| "Finding Trouble" | ||
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Hotel Destiny May 8th, 2008, 0814 hours Lima Time He awoke sharply, the images still fresh in his mind. He removed the soaked sheets from his bed and set them down on the floor before making his way to the bathroom. Once there he stripped and stepped into the shower cubicle, turning the dial until a steady stream of cold water emerged from the showerhead. Moving under the cold cascade he felt his body cool, and he let out a sigh as things returned to normal. The whole experience had come as something of a shock to him, and it was only now as he stood under the steady cooling stream that he was able to absorb the nights events and begin to analyse them.The dream had been vivid. He was unsure of why it had occurred; his demons had not seriously bothered him since he began life in Russia, so he didn't know why they had presented themselves to him now. What was the trigger? he asked himself. He thought about it for a few minutes, carefully going through the various options before finally counting out all except one: Alexei Pavelevich Konstantin. There was something about that man, something familiar, and that something had caused his demons to return. He knew what his task was for the day: find out about Konstantin. Club Samovar May 8th, 2008, 1041 hours Lima Time He stepped out of the cab and walked towards the door of the Club, all the time scouting out the area for potential threats as he knew that maybe there was another reason for the return of his demons, and he was not about to open himself up to a surprise attack. He reached the door and found that it was closed. Taking out his mobile phone (the compromised one, not his new one) he selected the Club's number and pressed the dial button. Within seconds he heard a tone, and as he waited patiently for someone to pick up he continued scanning the area, learning the area so that if he could quickly recognise any anomalies and react accordingly. "Club Samovar, how can I help you?" "This is Yevgeniy Ivanovich. I work for the club," he told the man on the other end of the line. "Ah yes. What is it you want?" "Well," he replied, "I was wondering if I could have a little practise, and maybe talk to Mr Konstantin about tonight." "You may come in to practise, though Mr Konstantin is currently busy, so any appointments would have to wait until later today." "I understand." The line went dead. A minute later a figure appeared on the other side of the door; a security guard. The guard took a card from his belt and swiped it, opening the doors. Nikolai thanked the man and made his way further into the club, record box in hand. He walked through the main room and went over to the DJ booth, and seeing as he was here to practise, or so they thought, he began setting up. He'd spotted the security cameras on his first visit, so he made a point of pretending they weren't there and put on a little show while he set the equipment up how he liked it. Once the equipment was in order he turned everything on, watching as the various coloured lights came to life and announced that everything was ready. He paused for a moment, an act purely for the cameras, then turned it all back off. He closed the lid on his record box and left the booth, working his way towards the lift. The people in the security room must have followed his progress because as he approached the lift door a guard appeared and blocked his passage. "Is something wrong?" he asked the guard. "I am sorry, but I am not allowed to let you wander around. It's for security reasons you understand." "That's ok," Nikolai replied as he slipped his hand into his trouser pocket and removed the poker chip he had found in his winnings the other night, "I have permission." He handed the chip over to the guard, who studied it carefully before giving it back, along with a swipe card. "The fifth floor is only accessible by invitation from Mr Konstantin. Apart from that there are no restrictions," the guard informed him. He could see that the guard didn't like him, and maybe it had something to do with the fact that Alexei already trusted him to quite a large degree, and maybe the guard was jealous of that fact. Finding the chip certainly came as a surprise to him, seeing as that was his first extended contact with his target, and to show this much trust after one night of cards either meant Nikolai had made the perfect impression on his `Boss', or he was being set-up. The return of his demons was not a coincidence, he was sure of that. He had a feeling that Alexei was like Him, and if that proved to be true then he would have to kill Alexei himself to partially exorcise that demon. After opening the lift door with the swipe care he stepped in and pressed the button for the third floor. When the lift stopped moving and the doors opened, Nikolai was now Ruzhyo, the Rifle, the name he went by whenever he was in the field. Everything he did now would be done in mission mode, though he would still be maintaining his cover. The people who saw him didn't register any change in him at all, but then his level of expertise guaranteed that. He went into every room on the floor, memorizing the layouts and the position of the security cameras. His actions didn't cause alarm amongst the security people because he played the part of a new and curious employee perfectly. He even lingered in the room where he had played poker the other night, for the simple reason that it gave those watching him something to make a connection with, and that connection, the fact that he had played cards in there, would serve to quell any suspicions they might have had about his motives.His next move was to proceed to the forth floor. He hadn't been up here yet, and because of that he recorded everything in his mind as if it would be his only opportunity to do so. The first couple of rooms were offices. He decided against hanging around in those rooms to long, reasoning that if technical data was required the Kovalenko could access it remotely. He left the second office and moved to the next door, which had "Security Suite" written on a plaque on the door. He knocked a couple of times then opened the door. Set along the opposite wall were an array of monitors, each with a different image of the club on their screen. There was also a large control board set underneath the monitors, and this was manned by five men. "Hi," Nikolai said. The men looked at him. "I'm kinda new here, so I'm just looking around, getting to know where everything is. I take it this is the control room," he said, gesturing at the equipment. "Yes," one of the men replied, "this is where all aspects of security is controlled. Would you like me to explain a few things?" "Yeah, that would be great." Club Samovar May 8th, 2008, 1430 hours Lima Time He waited until the record finished before turning the equipment off. His intelligence gathering had gone smoothly, and he now had an intimate knowledge of all floors except the fifth. As soon as he had finished his wandering he had returned to the DJ booth to actually get some practise in, seeing as that was meant to have been why he came here in the first place, or so they thought. Once more his mixing had been crisp, though this time he had mixed for over three hours and not used a single record from after 1999, instead going for a completely `old skool' set. Now that he had finished his plan was to return to the hotel and record what he had learnt today, ready for transmission back to Russia. That was the plan, but before he had a chance to finish packing away his records one of the guards came up to him and informed him that Mr Konstantin would like to see him in his office on the fifth floor. As he followed the guard toward the elevator he noticed a woman walking towards the main doors, and just before she got outside he managed to catch a glimpse of her face. His brain recognised the face, and a second later he was transported back to the two nights in Russia when he had trailed the unknown woman. It was her. If she was here then that definitely made things interesting.He continued thinking about it while he rode up to the fifth floor, accompanied by the guard, but as soon as the lift door opened he pushed it to the back of his mind. "Zhenya," Alexei addressed him, further evidence that their relationship was progressing on from boss/worker to something a bit more friendly. When addressing someone most Russians use the familiar but respectful format consisting of the first name plus patronymic. Sergei Mikhailovich Petrov would be addressed as Sergei Mikhailovich. This form is considered very polite and is roughly equivalent to the use of Mr./Mrs./Ms. plus the last name in American English. If the persons involved are on really close terms then the use of the first name alone or the "diminutive" form of that name is considered correct. Most common Russian names have a diminutive. For a name like Sergei the diminutives are Seryozha, Seryoga, Seryozhenk, Seryozkha. This practice is not unlike the English use of Johnny for John, Billy for William, or Cathy for Catherine. "Alyosha," Nikolai replied. He took a seat on the other side of the desk and looked around, apparently marvelling at the room, all the while committing as much detail to his memory as possible. He knew that another opportunity like this would probably not arise in the near future, and though no deadline had been set by Sergei he still knew that he was on a truncated timeline, and the quicker he did things the better. "You wanted to see me?" "I heard you wanted to see me," Alexei laughed. "Well, I did. I was wondering if it would be ok if my friend came tonight with his girlfriend. He used to look after my records when I was playing back home." "Yes, that will be fine." "Well, the thing is�" Nikolai said, suddenly looking uncomfortable. "Yes?" Alexei responded. "I kinda said I'd be able to get them on the guest-list�" His voice trailed off and he just sat there until he thought to add, "But if that's not possible then it's no problem." "It shouldn't be a problem," Alexei replied. "Do not feel so scared to ask me things, there is no need. Already you are settling in, and I will do what I can to make the process easier for you. I am here to help you, my friend." The last word sent a shiver down Nikolai's spine. Looking back up from the table he saw not Alexei sitting in front of him but Him. So that's why my demons have returned, he thought to himself, it was You all along. This time you won't be getting away, `my friend'. "Thank you." "One more thing," Alexei said. "It is common practise for the DJ to take requests here in America. I assume that you will be doing this now that you have found your feet." "Yes, I will do that," Nikolai promised. I haven't found my feet, he thought, I've found my prey. Club Samovar May 8th, 2008, 2028 hours Lima Time The evening had progressed quite nicely; the DJs before him had done a good job working the crowd up. He liked the way the club was run, the music that was played. The DJ previous to him had played funky house, and Nikolai had found himself letting go for a bit on the dance floor, and Olesya and Maksim gave a marvellous performance of a couple in love who also like to `get their groove on'. The trio had danced happily to the funky beats before Nikolai took up his place in the DJ booth. The DJ already in the booth took his last record off, packed it away, then carried out the ceremony which had become part of the changeover; he removed the headphones from around his neck and handed them to Nikolai, then bowed elaborately. "Get `em Vibe." Nikolai laughed. "I will." He nodded to Maksim to pass over his record box, which he did. Nikolai undid the catch on the lid, opened it up and quickly flipped through the vinyl before he located his intro choon. Standing back up he positioned himself by the mixer, placed the record on the right-hand turntable, then checked the levels. Once he was satisfied he let the choon drop, watching the crowd's reaction and smiling to himself as they all swayed to the sweet beats. He noticed a few of the females staring at him but ignored their probing eyes, knowing that it was simply because he was up in the booth; he had seen it before, no matter what the DJ looked like he would always attract the ladies, simply because he was seen as a status symbol. He saw Alexei and the woman he tailed in Russia appear then disappear in a relatively short period of time. From his vantage point he was annoyed that he didn't see what they did. Seeing Alexei reminded him of what he had to do, and after a few songs he decided to comply with Alexei's wishes and announced that he would be taking requests. He was sure if he played a few, satisfied his superiors, then went back to playing what he wanted he could get away with it, especially seeing as Alexei had apparently earmarked him for possible inclusion into one of his more intimate rings. Through the crowd he saw movement towards the booth. Olesya, standing by the bar, noticed it to, though she didn't react to it, and after a second he realised it was because she was watching the `partner' as he walked towards the bar. The individual in question had blue hair. Great way to blend in, Nikolai thought to himself. The other person, a female he saw now, continued to head for the booth. As she approached he marvelled at the fact that she managed to keep herself in the low-cut top she was wearing. It had long proved fascinating to him to try and work out how such clothing could constrain without either damaging or exposing the piece of flesh in question. "Taking requests," she asked as she leaned seductively up against one of the amplifiers; one of the expensive ones, he noted. Expensive taste, he thought with a smile. The smile in his head managed to work its way onto his face, and he found himself grinning as he played the part of red-blooded male, letting his eyes wander over her inviting body as he responded, "Anything you want." The girl smiled warmly and took a step towards him. He knew Maksim was watching her every move from his position by the record box in case she made a threatening move, and so Nikolai found himself relaxing slightly; she wasn't going to pose a threat to him. He watched as she traced her finger along the edge of the turntable and onto the mixer, all the while keeping her eyes locked onto him. He thought of Yelena, and in that instance he realised that it would be too dangerous to even pretend to be playing the game that the girl was subtly suggesting. He decided that his cover wouldn't be blown by not appearing to be single, and so he moved back a fraction, just enough so that she could pick it up. It worked; the girl stopped and sighed audibly. "Decoy or Tina Moore" she requested. That stopped him for a second: not only was she a temptress but she also had good taste in music. The mentioning of Tina Moore caused his eyes to light up; he hadn't played that record yet. In truth he was saving it for next time, testing his willpower by not playing one of his all-time favourite songs. He would have to concede to the girl's demand though. "Old skool girl," he said approvingly, "how about Moore?" "Great." She smiled once more and moved to go back to the dance floor. "Your name?" he asked her. This was something all the other DJs did, but now he felt guilty that he was doing it, as if it might be misconstrued and interpreted as a signal for more to happen. The girl stopped momentarily before turning back to him and, with yet another engaging smile, responded, "By the end of the night? Most likely� it will be Trouble." Nikolai paused, not sure of what response to use, but his mind was saved from the task when the girl winked and moved back onto the dance floor. He followed her progress through the crowd until she met back up with the blue-haired individual. He looked over at Olesya and saw her nod: no. So the couple were clean, at least as far as their activities tonight went. That was good. He turned he attention to bringing in Tina Moore. He shouted to Maksim to get the record, which he did, and after placing it on the empty turntable he began cuing it up, adjusting the pitch accordingly with what he heard in the headphones. Once he was satisfied he rewound the record and brought it in from the top.The crowd reacted instantly, just as he knew they would. It was like welcoming back an old friend, and the effect was it motivated him to dip into his old skool records and deliver a history lesson to the crowd. Hotel Destiny May 8th, 2008, 2312 hours Lima Time As he plugged in his mobile phone into the charger he heard a beep. The beep indicated an incoming transmission. He went into his room and got himself ready for bed, then returned to the phone. The download had been completed, and as he read through the information he found himself feeling surprised. According to the message he was to meet with a CIA officer tomorrow for an exchange of information. He was to give the officer the intelligence he had gathered on the layout of the club, and in return he was to get� a package. Now what could that be? he thought as he got into bed and turned off the light, waiting for sleep to envelope him like the darkness that surrounded him. Return |
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