Disclaimer: I do not own Jonny Quest. I am making no money off of this and it is purely for fun and enjoyment.
Chapter 6
Disembarking the vehicle, Race followed Jade towards the entrance of the building. Still within the city, Jade had taken him to a long row of apartments, the architecture of the centuries old building blending in perfectly with the rest of Prague's structures. Race whistled appreciatively as they made their way inside.
"This looks to be some pretty posh living right here." Race stated.
"Askar lives on the top floor, the penthouse loft." Jade replied as she headed up the stairs.
"Pretty expensive taste for an all around creep, not to mention a madman." Race commented.
"He's arrogant and obsessive which makes him dangerous."
"How'd you get involved with such a lowlife?" Race asked his new companion.
Jade smirked, "Watch the implications there, Race. He has something my employer wanted. That's all."
"And who is your employer?"
"Nice try," Jade looked back, wiggling a finger at the Agent. "I'm helping you out with this situation here. That doesn't mean I kiss and tell in regards to the rest of my business."
"Well, since we haven't gotten to the kissing part...yet," Race teased.
Rolling her eyes, Jade chuckled. "Men. You're all the same."
"I'm just saying," Race grinned, but Jade shushed him with a wave of her hand as they reached the top floor of the building.
Race pulled his handgun from the holster, keeping it pointed low, thumb ready to disengage the safety in a heartbeat, he nodded to his female acquaintance and she pointed to the door at the far end of the hallway.
"That's his place." She whispered in his ear.
Nodding Race moved forward. Reaching the door, he placed an ear against the wooden structure, listening for any signs of life beyond the entrance; no sounds could be heard from within. Grasping the knob with one hand and twisting, Race found the door to be locked.
Looking back at Jade, Race shook his head. Moving back, he positioned himself squarely in front of the door, ready to launch a swift kick in order to break the lock.
"What are you doing?" Jade whispered, placing a hand on his arm.
"We need to get inside." Race shot her a perturbed look.
Grinning, Jade replied. "While I don't work for your organization, I can't imagine you're allowed to just go around kicking in doors whenever you get a hunch."
"What do you propose?" Race asked, he didn't have time to waste asking for permission.
"Allow me." Jade smiled. Stepping forward, she reached into her purse to withdraw a rolled up leather bundle. She knelt in front of the door then rolled out the bundle, revealing a set of locking picking tools. "Just watch my back, handsome."
Glancing back and forth between the hallway and Jade, Race marveled at the idea that he had so willingly teamed up with this mysterious and intriguing woman. Even with no concrete proof that Doctor Arman was involved with Vostok, Race knew that breaking into the man's loft was necessary, even if it was going to get him an ass-chewing later on down the road.
"Hurry up." Race kept his voice low.
"Relax, Race," Jade replied as she manipulated the tools to open the lock. "I'm almost there."
As if in response to her statement, the lock released with an audible pop. Standing Jade rolled her tools back up, "See? So much better than having to explain a kicked in door."
Shaking his head, Race knew she was right. "Stay right behind me."
Opening the door, Race pushed forward into the loft's main living area. The lights were off, but enough sunlight filtered through the row of windows to illuminate the room. Moving swiftly, weapon raised, Race cleared the room before moving through the rest of the apartment.
Stepping back into the main room, Race holstered his weapon. "All clear. He's not here."
Moving towards the windows, Jade threw back the drapes, bathing the room in the late morning sunlight. Glancing about the room, she noticed that nothing seemed out of place, nothing indicating that Arman had taken off in a hurry. "I wonder if he's coming back."
Race stroked his chin as he thought. "I wonder if he's still alive."
Jade gave the agent a sideways look as she headed for Arman's office. "I found that vial in here."
The mentioned of the vial set Race's instincts on alert once again. If the vial did contain a biological agent, then perhaps it wasn't safe in the loft, however if Arman lived here he wouldn't be creating his deadly substances in the same area as he lived.
He observed Jade head straight to the desk, then crouch down. "Damnit." She grumbled as she stood back up.
"What is it?"
"The safe is locked."
Race eyed the woman for a moment, his mind beginning to question her motivations for helping him. "Why do you need to get into his safe?"
She looked at him momentarily then turned her attention towards the man's desk. "That's where I found the vial. I thought perhaps there would be more."
Shuffling through the stacks of papers, Jade grumbled. It appeared that Arman had cleaned up after he had discovered her thievery. None of the documents appeared to be important.
"If we get permission to search this place, then we can get inside the safe."
"That might take too long." Jade countered.
Race narrowed his eyes as he crossed his arms over his chest, staring down the woman. "What exactly are you looking for, Jade?"
Shrugging innocently, Jade smiled at the man to set him at ease. "I'm helping, remember."
Race's thoughts went back to Phil's words the night before, that what Jade does only benefits Jade. Race wondered if he had been too trustworthy with the woman when he had found her in his hotel room earlier.
Focusing back on the task at hand, Race said, "If Arman is making these biological agents, he has to be doing it somewhere close. I can't imagine Vostok would let him move about freely if he had already created the weapon."
"Vostok will kill Doctor Arman the moment he's done with him." Jade agreed.
"But Arman must have some leverage he's using against Vostok." Jade suggested.
"Or Vostok doesn't want Arman creating his concoctions anywhere close to the rest of his operations." Race countered. "Vostok's no fool. He'd realize that if something went wrong, Arman's work could kill everyone involved before Vostok was able to enact his plan."
"So you think Arman has a lab somewhere else?" Jade asked.
"What else is in this building?" Race inquired.
"Just apartments I guess." Jade replied.
"Is there a basement?"
Shrugging she said, "I have no idea."
Race smiled at the woman, "Well, let's go find out."
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"Where did you get this?" Doctor Quest asked, leaning back from the microscope.
Seated at an isolated examination chamber within the university's deserted lab, Doctor Quest studied the contents of the vial. Having placed the small vial within the chamber, he had engaged the robotic arms in order to open the vial and dump its contents onto the table.
As the vial was upturned, a thick blackish, brown liquid oozed forth from within. With great care, the young scientist had processed a portion of the sample for further study.
"An acquaintance found it hidden away in a man's apartment." Corbin responded.
Quest stroked his beard as he took in the information. He mumbled incoherently to himself as his eyes became distant.
"Doctor?" Phil prodded. "What is it?"
The I-1 agents words seemed to snap the Doctor back to reality. "It's a plague."
Phil blinked. "Excuse me?"
"Its plague, Agent Corbin." Quest said again as he stood and faced the other man. "or more specifically that sample contains the bacterium that causes the plague. However,"
Seeing the scientist's thoughts beginning to wander again, Phil said. "However 'what', Doctor Quest?"
Looking the I-1 Agent in the eyes, Benton replied, "It's not like any plague-causing bacterium I've seen before. This is something different...something new. Something deadlier than the bubonic and pneumonic plagues combined."
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Back on the street, Race squinted against the bright rays of the sun as it ascended in the sky, nearing midday. Shielding his eyes, he glanced at Jade, "Let's try around the corner. See if there's an entrance to the basement off of the back alley."
"Alright." Jade replied. Race couldn't be certain, but the woman seemed distracted, as if she had wanted to spend more time in the loft. Once again Race found himself wondering just what Jade's motivations were.
Moving quickly, the pair rounded the street corner and headed for the back alley a number of yards away. Entering they saw a blue van, similar to the one that Jade had driven the night before, parked at the far end of the alley; it was a common enough delivery van, but something about the darkened window and its proximate location to the building set Race on alert. Once off the main street, he pull out his pistol and quickened his pace.
"What is it?" Jade asked.
"Stay close." Race ordered as he watched a man emerge from a set of steps sunken into the concrete, the stairs leading down to what Race believed was the basement of Arman's building.
Keeping close to the side of the building they were currently next to, Race saw that the man appeared not to notice the duo. Race continued to close the distance as he kept his eyes on the man. From what he could tell, the unknown person was not Arman, being far too young with a crop of dirty blonde hair and a light-skinned complexion. He watched as the man opened the rear doors of the van, but since his body was blocking, Race could not see what, if anything, was in the vehicle.
Something about the man made Race tighten his grip on his pistol while continuing to move forward. Approximately twenty yards from the target, Race saw the man turn his head towards the stairs and shout; the rough words was enough for Race. While he didn't understand Russian, he was able to recognize the coarseness of the words as the man spoke.
Stepping out from his location, Race raised his pistol at the man. Opening his mouth, Race was about to shout an order to him to surrender, when the man reached into the back of the van and turned. Race's eyes went wide, the man grinned viciously as he raised the AK-47 assault rifle to the pocket of his shoulder and fired.
Diving for cover, Race nearly avoided the onslaught of rounds as they whizzed by overhead. "Get to cover." Race shouted at Jade as he scrambled towards a tiny dumpster.
Reaching the destination safely, Race peered around the edge at his assailant and saw another man emerge from the stairwell. "Arman." Race growled as he once again laid eyes on the Kazakhstani scientist.
The gunman moved, providing cover for Arman as he headed towards the driver's side of the van. Aiming his weapon blindly around the corner of the dumpster, Race fired off of a couple of rounds then quickly ducked back. Looking around he didn't see Jade anywhere.
Gunshots once again deafened his thoughts. Sneering he waited for the right moment. Seconds later, he heard what he was waiting for; the distinct sound the AK-47s bolt being locked to the rear; the gunman was out of ammo.
Rolling out from behind the dumpster, Race came up on one knee, aimed and fired. His rounds slammed into the man's chest. Vaulting to his feet, Race was on the move, however he couldn't see Arman anymore.
A second later, the van's engine started and Race watched as it started to pull away. Swearing under this breath, Race fired at the van, but the momentum of the vehicle's forward movement caused the back doors to slam shut. Within a blink of an eye, the van was racing down the rest of the alley and turning out onto the street.
Running past the dead gunman, Race kicked the empty rifle away, just in case, as he sprinted after the van. Coming out on to the street, he saw curious onlookers watching him, but the van was gone.
"Damnit." Race spat as he headed back into the alley. "Jade!" He yelled, but the woman was gone.
"Blast that woman!" He shouted, she had left him on his own. Checking the gunman for a pulse, Race wasn't surprised when he didn't find one; the four holes in the man's chest indicative of his demise.
Pulling out his phone, Race scanned the area. He imagined that someone had to have heard the gunshots and called the police, but he couldn't leave. At this point, whether he liked it or not, the Czech authorities were going to be involved.
Race called Phil and filled him in on the details. "I'm going to check out the basement. That's where they were coming out of."
"Race, just wait. We're dealing with something new, something dangerous." Phil replied. "What's the address?"
Race gave the information over to his partner.
"I'm on my way there now."
"So are the cops, I'm sure."
"You need to talk to them if they get there before me." Phil replied. "Just stay cool. The responding officers won't know who you are, but their superiors should. Best to cooperate and not get arrested."
"Jade ran off." Race ran his free hand through his hair as he spoke.
A moment of silence from Phil made Race a second-guess his actions once again. "Don't worry about her," Phil said eventually. "She'll show back up when she wants."
Nodding Race smiled, "Yeah. I should have listened to you about her."
Phil chuckled, "Yeah, you should have. But don't worry about it. I'll be there in about fifteen minutes."
"Got it," Race replied, the wail of the police sirens drawing near. "The cops are going to get here first, so hurry up. You're better at this protocol, cooperation bullshit than I am."
"Understood." Phil replied and hung up.
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"What is it?" Vostok growled into the phone.
"They found me." Askar reported. He had narrowly escaped with his life when the American agent had started shooting, but he had managed to get out into traffic, blending in with the midday rush while at the same time avoiding police suspicion. "But I managed to get away. Your guard didn't make it."
Vostok grunted, "He died for the cause. Please, Doctor, tell me you have the items."
Askar wiped the sweat from his forehead as he drove with a shaky hand, the phone cradled between his ear and shoulder. Exhaling, he repositioned the cell phone in his free hand, "I do. We managed to secure it prior to the American's arrival."
"Good. Very good, Doctor." Vostok grinned. He paced the length of the room, the cold farmhouse reminding him of the farm where his grandparents had lived in Russia. "Bring it here, but ensure you are not followed."
"I understand." Arman replied, but Vostok had already hung up.
Stopping in place, Vostok looked at his Colonel and grinned. "Our plan is coming to fruition, Colonel. With Arman's new agent, we no longer need the exact components from the Garrison for the bombs. We can proceed with what we have."
"Are we sure that will suffice?" Yasimov asked, doubt edging into his question.
"Of course it will, but we should test it first to be sure." Vostok smiled.
"A test run? Where?"
"I have the perfect venue in mind, Colonel. And I am sure our good friend and ally Doctor Arman will be more than happy to deliver it himself." Vostok's laugh was laced with pure evil.
Yasimov grinned at his superior's new and diabolical plans.
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Hearing the sirens grow louder, Jade quickened her step as she headed back up to Arman's loft. Having given the I-1 agent the slip as soon as the Russian gunman had opened fire, Jade headed back to retrieve what she was really after. She actually found herself regretting leaving Bannon, but he appeared to be able to handle himself, not to mention she wasn't even armed with her own handgun at the moment. She'd have been more of a liability to him than an asset. She'd find a way to make it up to him later.
Slipping back inside, Jade headed for Arman's office once again and the locked safe. Kneeling down in front of it, she pulled out her lock picking set once again and got to work.
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Leaning against one of the squad cars, Race rolled his eyes as he watched the local police securing the area. It had taken some explaining on his part, but he had convinced the uniformed officers not to put him in handcuffs, but they had taken away his weapon.
Another vehicle, this one a dark sedan, stopped just beyond the boundaries of the crime scene tape. Race watched as the doors opened and Agent Corbin emerged from one side of the vehicle while another man exited from the driver's side. Glancing at his watch, Race grumbled under his breath, "Fifteen minutes my ass."
Walking up to the uniformed officers, the unknown man spoke to them as Phil made his way towards Race. Pushing himself up off of the vehicle, Race greeted the other agent with a quick handshake. "You catching rides with the locals now, Phil?"
His demeanor dark, Phil frowned. "That's Inspector Kovar, he's with INTERPOL's biological and chemical response unit stationed here in Prague."
"So you found something in that vial?" Race asked.
Phil nodded, "We think it's some sort of new plague bacterium. I contacted INTERPOL just to be on the safe side."
"How bad is it?" Race asked.
"The vial didn't contain a large enough sample to do any real harm, so it's safe to assume that Arman has created more."
At that moment Inspector Kovar approached. He was an older man, but still stocky and well-built. His light brown hair was thinning in the back and his green eyes looked tired. Looking from Corbin to Race, Kovar said, "So this is your man, Corbin?"
Phil nodded, "Yeah, this is him."
Kovar nodded then handed Race's pistol back to Phil. "While I'm grateful for Intelligence One's interest in this matter, I would appreciate it if you'd stop shooting up my city. We can only cover these things up so many times before the public gets suspicious."
"He shot first. I was just defending myself." Race shot back, not liking the INTERPOL man's tone.
Phil waved a subtle hand at Race, indicating for him to remain calm.
"Perhaps, but now we have a mess on our hands and the man you claim to be the real threat has escaped?" Kovar questioned.
"I'm sorry I had to kill a guy that's part of an international criminal organization and ruin your day, Inspector." Race sneered.
Kovar snorted, "Thank you for your help, Gentlemen, we have it from here."
"What the hell?" Race shot back, confronting Kovar.
"Race, calm down." Phil said.
"Hell no, Phil, he can't do this."
"I can, Agent Bannon, and I am. We no longer require your assistance."
"You wouldn't even know about this if it wasn't for us!" Race shouted.
"If you do not control you man, Agent Corbin, I will have him restrained and arrested. As of now it is only his word about what happened here."
"You son of a bitch." Race spat.
"Race, calm down." Phil growled, placing himself between the two men.
"This is bullshit." Race stated. "You're actually playing this political crap, Phil?"
Seeing the situation escalating as the uniformed officers turned their attentions towards them, Phil pushed Race backwards, away from the INTERPOL agent. "I said calm down, Bannon."
"I can't believe," Race started.
"Would you just shut the fuck up for one damn second?" Phil shouted as he pushed Race harder, causing Race to stop in his protests.
Seeing Race relax a tad, Phil handed him his weapon back, "I said calm down. Think about this for one second, you damn hothead! You've been involved in a shooting on foreign soil, twice now actually. And this time it was in the middle of the day at a location that you shouldn't even be at. Look at it from their angle, Bannon."
Securing his weapon back in its holster, Race took a number of deep breaths. Finally he sighed and said, "You're right, Phil."
"You're goddamn right I'm right." Phil said, but Race noticed the man's tone had lightened. "Kovar is just posturing, that's all. He has to make himself look good in front of his people. We'd do the same damn thing if this was on U.S. soil, so relax."
"This is the part of the job I can never get used to." Race laughed, "Too much politicking for me, man."
"Provoke him and he will have your arrested though. So just let him do what he has to do to calm the situation down. Then he'll invite us back in and we can conduct a joint search."
"You sure he's going to do that?" Race asked.
"It took some finagling but I think I managed to convince him to help. Until then, just take a breather, calm down and tell me how the hell you ended up here anyways."
"Jade brought me here." Race said after a few moments. "But I think she was after something else."
"Like what?"
"I have no idea, Phil. Damn that woman!" Race laughed at himself as he sat down on a curb and waited.
Phil laughed as he patted Race on the shoulder, "I told you so, Bannon."
Watching the cops work, Race let his mind wander back to thoughts of Jade and how she managed to invoke such a plethora of feelings within him; at one point he was infatuated like a teenager with the woman and the next he wanted to throttle the living daylights out of her. Either way, he found her to be the most fascinating and frustrating woman he'd ever known.
Ten minutes later, Kovar whistled drawing Race's attention back to the present. Standing he saw the INTERPOL agent waving them over.
"Just stay calm and let me do the talking, alright?" Phil said as the two went over to join their counterparts.
"You like this guy?" Race asked.
"Not at all. He's pompous and lazy, but we have to work with him, at least for now." Phil replied.
Nodding, Race agreed. Before he could reply they had reached the other man's side. Kovar eyed Race for a moment then said, "I did an initial swab test of the basement door. There could be trace elements of some foreign substance down there. I've called in a response unit. No one goes in until they set up a perimeter and secure the place."
"Doctor Arman and that thug came out of there dressed just like us." Race interjected.
"I'd rather be safe than sorry, Agent Bannon, especially with the health and safety of my people." Kovar replied. Race noticed the edge in his tone was gone. He'd probably realized his mistake and how bad things could have been if not for Race and Phil.
"We understand, Inspector." Phil said. "We'll head upstairs and search Arman's residence if you don't mind."
"I'll send a uniform with you to guard the door." Kovar jerked his head behind him, indicating the small crowd of curious onlookers that was gathering beyond the edge of the crime scene.
"Thanks." Phil replied then nodded at Race to lead the way.
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Falling in step with a gaggle of tourists across the street, Jade watched as the American agents came into view from around the street corner accompanied by a local law enforcement officer, then head inside Arman's building. Breathing a sigh of relief, she congratulated herself for being able to get into Arman's safe in record time, securing the items she was searching for, and getting out unseen. Any longer and Bannon and Corbin would have found her and then she'd have even more explaining to do. For now, she could use the excuse that she had panicked when the shooting had started and ran.
As the two men disappeared into the building, Jade patted her purse delicately, smiled, then headed off towards the Cafe Louvre, famished she found she had a taste for a light French cuisine at the moment.
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Back inside Arman's apartment, Race flipped on the lights. As much as Arman had decorated the place with his acquired Renaissance artwork, Race felt no sense of coziness or elegance from the room. It was as if Doctor Arman's displays were merely for show, rather than being a part of something the man loved and adored.
"This place gives me the creeps." Race said as he studied one of the paintings. While he appreciated the pieces of art, the Renaissance period just wasn't his style.
"He certainly has an extensive and expensive collection." Phil said.
Race came up to Phil's side, as the other man was looking at a collection of miniature paintings. "Such odd stuff." Race smirked.
"Back then these miniatures were quiet popular," Phil stated. "Only someone with quiet a significant amount of money could afford this many miniature paintings."
Race eyed the other man as a grin slowly spread across his face. "How do you know so much about this stuff, Phil?"
Shrugging Phil replied, "About a year ago I dated a woman that was into this kind of stuff. We met at the Smithsonian one afternoon."
"So because she was into it, you got into it, huh?" Race joked.
"I figured it was my best way in." Phil responded.
"Into what? Her bedroom?"
"Screw you, Bannon." Phil snorted a laugh.
"That's a yes." Race deduced.
"Did we come here to talk about me or to find out where Arman and Vostok are hiding? Not to mention where and when they plan to attack?"
Race sighed and pointed down the darkened hallway, "His office is that way." As the two men made their way towards the room, Race prodded his partner again, "So what happened?"
"What?"
"With your Renaissance girlfriend? Did it work?"
"You make me sound like such a dog, Race." Phil said with a laugh, "But yes, it worked."
"I'm going to have to remember that play."
Shaking his head, Phil replied. "Bannon, I think you'll do just fine. Its a shame things didn't work out for you and Estella."
"Estella and I tried, but even with Jessie being our glue we couldn't make it work."
"Your daughter is the only one that matters in that relationship now. Just be the best father to her that you can be."
Nodding Race said, "Yeah." He headed over towards Arman's desk and knelt down. Pulling on a pair of gloves, Race curled his fingers around the handle of the safe and without turning it, he pulled it open; the safe had been unlocked, only the door was pushed shut to appear as it if was locked at a quick glance.
"Hmmm," Race hummed as he peered into the safe, it was empty.
"What is it?" Phil asked.
Standing Race explained, "This safe was locked when Jade and I first came in here. Now it's open...and empty. It looks like whatever that woman was really looking for, she found it."
"That's Jezebel Jade for you, my friend." Phil laughed.
"If I ever see that woman again," Race stated.
"Oh you will, believe me, you will, Race. And sooner than you think I'm sure." Phil said, "But for now, let's head back down to check with Kovar before heading out of here. Tomorrow night is the Symposium dinner."
"Are we going?" Race asked, he hadn't heard of that part of the plan yet.
"I've been thinking," Phil said as the two men left the apartment, "Is it just a coincidence that there is a biodefense symposium going on at the same time that Vostok is threatening a biological attack?"
"You think he plans to attack the conference? But why?" Race asked.
Shaking his head, Phil said, "I don't know, but I think we need to be there just in case. That is if we can't find Vostok before that."
"How do we get in?"
"My contact can get us in," Phil stated, "but first, we need to find some tuxedos."
"A couple of regular spies, huh, Phil?" Race joked as they exited the building.
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To Be Continued...
A/N: I give credit to questfan dot com, AKA the Quest Writer's Bible, where I get some of my character background information from. A lot of the information on that site was provided by the writers of TRAJQ. In this case, the brief information about Estella is credited to writer Lance Falk. While I do not recall it ever being mentioned on the show that she worked for Intelligence One prior to becoming an Archeologist, it is stated on the site that Race and Estella met through I-1 when she worked there as an instructor.