Page 149 of Dark Angel
Teddy and Sydney joined her and Gabriel at the table.
“January 8th, pick up, 7:40 AM,” she read. “Twelve packages. Two vans needed. When delivery has been loaded, Pavel Donskoy will deliver to Ashburn.” She turned the paper over, but there was nothing.
“If they were counting on Donskoy, they’ll need a new driver,” Gabriel said.
“They won’t have any trouble finding someone,” Sydney replied.
Gabriel tapped the map of the US, all written in Russian. “What’s up with this?”
“Bulgrov invited me to a meeting with Dmitri Petrov and Natasha—the embassy’s social director,” Halston explained. “They’d been looking at a map of the US, but Bulgrov shut his laptop when I joined them.” Reality smacked away the drug-induced haze and she steeled her spine. “He told me I’dproven myself and I would be helping them complete something on January 8th.” She tapped the schedule with her fingernail. “They’re taking this shipment to Ashburn.”
“Who knows about this?” Gabriel asked.
“I told Evangeline, used my spy glasses to take a short video.” Halston drained her water glass.
Teddy refilled it, set it down in front of her.
“Thank you.” She took several gulps. “When I was in Russia, I’d watched Bulgrov type in the password to his laptop, so I was able to download documents. He changed his password a lot, so it would take me weeks of watching him type in his new one. Anyway, I lifted Bulgrov’s fingerprints, specifically his index. I’ve got someone making me a rubber finger.”
“Ooooh, that sounds fun,” Sydney said.
All eyes on Sydney, then everyone laughed… even Halston. Those few seconds of joy soothed her angry, vengeful soul.
“We need to continue this convo at a secure site,” Teddy said.
“I agree,” Halston said, “but I have to show up for work tomorrow like everything is normal. BulgrovinsistedI have drinks with that monster, so I have to tell him about Krov bar, but that I left after an hour.”
“Will he check?” Gabriel asked.
“He might.”
“We need to kill the cameras at Krov,” Teddy said, “and I need to remove any surveillance of you. How obvious was it that you’d been drugged?”
“I was nauseous and struggling to walk,” she replied. “I didn’t feel well, had trouble staying conscious. I know Donskoy drove me to the sex club. I have no memory of him bringing me inside or of anyone taking off my clothes.”
The room became eerily silent.
“I wasn’t sexually assaulted,” she said. “I could be bleeding and I’d be sore.” After a second, she continued, “One of mycollege roommates was date raped. I was there when she got home. I saw the blood.” She closed her eyes to block the memory. “I took her to the hospital.” A shudder had her hugging herself. “It was awful.”
Gabriel put a calming hand on her back. “Did you check yourself?”
She glanced at Sydney. “Okay, so Sydney gave me a mirror. I looked, I touched myself. I wasn’t sore. I’m not injured. There’s no torn or bruised skin, no blood. I’m okay.” She paused. “I wouldn’t hide this. I wouldn’t feel shame or fear. I know he’s dead. I know if he wasn’t, I’d kill him myself.” She pushed up. “I have to sleep this drug off. I’m available tomorrow after work for your secure meeting.”
Halston was both exhausted and fired up. The drug had made her physically sick and mentally incapacitated. But the fury had adrenaline pumping through her at a frenetic rate.
Gabriel rose. “Thanks for letting us crash here.”
“You’re welcome to stay for as long as you need,” Sydney said. “I love Hotel Dillinger, but you need a safe place to live… and you need to watch each other’s backs.”
“Thank you for everything,” Halston said. When she regarded Gabriel, the concern in his eyes had her rubbing his back.
Sydney brought them into the guest room with the en suite bathroom. It was perfect. A queen bed with a white comforter, black throw pillows and soft black sheets.
“There’s new toothbrushes in the bathroom. Also toothpaste, a soap in the shower, my favorite facial cleanser and moisturizer. With the sweetest smile, Sydney said, “You’re our first house guests. Let me know if you need anything, even a shower cap for Gabriel.”
They laughed.
“That I would love to see,” Halston said.
