Blackmail

56 MOSCOW

Standing beside Christine O’Connor, Elena Krayev waited impatiently as the elevator rose to the tenth floor of their hotel. The doors slid open and she headed briskly down the hallway, Christine at her side. When they reached Elena’s room, she pulled Christine inside.

“We need a new plan,” Elena said after the door closed.

“Agreed,” Christine said with disappointment on her face. “You need to let your superiors know, so they can start working on it.”

Elena shook her head. “It’s unlikely we can gain access to Chernov at his villa, and once he returns to Moscow, an opportunity might not present itself soon enough.”

She pulled Christine to the bed, and both women sat on the edge.

“You, on the other hand, will be with Chernov this weekend.”

Christine stared at Elena for a moment, finally realizing what she was proposing.

“Not a chance,” Christine said. “I’m not a field agent.”

“You’ll do fine,” Elena said. “With the right equipment, you can kill Chernov quietly and no one will suspect. It will appear he died of natural causes. There is no danger to you.”

The last sentence, of course, was a lie.

“I know you can do this,” Elena said as she dumped the contents of her purse onto the bed: the usual assortment of cosmetics and feminine products, along with a cell phone.

“No,” Christine said emphatically. “I’m a White House staffer, not a trained assassin.”

“You have killed before.”

“Only because I didn’t have a choice. I have a choice this time, and I’m not doing it.”

Elena paused, reevaluating the situation. Time was critical; the United States needed to disarm the pipeline explosives and break the threat of a Persian Gulf blockade before the NATO resolutions were scuttled. The odds of planning and executing a new operation within the next few days were slim. She shifted tactics, reviewing Christine’s profile in her mind.

Prior to the mission, Elena had studied the dossier of her target as well as those working with her. A review of Christine’s portfolio had raised a few red flags: she was impulsive and vindictive, traits that could turn into a liability to those working with her. Her role in this operation was marginal, though, and Elena hadn’t been worried. However, the situation had changed dramatically, and Elena realized she could use Christine’s traits to her advantage.

“There is something you need to know,” Elena said. Christine stared at her pensively, and confident she had her full attention, Elena elaborated.

“After the incident at Ice Station Nautilus, President Kalinin fired Fleet Admiral Ivanov. After dedicating his life to serving Russia, Ivanov became disgruntled and we have established a relationship with him. We haven’t gleaned much information yet, but we do know that the incident at Ice Station Nautilus wasn’t his idea; he was following orders. The attack at the ice station, both above and below the ice, was ordered by Defense Minister Chernov.”

Elena watched her words sink in slowly. Boris Chernov had given the order to torpedo the submarine Christine and Captain Brackman were aboard. Chernov was responsible for Brackman’s death.

Christine’s features hardened, then she glanced at the items on the bed. “Show me how these work.”

Elena repressed a smile as she reached for one of the lipstick applicators. She pulled the cover off, revealing a reddish-purple lipstick. “Looks like a normal lipstick applicator.” She replaced the cover and unscrewed the base, revealing a ring inside with a sharp metal point the size of a tack and covered by a transparent plastic sheath, rising where the gemstone would normally be mounted. Elena slid the ring onto her finger, then rotated it until the metal point faced in toward her palm. She held her hand up, showing Christine the back of her hand; it looked as if she were wearing a plain silver ring. She closed her hand into a fist and then opened it again, then turned her hand over, palm up, showing Christine the sharp point.

“The tip of this ring is coated with a poison that will paralyze Chernov in thirty seconds. All you have to do is remove the plastic sheath, then puncture the skin behind his neck. Do it above the hairline, to minimize the potential the puncture wound will be discovered during the autopsy. The tip is also coated with a numbing agent, so Chernov won’t feel the puncture and suspect anything until it’s too late.”

Elena returned the ring to its compartment in the base of the lipstick applicator and screwed the bottom back on, then reached for the second applicator, pulling its cover off, revealing crimson lipstick. She unscrewed the base, revealing an identical ring. “This ring will kill Chernov, making it look like a heart attack. Again, puncture the skin behind his neck above the hairline.”

Elena said, “Remember — purple paralyze, crimson kill,” then repeated the phonetic mnemonic.

“After you paralyze him,” Elena said as she screwed the base of the lipstick applicator back on, “you’ll need to establish a video link with the Russian engineer who designed the detonators.” She reached for the cell phone and showed Christine the power button on one side and the up/down volume tabs on the other.

“Press the power button and the up volume simultaneously,” she said, “and you’ll establish a video link with our Russian friend. If you get in trouble and need assistance, press the power button and the down volume tab. Right now it alerts a team in a room just down the hallway, but we’ll move assets into place in Sochi to extract you if things go south.

“Remember, power up to upload the video link. Power down if things have gone south and you need help.”

Christine nodded her head slowly. Her determination was fading as the shock of what she had agreed to do set in. Elena placed a hand on her shoulder.

“You will do fine.”