Chapter 7

As always, thanks for reading and sharing your comments/reviews. Appreciate them all!

(Just as an aside, I'd love to write for the series. I think every fanfic writer would, but until that opportunity opens up, writing these stories is the next best thing.)

Just before sunrise the next day Dimitri left Havana. When he got back the night before, he called the two hotels Ricardo had suggested. Hotel Los Jazmines confirmed that Anna had two appointments at Cayo Jutias that day—she scheduled her appointments, but the hotels collected a small "reservation" fee from the guests, so Anna let them what days she had appointments, but not the times. The desk clerk at his hotel told Dimitri the drive to Cayo Jutias would take three hours, more or less. By leaving early, he hoped to arrive before Anna. In the trunk of his rental car, Dimitri had everything necessary to make sure that anyone who contributed to Volkoff's death paid for his death with their own—in a variety of ways.

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Sunshine slipped in through the open window and crept up the side of the bed until its fingers touched the two sleepers tangled in the sheets. Callen and Anna lay naked, legs entwined, their breathing rhythmical, their bodies relaxed, and their faces content. Anna woke first to the sound of the cars on the street below. She gently disentangled her legs from Callen's and slid out from under the sheets. She slipped his shirt on and walked to the window. The sunlight drenched her, enrobing her in its golden rays as she stretched her arms wide and closed her eyes. Here she was, in Old Havana, sharing a bed again with Callen. It all seemed a dream and she didn't want it to end.

Callen's arms slipped around her and his fingers rested gently on her, tracing figure eights around and below her naval. She felt his breath on her neck and then his tongue and then his lips. Her shoulders scrunched and her buttocks tightened and her head tilted back. She reached behind and ruffled his hair, then turned to face him and met his kisses with her own. His hands caressed her, softly at first, and then more firmly as he pulled her to him and she let his shirt slide to the floor. He took her back to bed.

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A little over three hours after he left Havana, Dimitri stopped at the guard station on the causeway to Cayo Jutias. The guard asked for his passport, and Dimitri handed it to him.

He smiled at the guard and asked, "I wonder if you've seen my sister. I was told by the hotel concierge that she'll be coming to this beach today." He showed the guard a photo on his phone of Anna. "She's a masseuse."

The guard handed Dimitri's passport back, "You have different names?"

"Different fathers," Dimitri admitted.

That satisfied the guard, "Yes, I saw her yesterday morning."

"So, she's not here now?"

"She could have come back, but I have not seen her. She left yesterday with a man."

"A man?" Dimitri seemed puzzled, but then scrolled through the photos on his phone and showed the guard a photo of Callen. "This man?"

"Yes, Señor Weston."

"Weston?"

"Yes. He is here to study ocean pollution."

"Of course. I'd forgotten his name." His expression turned serious, "I think she might be involved with him, if you know what I mean."

"I understand and I think you might be right."

"Brothers know, don't we? But, we're protective and have to make sure that our sisters make good choices. You don't know if she came with him, do you?"

"She came in her own car, before he came."

"So she drove?"

"Si, yes, her car is still here, but I have not seen her today."

"I'd like to leave a note for her," Dimitri said, "to tell her where I'm staying. Do you remember her car?"

"Of course. I remember all the cars. Your sister's car is a red Valiant. Mr. Weston drives a light blue Impala."

"Thank you, very much," Dimitri replied and gave the guard a quick salute as he drove ahead.

There were a few parking areas, and Dimitri didn't spot Anna's car until the last one. There were four other cars parked there, but the red Valiant sat by itself. Dimitri parked next to an old Cadillac convertible and walked over to the Valiant. He peered in and saw a massage table and a small duffle bag that contained various lotions and oils. Anna had not arrived yet. Dimitri walked over to the beach and quickly scanned the area, but there were few people present and none that matched Anna's or Callen's description. So, she had left with Agent Callen, Mr. Weston, the day before and had not yet returned. That meant he might be bringing her back. He could wait, but it might be hours before she returned. And he didn't have to wait. He walked back to his car and lifted out one of the duffle bags from his trunk and walked back to the Valiant. It would be better if she died when he wasn't around. He didn't want too many questions. And of course, Lionel was still alive. Dimitri had returned to Lionel's apartment only to see him being lifted into the ambulance. He didn't come thousands of miles to leave work unfinished. This was, after all, a working vacation for Dimitri. He hadn't come to Cuba for the rum and cigars.

When he drove past the guard station about thirty minutes later, Dimitri stopped again and motioned to the guard that he wanted to talk to him. Since there was no incoming traffic, the guard stepped around to the other side and leaned down to speak to Dimitri face to face.

"Leaving so soon?" he asked.

"Well," Dimitri replied with a slight nod, "there's no telling when she'll return, but I left a little something for her. She'll know I'm here."

"That's probably wise. Maybe she will not be coming back today. If she's gone to Havana with Mr. Weston, she may not return today."

Dimitri pulled away and then stopped suddenly and leaned out the driver's window. The guard approached. "Why did you say she's gone to Havana?"

"Well, that's where Mr. Weston is staying." Dimitri gave the guard a puzzled look, so the guard continued, "There was a parking permit from Iberostar Parque Central on his car's dashboard." Dimitri waited, and the guard explained, slightly exasperated, "The Iberostar is in Havana."

Dimitri smiled, "Ah, it's a hotel."

"A very elegant hotel, so if Mr. Weston has taken your sister there …."

"He has honorable intentions?"

"Maybe, maybe not, but she will have the best of everything," he replied.

"And she deserves it." Dimitri had never used the "caring brother" cover before, but it was proving to be so effective and easy he would be foolish to not use it again. "Thank you very much. I'm going back to Havana today, so maybe I can find them before they come back." He paused just long enough to pretend to think, "And when she comes back, please don't tell her I'm looking for her. I want to surprise her." The guard assured him that his secret was safe, and Dimitri gave him a big smile and short salute. The guard watched him drive away and was pleased with himself. After all, a big part of his job was to be helpful.

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Callen picked his shirt up off the floor and slipped it on. Anna lay on the bed and watched him, the sheet strategically positioned across her from the waist down.

"We can't stay inside all day," he said, trying hard to sound like a reasonable, mature adult.

"Why not?

"Because I'm starving."

"So am I."

"I mean for food."

In one simple motion, Anna reached behind, picked the phone off the nightstand, and set it down in front of her breasts that beckoned him with each breath. "Call room service."

What the hell. Neither of them could make up for years of loneliness in a few days, but they could try. The phone clattered as it hit the floor. Callen felt Anna open to him and their two bodies blending, but in a distant corner of his brain Callen's training warned him that an unknown danger was approaching.

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Callen couldn't remember ever getting out of bed so late when he hadn't been either sick or injured, and he had to admit, he could get used to it. After their latest lovemaking, Anna had at last relented and told him that he was right: they needed to eat and they should go get her car. Neither of them had had anything solid to eat for over twelve hours, so it was no wonder they felt a little weak with all the energy they'd expended. And she was worried about her car. If it looked abandoned, someone might think that it was abandoned and then they would take it, and even though it was old and not in perfect condition, it was hers. She paid for it with her money, and she told Callen she was going to get some of her money back when she got rid of it. Callen laughed. She sounded just like Arkady's daughter.

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Dimitri was furious. He was hot and tired and so far beyond impatient that it took all of his mental discipline to remain composed when the rental car accident vehicle finally showed up.

The rental car employee, a man about Dimitri's age, pulled up behind Dimitri and got out.

"I am so sorry, Mr. Kuznetsov."

"So am I," Dimitri said, seething. "Do you know how long I've been waiting?"

The man smiled wanly and then opened the trunk and grunted as he lifted the spare tire—which although inflated appeared somewhat worn—out and rolled it to Dimitri's rental and leaned it against the rear fender. He looked at Dimitri and waited. Dimitri raised his arms in exasperation. The man pointed at the trunk.

"I need the jack, Mr. Kuznetsov."

"Of course you do," Dimitri said as he pushed the man aside and opened the trunk. He picked up several duffle bags from the trunk and put them carefully on the side of the road near the front bumper. The man retrieved the jack, raised the car, and changed the tire out in less than thirty minutes. He replaced the jack and carried the flat tire back to the company car and tossed it in the trunk, and then went to help Dimitri reload the duffle bags, but he had already placed them back and slammed the trunk shut. The man came back with a clipboard and handed Dimitri a pen. Dimitri took a deep breath and scrawled his signature across the bottom of the paper as a light blue Impala drove past in the opposite direction unseen by either man. The repair job completed, the man tore off a copy for Dimitri, gave him another apologetic smile, and got in his car and drove away. Dimitri got in, checked his watch, and continued, less than 100 miles from Havana, but now more than four hours behind schedule.

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The sun was balancing just above the horizon when Callen pulled up to the guard station on the causeway. The guard who checked their passports was not the one who had done so the day before or the one who had checked Dimitri's earlier, but when he saw the name Weston, he leaned down and smiled at Anna.

"I hear your brother came looking for you this morning."

"My brother?" Anna leaned across Callen and looked at the guard with surprise, and the guard immediately cursed under his breath when he remembered that he wasn't supposed to mention it.

"I must be mistaken," he said as he tried to rectify his mistake.

"Wait," Anna said and took her phone out of her purse. She ran through the photos and then showed the guard a photo of a man. "Was this the man?"

"I didn't see him. He wants to surprise you, so I wasn't supposed to say anything. I'm sorry."

The guard who had worked earlier and spoken with Dimitri stepped into the station with two plates of food from a small food stall nearby. He overheard Anna's comment and scowled at his fellow guard, but looked at the picture on Anna's phone.

"Yes, that's him."

Anna smiled at both men, "He does this to me all the time, tries to surprise me." She winked and continued, "I won't tell him."

"Thank you," the guard said as he handed back their passports and waved Callen through.

Callen drove ahead and when he reached the parking area where Anna had parked her car, he pulled in. There were no other cars near Anna's, and Callen parked the Impala about twenty feet away from it.

"So?" Callen said, looking at her.

Anna stared at the photo.

"Who is he?"

"Miguel mentioned a Russian. If anyone in Volkoff's circle wanted revenge for Volkoff's death, it would be him." Her voice carried conviction and some anger.

"What's his name?"

"Dimitri Kuznetsov." Callen waited. There was something else. Anna's feelings seemed more personal. She was silent for several moments before she put her phone away and turned to him, "He took Katya back to Russia. He killed her."