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It was late in the afternoon of the same day Stepanov's body had been found. Colonel Ivanov caught an unpleasant hint of his own sour sweat as he paced back and forth in his office. Outside, the light was almost gone from the sky. Volkova had not been found. He didn't want to contemplate what would happen to him if she managed to escape.
The last sighting of her had been at a checkpoint on the M10 in the early morning. She'd been riding in a white Lada. A white Lada had been reported stolen in the vicinity of the Metropole Hotel. The license number matched the car that had passed through the checkpoint with Volkova.
There'd been a man with her. He'd shown a Russian passport in the name of Alexei Baryshnikov. The passport was counterfeit and had been flagged. Whoever he was, if he tried to use it again he'd be arrested.
They weren't going to get far. The border was sealed, roadblocks had gone up everywhere. A description of the car and occupants had been relayed to the militia. Ivanov reminded himself that she couldn't escape. So where the hell was she?
Volkova had gone north, ruling out Belarus and the Ukraine as her destination. As Ivanov had suspected, she was making for Finland or one of the Baltic states. There hadn't been enough time for her to get out of the country. It bothered him that she hadn't been caught yet. She and her companion must have stopped somewhere.
She was hiding, but where? Ivanov considered the options. The checkpoint she'd passed had been north of Tver'. The next town of any size between there and Saint Petersburg was Novgorod. Roadblocks had been set up before she could have reached Novgorod. That meant she was somewhere south of there.
What would he do in her situation? The smart thing would be to lay low during the day and try to escape at night. It would be dark in less than half an hour. By morning she could be gone, and his career would be down the toilet.
Major Petrov came into the room. He was excited
"Sir, we have a hit on the car. A satellite picked it up on the other side of Tver'. It turned off the M10."
At last!
"Excellent. Where did it go?"
"East on a secondary road, south of Novgorod. Then it turned onto a dirt track. There's nothing at the end of the track except an old farm house. I checked the registry. It's been unoccupied for years, but the taxes are current."
"Is the car visible there?"
"No, sir, but there is a barn. They probably put it inside."
"Alert the militia in Novgorod. Tell them to send a team. Remember to tell them I want her alive."
"Yes, sir."
Ivanov had anticipated needing to move after his quarry. General Peshkov had given him everything he'd asked for. A helicopter was standing by.
"We're going north, Major. You can call the militia on the way."
"Yes, Colonel."
I'm coming, Volkova. You will learn what happens to traitors.
A car was waiting for them outside headquarters. The two men left for the helicopter. With a little luck, this would be over soon.