vehicles where the Volvo sedan was parked. Valentin had all but disappeared into the shadow of the foot well The heli was quartering the night sky, raking the ground with its Nightsun.
The dark-blue Volvo sedan was parked with the trunk sticking out. I stopped, making a T of the car and the Hilux. The only sounds were the van's engine ticking over and the heater on full blast. Val's shoes scraped across the ribbing of the rubber matting as he shifted position. It was almost peaceful until more sirens erupted.
Way over on the other side of the parking lot, an interior light came on as somebody got into his car. The engine didn't start up; he was probably sitting in the driver's seat, watching the heli. I waited.
Now that my ears had adjusted to the new, safer environment, I could make out the metallic rumble of a streetcar fading toward the city center. Police sirens wailed in the distance as the Nightsun continued to scour the lake and park.
The sirens got nearer. I sat, waited, and watched, trying to work out where they were. Three or four police cars were following the streetcar lines along the fence, their flashing lights throwing bursts of color across the roofs of the parked cars.
Seconds later, two more appeared.
I looked down at Val. I could make out his face in the glow of the dashboard. His eyes showed no fear. He was switched on enough to accept that overreaction at this stage could result in him being killed, or perhaps worse, seriously injured. He couldn't take that chance. From the moment he'd realized he wasn't going to die and that capture was inevitable, he hadn't panicked. He had to assume that I would be stressing, and that any unexpected move on his part might provoke a reaction from me, and the chances were it would be a bad one.
The less he resisted, the less punishment he was going to get, and the more time he'd have to watch and wait for an opportunity to escape.
I pressed the release catch on the pistol grip with my right thumb and caught the magazine in my left hand as it slid from the grip. Inserting a full twenty-round mag in its place, I heard the click as it locked home, and pulled on the bottom to check it was going to stay put. I put the half-empty mag in my right pocket, along with the taped outlets. I didn't want to risk slapping a half-empty one back in if I was in the shit and had to change mags in a hurry.
Another three or four police cars crossed the entrance, lights flashing and sirens blasting. The Nightsun was now roaming around in quick, jerky movements. The heli-watcher in the parking lot had seen enough and drove out toward the road.
The warning buzzer sounded as I took the keys out of the ignition. My lights were still on. I looked down at Val. 'Stay.' I sounded as if I was talking to a dog.
I got out of the Hilux and could hear the thud thud thud of the helo's rotor blades as it hovered in the distance. All their attention was still in the immediate vicinity of the hotel, but I knew it wouldn't last.
The cold air scoured my face as I walked around the front of the van, cutting through the headlights, keeping my eyes on the cab, the weapon down by my side.
More flashing lights and sirens headed up the street. This time some of the police cars started to peel off. One came down the road I'd made my approach on, brilliant blue strobes bouncing off me and the vehicles around me for a few seconds as it passed.
My attention was focused on the main entrance. Would the next set of lights come into the parking lot? I knew there was nothing I could do about it but watch and wait, but that didn't stop my heart rate shifting up a gear or two.
Seconds later the darkness returned. Only the sirens were left, dying in the distance. The heli noise throbbed back into earshot.
I felt under the rear right-hand wheel arch of the Volvo with my fingers and retrieved the magnetic box that held the key. I hit the alarm and there was a comforting whoop as the doors unlocked. I inserted the key in the trunk lock and pulled it open.
Jesse and Frank had glued thick sponge all round the framework of the luggage area, mainly so the target didn't injure himself, but also to subdue any noise if he felt like having a kick and scream while we were in transit. As an extra precaution, the light units had been taped down on the inside. The last thing we needed was for Val to pull one off, stick his hand through as we waited at a set of lights and wave to a family on their way to give granny her Christmas presents.
They'd also lined the floor with a thick four-seasons comforter, with another on top, ready to stop him from dying of hypothermia. Sitting on top was an orange plastic ball about the size of an egg, a roll of black duct tape and several sets of plasticuffs.
I opened the passenger door and Val looked up at me, then across at the trunk and its contents. I didn't have a clue what would happen to him once we hit St. Petersburg, and I didn't care. All I was concerned about was the $500,000 on offer, or what was left of it after Sergei got his $200,000.
Scanning the area once more, I brought the 88 up, angled my wrist at ninety degrees and rammed the weapon into the space above his bulletproof vest, then yanked it back into its normal position so the muzzle was twisted in his shirt. I didn't need to force his head downward: He wanted to see what was happening as I placed my right index finger back on the trigger. Tilting the weapon up so the grip was near his face, I made sure he saw me remove the safety catch with my thumb and heard the click.
I didn't need to explain the facts of life to him. After all, he hadn't got where he was today by helping old ladies across the road.
As far as Val was concerned, this was just another day in paradise. He wasn't about to fuck about now.
With my free hand I reached under his vest. 'Up, up, up.'
There was no argument. His knees came out of the foot well and he staggered onto the pavement.
I turned him round so the backs of his thighs were against the trunk of the Volvo and leaned forward onto him as more sirens wailed in the distance and the heli fought to keep position against the wind. He got the idea and maneuvered himself in, keeping his eyes fixed on mine.
Still no fear in them, though; the look was more analytical now, as if he was conducting some sort of character assessment, trying to figure me out. He was in total control of himself. It was not the reaction you'd expect from the victim of a lift, and I found it unnerving.
He ended up on his back in the trunk, knees up and hands across his stomach. Swapping over hands on the 88, I got hold of the orange plastic ball and stuffed it into his mouth. Still there was no resistance, just some snorting through his nose as I rammed the ball home.
Jesse and Frank had folded over the last four inches of the roll on the electrical tape so I could do the next bit with just one hand. I taped round his mouth and chin, then carried on up around his ears and eyes, leaving just his nose uncovered.
More sirens and lights, this time moving along the side road, the same way I had come. It wouldn't be long now before they started to check the parking lots.
I heard the helo's engine change pitch. It was moving again, its Nightsun now at forty-five degrees, illuminating everything in its path, working its way toward me.
Slamming the trunk shut on Val, I jumped back into the Hilux as the noise increased and the beam got brighter. There is no hiding place from those beams once they spot you. If they did, I'd change my mind about the $500,000 and just make a run for it on foot. I had my escape route worked out: straight over the fence and into the maze of apartment buildings opposite.
I sat and waited; there was nothing else I could do. The car and van took a direct hit and it felt like a scene from Close Encounters as both vehicles were flooded with light. A second or two later the engine note changed and the heli lurched in the direction of the main route out of town. The shadows returned as it moved away across the sky.
I drove the van into an empty space, got out and went to check on Val.
He was breathing heavily. I watched him and waited. He might have sinus problems, a blocked nose, the flu. I didn't want him to die; I only got paid for meat on the hoof. He snorted loudly to clear his nose.
Headlights veered toward me, but I hadn't heard a car door slam. It wasn't somebody from the parking lot. I leaned over Val to make it look as if I was sorting out my packages. Our faces were close to one another and I felt his breathing against my cheek. It was the first time I'd actually smelled him. After my little stay with Carpenter and Nightmare, I was expecting a combination of strong cigarettes, homemade alcohol, and armpit. What I got was duct tape with a hint of cologne.
