Sanders, p.13
Sanders, page 13
Riff sat on this goon, one hand to his mouth, while his other hand grabbed the goon’s phone. He answered it with a gruff voice.
A male spat out Russian, obviously irate and pissed off at his goons having either slowed something up or not having completed something on time. Riff just looked at his prisoners on the floor, one eyebrow raised, then deliberately hung up.
At that, the goon’s features paled to pasty white, and he looked up at him.
“See? I don’t care to talk to your friends,” Riff stated, “and I really couldn’t care less who they are. And, if they come here, all the better.”
The goon shook his head wildly. “But they will kill me,” he muttered. “You don’t understand. They will kill me.”
Riff just laughed, turning to Sanders.
“Actually I understand,” Sanders replied. “So sorry about that. Yet you were quite happy to kill me and Ania, so what do I care if they kill you?” he asked, with real curiosity. “Don’t you realize that her father killed her mother and her aunt? So why wouldn’t he kill you too, if you are not doing as Ania’s father says?”
That was something the goon didn’t like to hear. He just clammed up and didn’t say anything more.
Both goons were now tied up, while Sanders searched one and went through his wallet, with Riff searching the other for his info.
Sanders found some ID, some documentation, but not a whole lot. Also a little bit of money, but again, not very much. “He doesn’t pay you very well, does he?” Sanders noted, shaking his head at the two goons.
“It is enough. It’s an honor to work for him.”
The stiff pride made Sanders shake his head again. “Such freaking idiots,” he muttered.
“You don’t understand anything,” the goon snapped. “You are not loyal.”
“Oh, I’m loyal. I’m loyal to the people who count. I’m definitely not loyal to assholes who kidnap and torture and drug young women,” he shared, giving this goon a hard gaze. “Whenever you think that that’s an okay deal, boy, have you got it wrong.”
“It’s his daughter.”
“And that makes a father’s abuse and control all okay? Just because it’s his daughter means she doesn’t have any right to live her own life?”
“She has no rights,” he cried out. “None of them do.”
“Right, of course. We are in Russia after all,” he stated, with an eye roll.
The other man obviously didn’t understand what the problem was, and that was something Sanders would have to reconcile later. He didn’t have time for that now. The fact of the matter was, Ania was here and was still in trouble.
When the goon’s phone rang again, it was in Riff’s hand. He answered it calmly, but, instead of somebody yelling and screaming at the other end, a cold voice said, “Put my man on.”
“Why should I?” he asked.
“Do it.”
Riff laughed. “I don’t take orders from you. And we’re not done causing pain in your world yet either.”
“I will have you killed for this,” he snapped, his voice firm with conviction and deadly with promise. “Nobody crosses me like this.”
“When we take you to court for having kidnapped and drugged your daughter, and for kidnapping a British citizen and holding him prisoner for six months against his will, I wonder just what will happen to you.”
“It wasn’t against his will,” he declared, with a laugh. “Is that what he told you? We were simply working on testing some special skills he has. Obviously he went a little crazy, but, if I’d realized he was as unstable as he was, I wouldn’t have gone there in the first place.”
“Nice try,” Riff replied. “Don’t worry. I have them here, safe and sound.”
An ugly silence came on the other end of the phone. “I want my daughter back.” His tone was harsh.
“Not happening, so I don’t really see the point of continuing this conversation, particularly since you have nothing that I want.”
“I want my daughter,” he repeated. “I can go to the government and get help against British citizens who kidnapped my daughter.”
“I wonder if she’ll have a different story to tell,” Riff said, with a laugh, “considering that we’ve already got her side of the story. The fact that she had to run away and to live on the streets in order to evade you, … that is just sad. What kind of a father are you that you would hurt her so much?”
“My daughter has mental problems,” he stated. “She’s on medication and needs another dose. Obviously we have to adjust it in order to better suit her condition.”
“Yeah, so you can keep her compliant, unthinking, and there for you to abuse however you want?”
An ugly silence ensued, and then her father snapped, “That is disgusting. I would never abuse my daughter.”
“Maybe not sexually,” Riff clarified. “But abuse her you did, and just because we’re not right in front of you at present doesn’t mean that we don’t have the ability to ensure you pay for this.”
“This is foolish. Let me talk to my daughter.”
“No, not happening,” Riff declined cheerfully.
“Then I don’t know that you have her, do I?”
“Doesn’t matter if you know or not. We’ve got your two men, and we have your daughter. Believe it or not, I really don’t give a crap.” And, with that, Riff quickly hung up, then looked over at Sanders. “I don’t think we’ll get much information from these guys.”
“No, I don’t think so either because I don’t think they know. Like any dictator, he keeps everything close, just hoping that eventually he will find a way to break them.”
“He doesn’t have to say anything to us,” snapped the one goon, who still was conscious. “He is a very important man. He can do what he wants.”
Sanders snorted. “That’s the thing about the democratic society of the Western world. Nobody gets to do anything that they want. There is such a thing as making sure people’s rights aren’t violated.”
He laughed. “In Russia, your right is only as big as the rights that you’re entitled to keep. She is a woman, and, when her father wants her to do something, … it’s the law.”
“Right, so we’re back to that power and control.” Turning to Riff, Sanders said, “They don’t know much, and they won’t share what they do know, so why should we even bother keeping them alive? It would be much more convenient if they were just gone.”
Riff nodded. “Good point, then at least we won’t have to worry about these two coming after us.”
“There will be others,” stated the goon.
“Maybe, but you won’t be worrying about it.” And, with that, Riff gave him a hard chop to the neck, and he went out cold. He heard a noise behind him and turned to see Ania standing there, looking horrified.
She dashed forward. “Did you kill him?”
“No, I didn’t kill him. I didn’t need to. Men like these are just followers. They aren’t important. They don’t have much information. Seems your father isn’t so much determined to keep you as much as he’s determined to not lose you.”
She blinked at that, and then nodded slowly. “Yes. The minute you cross him, and, particularly if you win, he has only revenge on his mind. He doesn’t forgive easily,” she murmured.
“He won’t forgive you for leaving, so maybe you should remember that too,” Riff pointed out.
“I know, but what am I supposed to do?” she asked bitterly. “Stay there as a perfect victim for the rest of my life? He would make my life miserable, … if he even lets me live at all.”
“If you didn’t perform the way he wanted you to, he probably wouldn’t let you live.”
“Exactly,” she agreed, rubbing her arms. “We’re all packed up. Can we leave now?”
“I think we should,” Riff noted. “I want to hide these two in a couple different places, where they can’t be easily found. That’ll give us a good head start at least.” And he carried the first man outside.
Chapter 11
Sanders and Ania were led by Riff from the apartment into the basement of the building and now out onto the parking level, but she felt the creepiness all around her. “You know that he’s watching us, right?”
“Your father’s other goons are trying to, and your human tracker is trying as well. I’m sending a confusing signal in order to stop the tracker,” Riff shared, “but I’m not sure it’s working.”
She watched, as Riff carefully slipped into an unlocked vehicle, hot-wired the car in front of her, and then opened the doors for them to get in.
Inside, she sat down and whispered, “I had no idea it was so easy to steal a vehicle.”
“I think that’s the second time you’ve mentioned something along those lines.” Riff laughed. “Would you rather that we ask permission and let everybody know where we are?”
“No, because they’ll already be out there waiting for us,” she muttered.
It was a daunting thing to realize just how far her father had been willing to go, in order to keep her in his life. Yet she knew it wasn’t out of love. The emotional aspect didn’t even enter the equation. This was all about his ego now. As they slowly drove up and out of the underground parking lot, she took a deep breath and sank into the back seat, trying to look a whole lot older. Or at least smaller.
“Nice trick,” Sanders noted, from the front seat.
“Not that it’ll fool anybody,” she murmured.
“At a quick glance, it will,” Sanders stated. “How’s your own ability?”
“You mean, my tracking? I’m not a tracker at all.”
“You may be, but all you’ve been doing so far is telepathy,” Sanders pointed out. “Maybe you could recognize the energy of whoever out there is tracking us and give us a heads-up.”
“Even if I could, what good would that do? I can’t scramble his signals.”
At that, Riff looked at her. “Are you sure about that?”
“No, of course I’m not sure. I’ve never tried anything like that.”
“Exactly. If ever we had a time to see if it would work, we would really appreciate you trying it now. We could really use any advantage we can get.”
She frowned at that but sagged back against the seat and closed her eyes. She tried to remember the little bit that Sanders and Terk had told her about keeping her energy calm. Not knowing what she was doing or if this was a time to keep her energy calm or not, she opened up the little bit of a window that she had into her telepathic ability and muttered to Sanders in the front seat, “Since I have a link to you that’s well established, I’m not sure how this will affect you.”
He responded, “Don’t worry about it. You do you.”
She had to laugh at that, or she would have if the circumstances weren’t so dire. But she understood what he meant and closed her eyes, reaching out and looking for the tracker. If she could contact him, she knew she couldn’t stop him from doing what he was doing because he was part of her father’s team, but, if she could get his signature … At that, another voice broke into her head.
That’s an excellent way to do it, Terk noted, if you think you’re up for it. Also remember to stop him dead in his tracks from following you back because he’s also looking for you. Therefore, his energy will try to glom onto yours, as well.
She understood that. Most of that. But how do I stop him from following my energy back? she whispered.
If he locks on, you’ll have to find a way to shake him off. I’m not sure what that’ll take in this case, but it’s really not negotiable. Otherwise he’ll have your energy signature. If he can get locked on your position by following you, then everybody around you will be in danger.
Great, she muttered. So maybe this isn’t a good idea at all.
It’s a wonderful idea, … if you can pull it off, he replied warmly. Kudos to you for trying.
Yeah, but, if I screw up, it’ll be way worse for everybody.
We’ll deal with that if it happens, but, if you can throw him off, then maybe you can get away this time, without his finding you.
She could only hope so. She closed her eyes and reached out to whoever was tracking her, and when a soft, almost shocked voice called out in her head, Ania smiled.
A man called out, Who is that? What are you doing?
I’m not doing anything, she murmured. You are. You’re the one who’s hounding me to death, tracking me, making my life miserable, and for what? Helping my father to keep me a prisoner? She felt his shock that she could reach out to him. Just think when my father finds out that you couldn’t even hide from me, she noted, with a laugh. You’ll be much better off telling him that I have no skills at all.
I don’t dare do that. He already believes you have skills.
How did he find that out?
First came a moment’s silence. I’m not sure, but I think from your mother.
Such hesitation filled his tone that she truly wondered herself. Maybe, and maybe not. Maybe somebody else said something. It doesn’t matter.
Of course it matters, he argued. The fact that you even opened up to me, … I don’t understand. He was equally bewildered and worried.
You know what it’s like to be hunted, she said. If you didn’t work for my father, your life would be so much different.
There is no life without working for your father. You know that, he stated bitterly. It’s not as if I have a choice either.
Yet you do have a choice, she said. Maybe not a choice you like, but you have a choice. I have no choice at all. I’ll either be a literal prisoner or a hunted prisoner. You could tell my father quite clearly that I don’t have any abilities and that, even with all the tracking you’ve been doing, you haven’t seen any evidence of my having any abilities at all.
And yet you’re talking to me right now, he declared in an odd tone.
Didn’t you know you could talk this way? she asked him.
No, he snapped. I’ve only been able to send out energy. Why is it that you can talk to me like this? he cried out, almost in anger.
Maybe because I have to, she replied. Maybe because you haven’t given me a choice. I’m sitting here, trying to have a real life, and I don’t want to be hunted. So it’ll be up to you to tell my father that I have no skills after all.
These skills that you don’t have, as in the ones that you’re currently using?
Yes, it’s called lying. But it would also cement your position, as being the only one with these abilities. At that, she realized she’d caught his attention. You haven’t been thinking this through, have you?
I guess.
If he brings me back, you’ll have to give up some of that cachet regarding being very good at what you do, she explained. Because, if I can do this, who knows what else I can do? But, as soon as my father realizes that I’m better than you …
Nobody said you were better than me, he pointed out.
Perhaps, but I found you. She laughed. You didn’t find me.
But we did, we did find you, he clarified. I can’t always be perfect. None of us can.
Of course not, but you would get an awful lot more time to develop and to hone your skills if you were … the one.
You’re just trying to make me give up on you.
It’s to your own benefit to do so, she noted, because you would continue to be his favorite, and that relationship would give you all kinds of extras in life. Would it not?
Of course. Of course it would, but I can’t just lie to him. He would know.
Not particularly, if you ask me. I have known him much longer than you, and he may be good, but he’s not that good, she murmured. He’s just frightening, so people crack.
Why do you not want to come work for us? he asked in genuine puzzlement.
Because it’s not pleasant for me. I have been detained in house arrest, and he’s drugged me, and, even now, my abilities have suffered because of it.
Have they really? he asked, almost eagerly attaching to her words.
Absolutely, and that’s something he won’t understand or at least won’t acknowledge. That’s too bad for him because it is exactly what he’s done. He is responsible for this. Such a harsh bitterness filled her tone that he seemed to relax.
But your gifts can’t be badly damaged if you’re still doing this.
Yet they are, and I’m not able to hold this connection for long. So, it’s up to you. What do you want for your life? Do you want to be his special pet who can do things and have time to work on them, develop them, and increase your skills? You know that if you can prove to him that you have better skills, he will do anything he can to help with your training.
Yet there is no training, he stated, as if he’d heard this argument time and time again. There is no training that I can do to improve this.
Why is that? she asked. You really think you’ve done everything you can?
Like you, I have also been given a plethora of drugs.
Silence. The same drugs you fed to Sanders then?
Yes, they used me as a guinea pig first. Then early on I decided it was better to work with them.
Of course. So you weren’t the only prisoner being tortured and abused.
He hesitated, not sure what to say to that.
No need for you to lie to me. I’ve already spoken to Sanders.
Is he okay? he asked curiously.
He’s lost his abilities because of what you did, and that’s a problem, she shared. To him, it’s like having his senses completely cut off from everything else around him.
Yes, I had that feeling for a while too, but mine did come back.
His didn’t, she declared. Perhaps because you raised his drugs on a regular basis.
We did. Not by my choice. It was your father’s decision.
You know my father doesn’t like to lose, but, if you’re seen as the only one to have these abilities, you’ll have increased opportunities and could win in a big way.
Until he finds out that somebody is better.
Yet you would have the time to enhance your skills and potentially be better yourself. Maybe more so than me.
He hesitated at that, as if still unsure.
