Smith couldn’t fault the logic, but that didn’t mean he liked it. Val glanced over at him. She would be the only one who would understand his silence. Smoke ate a french fry or chip, as they called them in London. Harbinger was demolishing his take-out while Val thumbed through her passport. He glanced down and read the passport. Valerie Young. He pushed his food away, his appetite lost. His small world had exploded, and the shreds of his past were once again haunting him. Would he ever be free of it?
Smoke wiped his hands and reached back into the canvas bag. “Here are your rings. Smithson, I took a wild-ass guess at what size you wore. If it doesn’t fit, no big deal. We know Val’s will.” He tossed Smith a small black box. Inside, on one side, was a diamond the size of a dime and a gold and diamond band. Val plucked them out of the black velvet.
“Rather ostentatious, isn’t it?” She slid both rings on her left hand. “Here.” She took the thick diamond and gold band from the other side and slipped it on his finger. It was snug, but it fit. “There you go, hubby.” She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. “Until mission do us part.”
Harbinger and Smoke laughed and went back to eating while Smith stared at the ring.Yes. All of this is temporary, isn’t it?He closed the box and handed it back to Dan. That was as close to being married as he’d ever get. Instead of lingering on that thought, he asked, “What’s our exit strategy?” He had no concerns for himself. The future wasn’t his focus. It hadn’t been in a long time. He lived exactly one day at a time, but Val needed a future. She needed an exit strategy, and she needed him to do his part in this mission. He’d do it to the best of his abilities.
Smoke took the box and tossed it back into the canvas bag. He flipped the map over and pointed. “These are the three routes the train can take. There’s only one passenger train scheduled, so if Komal is going by train, he will be on it. From Moscow, all trains run on a common rail to this point, eight kilometers past Irkutsk. Here the train goes to Beijing via Naushki or continues to Chita, then drops through Zabaikalsk and down to Beijing. Your only option is to force the train to go through Skovorodino and the rest of the towns to Vladivostok. Here. We’ll have water transport waiting for you. Questions?”
“Updates and communications?” Val looked at him.
“CCS suggested old school computer email dead drop right under their noses. Draft emails they can’t monitor. Komal is the baby. If he’s on the trip, we’ll leave a message that the baby is on the way. If he’s located elsewhere, it was false labor.”
Smith looked at the email provider that Smoke pointed to. “Do you have an account?”
Val shook her head. “I will. Is CCS setting it up?”
“Yes, with your standard password. The email address is the usual before the government’s designation.”
“No AOL or Gmail in Russia?” Harbinger laughed.
“They have it, but they also monitor it. This system is archaic. CCS says it’s our best bet. So find an internet café or check in if you can get internet on your phone. If nothing is in the draft folder, there are no new updates on your mission.”
Smith sat and listened to the people around him. The intricacy of the plan was astonishing. The people behind the scenes had worked hard to make the mission successful. Having support and knowing that Komal was a criminal who had committed atrocities focused this effort, unlike anything he’d participated in before.
Val stared at the map and traced the route they wanted the train to take with her manicured fingernail. “Are we sure the train is supposed to go to Beijing? There’s a chance it could go to the sea.”
“We believe it was supposed to travel to China. The Russian railway system isn’t centrally computerized. Each node is separate; from what CCS can tell, most are on standalone computers. She’d need a staff of a hundred or a supercomputer to find or verify the route information in time to help. Unfortunately, at the moment, neither of those is a fully operational asset. Hell, you two could be going on a vacation courtesy of Guardian. We just don’t know.”
“Where do I fit in?” Harbinger asked.
“You’re heading to Mongolia and meeting up with Oscar Team. There, you’ll be on-site to switch the rails and provide backup. If Komal is on the train, Val and Smith, you’ll need to have a signal displayed outside the train. Something Harbinger and his team can’t miss. When you see it, you switch those tracks and then jump on board as the train heads to Skovorodino and on to Vladivostok.”
“I’ve never worked with a team before.” Harbinger leaned back in his chair. “What exactly is my role?”
“You’ll be the lead, and Alpha has made sure the team leader understands that fact. You and the team’s communications specialist know Russian. It will have to do. You and that teamarethe exit strategy. The train will take an additional time to reach Vladivostok if it doesn’t stop at any of the towns along the way. When it doesn’t, someone may raise the alarm. That’s where the team comes into play.” Smoke withdrew a packet and handed it to Harbinger. “Your passport and money. You’ll fly to Kazakhstan and meet with the team at the airport. Together, you’ll travel to Mongolia. The borders aren’t guarded except at the roadways.”
“How will we get into Mongolia, then?” Harbinger took the envelope and zipped it into his jacket pocket.
“Horseback over the border and then find faster transportation. Oscar Team has been working in the Kazakhstan and Mongolia areas for years. They know how to get you where you need to go.”
Harbinger rolled his eyes. “I hate horses.”
“Why?” Val asked. “They’re such regal creatures.”
Harbinger shook his head. “Dogs are regal creatures. Horses are huge and can kill you.”
Smoke laughed. “Dude, suck it up. Any questions? Concerns? Anything we overlooked? Now’s the time to put it out there.”
Smith glanced from Val to Harbinger, then to Dan. When there was nothing from them, Smoke leaned back in his chair. “All right. Harbinger, you have an hour to make it to Heathrow.”
“Not a problem. I’m packed, and my kit is in the car.” He stood as did everyone else. Harbinger shook Dan’s hand, then Smith’s, and finally hugged Val. “I’ll see you in Mongolia.” The man gave them a two-finger salute and walked out the door.
“You have three hours before you need to be at Heathrow. Oh. I almost forgot. Here’s your earpiece, Val. You still have one, right?” Smoke turned to look at Smith as Val popped her communications device in her ear. He nodded. He hadn’t taken it out. “Good. Do you mind if I have another one of those stouts before I grab a taxi back to the airport?”
Val laughed and went to get him a beer while Smith excused himself. He needed a moment to internalize everything he’d just heard and witnessed. He made his way into the bathroom and sat down on the edge of the tub, breaking down the mission in his way. One, there was no proof Komal would be on the train. Conjecture only. Two, Guardian was using his mother’s name to solidify or perhaps maintain a network they had in Russia. That her name was useful was the only good thing to come from her in a long time. Third, they’d have help in the extraction. Fourth and most important, his time with Val was temporary, and he needed to keep that in mind. She would be acting, and he would have to force himself to remember that. A part to be played now that the vacation jaunt she’d wanted was a thing of the past.
“He’s fine. He processes everything in minute detail, and you already know he isn’t the most talkative man in the world.” Val’s voice in his ear was shocking after not hearing it for a few days. Smoke must have asked about him. He stood and moved to the bathroom door.