All The Right Moves
Chapter Four: South Side
This chapter will echo real-life events, but names have been changed purely out of respect for those involved. I don't know much about how MI5, the SIS, KGB or FSB work, so please excuse any inaccuracies. Please note, Kracev is pronounced 'Kra-chev'. I am Russian myself, so I apologize if you don't agree with any of the opinions I've included. I'm really not trying to offend anyone.
отдых в мире, Александр.
"Sooo, the Russians are coming, huh?" Leave it to Birkhoff to get straight to the point. He sat idolly spinning in his chair, chewing his way through yet another pack of strawberry cables, as the rest of Division's top strike team, Delta, filtered into the conference room. Michael and Elena took their seats either side of him; Elena aiming a well-timed smack upside Birkhoff's head.
"What was that for?" he whined, reaching a hand around to rub his scalp. Elena smirked at him and sat down, pulling the chair closer and resting her arms on the table.
"I'm Russian."
"Oh yeah," Birkhoff replied sheepishly. "Forgot that." Michael turned his head and muttered something under his breath. Before Birkhoff could ask what it was, Elena jumped in.
"Yeah, and you should remember that, Michael. The last thing you want to do is piss off a Russian woman," she said with a wink at Birkhoff.
A cleared throat behind them quickly cut the conversation. Percy clicked the door shut and manoeuvred himself around the room to stand at the head of the table.
"Although highly ineloquent, Birkhoff is correct. The Russians are coming, in a manner of speaking. This morning, 97 US senators voted to ratify a nuclear arms treaty which will pave the way for new cuts in American and Russian nuclear arsenals. Both countries are required to cut their deployed nuclear warheads by up to 30%. The move hasn't been passed by Russia's parliament yet and in lieu of that, President Medvedev is sending a team of eleven delegates to Washington next week to discuss the limitations."
"Conveniently for us, that convoy will include a man named Dmitry Kracev, who is wanted by MI5 for the poisoning and ultimate death of former KGB agent Nikolai Lugan, in a London hotel four years ago. Kracev isn't officially a Division target, but he's about to become one. Let's just say that after the...incident involving Andres Quintana, MI6 did some major damage control for us, and now we owe them. A simple extradition order for Kracev is fine with MI5, but won't wash with MI6."
"Seeing as Kracev will not be setting foot on British soil, no British agency is permitted to touch him. American agencies on the other hand, are a different matter."
"So why not let the CIA or FBI deal with him?" Michael couldn't help but ask.
"As I said," Percy continued as he sat down in the large leather chair, "MI6 aren't happy with simply extraditing Kracev to the UK. And even if they were, the US doesn't have the power to forcibly remove him to Britain. That's where we come in." It was now Elena's turn to ask the questions.
"What are we in for - capture? Neutralization?"
Percy smirked. "Elimination."
Elena smirked right back. Being Russian herself, she had followed the Lugan poisoning case closely.
"About time."
"Elena, wait up." Michael called as he jogged to catch up with her, falling in sync with her steps. "What's got into you? You stormed out of that briefing like a hurricane. Is it because Kracev's Russian?"
Elena stopped abruptly and turned to face Michael. "Kracev is a disgrace and he should be taken out. Lugan didn't deserve to die, all he ever did was tell the truth." With that she resumed walking down the hall, Michael in tow.
"Well what's the deal with this Lugan guy then?" He had heard something briefly on CNN about someone of the same name, but hadn't paid much attention to it, having been involved in an operation at the time.
"He was a KGB and FSB officer. In '98, he and a few other FSB's publicly accused their superiors of ordering the assassination of a Russian tycoon. Lugan was arrested, then acquitted, then re-arrested and released again."
"Arrested for what?"
"Exceeding his authority." she replied, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You really don't get it, do you? Anyway, the Lugan family were granted asylum in the UK and he began writing mainly as a journalist, but he ended up publishing two books which really pissed off the Russian government. He accused the secret services of staging terrorist acts to gain support for Putin and to get him into power. He also accused Putin of ordering the murder of another Russian journalist, Ania Diabrov in October 2006. A month later he was dead, poisoned by a radioactive substance after a meeting in London with Kracev. British and Russian relations have been strained ever since."
"I know what it must seem like, but I tried to sever my ties with that part of Russia a long time ago, you know that. Lugan exposed the Russian government for what it's become - a corrupt machine of vendettas and backhanders. I want this Michael - I know how they think." She noticed Michael's hesistant look.
"I was involved with them, remember? I know how they work."
"All righty, this" Birkhoff gestured to the smart screen behind him, "is the Russell Senate Office Building, the soon-to-be meeting place for our Russian guests. The building sits three stories above ground, two underneath. The START discussion will take place in the Caucus Room, which happens to be the very same place that Kennedy announced his campaign for Presidency." Noting Michael's annoyance and Elena's glare, Birkhoff decided that he should save the trivia for another time.
"Anyway, the Caucus Room was designed by two New Yorkers Carriere and Hastings, who were way into the whole Beaux-Arts architectural movement. Because of that, the room is pretty...obnoxious - Corinthian pilasters, pedestals, modillions, motifs, you get the idea. There are six windows on the courtyard side, bulletproof of course. The room's been the site of a lot of major public hearings, but this time will be different. It's obviously going to be a private party, which means security galore. Medvedev is sending a tac team from his own personal presidential service, the Presidentovski Slushy something-or-other. Elena, help me out here."
She couldn't help but smile. "Prezidentskaya Sluzhba Bezopasnosti, or PSB. It's the Russian equivalent of the Secret Service."
"Thank you. Speaking of our boys in black, President Obama has assigned a visiting dignitaries protection detail, mainly for Medvedev's satisfaction. That means not only will we have the Russian detail to deal with, but our own as well. That makes getting to Kracev at the Russell nearly impossible, so we need to switch tactics."
"Guess who discovered where the Russians will be staying during their visit to this fine country? Oh yeah, that'd be me. The Embassy Suites by the Convention Center in downtown D.C. They're taking over the top two floors, so security will still be fairly tight, but lighter than at the Russell. Elena, you're up." Birkhoff sat down, allowing Elena to take the floor. She grabbed a screen pen to point out various locations on the hotel blueprint Birkhoff had just pulled up.
"They'll operate in what's known as a Triple Two - three pairs rotating positions throughout the day. Four guards spread over the entrances to the top two floors here and here, and another two controlling human traffic at the elevator bases here. We'll have four heavily armed guards to break through. And I'm not talking 229's or Remington's. Their weaponry is far more advanced than ours. They don't release the details, but they have it."
"According to their plans, Kracev's suite is in the far-east corner of the top floor, but it's highly likely that the PSB will switch the delegates' rooms upon arrival. It's a standard tactic they've been using since day one. It's a risky move on their part to even be sending him in the first place, but Russia are desperate to be seen as part of the global society. Michael, what are our positions?" He immediately jumped up to cover his briefing, catching the pen Elena threw his way.
"We can bypass the first two security guards by gaining access to the service elevator. There's a small tunnel that runs into the service shaft off 11th Street. Cover as hotel staff won't be a problem. The elevator runs directly up to the housekeeping suite on the fourth floor. Once we hit there, we need a way to get past two security levels. The delegate team will be here on a 'get in, get out' basis, meaning they won't be wanting escort services or private dining, which rules out our usual MO. If we can't get past security under the pretense of providing a service to the guests, then we have to aim for the guards themselves." Percy, who had been quietly observing his best agents at work decided to wrap up the afternoon briefing.
"Good work." Shooting a barely-there but very pointed look at Elena, he carried on. "I've witnessed first-hand how the Russians can be when threatened, so I'll be sending a cleaner in with you. Agreed?"
"Agreed, but could you have a word with Roan about his trigger happy ways? I really don't want a repeat of last time." Michael could envision how this would go down. Roan would burst in, shoot everyone and the whole operation would go to hell. And back.
"Who said anything about Roan?"
A little teaser for you there, let me know what you think.
To all my wonderful readers and reviewers, I hope you have a magical Christmas and a wonderful New Year. Stay safe and I'll see you in 2011!
S Rozhdestvom Khristovym!
Harri x
