‘Yes,’ she whispered, brushing at something on the lapel of her jacket. ‘Colonel Terrance McGill, he was the link, the common denominator.’
‘And he’s dead. Why are we even talking about that piece of shit? He was as insignificant as whatever it was you just flicked off your jacket.’
‘But you had your revenge upon him for the death of your brother and the injuries he caused Ethan.’
‘You heard. Good. Let’s move on.’ Helix sighed, giving up the struggle against the restraints. He wasn’t going anywhere.
‘I have no doubt a similar fate awaits those responsible for the death of General Yawlander whom, while not strictly family, I understand you admired.’ She sauntered closer, her arms folded. ‘Tell me, Major, how did it feel to finally get to McGill?’
‘He got what he deserved. It was quicker than I would have liked. I wanted to see him suffer. For what he’d done. For what he would have done if I hadn’t got to him first.’
‘Tochno tak.’ She exhaled, the Slavic words carried on her breath. ‘Exactly my point.’ She pressed her hands together in front of her lips. ‘The coup de grace.’ She snorted a laugh. ‘It was never part of my toolkit.’ She ran her fingers over the instruments arrayed around Helix, as if they were delicate fronds of foliage. ‘Too quick. Too kind. It robs the recipient of the chance to reflect or repent for their deeds, for their betrayal.’
Helix stared into her holographic eyes. ‘Did your brother know you were still alive?’
‘Dear Valerian.’ She laughed, breaking eye contact. ‘Such an optimist, or should I say, dreamer. He left a clause in his will to the effect that should I reappear within 12 months of his death, then his entire estate would revert to me.’
‘Lucky you.’
‘Not really, Major. I have— No. Cancel that. I had no interest in his group portfolio. Science, technology and engineering all require so many tangible assets. But his work with Gabrielle Stepper piqued my interest.’
‘She wasn’t working with him,’ Helix spat. ‘He wanted to steal her research and use it to wreak his revenge on those he thought responsible for your mother’s death and your disappearance.’
‘And he had been close…’ She paused, her fingers hovering over Gabrielle’s letter where it lay on the tray. ‘“I try to reconcile what I did with the greater benefit to humanity.”‘
‘So, that’s it.’ Helix sighed. ‘You mean to finish what he started. Good luck with that. Everything in his lab was destroyed after I killed McGill. I saw the fireball.’
‘Not everything. My brother may have been a romantic but he wasn’t stupid. I’ve seen the recordings of his last conversation with Stepper, before she…’ She stared off into the distance. ‘They were going to Berlin the next morning. He had backups. Everything he needed. And with her and her DNA he would have unlocked the pathogen.’ She smiled towards the door. ‘There’s someone I want you to meet.’
Helix pressed his forehead against the restraint, straining to see. The dull thud of something heavy being lowered to the floor came from behind. A muffled groan and incoherent protests were followed by laboured breaths and stifled movement. Archer returned to his bench and went back to his canine project.
Helix’s chair turned 90 degrees. The vague outline of a torso, head, nose and a mouth pressed against the heavy material of a bergen-sized sack writhing on the floor.
‘Our father’s escape plan failed less than one hour after my mother and I were separated from him and Valerian,’ Lytkin said. ‘My father was betrayed by the men he’d paid to protect us. After they finished with my mother, they murdered her and I was placed in a so-called orphanage with ten other girls, aged six to sixteen. Others came later.’ A photograph of a 14th century Ukrainian castle overlooking a river gorge flashed onto the wall. ‘Our “uncle” as we were required to call him, would gift their mothers to his men. We never asked where the meat we used to feed the farm pigs came from.’
‘And these were the men that your brother was hellbent on murdering with a bioweapon, risking a war in the Middle East,’ Helix said.
‘Not exactly. Valerian had tracked down those who took my mother and me away, but I passed through many hands before arriving at the castle.’
It was no wonder she was fucked up. Compared to her, Valerian had led a charmed life. Helix understood the need to avenge what had been inflicted on the family, an eye for an eye and all that, but there were limits. He cleared his throat. ‘You said you wanted me to meet someone.’
‘Our uncle had a son, Dmitri. He was almost the same age as me.’ A photograph of a sullen black-haired teenager replaced the castle. ‘We were given the best healthcare and a first class education by doctors and tutors who lived in the castle with us. That’s where I met Archer. Dmitri attended most of the classes too. As each girl reached maturity they would be taken, usually late in the evening for… how should I put it?’ She pursed her lips. ‘Extra classes with our uncle. If we were compliant, our education continued. If we were not, or if we failed to perform to his satisfaction, solitary confinement in the castle’s dungeons gave us time to reflect.’
‘And, if you didn’t comply after that?’
‘If that didn’t work there were always the pigs,’ Lytkin said, pressing her fingers lightly to her lips. ‘As we grew up, Dmitri would watch. Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn. Yes, Dmitri learned. The keen-eyed apprentice, learning the trade from his master.’ She ran her fingers over her mouth. ‘And I made sure that I was Dmitri’s favourite.’
‘Sounds like a right shit sandwich.’ It was the best he could do. He didn’t want to sound impressed. How many kids or girls of her age would be able to make those kind
