Sunday is here again. Soon it is back to the work reality and heading towards the 2nd quarter of the year. Enjoy the Sunday read. We will be having 2 chapters release today so stay tune for the 2nd chapter of the day!
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Chapter 18:
Having abandoned the black Toyota Hiace in a nearby alleyway, the British agents and Nyechenko weaved through an empty marketplace, brushing off fragments of glass and bits of ashes that had clung onto their clothes and hair. Granger had made a series of turns through the desolate area, even breaking into some stalls that were being unmanned. They soon left the market at another end, this one facing a narrow corridor.
“This will lead to the safehouse.” she informed the two men before hastening her pace. McCain and Nyechenko followed suit, unwilling to lose their only guide. They found her near a large green door, attempting to hack an ancient-looking padlock. She succeeded, and the door swung open.
“Third floor. Second door on the left.” she instructed, ushering them inside before locking the entrance.
Following Granger’s instructions, McCain and Nyechenko found themselves waiting outside an apartment block while she caught up and banged on a nearby wall, exposing a loose panel. She ripped the slab out to reveal a black and white keypad, punching in a six-digit code and pressing a green button.
“Inside. Now.” she ordered, opening the door for the professor and her colleague before returning the slab into the wall and entering the apartment herself.
© 2021 TINKERBELLSAN tinkerbellsan.wordpress.com ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Written for tinkerbellsan.wordpress.com with permission from the Author, Red Wolf. If you are not reading this from tinkerbellsan.wordpress.com, then this original novel has been posted without the permission of the author.
The apartment was dingy and dark, with the faint smell of dust wafting around. Granger flipped on a switch, which instantly illuminated what little lighting there was.
Granger pointed to a small corner with a stove, some pans and a worn-down sink.
“There’s some drinks in the fridge.” she sighed, making sure the windows were closed. “TV is fucking shit, but there’s some local programs. We even have BBC.”
McCain walked over to the fridge and opened the door, allowing the cool air to hit his face. There were soft drinks and alcoholic beverages sorted neatly across several shelves and racks. Whoever used this safehouse even left behind a bottle of vodka, Russia’s most popular drink.
“You got any shot glasses?” he called out, taking the vodka out of the fridge.
“Overhead closet, first from the right.” Granger shouted back from a bedroom.
McCain found the glasses and placed them down on the table, taking a seat soon after and pouring some alcohol for himself. As he filled up his glass, he noticed Nyechenko on his phone, his back turned to the agents.
“The fuck do you think you’re doing?” McCain asked in a semi-annoyed tone. He swallowed the vodka and leaned back from the impact. It was strong, and nearly burned his lungs.
“Ah. I’m just texting a friend in London. Asking him to save some space in his apartment.” the professor answered. “We’ve known each other for years.”
He noticed McCain refill another glass of vodka and turned his phone off, approaching the table while he did so.
“Care if I join you?” he asked, taking a seat.
© 2021 TINKERBELLSAN tinkerbellsan.wordpress.com ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Written for tinkerbellsan.wordpress.com with permission from the Author, Red Wolf. If you are not reading this from tinkerbellsan.wordpress.com, then this original novel has been posted without the permission of the author.
McCain had taken two glasses, and wasted no time in serving his fellow runaway.
“To vodka.” he raised his glass and smirked. “And to surviving this goddamn hellhole.”
“What you said, comrade.” Nyechenko said with a slight chuckle, tipping his glass in salute before downing the contents. He placed the glass down and sighed, his mood starting to grow despondent. McCain had noticed this.
“Hey, Nyechenko. You good?” McCain asked, leaning forward.
Nyechenko shook his head.
“When I was around your age, I wanted nothing more than to serve my country. I entered the military as a medical expert, and an expert of chemicals. In Russia, serving the military is the greatest honour in one’s lifetime.” Nyechenko lamented. “But when I heard that government official whisper about attacking foreign soil, slaughtering innocents? I could not accept this life. I had to leave.”
McCain slowly nodded, noticing Granger emerge from the room.
“I have spent my entire childhood in Moscow. Only in my post-military days did I go to the rest of Europe and the West.” Nyechenko continued, pouring himself a second glass. “I had just left Paris when I learnt of my parents’ deaths. It was due to an influenza bout. I never felt more alone, more alienated. My country sent delegates to attend their funeral, only to secure me a job at the university. They said my work would save the Motherland.”
McCain put the pieces together.
“And when the Motherland began to misuse your work, you knew they had completely isolated you from the rest of Russia.” Granger concluded.
“Da. I told myself that sometimes, serving the country means making the hardest choices. I am serving this country, this time by robbing it of its greatest obsession: warfare.”
He leaned back and took a second shot. McCain and Granger looked at each other in solemn understanding.
“I must thank you, the two of you.” Nyechenko resumed his monologue soon after downing his glass. “Because of your efforts, I will have escaped the consequences of my creation, and saved the world.”
Granger then stood up and coughed into her fist.
“I’ve just received a call from the embassy. Our flight’s being pushed forward.” she announced, changing the conversation almost instantly.
© 2021 TINKERBELLSAN tinkerbellsan.wordpress.com ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Written for tinkerbellsan.wordpress.com with permission from the Author, Red Wolf. If you are not reading this from tinkerbellsan.wordpress.com, then this original novel has been posted without the permission of the author.
“When’s the new timing?” McCain asked.
“This morning, 0900 hours local time.” Granger answered. “We leave for Zelenograd at 0700 hours.”
McCain and Nyechenko looked at each other.
“This is it.” McCain said with a nod. “We’re on the final stretch. Let’s not fuck this up.”
All three residents stood up and dispersed, leaving the vodka bottle and glasses behind.
Time, two minutes to one in the morning.
Original Novel by Red Wolf
© 2021 TINKERBELLSAN tinkerbellsan.wordpress.com ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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