“Stay on the line. I’m calling for reinforcements.”
“Thanks.”
Kat’s eyes were squeezed shut and she was panting. “You have to get my underwear off. She’s coming soon.”
“Okay, baby. I’ve got you. Hang on, honey.”
With tender hands, he managed to remove her underwear. Thankfully she’d worn a loose maternity dress.
“Johnny. Oh God, this hurts. I’d hoped for an epidural by the time she came.”
Cold air swirled around them and he got inside the truck so he could pull the door closed behind him. He had Kat’s bag that contained her clothes and the blanket they were planning to bring Elena home in. He got that out and prepared to wrap the baby up should she come before the ambulance arrived.
“I can see the top of her head,” he exclaimed in wonder. She had a headful of dark hair, too. A rush of love and fear filled him in equal measure.
“Oh hell,” Kat moaned. “How did this happen? Why is she coming so fast? It wasn’t like this the last time. I had so much time to wait.”
But any reply he might have made was lost when Kat screamed in pain. He took her hand, didn’t flinch as she gripped him tight. He remembered the training they’d gone through together and started coaching her to breathe. He didn’t think she would listen at first, but then she did as he said.
Ian didn’t speak, but Mendez knew he was still there. He was glad of it, actually.
Mendez kissed her sweaty brow and told her how much he loved her. Then he prayed for a healthy baby and a safe delivery as he did what he had to do to help his wife bring their child into the world. The next few minutes were the longest of his life. And the most revelatory. He thought he and Kat were equals? No, not even close. She was his superior in every way. There wasn’t a man alive who could survive this kind of agony.
Kat breathed and pushed and yelled. In the distance, he could hear the scream of sirens getting closer—but Elena was coming and she wasn’t waiting. With another hard push, her shoulders slid free.
“One more time, Kat,” he said to her. “She’s almost here. You’ve got this, baby. You’re incredible.”
Kat’s face was streaked with tears, but she pushed again and Elena slid from her mother’s body. Mendez couldn’t breathe. She was bloody and perfect, and his emotions threatened to overwhelm him.
He wrapped the blanket around her body, afraid to touch her with his bare hands. But he had to in order to clean the mucus from her nose and mouth. The rest of her would wait, and he wasn’t going to touch the umbilical cord since the ambulance was on the way.
When he’d gotten her sufficiently wrapped, he laid her tenderly against Kat’s chest. Kat was crying, her face red with her exertions.
“Congratulations, momma and daddy,” Ian said in the background. “Well done, both of you.”
“Ian,” Kat exclaimed, her voice hoarse. “I forgot you were there.”
“I know. You were doing something more important.”
Mendez could see red lights flashing in the snow. The screams of the sirens reached a crescendo as the ambulance pulled up beside them and stopped. EMTs rushed from the vehicle. A moment later, the truck door opened, and uniformed technicians appeared.
Mendez could breathe again.
14
Mendez slugged back some coffee and rubbed his forehead absently. They’d been at the hospital for an hour now and he’d stepped out while Dr. Butler checked Kat over. He was still shaking inside from everything that’d happened and replaying it in his head. They’d been supposed to have a normal trip to the hospital where Kat would progress through labor and deliver their daughter several hours later. It hadn’t happened that way. He should have known his wife and child wouldn’t do anything the way they were supposed to do.
The door opened to the waiting room and Ian Black breezed in, looking as calm and unflappable as always. Hell, Mendez usually looked that way himself. Today was not that day.
“John,” Ian said, coming over and shaking his hand. “Congratulations, man. So thrilled for you both.”
“Thank you.”
“Helluva ride though, huh?”
“An understatement.” He cocked his head. “Why are you here, Ian? You didn’t have to come out to express your congratulations personally.”
“I wanted to talk to you about Rybakov. You got a minute for that?”
Did he? He felt like the distraction would be good right now. “Yeah, sure.”
“He went to see the Tiger.”
Mendez was surprised at that news. “He did? Do you know why?”
Ian shook his head. “No idea. But it means something, don’t you think?”
Mendez frowned. He was emotionally drained, but that didn’t stop the wheels from turning. “Yuri is an old friend, but he’s also a businessman. He’ll take someone’s money if the price is right. His loyalty is very specific but not absolute. He wouldn’t put us in any danger, but he would accept payment for information about us if someone had enough to make it worth his while.”
Ian nodded. “Yeah, but how did Rybakov know to go to him in the first place? Yuri has never worked with the Turovs to my knowledge. Common criminals according to him.”
“You said Rybakov is in naval intelligence. It could be as simple as that. Yuri works with the government from time to time. This kid could know who he is through work. Maybe he’s on a mission.”
“True.” But Ian didn’t look convinced.
“Do you have something else you aren’t telling me?”
Ian shook his head. “No. It just feels like there’s more going on here.”
“There’s a lot going on. We just don’t know what it is or why.” Mendez forced himself to think. “Was he followed by anyone besides your people?”
“No sign of anyone.”
“So he very likely left his apartment in disguise as a precautionary measure.” It’s the kind of thing Mendez would have done if he’d been embarking on a mission. Take the precaution just in case. Start
