Page 69 of Canyon of Deceit
SIXTY-EIGHT
BLANE
I’d spent most of the night with Rurik talking, posing questions, and attempting to unlock the secrets he gripped with an iron fist. Each pause in his speech, hand movement, breathing, body language, and unconscious habit showed his concern for his daughter.
The lies lingered below the surface, but they were there.
As much as I debated his actions and motives, I wanted to build trust to find Alina and Therese.
“We’ve gone over the same things repeatedly, and your answers haven’t changed,” I said. “Why are you hiding the truth?”
“I’ve told you everything.”
“Who heads up the ROC here in Houston?”
He inhaled and slowly exhaled.
“Jurg Falin? You claimed in the event of your death that all your assets were directed to the ROC under his management.”
“No.” He leaned back in his chair as though I’d taken the pressure off. “I’ve not been given a name, but I don’t believe it’s him.”
“They killed Daria. Attacked Therese and me. And your daughter? What names are at the top of your list?”
“Possibly two. Only a handful of government officials are privy to the identity, and I’m not one of them.”
Wariness crept up my spine and landed squarely in my words. “But you have a suspect.”
“I might.”
“Have you been in contact with that person?”
“Depends if I’m correct in my assessment.”
I glanced at the time—4:10 a.m. “Excuse me while I step out to make a call.” With the door behind me, I pressed in Sergio’s number.
“Are you still at Rurik’s?” His groggy voice said I’d wakened him.
“Yes. Gotten nowhere. Or maybe confirmation of a deeper web of Russian activity in Houston. Baranov is the key in all of this. If Rurik is telling the truth, he played a role in helping Baranov escape Russia. Once here, the two men would request Witness Protection for them and their families.”
“Are you thinking the Feds have more info than what they’ve stated?”
“Why not? They want Baranov’s intel. The Russians want him dead at any cost for stealing secured info from under their noses.
Rurik is holding out, but what is the missing piece?
His wife’s dead and his daughter’s been kidnapped.
Then we have the laser-chip deal. Think about it, Serge.
Baranov, Falin, and Ivanov—the three woven in crime. How does it all fit?”
“The link’s probably so obvious we’re fools for missing it.”
I shared the conversation with Rurik from all angles. “Has the torched body been identified as Daria Ivanov?”
“Let me go to my study. A text flew into my phone around 2:30, but I’ve been battling a virus and ignored it.”
We chatted while he made his way downstairs to his man cave—what his wife called his study, an eclectic mix of taxidermy trophies, books, fishing treasures, and a wall of family and Ranger portraits—including a brother in a mariachi band.
“I should have checked this instead of going back to sleep. Give me a moment to read this report from the medical examiner’s office. I could kick myself for not checking my phone.”
I yawned and braced my shoulders against a wall in Rurik’s hallway.
“Rusty, the body of the woman isn’t Daria Ivanov. The body has been identified as a woman from Dallas who was reported missing two days prior to Daria’s disappearance.”
The news tightened a bolt on who was behind the crimes. “What are we missing with Daria? Why stage her death except to incriminate Rurik... unless Rurik’s behind the whole ordeal?”
“As in Houston’s ROC leader?” His chair squeaked.
My instincts kicked in. “I bet Baranov is scheduled to arrive today, not Wednesday.”
“I’m thinking the same thing.”
“I’m calling the FBI and getting a heads-up on what’s happening at the ship channel today. Looks to me like Ivanov and Falin are in this waist-deep.”
“I’m leaving for your office in ten minutes. I want to make sure the agents keep Rurik in their sights.”
In the kitchen, one of the agents scrolled through his phone, holding a mug of coffee. I asked him to wake his partner. Rurik could not leave the house or be out of their sight.
“Threats?” the agent said.
“Something along those lines. Your boss can fill you in.”
“Sure.” He set his mug on the counter and nodded at his partner. “I’ll keep Rurik company until your shift kicks in.”
I thanked them and headed back down the hall to tell Rurik I was leaving and to stay put. I knocked and got no response. Chill bumps spiked on my arms. I opened the door to his office.
Empty.
“Rurik? Where are you?”
Silence.
The agent checked the nearest bathroom. “He’s not here.”
“I’ll check his bedroom,” the other agent called from the kitchen.
An engine roared to life, sending me and the agents racing to the garage.
Rurik sped down the street in his SUV.
—
Sergio and the FBI issued a BOLO for Rurik’s vehicle. The agents assigned to Rurik’s protection were given permission to leave. We’d been played. Wringing his neck sounded as satisfying as a cold Dr Pepper on a hot August day.
I drove to the Ranger office, my course on autopilot while the neurons fired in my brain. Three scenarios emerged, all plausible and none had sufficient evidence.
One theory said Rurik and Daria faked her death and Alina’s kidnapping to mask the ROC’s assassination of Edik Baranov. Had everything Rurik claimed about his innocence and victim status been lies to lead law enforcement and media away from the intended crime?
A second theory said Rurik and Daria had been used as pawns in a vicious game of blackmail.
.. to force Rurik and Daria to risk their lives and Alina’s to ensure a smooth assassination.
Which meant the Ivanovs were in danger and next in line for a death sentence once Baranov and his family were dead.
Another theory leaped into the center of the fire. What if Daria Ivanov and Jurg Falin masterminded the entire scheme?
I refused to discard any ideas until I had more facts. Confirmed reports neither proved nor disproved my suspicions.
The ROC had a vicious agenda.
The potential sale of laser chips from Tom Chandler to the ROC coincided with the kidnapping.
Edik and Rurik were cousins.
Daria and Jurg were involved in an affair while in Russia and in the US.
A woman’s body had been found in Daria’s car. Where was Daria?
A flight had been booked from Houston to Moscow on Tuesday for Isaak and Larisa Mishin. The scheduled flight left the day before the assassination. Jurg Falin had requested a private escort out of the country this evening. Unless the timeline was off on Baranov’s arrival.
How would I ever sort out the truth? But God had the answer, and He’d help me find Alina and Therese.
Another text rolled in. HPD found Rurik’s SUV abandoned on the west side of town.
FBI just confirmed Edik Baranov and family arriving early afternoon.
Has Falin contacted you where he plans to make the exchange and his destination?
I have a plane on standby. Once you have confirmation, I’ll have backup in place.
I replied, Haven’t heard from Falin.
I’ll meet you at the ship channel. Tell no one.