Shadow WIngs (Skeleton Key) (17 page)

They would say Raguel was a nickname, if asked. Many Russians had nicknames.

Once they had the paperwork, she brought him here, to Petrovsky 38. Previously, she’d hoped papers would not matter if he was with her––especially if they kept their visit short––but with everything that had happened, she couldn’t risk it.
 

More importantly, he had an identity now, even if it still contained gaps. She had his papers reflect that he lived in the same apartment building as her, in a flat she knew to be vacant currently. It was an imperfect cover, but again, it was better than nothing, and would explain why he could be seen in her building if anyone asked.

As for Raguel himself, he seemed relatively indifferent to the details of his new persona.

He climbed out of the car once she’d parked it, slamming his door shut when Ilana did the same. He followed her silently as they walked towards the entrance to the station. She slipped a little on the icy walkway as they made their way towards the stairs leading up to the front door, and realized the temperature had dropped again.

She didn’t bother with more than a nod at the officer manning the front desk. She’d already decided the fewer people they interacted with the better, so she more or less walked right by him. She brought Raguel through a maze of corridors between smaller offices and file cabinets and desks, straight into the slightly larger office where she’d been earlier that day, watching the lead detective attempt to interrogate Golunsky.

She lucked out.

The
operativnik,
a man named Obnizov, was still inside.

Walking in, she had rehearsed nothing, but found herself taking the direct approach.

“I have a possible witness,” she said, speaking before the detective had even looked up. When Obnizov did glance up, startled, she continued speaking. “Yegor, we need to see him. Golunsky. Can you take us?”

The detective frowned, glancing at Raguel. He sized him up briefly in Uri’s clothes, which were well-made, if casual. Ilana’s father’s coat was even more expensive-looking, and fit Raguel surprisingly well. Appraisal over, Obnizov relaxed. He nodded, rising to his feet as he pulled a heavy, loaded keychain off his desk.

“I will sit in,” he said.

He didn’t phrase it as a question. Ilana only nodded, glancing at Raguel.

The detective walked towards and then past them, giving Raguel another once-over before looking at Ilana. He still spoke only to her.

“Where did you find him? The Square?”

Ilana nodded, not bothering to elaborate.

The detective grunted, still sorting through keys as he walked them down the lefthand corridor, heading in the opposite direction of the holding cells where Ilana first found Raguel. She knew Obnizov was bringing them to the smaller cluster of private holding cells housed in this part of the building. These particular cells were reserved for offenders in more serious crimes––or for crimes that were political or sensitive in some way.

Usually those residing in them only stayed there long enough for someone from the KGB or the military to arrive and collect them.

“Why did you not call me?” the detective said, giving her a slightly harder look. “Or am I no longer the deciding voice on this case?”

Reading the expression on his face, she sighed, letting her shoulders relax.
 

“I apologize, comrade,” she said. “It was an unexpected development. I got the call, since he is a Party-affiliate.” She motioned vaguely towards Raguel, again not elaborating more than absolutely necessary. “I brought him here as soon as I could. This is off the books for now. Truthfully, it is a long shot, but I told them I would run it down.”

The detective nodded. That harder look in his eyes faded slightly.

Ilana could tell her answer more or less satisfied him. He knew how things worked.

He still seemed to be strangely suspicious of her, however. It was that same, nagging feeling she’d gotten from him that morning, like he didn’t trust her. He hadn’t been so cold or so distant to her prior to their interview with Golunsky.

Frowning slightly, she watched as Obnizov unlocked a heavy, iron-plated door that led to the small holding area. He walked inside and Ilana followed. She glimpsed only two cells this time, instead of the row that lived at the lower levels on the other side of the building.

“Where is he?” she said at once, looking at the empty cells.

Obnizov came to a dead stop.

He did it so quickly that Ilana ran into him from behind. She pulled herself back, only to run into Raguel, who had been following closely behind them both. She’d only looked past Obnizov long enough to briefly scan the length of both cells a second time, when the detective let out an explosive string of expletives in Russian.

A harder edge of the remnants of his Georgian accent came out when he did.

“Where
is
he?” Obnizov turned, glaring at Ilana as if she had done this. “I don’t know. Where the
chyort voz’mi
is he, Party Comrade Kopovich? You ask
me
this? How would I know? I am only lowly
militsiya
, am I not?” When she blinked at him, startled, he scowled openly. “Did you know of this? Is this more Party bullshit, that they do not even tell me when a
multiple homicide
suspect is taken from my custody? Or are
you
behind this?”

Ilana stared at him, then back at the empty cell. “Me? Why would I be behind this?”

“You tell me, ‘Ilana,’” he said, his voice openly sarcastic. “Why would you be?”

The import of his words hit then, even as her stomach sank.

“He could not have been taken for processing of some kind here?” she said. “More interrogation?”

“No!” Obnizov snapped. “He could not! Not without my knowing! Are you serious right now?”

She shut her mouth with a snap, shaking her head before looking up at him.

“I do not think this is Party, comrade... nor KGB, not in the usual way. It is certainly not my doing. Whatever this is, it is not official, or they simply would have had me bring Golunsky to them this morning...” She glanced back at the empty cell. “This makes no sense.”

“You are telling the truth? You knew nothing of this?”

She stared at him, incredulous. “Why would I be here if I did?” Frowning up at the angry Obnizov’s face, she caught hold of his arm, trying to get him to focus. “Yeger... you know this is not me! Why would I ask to question him, if it was?” At the other’s harder scowl, she sighed. “We will talk to the release guards, you and I. Find out who has him.”

“No one should have him!” Obnizov exploded, jerking his arm out from her hands. “This is
bullshit
, Ilana! It is total bullshit, to do it like this!”

“I agree.” She went back to staring at the empty cell. “We will clear this up, you and I...”

Obnizov only scowled though, looking at her with even more suspicion.

She was about to try and speak to him again when she glanced at Raguel and trailed, forgetting her words when she saw his expression. He frowned intently at the wall of one of the the empty cells, anger etched in his handsome features.

She followed his stare. When she bent down and stared at the same section of wall, she saw words written there in dark, red-tinted script.

“What is that?” the detective snapped, apparently following their stares too. “What is that written there? What does it say?”

Walking closer, Ilana bent her knees to lower her body to a crouch so she could peer through the iron bars. Staring at the words dripping there on the gray wall, she realized they had been written in drying blood.

Too late, Raguel,
the words said in Russian.
You and your little KGB cunt are too late.

“KGB?” Obnizov spoke loudly, reading the words from behind her. “What is that? Who is he talking about? And who is ‘Raguel’?”

Swallowing, she only looked up at Raguel.

But the angel didn’t speak.

YOU KNOW
HOW IT WORKS

ILANA LEFT THE area of the cells fully intending to call Karkoff and find out if he knew who was behind moving Golunsky.

As it turned out, she did not have to call Karkoff, however.

Karkoff called her.

As soon as they reentered Obnizov’s office, a junior detective popped his head in the door and summoned Ilana to a private room.

She motioned for Raguel to follow her.

She did not really want him questioned alone by Obnizov, not until she’d prepped him, so he followed her into a private office and stood just beside her after the junior detective left them alone and shut the door. She didn’t bother to turn on the lights, so the room remained dim apart from an orange desk lamp that was already lit.

When she picked up the phone, she found Karkoff waiting for her on the other end.

“Ilana?” he said at once. “You have heard? You know about the new body,
da?”

Ilana felt her skin grow cold. She glanced at Raguel, who watched her silently with his crystal gray eyes. “No.”

“This line is clear, Ilana. We can talk freely.”

She nodded, staring at the closed door. “What body, Karkoff?”

“It is him. Golunsky.”

Ilana felt her stomach give another lurch. “Another child?”

“No. I mean it is
him
. The body is Golunsky. He is dead.”

Again, Ilana glanced at Raguel, remembering what he’d told her.

The writing on the prison wall was right. They were too late.

She didn’t say much as Karkoff sketched out the basic details. Golunsky had been found, it turned out, with his throat cut, nearly on the steps of St. Basil’s Cathedral, “close enough to piss on
Minin and Pozharsky,” as Karkoff put it, his voice holding the barest touch of grim humor.

She knew it was not a joking thing, though.

Ilana could hear the tension in Karkoff’s voice even below that humor.

“How?” she said, her voice numb. “How did this happen? Who saw it?”

“It is like before. No one will admit to seeing it, Ilana.”

“But how is that possible?” she said. “This is not the middle of the night––this is broad daylight! There are so many people there... soldiers.” She shook her head. “It is not possible, Karkoff.”

“Someone cleared that part of the Square, Ilana. Someone official.”

“Who?”

She heard him smile on the other end of the line, yet heard no humor in his voice.

“We do not know.”

“That is not possible, either,” she said, frustrated.

“Yet, it seems that is what happened. For now, at least.” He paused. “
You’ll need to come down here, Ilana. But later, okay? Let official KGB do their thing first. I do not want you to break cover until it is absolutely necessary. I want you to stay with the
militsiya
for now. F
ind out who took him out of there. I am looking here, too.”

“When did they find the body?”

“One hour ago.” She heard him moving and realized he was checking to confirm his answer. “...Now, it is perhaps closer to two hours. I will get the exact time for you. There is a big stink here right now because it was a Party member’s son who found the body. I cannot get away for long.”