Xi took another step toward her and locked his gaze on her. “You seem like a nice person,” he said. “I am too—most of the time. But right now, it’s like this: I have to call my employer at once. I would be so grateful if I could get just five minutes to myself here to do it. Would that be something you could consider?”
The woman took a step back and bumped into the drawers protruding behind her. “Yes, yes, I guess I could do that. Sure.”
She hurried past Xi and vanished through the curtain. Xi cursed that they had been told to travel commercially. It had been a terrible idea, but Klaus was obsessed with the idea that the mission be completed unnoticed. Xi took a deep breath when he heard Klaus answer the phone panting.
“Yes?”
“It’s me.”
“Yes?” Klaus repeated impatiently.
“There’s some information in the dossier that we were not aware of.”
“What kind of information?”
Xi told him what he’d learned about Aino Salo. When he finished, he heard a rumbling sound on the phone. He looked at it, surprised, to see if something was wrong with the phone itself, but he soon realized that the sound must have come from Klaus. Then, without warning, the call was terminated.
10
Finally, it was over. Klaus Horst wiped the sweat from his forehead as he rolled down next to Heidi on the king-size bed. His muscles ached. He wasn’t a fan of having sex with his boss, but he had to do it. Heidi had insatiable needs, and as he was her closest assistant, it had fallen to him to satisfy them—maybe not all of her needs, but a great deal of them.
He swallowed hard and pushed away the fatigue in his aching muscles. Heidi put her hand on his arm and squeezed.
“That was wonderful. You’re so talented.”
“Glad you liked it.”
No doubt about it—he abhorred having sex with her. She was not only grossly overweight, but there was something innately repulsive about her, something that deprived him of every ounce of his willpower to even be able to perform. It couldn’t happen without a few Viagra tablets each time. He cringed. Was it worth it for the advancement? He shook his head to clear it.
“You seem tense,” Heidi observed.
Heidi rolled over to him and laid her heavy body on top of his. She had to weigh at least twice as much as Klaus; it felt like he was being suffocated. He put his arm around her.
“No, I’m fine. It’s just that there were a lot of details with Xi’s mission.”
“But everything went well?”
“Sure, but there are still some loose ends to tie up.”
Heidi tittered and kissed him hard. “I think you’re just saying that because you don’t want to have any more sex with me.”
He tensed and shook his head quickly. “No, how could you even think that?”
She didn’t answer but just looked at him. He sighed inwardly and kissed her passionately. He knew exactly what she wanted.
*
Half an hour later, Klaus gently got up from the bed and pulled on a robe. Heidi snorted heavily, and he shivered. He looked at the clock—half-past twelve. He collected his clothes and left the room hastily. He had to get hold of Xi now, right away. There was no time to lose, and there was too much at stake. Klaus had put everything on the line by planning and executing the hit against Novus. The decision hadn’t been sanctioned by the others on the board, but so far, Heidi had been behind him. He had known, of course, that she would back him on it. She was as greedy as he was, if not more so. That was the trait that had taken her to the top. Klaus had seen the possibilities and had therefore struggled to get to the position of Heidi’s assistant.
His phone vibrated.
“Yes?”
“It’s Xi.”
“Xi. What have you found?”
“Miguel and I have gone through most of what got from Novus.”
“And?” Klaus had to fight to keep his voice even.
“It looks like Markov’s Finland assistant is a woman named Aino Salo, and she’s key in the development of the treatment.”
Klaus frowned. He’d heard Salo’s name before but had thought she was just one of Markov’s regular assistants. “Is she more important than his other colleagues?” he asked Xi.
“Very. The documents we took say that she’s been invaluable in Markov’s success. And it looks like he’s given her both the antidote and the scanner used to find out if a person has been treated. I’m thinking he wanted to make sure everything was out of his hands if he were to be attacked.”
Klaus murmured, “Why are we only finding out about this now?”
“I cannot answer that.”
Klaus clasped his hands together as he thought. “Okay. Then we must adapt. After you get to Markov, you have to go to Helsinki and pick up this research partner of his, along with the antidote and scanner. I want everything. Is that clear?”
“Roger.”
A drop of sweat ran down Klaus’ forehead. He wiped it away. “Good. Call me when you’ve landed and are heading out to Markov’s place.”
“Okay.”
Klaus ended the call and looked out through the large windows and traffic below. Thick snowflakes drifted lazily to the ground, and the cars left thin tire tracks on the roads. He ran his fingers through his hair; he needed to think. There was so much at stake. He would get to the top at QuantumCorp no matter the cost—it had been his goal for so many years that this singular ambition had become part of his very soul. All the sacrifices, all the preparations he has taken, they had led him to this moment. That was the point.
He was jolted from his thoughts when he heard his name.
“Klaus?”
He turned and saw Heidi standing in the doorway.
“What are you doing?”
He shrugged. “I had to make an important call.”
She smiled and beckoned with her finger for him to come closer. “We’re not done yet,” she told him in a dreadful singsong voice.
Klaus smiled stiffly and walked toward her obediently.
*
Markov Tupolev sat heavily in the low, padded chair. The bowl he held in his hand slipped out of his fingers a moment too soon, slamming down onto the antique wood and spilling steaming onion soup onto the surface of the table.
“Damn!” he shouted as he grabbed a napkin to sop up the mess. When that one was saturated, he reached for another one to finish the job. Without looking up, he muttered, “Well, what do you think?”
The man already sitting at the table lifted two dark, bushy eyebrows. His face was weather-worn and frayed.
“What do I think about what?”
Markov belted out a laugh so loud that it echoed around the small dining room. “About what? You’re funny, Abram. So funny, ‘about what.’ About patient twelve, of course.”
Abram gave an uncommitted tilt of the head. “He looks promising, I’ll give you that,” he said, his voice crackly from decades of cigarettes. “He’s survived and absorbed both injections. I look forward to seeing how he responds to the test this afternoon.”
Markov took a spoonful of what was left of the onion soup in his bowl as he listened. He replied, “As do I. Two hours left until we start the test. Is everything ready?”