Chapter 25 Chapter Twenty-Three

In Ravenhill, a red No Trespassing sign and tall barbed wire separate the world from the verdant British headquarters of the FRA.Behind the heavily fortified base, a series of satellite-tracking antennas monitor international telegraph and microwave communications passing through Britain.Inside a concrete house in the center of the courtyard, two men are watching a large screen. "Aim at her, Scottie." They watched the TV picture move away from a flat room in Brighton as the satellite moved.Moments later, the image of Dana walking into the Soyuz Hotel room appeared on the big screen.

"She's back." They watched as Dana hurriedly washed the blood off her hands before undressing. "Hey, here we go again." One of the men grinned. They stared at Dana stripped naked. "Dude, I really want to fuck her." Another man hurried into the room. "Unless you have a necrophilia, Charlie." "What are you talking about?" "There's going to be a fatal accident here." Dana got dressed and looked at her watch.There is still enough time to take the Metropolitan Hotel's shuttle bus to the airport.She rushed into the hall with growing anxiety.The fat woman was gone.

Dana walked out into the street.Unbelievably, it's getting colder.The cold wind is like a cruel female ghost howling.A taxi pulls up in front of Dana. "taxi?" Do not take a taxi.Go directly to the Metropolitan Hotel.That hotel has regular air shuttles. "No." Dana started walking down the icy street.The hustle and bustle of the crowd passed by her and hurried to the warm home or office.As Dana came to a busy corner and waited to cross the street, she felt a jerk in the back and her body flew into the street in front of an approaching truck.She slipped on a piece of ice and fell onto her back, looking up in horror as the massive truck sped toward her.

At the last second, the pale-faced driver turned the steering wheel just in time for the truck to pass directly over Dana's body.For a moment, she lay in the dark, her ears filled with the roar of the engine and the clatter of snow chains against giant tires. Suddenly she could see the sky again, and the truck was gone.Dana sat up unsteadily.People help her stand.She looks around for the person who pushed her, but he could be anyone in the crowd.Dana took several deep breaths, trying to regain her composure.People around her shouted at her in Russian.The crowd began to press on Dana, causing her to panic.

"The Metropolitan Hotel?" Dana said expectantly. A group of little boys have already leaned over: "Okay, we will take you there." The lobby of the Metropolitan Hotel is as warm as spring, crowded with tourists and businessmen.Blend in with the crowd, I'll be waiting for you in Washington. Dana said to the waiter, "When is the next bus to the airport?" "In thirty minutes, miss." "Thank you." She sank into a chair and breathed heavily, trying to force the unspeakable horror out of her mind.She is full of fear.Who is trying to murder her?Why?Is Kenmore safe?

The waiter walked in front of Dana, "The airline shuttle is here." Dana was the first in the car.She took a seat in the back and watched the faces of the passengers, tourists from a dozen countries.Europeans, Asians, Africans, and some Americans.A man across the aisle was staring at her. He looked familiar, Dana thought.Has he been following me?She found herself hyperventilating. When the shuttle stopped at Sheremetyev II Airport an hour later, Dana was the last to disembark.She hurried into the airport building and came to the Air France counter. "Are you okay?" "Any reservations for Dana Evans?" Dana held her breath.Say yes, say yes, say yes...

The clerk looked through some papers, "Yes, here's your ticket, it's been paid for." Bless Roger. "Thank you." "The plane will depart on time. It's flight 220. It will leave the port in one hour and ten minutes." "Is there a lounge"—Dana almost said, it was crowded—"where can I take a break?" "Go to the end of this aisle and turn right." "Thank you." The lounge is full of people.There does not appear to be anything unusual or dangerous inside.Dana settled into a chair, and in a few moments she would be on her way back to America and safety.

"Air France flight 220 to Washington is now boarding from Gate 3. All passengers please have your passports and boarding passes ready." Dana stood up and started walking towards door number three.A man who had been watching her from the counter of the USSR General Administration of Civil Aviation spoke into his cell phone. "Subject walked toward the gate." Roger Hudson picked up the phone and dialed a series of numbers. "She's on Air France flight 220. I hope someone will meet her at the airport." "What do you want to do with her, sir?" "I suggest a hit-and-run car accident."

They flew balanced in the clear sky at forty-five thousand feet.The plane was full.An American sat in the chair next to Dana. "Gregory Price," he said, "I was in the lumber business." He was in his forties, with a hooked face, bright gray eyes, and a mustache: That's the kind of country we left, huh?" The sole purpose of Krasnoyarsk-26 is to produce plutonium, the key raw material for nuclear weapons. "It's true that the Russians are different from us, but you get used to it after a while." One hundred thousand scientific and technological personnel work and live here.

"They really don't cook like the French. I come here on business with my care kit." They cannot go outside.They cannot have visitors.They must isolate themselves from the world. "Are you doing business in Russia?" Dana brought herself back to reality. "Vacation." He looked at her in surprise: "It's too bad to be on vacation in Russia at this time." When the flight attendant pushed the food cart down the aisle, Dana was about to say no when she suddenly realized she was hungry.She couldn't remember the last time she had a meal. Gregory Price said, "If you want a shot of bourbon, I've got the real one, lovely lady."

"No thanks." She looked at her watch.They will be landing in a few hours. Air France Flight 220 landed at Dulles, and four men watched as passengers began to descend the aircraft's movable ramp.The men stood there, full of confidence, knowing that there was nowhere for her to escape. "Do you have a hypodermic?" one of them said. "Have." "Take her to Rock Creek Park. Boss wants a hit-and-run accident." "OK." Their eyes turned back to the door.Passengers filed out, dressed in heavy woolen clothes.Fur parkas, earmuffs, scarves and gloves.Finally the passenger flow stopped. One of them frowned: "I'll go see what's up with her." He came to the cabin along the movable gangway, where a cleaning team was busy working.The man walked down the aisle, with no sign of any traveler, and he opened the bathroom doors, which were empty.He rushed forward and said to a flight attendant who was about to leave, "Where is Dana Evans sitting?" The flight attendant looked surprised. "Dana Evans? You mean the TV news hostess?" "yes." "She's not on this plane. I hope she is, and I'd be more than happy to meet her." Gregory Price was saying to Dana, "You know what's great about the lumber business, sweet lady? You grow your own product. Yes, absolutely, you just sit around and do nothing, see Just let Mother Nature make money for you." A voice came from a loudspeaker. "We will be landing at O'Hare in Chicago in a few minutes. Please fasten your seat belts and return your seats to upright." The woman across the aisle said cynically, "Hey, straighten your seat, I don't want to lie down and die." The word "death" startled Dana.She could hear bullets bouncing off the walls of the apartment building, and she could feel a strong hand slamming her under the speeding truck.She couldn't help shivering at the thought of the two near-death escapes she had just experienced. While waiting in the lounge of Sheremetyev II Airport a few hours ago, Dana had been telling herself that everything would be fine, that the good guys would win.But one conversation she had with someone stuck with her.The person made a disturbing remark, but it was ignored.Was it a conversation with Matt?Director Shadanov?Tim Drew?The more Dana tried to remember, the more it eluded her. A flight attendant announced over a loudspeaker: "Air France flight 220 is about to fly to Washington. Please hold your passport and boarding pass." Dana stood up and walked toward the door.When she showed the guard the ticket, she suddenly remembered what it was.That was her last conversation with Sasha Shadanov. Nobody knows I'm there.It is what you call a "safe haven." The only person she ever revealed to Sasha Shadanov was Roger Hudson.Shadanov died of murder immediately after this.From the very beginning, Roger Hudson has been subtly hinting that there is some sort of secret deal between Taylor Winthrop and Russia. While I was in Moscow, there were rumors that Winthrop was involved in some secret deal with Russia. Shortly before Taylor Winthrop took over as our ambassador to Russia, he told a few close friends that he had decided to retire from public life. … It was Winthrop who put pressure on the president to make him ambassador... She told Roger and Pamela about her every move, they watched her the whole time, and there could only be one reason for it. Roger Hudson is Taylor Winthrop's mysterious partner. When the American Airlines flight landed at Chicago's O'Hare Airport, Dana peered out the window, looking for anything suspicious.No.The surrounding is very quiet.Dana took a deep breath and started to get off the plane.Her nerves were tense.On the way into the airport she tried to surround herself with as many passengers as possible, mingling with the chattering crowd.She's going to make an emergency call.In the middle of the journey, she remembered something so dreadful that her own danger seemed less important.Kenmore. What if he was in danger because of her?She couldn't bear the thought that something had happened to him. She had to find someone to protect Kenmore.She immediately thought of Jack Stone.The agency he belonged to was strong enough to give her and Kenmore the kind of protection she needed, and she trusted him to arrange it for her.From the very beginning he had been sympathetic to her, he was not really one of them. I'm trying to stay out of it so I can help you best, if you know what I mean. Dana walked to a deserted corner of the airport, reached into her bag, and took out the personal number Jack Stone had given her.She dialed the number and he answered it immediately. "Jack Stone." "I'm Dana Evans. I'm in trouble and I need help." "What happened?" Dana could hear the concern in his voice. "I can't tell the whole story right now, but some people are following me and trying to kill me." "Who?" "I don't know. But I'm worried about my young kid, Kenmore. Can you help me find someone to protect him?" He answered right away. "I'll take care of it. Is he at home now?" "exist." "I'll send someone. What about you? You say someone is trying to kill you?" "Yes, they've—they've tried twice." There was a moment of silence: "I'll look into this and see what I can do. Where are you?" "I landed in O'Hare on American Airlines and I don't know when I'm going to get out of here." "Stay where you are. I'll send someone over there to protect you, and in the meantime, you don't have to worry about Kenmore." Dana felt relieved. "Thank you, thank you." She hung up. In the FRA office, Jack Stone sets up the microphone.He pressed a button on the intercom. "Target just called. She's on an American Airlines flight to O'Hare. Get her." "Yes, sir." Jack Stone turned to an assistant. "When will General Bust return from the Far East?" "He'll be back this afternoon." "Okay, let's leave before he finds out what's going on."