Broken Wings (The Broken Series Book 3) (46 page)

Michael
began digging through his desk drawers. “I’m going with you.”

Rafael’s
fists clenched. “The hell you are.”

Michael
stilled as he glared at Rafael. “That’s my jet. If you want to use it, then
you’re taking me.”

Rafael’s
voice hardened. “I can handle this more effectively if you’re not there.”

Michael
unlocked a file drawer. He grabbed a couple of folders and shoved them inside
his briefcase. “I’m going. End of discussion.”

Rafael
closed the distance between them. “This is the Russian mafia we’re talking
about. Hell, I don’t even know if it’s the mafia that has her. She could be in
the hands of the KGB for all I know. This is far beyond anything you’re
equipped to deal with, Michael. I’ve been trained for this. I know how to deal
with terrorists.”

Michael
shoved past Rafael as he strode toward the door. “If you knew how to deal with
terrorists, then you would know that you’re going to have to pay an immense amount
of money to get her out of there. As it so happens, I have access to an immense
amount of money… far more than you. You’re going to need access to that money.
So I’m going.”

*
* * * * *

Rafael
and Michael arrived in Sevastopol seven hours later. Rafael listened to his
messages while Michael lined up a rental car. He glanced at Michael when he
returned with the keys. “Kadyn should be here in six hours. He got my message
about buying a SIM card at the airport in Kiev.”

Michael
looked at his watch. “It’s just after midnight, so that should put him here
sometime around six a.m.”

Rafael
nodded as he shoved the phone into his pocket. He reached for his duffel bag.
He swung it over his shoulder as they walked toward the rental lot. “Ethan managed
to track down Maxim. He confirmed that Konstantin was attacked at the ruins. He
sustained a head injury and two broken legs. They’re in the same hospital.
Ethan texted me the address, so I say we head over there.”

Michael
tossed Rafael the keys as they approached the car.

Rafael
threw his duffel bag in the back before he slid behind the steering wheel. He turned
the key in the ignition and eyed the GPS. “I hope this thing works.”

Michael
glanced at Rafael in surprise when the GPS accepted the address Rafael typed
in. “Well, that certainly appears promising.”

Rafael
followed the GPS as it navigated them into Sevastopol. He pulled into the hospital
parking lot a few minutes later. He parked the car and dialed Ethan. “We’re out
front. Are they going to let us inside the hospital at this hour?”

“Some
of Maxim’s men are sitting outside waiting for you. You can’t miss them.
They’re dressed entirely in black. They’ll get you inside the hospital and
bring you up to my room.”

Rafael
disconnected the call. He nodded toward a group of men. “They’re the guys who
are going to get us in. Please, let me do the talking.”

Michael’s
eyes glinted with frustration.

Rafael
sighed. “Look, you’re the only family I’ve got left, Michael. I don’t like the
fact that you’re here. I don’t want you getting hurt any more than I want
Kristine getting hurt. I’ve already seen too many people I love get killed.
Please, just let me handle this.”

Michael’s
eyes softened as he relented. “Fine. You take the lead for now, but when it’s
time to talk money, you let me handle it.”

Rafael
nodded his agreement. They stepped out of the car and walked toward four men
who were smoking cigarettes in front of the hospital. Rafael stopped just short
of the men.
“
Dlya Maksima Markova vy rabotaete?
”

The
men silently studied Michael and Rafael. One of them stepped forward. He
snuffed his cigarette on the pavement with his boot. “You must be Rafael.
Maxim’s been expecting you.”

Rafael
crooked his head as he examined the guy. “Do you have a name?”

 “I’m
Lev… and this is?” He nodded toward Michael.

Rafael
widened his stance. “This is my brother, Michael.”   

Michael’s
face was passive. He nodded once.

Rafael
studied the other men. “Is Maxim here?”

Lev
shook his head. “No. He had some business to tend to. He’ll be here in a few
hours. He wants you to stay here until he gets back. He should have some
information on Kristine and Shae by the time he returns.”

Rafael’s
jaw clenched. “How do I know Maxim isn’t responsible for this?”

Lev
shook his head. “Maxim doesn’t have her. He was in a foreign policy meeting in
Simferopol when she was taken. I was with him when he heard she was missing…
and it wasn’t pretty.”

Rafael
exchanged glances with Michael. “I’d like to talk to my men.”

Lev
nodded. “I’ll take you up to see them.” He turned to the other three men. “Continue
monitoring the entrance. If anyone tries to gain access to the building,
photograph his ID and text it to me.”

Rafael
and Michael followed Lev up to the third floor. The hospital staff didn’t say a
word as they passed by. A number of men, who were dressed like Lev, were
standing in the lobby and near the stairwells. Rafael counted eight additional
men in black when they exited the stairwell to the third floor. They walked by
a room where four men stood guard. The men studied them curiously.

Lev
nodded toward the room. “One of ours was injured.”

Rafael
nodded. “Konstantin?”

Lev
glanced at him in surprise. “Yes.”

“Ethan
told me he was at the ruins with them. Is he going to be okay?” Rafael asked,
pausing outside the door.

Lev
looked perplexed, as if he wasn’t quite certain what to make of Rafael’s
concern for Konstantin. “Both of his legs are broken. He was hit in the head
and hasn’t regained consciousness yet,” he responded as they continued walking down
the hallway.

“I
hope he makes it,” Rafael replied. “Kristine spoke highly of him, and I
understand he’s been dating her friend, Shae.”

“Yes.
He’s not going to handle the news of her disappearance very well when he wakes
up, especially since he was in charge of their security.” Lev stopped just
outside a room where two men stood guard. “Ethan is in there. Brady is down the
hall, where those other two men are standing guard.”

Rafael
nodded. “Thanks.”

Lev
stayed in the hallway when Michael and Rafael entered the room.

Rafael
catalogued his friend’s injuries. His face was bruised and scraped along one
side. Both of his legs were in casts and elevated in slings that hung suspended
from the ceiling. “You look like shit.”

Ethan
smiled. “It’s about time you got here.”

Rafael
approached the bed. “What did Maxim say when you talked to him?”

Ethan
tried to sit up. “He thinks it’s the SVR, but no one’s claiming
responsibility.”

Michael
set his briefcase on the chair before approaching the bed. “The SVR?”

Ethan
glanced questioningly at Rafael.

Rafael
adjusted Ethan’s pillows and helped him sit up. “It’s fine. Michael’s my
brother.”

Ethan
nodded as he shifted his attention to Michael. “The SVR is Russia’s Foreign
Intelligence Service... essentially they’re KGB.”

Michael’s
jaw clenched. “If the KGB has her…”

Ethan
nodded. “Then she’s in a world of hurt.”

*
* * * * *

Lev
had just gotten Brady moved into Ethan’s room when Kadyn arrived.

Rafael
shook his hand. “Thanks for coming, Kadyn.” He motioned toward the two beds. “That’s
Ethan and this is Brady. They work for my security firm. I assigned them to
Kristine when she left for Ukraine.”

Kadyn
nodded politely. He studied Ethan and Brady. “What happened?”

“They
were attacked when Kristine and Shae were taken,” Rafael responded. He nodded
toward Michael. “That’s Michael.”

Kadyn
froze. “Michael… as in your brother, Michael? The one who kidnapped Kri?”

Ethan
and Brady exchanged glances.

Rafael
stood between Kadyn and Michael. “Yes.”

Kadyn’s
eyes hardened. “What the hell is he doing here?”

Michael
scowled as he rose from the chair. “I…”

“He’s
here to help negotiate Kristine’s release,” Rafael interjected.

Kadyn
glared at Michael. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t kill you for what
you did to Kri.”

Rafael
widened his stance. “You’re not killing him, not if you want Kristine to leave this
country alive.”

“So,
which one of you is the boyfriend?” Maxim asked as he leaned against the frame
of the door.

“I
am,” all three men replied.

Maxim
looked up from his cell phone. He silently studied the three men. A small smile
tugged at the corner of his mouth. “Now this is interesting.” He rubbed his jaw
in mock concentration. “Now, let’s see here. You’re the boyfriend,” he nodded
toward Rafael, “you’re the ex-fiancé,” he nodded toward Michael, “and you
are...
hmm
. You appear to be the dark horse.”

Kadyn
folded his arms across his chest. “I’m Kadyn Rand.”

Maxim
looked amused. “Funny how Kristine never mentioned you, Kadyn Rand.”

Kadyn’s
jaw clenched. “And you are?”

Maxim
laughed. “Maxim Markov.” He slid his phone into his pocket as he shifted his
attention to Michael. “So you’re Michael, the man who broke Kristine’s heart…
the man who’s ruined her for everyone else.”

Rafael’s
eyes remained locked on Maxim as he raised his hand to silence Michael. “We
don’t have time to debate Kristine’s relationship with Michael. She has been
missing for seventeen hours. We need to find out who has her and negotiate her
release.” He folded his arms across his chest. “Do you know who took Kristine?”

The
smile slid from Maxim’s face. “Yes. The SVR has taken Kristine and Shae to an
undisclosed location for questioning. They’re trying to get the SBU to press
charges against them.”

Kadyn’s
eyebrows furrowed. “What do those acronyms stand for?”

Every
man in the room responded. “KGB.”

Kadyn
stilled. “The Russian mafia doesn’t have her?”

Maxim
gave him an incredulous look. “You aren’t very bright are you? I
am
the
Russian mafia… and no, I don’t have her.”

Kadyn’s
fists clenched. “What would the KGB want with Kristine?”

Maxim
walked to the window. He stared out at the early morning sun. “The SVR has been
following Kristine and her team since they first arrived in Ukraine. They’ve
been looking for an excuse to detain them. According to my sources in the SBU, Shae
was taking pictures of the Russian Naval Fleet when they were at the ruins. The
SVR seized their cell phones and discovered a picture of Kristine surrounded by
U.S. military personnel. They are now claiming the two women are American
spies.”

Michael
joined him at the window. He glanced outside before staring intently at Maxim. “That’s
ridiculous. Kristine isn’t a spy.”

“The
SVR knows these women aren’t spies,” Maxim responded without turning from the
window.

Kadyn
met Maxim’s gaze in the window. “Then why are they doing this?”

Maxim
sighed. “My guess is they’re trying to further some political agenda for
Russia. Tensions have been high between Russia and Ukraine. Russia is deeply
opposed to Ukraine’s efforts to join NATO. Ukraine is expanding an oil pipeline
that will threaten the Russian economy, and we are renegotiating the presence
of their naval fleet in the Black Sea, which could compromise Russia’s military
power.”

Michael
raked his hand over his face. “What does any of this have to do with Kristine?”

Maxim
turned to face Michael. “I think the SVR will use this kidnapping to force our
prime minister and our minister of foreign affairs to adjust Ukraine’s position
on one of these issues.”

Kadyn
stared slack jawed at Maxim. “Why would they revise their foreign policy in
exchange for Kri’s release?”

Maxim
glanced at Ethan and Brady before responding. “Kristine has become quite
popular since arriving in Ukraine. The prime minister met Kristine at a
fundraiser and developed a fondness for her. He recently offered her a position
with the ministry of foreign affairs, and this offer made the news. Her visits
to the children’s hospital and the orphanage in Simferopol made the news, and her
work at the university made the news. The Ukrainian people will be outraged if
anything happens to her, and if this kidnapping makes international news, it
will make Ukraine look very bad.”

“I’ve
been collecting the news articles. Lev retrieved them from the car. They’re
sitting right here.” Brady nodded toward a pile of papers sitting on the
nightstand near his bed.

Kadyn
walked over to the nightstand to look through the newspapers. He studied the
photographs, since he wasn’t able to read the accompanying news stories.