The Prague Plot: The Cold War Meets the Jihad (Jeannine Ryan Series Book 3) (19 page)

Bill Hamm emerged from the creek-side brush to find Ivana kneeling next to the prostrate form of Gustav.

“Bill, help. He is hurt, bad.”

Bill stared at the dead body behind her. He raised his eyebrows. Ivana answered.

“That’s Hans, the man I rode away with. I’m sorry. I was careless.”

“Where’s the other one, the one Gustav calls ‘Hrubec?’”

“The one with the dark eyes is gone. But we must take care of Gustav. I can clean his wound at the house. It’s warm and there’s water, and I’m sure we can find antibiotic ointment too. I saw an aid kit on the kitchen shelf.”

Bill nodded. Gustav needed immediate help. He took the Browning from Gustav’s outstretched hand and stuffed it in his belt. Then he lifted the fallen man placing the left arm over his shoulder.

Together, he and Ivana guided the semiconscious Gustav through the bleak fields towards the farmhouse.

They laid him on the bed. Not the bare mattress cot that furnished Ivana’s windowless former prison, but a broad old fashioned poster with a colorful comforter. This room had windows with lace furnishings. Still there was little natural light. The evening sun was low on the horizon.

Bill spoke.

“The bleeding seems to have stopped, but he needs help, now. Cover him with blankets, and get towels from the kitchen to clean him up. If the bleeding starts again, use the towels to stanch the flow and call me. Whatever you do, keep him warm. I’ll call Brussels.”

He held up a cell phone, but the signal was weak.

“I’m going out backside. Maybe the reception is better there.”

On his way he pointed to the closet.

“There may be towels in there too.”

Ivana squeezed Gustav’s wrist. She laid two blankets over him and leaned close to his ear.

“Keep fighting. Don’t quit on me. I need you. I don’t trust these Americans.”

Gustav opened his eyes and looked at her. His will to live was evident. He set his jaw before he closed his eyes.

Satisfied, she went to find the towels.

Ivana returned to find Gustav breathing heavily amid sporadic coughing. He was sweating. She rubbed his forehead with a cool towel.

He shivered in spite of the sweat. She found another blanket and laid it on him. The shaking stopped. She whispered in his ear.

“You saved my life.”

He opened his eyes and closed them. His voice, too, was a whisper.

“And you mine. Why did you warn me about Karel?”

“I don’t know. Maybe it was memories of you and the house near Kladno when I was little. I felt I should, that’s all.”

Gustav tried to raise his head.

“Ivana, you never knew your father.”

“I know he deserted my mother when I was born. Probably because of me. That’s why mother could never talk about him, me either. I don’t want to know him.”

Gustav eyes remained closed, but his hand gripped hers. She could not pull away.

“Ivana, you are wrong, truly wrong.”

He gasped once and went on.

“Listen to me. Ivan did not desert your mother. He loved her. He never would have hurt her. He was arrested for crimes against the State. They took him away.”

He continued.

“I warned him there would be trouble if he married her. She was a Catholic. When they were married, she made him have a religious service too.”

“What are you saying?”

“Religious people like your mother were a threat to us. Your mother was popular. That made it worse. People knew her and liked her. They listened to her. She treated everyone the same, everyone, rich or poor. She was publicly religious, but she had important friends and it was a small town. They brought in outsiders, Party members from Kladno, even Prague. Still it was not easy to accuse her. They accused her husband instead.”

Gustav rubbed his hand on the sheet as if wiping it clean.

“Ivan was my friend and a good worker. He worked in the mill. He was a true comrade. They said he was a spy.”

“Was he?”

“Of course not, but they said he was. That made it true. They arrested him.”

“What did you do?”

He looked to the side.

“I wanted to help, but I couldn’t stop them. Maybe I didn’t want to.”

He turned back.

“The truth is I was afraid they would arrest me too.”

“What happened to him?”

“He disappeared. I was afraid. They knew he was my friend.”

“Are you sure he’s dead?”

“Positive. He died somewhere in Slovakia, before you were born. It would have been quick. They weren’t gentle with “spies” in those days. Husak had to impress Brezhnev. The Soviets were not patient.”

Ivana stared at the wall. She held her breath.

“You said
before
I was born?”

Gustav’s head fell back, eyes closed. His chest heaved up and down. He gripped her wrist. His breathing slowed and he opened his eyes once more. He stared at the ceiling.

“
Prosim
, ‘Please,’ Listen. After they arrested Ivan and took him away, your mother changed. She retreated into herself. She would stare out the window towards the East, towards Košice, in eastern Slovakia. She knew. She never smiled. She had lost hope.”

His eyes found Ivana’s.

“Ivan was my friend. I could not help him so I wanted to help his widow, your mother. I thought she needed me, that she could be herself again.”

Ivana stiffened. She detached her wrist from his grip. She sensed where he was headed. She looked away. Gustav took a deep breath.

“I slept with her. Later you came.”

Ivana hid her face in her hands. Gustav’s voice shook.

“It’s true. I’m your father. You are my daughter.”

Ivana could not speak. She headed for the door.

Gustav’s lips bubbled blood. He called to her.

“
Počkejte, prosím
, ‘Wait, please.’ Please listen.”

Ivana stopped, but stayed facing the door.

“I knew your mother did not love me. She named you ‘Ivana’ after her husband. I stayed after you were born, but she became worse. She prayed a lot more. We would be walking together and she would stop on the street and make the sign of the cross. I hated that. I did not want anyone to think I was superstitious. I was in the Party.”

His voice gave out. He paused several seconds and continued.

“Her guilt infected me. It weakened my beliefs, sapped my strength. That was too much. The Party was my life. When you were six, I left her, ... and you.”

Ivana’s eyes narrowed. She spoke through taut lips.

“My mother suffered. Her grief killed her. I was seven when she died. You did nothing.”

“I was in the Party. You don’t understand We watched each other for ‘weakness.’ They watched me to see what I would do. I could not help her, but I did help you. I got you into the best kindergarten, for Party children, and after, into the best group of Pioneers.”

“Ah yes, the Pioneers.”

Ivana frowned upwards at the ceiling.

“The talks were boring, stupid. At least the parades were fun. I liked the uniform, the badge and the red scarf.”

She mimicked the memorized slogan.

“Always be ready to build and defend your socialist country.”

She added its reply

“We stand always ready.”

She put her right hand to mid forehead, fingers tight together in the Pioneer salute.

Gustav hesitated. Was she mocking him?

“Ivana you were safe, protected. You were part of a collective.”

Her eyes filled with moisture.

“But you weren’t there, and neither was my mother. You never came to see me. No one did. And my mother was innocent and alone. How could you desert her? She died of a broken heart.”

His eyes fell. Sadly, he had no answer. From outside, Bill Hamm’s voice sounded.

“We have to go. I see headlights on the lane. It must be Hrubec.”

Ivana stood in the doorway. She blocked Bill’s entry.

“Gustav is hurt. The bullet hit his lung. You can’t move him. You have a gun.
You
stop Hrubec.”

She turned to see Gustav, hand on his chest, sitting up on the side of the bed. He spoke.

“No Ivana, we cannot fight him. And there will be others with him.”

“No! Do not move. I will not leave you. We can surprise Hrubec, an ambush.”

Gustav struggled to his feet. He stood before her.

“But I
am
moving. Besides one does not “surprise” Hrubec. He has phoned Hans and gotten no answer. He knows something is wrong. He will not be alone. The devil tells him what to do. Maybe he
is
the devil!”

Gustav shuddered. Ivana sensed his fear and turned to Bill.

“You have Hans’ gun plus your own. Give one to me. We will fight this Hrubec.”

Gustav stumbled towards her. A splotch of red appeared through his bandage.

“Little Ivanka, you are brave, but trust me. You cannot stay. You will die.”

“I will not leave you.”

Gustav stood up straight. The red splotch widened.

“But look, I am coming too. We must not stay.”

Bill lifted Gustav’s arm around his shoulder and held him. He turned to Ivana.

“Gustav’s right. We have to go. We can leave through the kitchen and follow the creek to the Renault. Hrubec will stop to assess the situation. He will not rush in blindly. That will give us a little time.”

As if at Bill’s command, the approaching car halted. Its headlights went dark.

Bill helped Gustav through the back door. Ivana followed.

From the other side of the house, she heard several “thunks” of car doors closing.

Hrubec was not alone. He had reinforcements.

With the loss of the sun, the temperature outside quickly fell below freezing.

Bill helped Gustav struggle into the thick brush that lined the stream. There was no path and progress was slow. They pushed through cold stiff branches that sprang back angrily against their arms and faces. Their steps were marked by snapping and cracking as brittle twigs and frosted leaves crunched underfoot. In the still country air, the noise of their passage was amplified.

Behind them the shouts of their pursuers sounded clearly.

“
Par içi, ... Par içi, le ruisseau,
... ‘Over here, ... Over here, the creek.’”

Bill stopped. Gustav slumped to the ground. His spasmodic breaths were wheezes.

“Hamm, I can’t go on. Give me a gun. I’ll hold them back. You take Ivana and go.”

“Get up. I could leave you, but Ivana never would. If you stay, she’ll stay. If you want to save her, get up. We have to keep moving.”

Ivana knelt next to Gustav.

“Please. Try.”

The voices of the pursuers were closer now.

“
Par içi, ... Ils sont passés par içi.
‘Over here, ... They went this way.’”

Gustav struggled to his feet, his arm around Ivana’s shoulder. Bill turned to Ivana and pointed to a tall willow tree.

“Lead Gustav over there. Cross the stream, its cold but shallow. There’s a field and a thick woods beyond. Get to those woods and rest. When Gustav is ready, follow the woods all the way to the road. Hide there and wait for me.

“But, what about you?”

“I’ll hold them off here. They won’t know you’ve crossed.”

Ivana hesitated no more. She guided Gustav towards the willow tree.

With Ivana gone, Bill positioned himself behind a fallen log. He pulled out his M9 Beretta and chambered a round. He took out Hans’ Browning and did likewise. Then he laid the Browning and an extra magazine for the M9 in front of him.

The sounds of the pursuit grew closer.

Bill waited. He had picked his stand carefully. Directly in front of him the brush was impenetrable. To his right, the brush alongside the stream thinned, While still dense, the tangled branches allowed human passage. Bill, Gustav and Ivana had come that way. To his left, the brush ended at the edge of the field. A pursuer would certainly avoid the brush, perhaps moving slowly to match the pace of his companion in the thickets.

Bill had heard two distinct voices, both speaking French. From what Gustav had told him about the canny Hrubec, he felt sure the latter would not have revealed his position with shouts. Besides, Hrubec’s fluency in French was doubtful. The silent Hrubec was the major unknown in this battle.