The Backup Asset

…52

Smolin wiped his mouth with a napkin and put it down on the table, next to his empty plate.

“Thank you, it was good,” he said.

“Spasiba,” Olga thanked him and started to clean the table. She put all the dishes and empty glasses away, then cleaned the tablecloth of breadcrumbs using a small brush and a miniature dustpan. When she finished her work, she nodded briefly and disappeared, leaving the two men alone.

“Good, now let’s talk some business.” Smolin poured himself a cup of coffee from the machine. “Nikolai, I need you to travel to Moscow in a few days,” he said. “I need you to take something there.”

“How big?”

“Not big at all, but very important. I have important information in my possession that needs to be taken to Moscow and personally delivered to the Division Seven leader. You’ve heard of Division Seven, yes? You’ll have the opportunity to meet him face to face.”

Nikolai turned a little pale and clasped his hands tightly, visibly uncomfortable.

“Will I stay long?”

“No. A couple of days at the most.”

“What if… what if I get caught?” Nikolai muttered, staring at his clasped, white-knuckled hands.

“You won’t get caught, Nikolai,” Smolin said. “We’ve been working on an intel transport system that is 100 percent guaranteed to work. It’s never been used before; they’ll never see it coming.”

“Yes, sir,” Nikolai answered faintly. “I hope so. What kind of system is it? What will we use?”

“We’ll use the latest in biotechnology.”