomas "Bell" Jackson, CIA Operative
East Berlin, German Democratic Republic
January 12 1981
Bell checked his watch as the train ran under the Berlin Wall. It was 7:30 in the evening, so it was just about nighttime. They had to work fast to find Kraus.
In the train car full of civilians, Bell saw Adler sitting on his left a few rows down from where he was; they couldn't all bunch up together or else it would look suspicious. Park, Lazar, and McKnight were aboard the train as well.
"Adler," Park's voice spoke over comms, "The back car is clear. We're good to go."
Bell looked over in Adler's direction, who gave him a subtle nod before standing up and proceeding to walk towards the back of the car. Bell waited a few moments before getting up out of his own seat and following behind.
Lazar was standing just beside the door, keeping his eyes peeled for any onlookers. Adler and Bell went through the door into the next car, and Lazar followed behind a few moments after that.
Inside the back car were Park and McKnight, scanning all over for any potential threats. No word was spoken between them as Adler and Bell made their approach to the rear of the car.
Adler looked over his shoulder and said, "As soon as the train slows down, you and I'll jump off."
"Roger," Bell responded. Once more and into the breech.
"Park, Lazar, McKnight, wait till the next station," Adler spoke to them, "Bell and I will track down Kraus."
Lazar nodded, then opened up his trenchcoat and loaded a magazine into his silenced Makarov pistol.
"Alright, train's slowing down," Adler remarked as Bell heard the brakes squealing, "Let's go to work."
McKnight opened up the rear door, and not a moment later both Bell and Adler had jumped off of the train. They tumbled a bit on the tracks, but their leather jackets prevented them from being injured.
As Bell started to pick himself up, Adler had already pulled out his sidearm and said, "Careful. East German guards still patrol these abandoned stations. Eyes front."
Bell reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his own silenced Walther PP, the standard-issue sidearm for East German police. He wasn't exactly a fan of this gun; he'd much rather have his 1911 by his side. But this mission called for leaving nothing to chance, so any gear they did bring could not be traced back to NATO.
Bell followed Adler, and ahead of them they saw the flickering of what looked like flashlights from their right; they had to be the police. They also heard the sound of an oncoming train from the other end of the tunnel.
"We can use the train to slip past them," Adler said, vaulting over the concrete divider to his left. Bell did the same, and moved quickly behind Adler as the train advanced. Once the train had passed, Bell took notice of the patrol on the right platform, seeing they had moved on ahead out of their direction.
"Alright, we're good," Bell said, turning back around to follow Adler, who was now climbing up aboard the left platform and advancing slowly through the darkness. Right away, they heard voices speaking in German and saw the shine from flashlights. Adler and Bell moved into the shadows as two police officers emerged onto the platform.
"Take it slow," Adler whispered, "We need to take them out quietly."
Bell took point, keeping his gun raised as the one officer was standing near the platform's edge and shining a light down onto the tracks. Bell carefully stepped forward without making a sound, and Adler did the same for the other guy whose back was turned.
Bell holstered his gun, took out his blade, seized the officer by the mouth, and stabbed him in the chest three times before he dropped down onto the tracks, dead. After he'd finished, Bell turned and saw Adler dispatching the other guard with his own knife and dumping his body in a secluded alcove.
The two of them moved forward to a set of double doors, which looked like they belonged to the station's security center. Bell and Adler posted up on either side of the door and listened in to hear German voices inside.
"Alright, on three we breach," Adler said, pulling the slide back on his gun, "One... two... three!"
The two agents burst through the door, surprising the three guards that had been sitting there idly. Before the men could react, Bell and Adler opened fire with their suppressed pistols and killed all three of them in moments. Afterwards, Adler took point and opened another doorway which led into the sewers, and directly in front of them was a ladder that led to the surface.
This was going way too smoothly in Bell's mind. In less than two minutes they had already killed five police officers and were already about to make it topside. Shit, with luck like this, he should buy lottery tickets.
Bell ascended the ladder first and removed the manhole cover above him, looking up into the night sky as he climbed out before observing the alley around him. It was starting to rain a little bit, but he didn't see any guards.
"Alright, come on," Bell said, reaching his hand down into the hole to Adler who just made it to the top. Adler grabbed it and Bell pulled him upward.
"Christ, you're heavy," Bell remarked.
"Shut up, Bell," Adler rolled his eyes.
All at once, a light shown in their direction and a voice said, "Was ist hier los?"
Fuck, more police. Bell knew this was going too smoothly.
"Shit, follow my lead," Adler whispered to Bell while raising his hands. Bell did the same. Now he couldn't reach for his damn gun.
"Ich arbeite fur die U-Bahn," Adler began, "Lassen Sie mich Ihnen meine Papiere zeigen."
Adler gestured to his back pocket, and Bell looked and saw he had his suppressed pistol tucked away there. Now he saw what he was thinking. He inched his way over towards Adler's back as he and one of the two guards exchanged barbs. When the discussion became heated, Bell made his move. He reached down and grabbed the pistol from Adler's belt, drawing it upward and shooting down the officer standing right in front of him. In the confusion, Adler was able to tackle the officer he was speaking to down and beat him repeatedly before stabbing him with his knife.
"We're clear," Bell said after a quick scan of the area. No more police as far as he could see.
"Nice work. Now let's clean this up," Adler said, picking up one of the officer's bodies and dragging it into a darkened corner of the alley. Bell dragged the other body right beside it. Afterwards, Bell tossed Adler his pistol, who nodded in thanks.
Adler and Bell approached a door towards the one end of the alley, with a light on just above it. This looked like the place.
"Kraus should be coming through the checkpoint soon. Let's get to the rooftop," Adler said before opening the door. Bell followed him up the darkened staircases.
"Park, Lazar, McKnight, we're almost in position," Adler spoke into his earpiece.
"Copy that," Park responded over the radio.
Adler opened up another door on the top floor of the building which led onto the roof. From there, Bell could see the Berlin Wall that divided East and West Berlin, with several guard towers shining spotlights throughout the area between the two. On the ground, Bell saw several more East German police standing guard near the checkpoint.
"Keep an eye on the checkpoint," Adler instructed him, "Kraus will be coming through any time."
"Alright," Bell said, pulling out his camera from his jacket as he and Adler made their way over to a position overlooking the checkpoint. Bell adjusted the zoom on his camera and looked down at the station.
"I count at least eight- no, ten uniforms," Bell said, adjusting the lens to make the image below clearer, "Automatic rifles, SMGs... fuck, security seems tighter than usual."
"If they detain Kraus, he could miss his meeting with Volkov," Adler said, "We need eyes on him pronto."
Just then, a man with a briefcase and umbrella appeared at the checkpoint before being stopped by a border guard. The guard then shone a flashlight in his face, so Bell zoomed further in with his camera to get a good look at his face.
"That's our man," Bell said, snapping a few pictures with his camera to confirm, "I have eyes on Kraus."
"Good work, Bell," Adler said, and by then the guard had let Kraus pass through the checkpoint.
Bell followed Adler onto a lower balcony off of the roof, then they went through another door and proceeded down the steps.
"Park, Kraus just crossed the Wall. What's your status?" Adler asked into his earpiece.
"Lazar, McKnight, and I are at the exfil point awaiting your arrival," Park responded over comms.
"Copy that," Adler said, and he and Bell exited the stairwell and entered into another alley.
"Our intel says that Kraus and Volkov will meet at a bar just across the street," Adler told him.
"Will your contact be there too?" Bell asked.
"Yes, though technically I 'borrowed' her from Hudson," Adler told him, "Meet her inside, she'll have a blue umbrella."
"What about you?" Bell asked next.
"I'll stay outside and watch the street," Adler told him, and with that, Bell fixed the collar of his jacket and walked into the street. All around him he saw East German police halting civilians for questioning, probably owing to the area's proximity to the Berlin Wall. Bell knew how to keep a low profile, which had more to do with making the police think he had nothing to hide rather than hiding away.
Bell approached the exterior of the bar and opened the door, stepping inside from out of the rain to the warmth of the establishment. Ambient conversations in German took place all around him, and the barkeep was too preoccupied with a customer to take notice of him. This was good, the less attention the better. Now all he had to do was find Hudson's contact, so he scanned the room for a blue umbrella before seeing one towards the back.
Bell walked over, careful not to draw attention to himself. Eventually he came across the blue umbrella and the woman that was sitting with his back turned to him. Bell came around the table as the woman looked up at him.
"Guten Abend, mein Freund," the woman asked in German, "Kennst du Von Goethe?"
"Ich bevorzuge Mann," Bell replied, and the woman smiled after he correctly answered her challenge, "Bitte setzen."
Bell took the chair opposite of the woman, then she spoke again, this time in English, "Keller, BND. You would be Jackson, yes?"
"Correct," Bell replied simply, "Kraus?"
"At the table over my right shoulder," Keller told him, and with that Bell pulled out a cigarette case that was actually a listening device. After activating it, he set it back down on the table and had it pointed over to where Kraus was sitting.
"Guten Abend, mein Herr. Was kann ich dir bringen?" a waitress spoke through the other end.
"Berliner Weisse, bitte," Kraus' voice sounded out.
"Audio check," Bell spoke into his earpiece, "Adler, you getting this?"
"Loud and clear, Bell," Adler responded, "Now we wait for Volkov."
Bell sat there patiently for a moment before Keller spoke up, "Hudson didn't reveal much - he said you're after Volkov?"
"How long will Volkov be in Berlin?" Bell asked her.
"Who knows?" Keller responded, "The man is like a ghost. I would guess no more than a day."
"Alright, we should be good then," Bell said, knowing that as long as he was in Berlin they could get to him, "What do you know about the courier? Anything stand out about him?"
"Kraus is ex-Stasi, so watch yourself around him. The man is a killer," Keller said, "We lost two agents trying to apprehend him six months ago."
After she finished, Bell turned his head towards the window at the sound of sirens in the distance. Hopefully they weren't in response to the bodies he and Adler left behind in the U-Bahn.
"The police seem to be out in large numbers tonight," Bell told her.
"It has happened more frequently than I would like," Keller said, shifting uncomfortably in her seat, "One of my informants was picked up in a random sweep, just two blocks from here. The Stasi must assume there are more nearby."
Now Bell shifted uncomfortably in his seat. If they picked up Keller's informant, then he could potentially compromise this whole operation.
"I would ask a favor of you," Keller asked him, "Richter will not hold up under torture for long. We need him rescued... or silenced."
Keller let the silence hang in the air between them for a moment before placing a piece of paper on the table. Bell took a look at it and saw an address written down upon it. This must be where Richter was being held.
"I'll see what I can do," Bell said, slipping the paper into his pocket. He knew what he had to do.
"Head's up, Bell. I think I see Volkov walking in," Adler spoke over comms, and Bell focused his eyes towards Kraus' table. A man wearing a fedora came in and Kraus looked up to face him. Judging by his appearance, Bell assumed he was Stasi.
"Where is Volkov?" Kraus asked the man in German.
"You were followed," the Stasi agent told Kraus, "Go home and wait for our call. There will be a new time and place. We'll take care of the tail."
Quickly after that, Kraus got up from his table and followed the Stasi agent out the door.
"Adler, Kraus is leaving. Repeat, Kraus is leaving," Bell spoke up.
"Bell, we got trouble. I see two police entering the bar," Adler said, and at the same moment, two police officers did indeed enter the bar, "Get out of there, now!"
Bell quickly grabbed the listening device from the table and put it back in his jacket. Keller looked over at the officers and then said, "Scheisse... Go through the bathroom, I'll hold them off."
Bell did as he was told and immediately stood up from the table. Careful to avoid the attention of the police, he walked into the men's room and shut the door behind him. Bell saw the legs of a man retching inside a stall, so he had some cover this way. Poor bastard.
He saw a small window located right next to the sinks up above. Bell climbed up and put his legs through the window first, jumping down through it and into the alleyway.
"Team, new plan," Adler spoke, "Meet outside Kraus' apartment. He's still our ticket to Volkov."
"What about you?" Bell spoke into his earpiece.
"I'm gonna need more time," Adler said, sounding strained for breath, "Rally up with the rest of the team without me. I'll update you when I can."
Bell knew Adler had this handled. He could easily evade the police and link back up with them. Afterwards, Bell drew his Walther and made it to the back of the alley where a locked door was located. He picked the lock then made his way silently upstairs, careful not to make any noises. He saw a police officer patrolling one of the upper floors, flashlight in hand, so when he got in range, Bell shot him once in the head before he fell to the ground. He navigated his way through the dark upper floor.
"Careful, Bell," Lazar spoke over comms, "The Stasi are everywhere."
"I know," Bell said, "I'm in the building adjacent the bar, second floor."
"I have eyes on it. Can you see an exit?" Lazar asked.
"Yeah," Bell said, opening a doorway which led onto the upper balcony. He looked across and saw a building called Werkstatt Krenkel, and Bell realized he was just another block away from Keller's informant. One way or another he had to be dealt with before he could join up with the rest of the team or they might be compromised. If they were compromised, Volkov would go back into hiding and they would lose the only lead they had.
"I got eyes on Bell," McKnight spoke up over comms, "On the balcony just there."
"Alright Bell, meet us in the building across from your current position," Lazar instructed, "Keep a low profile, we already have enough trouble."
"No shit," Bell commented, looking down over the balcony to see two police cars and officers patrolling the area. Three more cars arrived and officers got out and started interrogating civilians. If he was spotted, there was no way he could outgun these guys, so he had to take it slow and go around.
Bell quietly jumped off the balcony and onto the ground, hanging left to avoid the lights towards the street. Bell saw an officer with his back turned and fired two shots, dropping him to the ground without so much as a whisper. He then approached the officer's body and scavenged two Walther magazines off his person; bright side of using these guns is that there was no shortage of ammo in this city. Afterwards, he opened a door which led into a hallway and ducked quickly enough to evade two patrolling guards who then entered into another room and shut the door behind them. Bell swiftly made his way through the hallway before opening the door at the other end, which led back outside.
"Park, gimme a sitrep," Adler spoke.
"I'm in the storefront facing Kraus' apartment," Park spoke this time, "He just got home. You?"
"The Stasi are combing the area," Adler responded again, "I need to lay low. I'll catch up with you when the heat dies down."
Bell seemed somewhat confused. He knew the police were out in force, but Adler should've been able to lose them by now. Strange.
"Copy," Park replied, "Bell, what's your position?"
"I'm inbound to your position, hang tight. Lot of police activity on the main road," Bell told her, "I'll be there ASAP."
After he finished, Bell saw the building in front of him and read the address. He remembered this was the place where the Stasi were holding Keller's informant, Richter. The rest of the team could wait just a few more moments while he took care of this loose end. He picked the lock on the door and entered in carefully, seeing the steps leading into a basement. Bell looked down over the staircase and saw three Stasi agents, each one sitting down with their backs to him, and a fourth man with his hands tied behind his back. This must've been Richter. He was faintly muttering something in German that Bell couldn't hear, but Bell decided to take swift action. He peaked out over the railing and quickly fired one shot each into the heads of the Stasi agents, killing all three without waking them up. He reloaded his pistol and then made his way down into the basement and faced Richter.
"Danke Gott!" Richter exclaimed, "I thought help would never come! Thank you my friend! CIA, yes?"
Bell didn't like his cheery attitude; something was off.
"What happened?" Bell asked.
"I- I've been monitoring a nearby KGB field house," Richter explained, "I don't know how they found me, I did everything by the book!"
"Clearly you didn't, else you wouldn't be here," Bell said, "Police are fucking everywhere tonight."
Bell looked over to the desk where one of the Stasi agents lay slooped over. He removed his body from the chair and looked for anything incriminating Richter may have spilled to them already. One paper had a bit of blood on it and looked to be a report from Richter's interrogation. Bell picked up the paper and read from it.
"Subject 0710 has so far proven incredibly resistant to our interrogation methods, but a recent breakthrough has revealed some interesting intelligence. Under extreme duress, the subject claimed to be working for the KGB."
Fuck. Bell realized this guy was the one to tip off Volkov about the operation. Fucking hell.
"But he also claimed to be working with a mole - 'playing the Americans for fools' in his words. On further questioning, he recanted all previous statements and refused to speak more. We're ceasing interrogations for the day to let him sweat it out and to follow up on some leads. Interrogations to resume after."
"Jesus Christ," Bell muttered after reading the document. So not only was Richter a traitor, but now there was another mole in play. Were they also in the BND?
Bell put the report in his pocket, knowing that the Stasi had not yet sent it out to their intelligence apparatus yet and thus had not fully compromised the mission. Now he just had to deal with Richter.
"Are we going soon?" Richter said, trying to sound innocent. Bell hated these kinds of fucking people.
"How long have you been working for the KGB?" Bell asked.
"W- What?" Richter nervously asked, "What did the paper say? You can't trust these people!"
"You're the one who tipped Volkov off, didn't you?" Bell asked in a more aggressive tone, "That's why the police are out in force tonight, so that we couldn't get to him. You fucking rat."
"I don't even know what you're talking about!" Richter sounded terrified, "Please, just let me return to my children!"
He couldn't even lie well so he resorted to trying to get Bell to pity him. Fucking coward. He probably didn't even have children anyway.
Bell pulled out his Walther again and fired four rounds into Richter's chest, killing him. This wasn't the first time Bell had to deal with a problem in this manner. At least it was taken care of. Now he just had to link up with the team outside of Kraus' apartment to get to Volkov.
After exiting the basement, Bell climbed up the scaffolding just to his left. He navigated around it carefully so as not to alert the police on the ground. He turned the corner and was in range of Lazar and McKnight's position. A guard nearly spotted him, but Bell fired his gun and killed him before he could alert the others. Bell then stopped in front of the apartment building and opened up the door, sneaking inside before turning a corner. At the end of the hallway he saw a door cracked open just slightly with Lazar's head poking out.
"Good work. I don't think anyone saw you," Lazar said, "Follow me."
After Bell entered through the door, Lazar shut it behind him and blocked it with a chair in the off-chance the Stasi discovered the bodies.
"McKnight," Lazar instructed the agent who was still keeping an eye out the window with his own binoculars, "It's time to move."
McKnight got moving and followed Bell and Lazar through the hallway. They went through the front entrance, which was unguarded, and kept their weapons out of sight as they crossed the outer courtyard.
"Park's in the electronics store right across the street from Kraus' place," Lazar said, "Just up ahead now."
They walked forward until they saw a gate blocking the path to the street, and Bell saw more police cars race by.
"You think they found the bodies?" Bell asked.
"Nah, we would've known if they had," McKnight said, "This is just routine patrol work."
"I dunno, man," Lazar commented, "They look more active tonight than they should be."
With that, Lazar opened a door to his left and entered the backroom of what looked like the electronics shop he'd mentioned. The three agents entered before they saw Park sitting near the window with a long-range listening device in hand.
"We're back," Lazar greeted.
"About time," Park responded, "Is Adler with you?"
"No, not yet," Lazar said, "Bell is, though."
Park looked back to face the three of them, "Very well, then. A car pulled up near Kraus' building a few minutes ago, but I didn't have a good angle to..."
Park paused a moment, and Bell took notice.
"Park? Everything alright?" Bell asked.
"Just a moment," Park explained, "Kraus is on the telephone."
She continued holding the listening device while turning up the knob on the machine for everyone to hear.
"I know fucking procedure," Kraus' voice angrily said in English, meaning that whoever he was speaking to likely wasn't German, "No one followed me through the checkpoint."
"McKnight, get eyes on Kraus," Lazar told him, and McKnight went over to the window with his binoculars and took a look through the store window. Kraus was still on the phone in what looked like his office.
"I got him," McKnight said, "Looks pissed as hell."
"The briefcase is secure. It's been with me the entire time," Kraus said, "Where and when?"
"He has to be on the line with Volkov," Park mentioned, determination in her voice.
"Yes, I know the place. I'll be careful," Kraus spoke.
"He's talking in circles," Bell commented, "We need to find out what Volkov told him."
"I have another idea, actually," Park spoke up, "What do you think, Lazar?"
"Sounds like Volkov wants Kraus' briefcase," Lazar said.
"Precisely," Park responded, "That's why we should place a tracker in it. Even if we can't follow Kraus directly, the case will lead us straight to Volkov."
"Smart thinking," McKnight said, "But how do we get the tracker into the briefcase without being noticed?"
"One of us can sneak into Kraus's apartment. Avoiding Kraus and his wife might be the greater challenge," Park told them.
"I'll go," Bell said. He doesn't know why he volunteered when McKnight and Lazar seemed capable enough, but he did anyway. He knew how to approach a target stealthily.
"Good," Lazar said, "While you're doing that, I'll check around the exterior for any... unwanted guests."
Lazar drew his silenced Makarov and made towards the back.
"Very well," Park said, "Keep an eye out for Adler too if you see him. He should've been back by now."
With that, Lazar exited through the back of the darkened store. Park then turned to McKnight and said, "McKnight, keep an eye on Kraus' movements. If he sneaks up on Bell or the Stasi enter the building, we need to know about it."
"On it, ma'am," McKnight said, keeping his binoculars fixated on Kraus. His sniper training sharpened his vision so he'd be best from this position.
"Well, I suppose that's your cue," Park spoke to Bell now, who looked over at her. She placed a small tracking device on the table, and Bell picked it up.
"Get in, put that in his briefcase, and get out," Park told him, "The Stasi are stopping everyone, so you'll need to get across the street quickly."
"Got it," Bell told her. With that, he made for the door and put his hand on the knob, but before he left Park spoke to him again.
"Bell," Park said, "Good luck."
Bell looked back over his shoulder, nodded in acknowledgment, and walked out of the store. For whatever reason, he started smiling a little bit as he made his way across the street, careful to avoid police.
He stopped in front of Kraus' building and opened the door. He walked inside, and at the far end of the hallway, he saw two more officers questioning civilians. Bell quickly turned a corner and made his way up the stairwell.
"McKnight, floor and number?" Bell asked.
"Second and third floor, room number 101," McKnight told him, "He's still in his office on the third floor."
"Bell, if you're spotted by Kraus or his wife, the mission is over," Park warned, "You can tranq the wife if you have to, but Kraus must go to the meeting."
"Copy," Bell said, drawing out the tranquilizer gun that Lazar had given him a few days ago. He knew he would have to use it on this assignment.
"I'm about to phone Kraus' apartment. Get ready to enter," Park said, and with that, Bell went to work picking the lock of the door. After successfully doing so, Bell crept in silently and slowly shut the door behind him.
"Alright, I'm in," Bell whispered over comms while he had his tranquilizer gun at the ready.
"Kraus is still in his office. The wife is in the living room," McKnight said.
After that, the telephone started ringing, and Kraus' wife got up from the couch and answered the phone.
"Hallo?" the wife said, and Park was keeping her busy with a distracting conversation. Bell snuck in behind her and tried to creep past. Before he could make it to the bottom of the stairwell, the wife had turned and was now staring right at Bell. Before she could say anything, he fired his tranquilizer gun, a dart hitting her in the neck as she dropped the phone and collapsed onto the floor. Park and McKnight saw it through the window.
"She'll be out for several hours. Clean it up," Park ordered. Bell approached the unconscious woman, removed the dart from her neck, then carried her body to the couch. Afterwards, he got her body arranged on the couch to make it look like she'd fallen asleep watching the television. Hopefully this would not alert Kraus. He hung the phone back up to cover all bases.
Bell approached the bottom of the stairwell but froze when he saw a shadow from up over the railing. He held back, chambered another dart, and kept the gun raised; Kraus was almost in his line of sight.
"Bell, Kraus just left his office!" McKnight called out over comms, but Bell dared not speak a word for fear of being discovered.
"Edda, kannst du meinen Regenschirm finden? Ich werde in ein paar Minuten gehen," Kraus spoke up. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.
Kraus' shadow moved back to the right towards his office. Bell took this as his cue and slowly crept up the stairwell.
"Coulda warned me about Kraus," Bell angrily spoke into comms, "He's back in his office."
"No, he isn't," McKnight said, "I'm looking at it right now, he's not there."
"Then where would he-?" Bell stopped when he saw two doorways. One of them was his office, but the other one had the door wide open and Bell could see that there were no windows in it. It looked like another office of a kind, but perhaps one that they didn't know about. Kraus had his back turned as he was placing stuff inside his briefcase.
Bell saw him turn heel, so he quickly ducked out of the way and into another one of the rooms on the top floor, likely the bedroom. Bell shut the door behind him, and he heard footsteps walk by the door as Kraus walked back downstairs, calling out, "Edda?"
Now was the time to move in on Kraus' secret office. Bell exited the bedroom and made his way down the hallway, entering into the enclosed room.
"Kraus is downstairs in the living room, checking on the wife," McKnight said.
"Bell, what's your status?" Park asked.
"Entering what looks to be a secret office of some kind," Bell said, "I have eyes on the briefcase."
Bell approached the briefcase and opened it carefully. Inside, he saw what looked like stacks of both German and American currency, a passport, and...
"What the fuck?" Bell uttered aloud as he picked up the photographs inside and observed him carefully. The item pictured was a device of a kind, but it wasn't just any device. He'd seen one just like it up close in Vietnam.
It was a nuclear bomb.
Jesus fucking Christ.
"Bell, what do you see?" Park asked, hearing Bell's speech over comms.
"There's photos in here of a nuke," Bell informed her, "A nuke."
"What?" McKnight asked, "Are you fucking kidding me?"
"I'm not kidding, there are photos of a fucking nuke in here," Bell said over comms.
"Oh my God..." Park uttered before she said, "Bell, just plant the tracker and get out of there."
Bell, still wondering what the fuck was going on, did so anyway. He placed the tracker in the inner lining of the briefcase and activated it. Now all he had to do was wait for Kraus to bring it to Volkov. Just as he closed the case again, he heard a muffle cry from where he was. He quickly scanned the room for any signs of life but didn't see any. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a picture hanging on the wall all crooked-like, so Bell walked over and fixed it in its proper place. Once he'd done so, the nearby bookcase slid to the side, revealing a darkened opening in the wall.
Bell raised his tranq gun and walked forward through the hole until his head came in contact with a chain for a light switch. Curious, Bell pulled on it and it lit up the room in a bright red light, revealing the several pictures hanging on strands above him. This was Kraus' darkroom, probably what he used to develop the photographs he had in the briefcase.
"Mmmph!" another muffled cry sounded. Bell looked down on the floor and saw Keller lying there, her arms and legs bound behind her with rope and duct tape over her mouth. How the hell she had ended up here, he had no idea, but she continued to struggle on the ground even as Bell went to free her. Before he could, he heard footsteps from behind, and Bell turned to see that Kraus had rushed into the room brandishing a gun. Before Bell had time to draw his tranq gun on him, Kraus whacked him over the head with his pistol before pushing him to the ground.
Bell watched as Kraus pulled the slide back on his pistol before he lost consciousness.
He awoke some time later with a throbbing in his head. As he came to, Bell realized that he was tied down to a chair; he couldn't move his arms and legs worth a damn. He also couldn't move his mouth as it had been closed shut with duct tape.
"You allowed him to break into your apartment?" a voice said in a Russian accent.
" I-I can't explain it- how he got the materials. But I brought him to you," Kraus' voice said. Upon hearing it, Bell's eyes opened as his vision returned. He looked around and saw he was in a warehouse of some kind. Next to him was Keller, also bound down to a chair, and in front of them looked like Kraus and...
Volkov.
Surrounding Volkov and Kraus were about a dozen hostiles as far as he could see. Whether they were Russian mob, KGB, or Stasi made no difference to him; they were all armed.
"That makes this much less unpleasant for you," Volkov said, "No witnesses."
"Then you'll let Perseus know I captured him?" Kraus told him, "And Greta Keller too?"
Perseus.
So that confirmed it. Volkov was definitely working for Perseus. Maybe he could tell him where he was.
"When and if he decides to make contact with me, I may mention it," Volkov said.
Fuck. Volkov didn't know where he was after all.
"Ah, finally," Volkov said, turning his attention towards Bell, "Thomas Jackson. Born in Charleston, South Carolina on October 7, 1950 to Paul and Maria. Sergeant of the United States Marine Corps, recipient of the US Navy Cross. Served in Vietnam for a year before being transferred to MACV-SOG for the remainder of the war. Afterwards became an operative in the CIA's Special Activities Division."
Bell froze and maintained his composure. How the fuck did Volkov know that much about him personally?
"Perseus told me all about you, and your team," Volkov said, taking an unoccupied chair and sitting opposite of Bell. He ripped the duct tape right off his mouth, but Bell hardly flinched. This wasn't his first time captured by the enemy during his time in the CIA. He maintained his composure, knowing he had to play things smart. Bell saw Kraus had the briefcase in hand, and with any luck had not removed the tracking device. If he stalled long enough, the rest of his team would have time to show up and take care of things.
"Oh, I almost forgot," Volkov said, reaching into his jacket and pulling out the Soviet bayonet Bell kept on him, "A standard-issue bayonet compatible for an AK-47 assault rifle. I believe I remember having these delivered to the North Vietnamese Army once upon a time. When was it? 1968?"
Bell could see Volkov was trying to rile him. But he wouldn't get shit from him.
"Ah yes, it was. To my understanding, those weapons were put to great use," Volkov taunted, "How many Americans were killed that day?"
"Go fuck yourself," Bell uttered. Volkov clicked his tongue, then turned to one of his men and nodded. The man walked up behind Keller and wrapped his arms around her neck. Keller struggled for a moment, but the man had succeeded in suffocating her. Bell could do nothing as he watched helplessly.
Adler, where the fuck are you?
"She gets it easy," Volkov told Bell, directing his focus back at him, "Do not tempt me to make use of my new toy."
He raised the knife, and Bell held back his fear.
"Killing me gives you no room to negotiate with my friends," Bell warned.
Volkov laughed, "Unfortunately for you, it seems these friends of yours have other places to be, Comrade."
With that, Volkov stood up and kicked Bell's chair onto the ground. Bell could do nothing but stare upward as Volkov stood over him and pulled out his CZ75.
Bell looked up again and saw lightning flash through the windows of the warehouse, and in that flash, he saw figures scurry their way across the rooftop. As Volkov pulled the slide back on his pistol, Bell smirked.
Volkov was confused for a moment before he heard the sound of shattering glass, and from above three smoke grenades dropped down onto the ground, filling the warehouse with smoke. Volkov, Kraus, and their men started looking wildly around for the source, and suddenly gunfire rang out as the figures descended down ropes onto the ground. Kraus was killed almost immediately, dropping his briefcase onto the ground. Another bullet grazed Volkov's left shoulder, causing him to drop the bayonet. The Soviets inside started firing randomly at targets before two of them were dropped down in a flurry of SMG fire. Volkov ran off into the smoke and out of sight, probably trying to escape the warehouse. One Soviet was firing their rifle upward right in front of Bell before he was shot in the head by a 1911.
"Park!" Bell called out, seeing the MI6 agent descend down onto the ground with her pistol drawn. Adler, Lazar, and McKnight descended next to her and started clearing the room of hostiles. Park took notice of Bell still strapped to the chair before rushing over, grabbing the bayonet on the ground, and cutting the ropes holding Bell down. Bell quickly got to his feet as Park handed him back his bayonet.
"Just in the nick of time, right Bell?" Park said.
"Couple of minutes ago wouldn't have been so bad either," Bell responded. Park then removed the MP5 she had strapped behind her back and placed it in Bell's grip.
"I'll secure the case," Park told him, "Get Volkov!"
Bell nodded, then turned away from Park and started pursuing Volkov through the warehouse. He slapped the bolt down on the MP5, which he saw had a 50-round drum magazine and a holographic sight.
"Bell, push up!" Adler called out, firing into the Soviets with his M4. About fucking time he showed up. Bell didn't argue it and pushed up with him and Lazar, taking down targets as they went.
"Volkov went through there!" Adler spoke up, pointing towards a small room at the other side of the warehouse, "Bell, take him out!"
"He's more valuable alive, Bell! Don't kill him!" Park spoke over comms. Bell was conflicted now; his head said to spare Volkov but his rage said to kill him. In the end, however, he decided to use his head.
Bell breached the door and was met with a flashbang which momentarily blinded him. As his vision cleared up he saw two more Soviets in front of him. Acting fast, he emptied the rest of his MP5 into the two of them and killed them. Bell turned the corner again and saw Volkov trying to escape through the back door, but it was locked.
Volkov turned around to see Bell standing there, aiming his MP5 right at him. Volkov then dropped his empty CZ75 and put up his hands, but did not look at all frightened.
"So here we are, you and I," Volkov said, facing Bell, "Go ahead, take me out. It's what you're good at, is it not?"
Bell slung his MP5 over his shoulder and pulled out his bayonet. It took all his rage to not kill him right then and there. Instead, he took the knife and plunged it into the bullet wound in his shoulder. Whatever damage the gunfire did would now be worsened by his blade. Volkov barely was able to contain any cry of pain.
"Here's a little gift courtesy of the Marines of Da Nang, you sick fuck," Bell said, pressing the blade deeper. Hopefully it would give permanent damage. Bell then removed the bayonet and sheathed it again, now taking Volkov's good arm and pinning it behind his back. As he was marching him back towards the other side of the warehouse, the rest of the team approached. Bell saw that McKnight was holding Kraus' briefcase.
Adler and Park approached Bell first. Adler's face was stoic but ultimately calm. Park, however, looked just the tiniest bit excited to see Volkov alive and apprehended.
"At last," Park said with relish in her voice, "Bell, on behalf of MI6... thank you. Volkov is ours."
"More than he deserves," Adler spoke up, "Now let's get the hell out of East Berlin. Sims, you here yet?"
"Just outside, Cap," Sims spoke over the radio, "We get the sumbitch?"
"Volkov is secure. Get Hudson on the horn," Adler told him, and the agents started to make way to leave the compound.
"How's your brother, Agent Park?" Volkov asked, causing Park to stop walking. She turned around to face Volkov, and Bell was starting to get nervous. Park's jubilation at capturing Volkov seemed to disappear as she strained to maintain composure. Bell noticed her fingers twitch over the 1911 at her side, so he decided to move Volkov along before Park decided to take rash action.
Bell had his suspicions about what was going on, but they had other things to worry about. Most importantly, what the fuck was Perseus planning on doing with those photos of a nuke.