Irony was such a powerful tool. Federov would use Sokalov’s penchant for self-survival to likely get him killed. If he could pull this off.
“Won’t that lure Sokalov to wherever Mr. Jenkins is being held captive?” Kulikova asked.
“One can only hope,” Federov said.
49
Lubyanka
Moscow, Russia
Sokalov sat at the conference room table, the cat about to swallow the canary, but only after chewing on him and breaking every bone in his body. Lebedev and Pasternak took seats across the table. Petrov stood at the head. Minutes before entering the room, Sokalov had hung up the phone with Alexander Zhomov, who had spoken directly with their contact at the Ministry of Internal Affairs. He had it on good authority that Mr. Jenkins had been taken by Yekaterina Velikaya’s men from the Irkutsk train station to a slaughterhouse on the shores of the Ushakovka River. He said the men had also succeeded in capturing Maria Kulikova. Zhomov told Sokalov he was en route to the slaughterhouse and would kill Velikaya’s men and, if she was present, Kulikova. He would bring back Jenkins alive.
All of which meant this was working out better than Sokalov had hoped for. Within hours he would hobble the most powerful crime family in Moscow, kill the woman who could ruin him, and solve the president’s more pressing issue: how to get back the two would-be assassins and save face on a world stage. In return, the president would direct Petrov to name Sokalov his successor as chairman of the National Antiterrorist Committee, whereupon Sokalov’s first order of business would be to fire Gavril Lebedev.
The purpose of this meeting was to discuss the options each man had come up with to get back Pasternak’s two unsuccessful assassins, and by default, identify whose head would roll. American intelligence still refuted any suggestion they held Pasternak’s men, which left hope the CIA would be open to negotiations, once advised Russia held Mr. Jenkins.
“I am told this matter is now well up the Kremlin chain of command,” Petrov said gravely. He sucked on a cigarette and laid the butt in the ashtray. “Our diplomats have been of little help. They are like young men with their first woman, feeling around the edges to determine how she will respond, and so far the Americans have been cold and uninterested.”
“Why have the Americans not responded?” Lebedev asked rhetorically. “This information would go a long way toward impugning the Kremlin, and this type of opportunity does not come around very often.”
“Perhaps they are doing so because they hope to negotiate for something important, but do not yet know what that is,” Sokalov said. “In which case our time would be better spent undermining whatever it is they are seeking to do by eliminating the potential the Americans have to embarrass us all on a world stage.”
“I believe we should take a different tack, an offensive tack,” Pasternak said, speaking like a true general.
“Which is what?” Petrov asked.
“The Kremlin can publicly accuse the Americans of improperly detaining two Russian citizens, claim the weapons allegedly confiscated were planted, and demand that the Americans either release my men or provide solid evidence to support their allegations,” Pasternak said. “By making a bold first statement, we have the opportunity to direct the flow of information and plant the seed that this is nothing more than American hypocrisy, another attempt to impugn the Kremlin. We can then disavow any information the Americans release as false or misleading and designed to spin world opinion in their favor.”
“A bold plan, General,” Petrov said. “You would be poking the hornet’s nest with a stick and hoping not to get stung. We cannot be that na?ve, Kliment. The Americans have more than enough evidence to do significant damage to Russia’s reputation.”
“Has anyone determined the source of the leak that led to the men’s capture?” Lebedev looked directly across the table at Sokalov.
Sokalov smiled. “Do you have some evidence that something untoward has occurred in my directorate, Gavril?”
“I’ve heard that Ms. Kulikova has not been in the office for several days,” Lebedev said.
“Yes, that is true, but it is certainly no mystery,” Sokalov said directly to Petrov, deliberately dismissing Lebedev. “Ms. Kulikova is having female issues. I have sent someone, in an abundance of caution, to her apartment to ensure her well-being. I am told she is contemplating a hysterectomy.”
“Then let us hope her recovery is speedy so she can come back to Lubyanka,” Lebedev said, dripping sarcasm. “How ever are you managing without her?”