Chapter 28 Unmitigated Greed

Frank looked at his watch and stretched. It had been a very productive day, and it was time to call it quits.

“Well Mike, what do you say we wrap it up for the day.”

“Up to you, Boss. We probably won’t get much more done tonight anyway. Besides, the new security guard should be here soon.”

“I forgot about that, Mike. Go ahead and take off and I’ll see you in the morning. Once the guard shows up I’m out of here as well.”

They shook hands, then Mike was back in his car heading for Annapolis. During the ride home he called Bill and gave him a report on the days events. Once he hung up from Bill, Mike called Sasha to let her know he was on his way. Her phone rang several times before going to voice mail. Mike had called her two other times during the afternoon with the same results. This was not like Sasha.

Mike pulled into his complex parking lot and stopped by the mailboxes to grab his share of junk mail when he saw an elderly woman walking her little dog coming towards him.

“Hi, Margaret. Nice evening for a walk. How have you been?”

“Oh, I’m fine. Sir Barks-a-lot and I love it when the weather is like this. By the way, is your lady friend feeling better?”

“I’m confused. What are you talking about?”

“Earlier today I saw your lady friend walk the trash to the dumpster and on the way back a man stopped her. She suddenly looked wobbly, so he helped her inside. I hope she’s all right.”

“I’m sure she’s fine, but thank you for letting me know.”

Mike got back in his car and headed toward his townhouse while Margaret continued walking in the opposite direction.

Mike parked at the opposing end from where his assigned lot was. He opened and closed the car door without making a sound and quickly worked his way to the back of his unit where he could see into his basement through the glass slider. The sun was still giving off enough light that he could see no one was in there.

Next he moved around to the front of the unit and cautiously peeked through the living room window. Sitting at the dinning room table was a man speaking to someone opposite him. Mike couldn’t see who it was, but he knew it had to be Sasha. Now that he was sure of the layout, Mike went back to his car and devised a rescue plan.

“Bill, it’s Mike. I need your help.”

“Now where have I heard that before.”

“No joking around, man. The Russian has Sasha, and I have a plan to rescue her.”

“Sorry, Mike. What do you need me to do?”

“I want you and a couple of the other people from the office, men and women. to pick up some party snacks and beer then meet me at the top of the entrance to my condo. I’ll give you the key to my front door and everyone needs to gather on my front porch. Make a lot of noise like you’re having a party, unlock the door and walk in. While you’re doing that, I’ll be going in the house through the basement slider. You’ll be distracting Illya while I move upstairs and take him out. You in?”

“Give me some time to gather everyone up and buy some stuff. I’ll see you in about forty minutes.”

The diversionary group met Mike forty minutes later at the entrance to his complex. He handed Bill a key and left the group. It took Mike several minutes to reach the back slider. Normally an operation like this would have a minimal affect on him, but this was Sasha he needed to rescue. He could hear his heart pounding in his ears as sweat ran off his forehead into his eyes. His hand shook as he slid the key into the lock and ever so slowly slid the door open. Now it was a matter of controlling his emotions and working out the best way to proceed.

The fastest way to handle this would be to put a bullet in Illya’s brain, but that would also be the most difficult to clean up. A shooting would involve the local police and an intricate coverup to protect Sasha’s resident status. If Mike could incapacitate him, Bill could turn him over to ICE or DEA and get the bastard locked away in a South American jail. He walked over to his toolbox and removed a braking bar from one of the draws and waited for the commotion to start.

Upstairs a group of ruckus partiers gathered on Mike’s front porch. Bill pounded on the door and called out, “Hey Mike, you in there?” Without waiting for an answer, he unlocked the door, and the group barged in. Illya was stunned by the sudden swarm of people. It took him several seconds to recover and by then everyone was inside. He grabbed his pistol from the table and brandished it at the crowd and speaking with a thick Russian accent yelled,

“Who are you people? You’re not supposed to be here. Get out!”

Bill stepped forward.

“This is our friends house and you’re the one that’s not supposed to be here.”

Mike heard the commotion and bounded up the stairs two at a time, flung open the door into the kitchen, rushed past Sasha who was still tied to a chair and with one fluid swing, clubbed Illya on the side of his head with the breaking bar. The shocked assassin glanced over his shoulder, recognized Mike then crumpled to the floor. Bill immediately rushed over and grabbed the handgun.

It took about half an hour for ICE to arrive. Before they did, one of the staff members wrapped Illya’s head in a bandage to stop the bleeding and another put him in cuffs. Mike want to Sasha, untied her, and held her so tight she had to tell him, “I can’t breathe.” Everyone in the room could see that the bond between them was truly unbreakable. After ICE left Mike looked at his friends and teammates and exclaimed, “Come on everybody don’t let this beer and chips go to waist, dig in.” Later, after the party ended Mike and Sasha went up to their bedroom and gently made love. When they were through, Sasha in a soft, shaky voice said, “The first part of my day was the best I’ve had since I was a child. The middle part was terrifying not because of what Illya was doing to me, but because of what he was planning to do to you. But it was the end of the day when my hero arrived and saved me that was the best part of all. Thank you my love.”

Mike wasn’t able to speak. He let the tears running down his cheeks speak for him.