Chapter 23

The ride home was understandably quiet, and as soon as Meredith and Will arrived home, she ran upstairs to get her things for the trip. Meredith, being type-A, had most of her packing ready to go and needed to round up a few last items. Will had just turned on the television when Meredith pulled her suitcase down the stairs, banging it on each step. She carried only her purse and a small suitcase. Having changed out of her scrubs, she was now wearing a short-sleeved blouse and cardigan sweater in coral pink, some smart, black slacks, and black heels.

“Way to go, sis. I know few women who would go to the Ukraine packing so little,” Will said, watching her come down the stairs.

“I’ve done this a few times, you know.” She thumbed through some papers and her passport before she slid them in her purse. “Will, can I ask you something about Scott?”

“Yeah, sure. What do you want to know?” Will coughed lightly.

“How long have you known?”

“Known about the girl or known about him being a prick?” The words were out before he realized how rude it sounded.

“Both, I guess.” She burst out laughing.

Will swallowed hard. “Well, I only found out about Jen from Kostya earlier this week.”

“Wait. Kostya knows?” Her face flushed. “How did he… I mean… What did he say?”

“Kostya caught him returning just before you got home from your night shift. He had the wrong color lipstick on his collar and a guilty conscience.”

“Oh my God.” She covered her mouth with her hand, ashamed by Scott’s betrayal. “Why didn’t he tell me?”

“He wanted to, but it was awkward with things the way they are between you. He thought you might think he was making it up to improve his chances.”

“He still should have told me.” She frowned, sitting on the edge of the chair. “How long have you known he was a prick?”

“Since the first time he ogled you in Dad’s office. He didn’t know I was your brother and he told me he wanted a piece of you.”

“And you never told me because…”

“Because you seemed to like him. And you deserved some happiness.” He put his hand on her arm. “Mer, no one is ever going to be good enough for you in my eyes. Especially someone who has an office pool betting on the first time he’ll sleep with you.”

She snorted. “You heard about that?” He nodded. She leaned back in the chair shaking her head. “No one’s ever going to be good enough, huh?”

“Well,” he answered, “Kostya comes awfully close. The more I learn about him the more I like. He’s a real bad-ass.” Will stood up and offered a hand to Meredith. Helping her up, he mischievously pulled her too hard. Meredith laughed again, playfully pushing her brother. Will grabbed her luggage and began to leave. She stopped at the doorway and surveyed her townhouse.

Scott never earned a place here anyway.

“Do you think Daddy can arrange for Scott to move out while I’m gone?”

Will huffed as he pulled her suitcase out the door. “If he doesn’t, I will.”

****

Everyone arrived at TRUST Headquarters around the same time, except Dr. Nichols who had returned to his home in New Mexico to continue his research at the Los Alamos National Lab. He was going to teleconference into the meeting, however, and Ethan was busy getting that set up. Meredith had never seen TRUST headquarters, and it was exciting to be in the middle of the action. It was obvious the small group had a comraderie that allowed for teasing and fun, but would become serious when they needed to do their jobs.

“Let’s get started,” Dr. Nichols called from the video screen. “I’ve asked Ben to run this meeting since I’m not there. There should be handouts.”

“They’re right here,” Ben said as he distributed them to everyone as they took their places around the table. “We’ve got a lot to cover, and Meredith and Kostya need to get to the airport for their red-eye.”

“I don’t think Kostya needs the flight to get his red-eyes,” Ethan quipped. “He looks tired enough already.”

“I’m okay. I’ll be able to sleep better after this is done,” Kostya said.

“Meredith, on the other hand, is radiant after her performance at the Senator’s office today,” Ethan announced.

Meredith blushed at the group’s comments and chuckles. “I wasn’t the one performing,” she said sarcastically.

“Doubt he was either,” Ethan called out, prompting a groan from the team.

Kostya seemed unaware of the events at the Senator’s office and turned to her, concerned. “What happened?” he asked quietly.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll tell you later.” Meredith shook him off.

Kostya looked puzzled but focused on Ben.

“Obviously things are going to depend a lot on what we find in the Ukraine, but we’ve set up the basics.” Ben brought up a slide on the projector. “Kostya and Meredith are going to be traveling as medical aid workers with ‘Humanitarian Relief International,’ an organization of our creation, that, thanks to Ethan, now has an impressive website, virtual call center, Facebook and Twitter feeds dating back several years, and bank account records to back up their mission.” He clicked through each page showing Ethan’s work.

“Impressive,” Will teased Ethan, patting him on the back. “Too bad you can’t use these skills to make a girlfriend.”

The group laughed at the good-natured ribbing, but focused back to Ben. “Meredith and Kostya will be traveling as doctors, but also as a married couple.”

Meredith arched an eyebrow at Ben. “Married?” She glanced at Kostya, who also seemed surprised, and Will, who watched with amusement.

“It was the best way to get your papers approved together, and Fire of Dawn is not looking for a married couple traveling, so you might have an easier time slipping through.” The corners of Ben’s mouth arched upward.

“It’s just your names, Meredith, and even those are fake,” Will said. “Believe me, Kostya would have to do a lot more if he had to convince you to marry him for real.”

“Except for when you are traveling, you won’t have to worry about it.” Dr. Nichols chimed in on the videoconference feed. “Really, it’s the best way to get Kostya back into the Ukraine without raising any questions.”

“Well, if it works best for the mission,” Meredith muttered.

“Good,” Ben said. “Meredith and Kostya will be Katya and Ivan Jovanovich, both Americans born to Ukrainian immigrants. George, how are the papers coming?”

Meredith turned her attention to George Hannigan, Kostya’s agent at Immigration. “I had no problems with the immigration papers for Kostya, giving him freedom to travel back, but getting the passports and visas for the medical “team” has been tough. This morning I got a call from the State Department, and they walked the appropriate papers through the process in a rush job. Apparently, the senior senator from Louisiana called and threatened some ball-bashing if it didn’t get done.” He smiled at Will and Meredith. “So papers are done, and the appropriate flags should come up so they are not stopped going out or coming into this country. I cannot promise the same for going in and out of the Ukraine, however.”

“Well done,” Ben said. “We were biting our nails waiting on those. Now, equipment. Dr. Singh?”

“Yes, I have worked closely with Ethan on this as well. We have two standard size aluminum medical aid cases that appear to be full of medical supplies, and have packed in a great deal, but underneath has all the technical equipment Kostya might need. Tools, a soldering iron, voltmeter, and so on. There are also communication devices: a satellite phone, audio surveillance devices, and recorders. Everything will make it through checked security, and a hand search will not find anything but the medical supplies.”

“Ethan, you’ve got your hands in everything,” Will stated drily. “Too bad you can’t get those hands on a girlfriend.”

Everyone goaded Ethan again. Meredith observed the interactions with amusement. Dr. Nichols’ voice brought focus again. “I have an itinerary of friendly places to stay near the missile sites. It is very important for Kostya to stay away from anyone he knows. This will be difficult in some of the areas where he grew up, but it is crucial to their safety.” Meredith glanced at Kostya, encouraged by his composure.

“There is at least one assassin after you guys,” Ben said. “And Fire of Dawn is a heavily armed, dangerous group. The less attention you bring to yourselves, the better.” Meredith nodded, and flipped through the information they had received.

After a few more items for discussion, the meeting broke up. Hannigan and Singh left first, both men hugging Meredith and wishing her luck. Next, Will walked Meredith and Kostya around the control center, the room set up for the operation. “Someone will be monitoring this station twenty-four seven. You can call, email, text, Facebook, Tweet, use any other method of communication and we’ll get it.” He scanned the room. “We’ve got access to anything the CIA or FBI can access. If you need any information, just let us know.”

Kostya took Will’s hand and shook it firmly, placing his hand on his elbow. “You have been a true friend. I am proud to call you a brother in arms.”

Meredith felt her eyes tearing up as she watched her brother and Kostya, unlikely allies in an amazing situation. Then Will gathered her into his arms. “Mer, be careful out there.”

“I will try to be careful, but I’m also going to try to save the world. I may not be able to do both.” They laughed, Meredith breathing into his shoulder. “I love you, Will.”

“I love you, too, Mer.”

“Dushen’ka, we need to go if we are to catch our plane.” Kostya nudged her gently.

She stood back from Will and looked at Ben and Ethan, still busy preparing for the mission. “We’ll see you on the flip side, boys.”

The group called out, wishing them luck, and Kostya took her bag and headed to the car already loaded with the medical cases and his backpack.

“Ready, Mrs. Jovanovich?”

She wrinkled her nose and stepped into the car. “Not sure if I’m ready for that.”