Chapter 9
From their impromptu little camp-site they rode on. Nothing had been left behind, just some fading tyre tracks and the fugitive smell of exhaust gas; another 300 km was scheduled for the day but there was no rush, time was flexible out here in the wilds of Croatia. The morning had wakened them with a chillness that left the tent damp and made them eager to get up and be on their way. The road up to Vrlika was slippery with a treacherous sheen of dew across the dark tarmac. They slipped through the small town in a blur of indifference. Still early no one was around to notice the flight of the BMW. As a weak sun rose to treetop level and warmed their backs, their spirits lifted and Colby's thoughts turned to breakfast. They stopped briefly for coffee and rolls near the Cerovac caves at Gračac. Colby checked the map and Natasha leaned across him, unconsciously resting against his arm to see if her destiny was written there for her to see.
They sailed through the rural village of Udbina unseen leaving nothing but a wake of turbulent air, next stop Korenica. Colby stopped for more petrol and they shared a small bar of chocolate; just like a father and daughter might; a father and daughter who were not quite on speaking terms after some trivial argument that had grown out of proportion.
Colby lay his map out again. It was a tourist map and filled with details of places of interest. He hoped that topographical accuracy had not been compromised for sake of the annotations. "Pick which way you want to go." He said.
"Which is the road to France?" Natasha said. Colby would have smiled if he had thought she was joking but he could still sense the anger towards him; some dispute between them in which he had played no intentional part. They finally agreed to head for Slunj. It was an agreement in which only one party participated. Colby agreed with himself, Natasha maintained her air of studied indifference. According to the tourist map, Slunj, a town in the mountainous part of Central Croatia, was located along the important North-South route to the Adriatic Sea between Karlovac and the Plitvice Lakes National Park. Supposedly famous for its little waterfalls and the water driven 18th century flour mills that were preserved in the picturesque lower part of the town. With time to kill, it sounded worth a look.
The ride was leisurely and entirely uneventful, apart from a brief close encounter with a rampaging dog that tried unsuccessfully to end its life under the BMW's wheels. Colby was still maintaining a low profile but now felt satisfied that they had not been followed. If there was a danger, then it lay ahead waiting for them in Triste.
After a brief touristy look at the local attractions Colby was finally able to convince Natasha to join him for a tuna and egg pizza with rocket salad at the discrete little Bistro Centar on Braće Radića. They sat in a corner at a polished pine table, on red covered chairs emblazoned with the coca-cola logo. They could have been in Hemel Hempstead, or Pittsburgh... or Nice. Across the room sat a mother with three children each battling for supremacy. It is a well accepted aphorism that any group of children exceeding three in number will generate more noise than an Airbus A380 on take off. The squabbling voices in a language that Colby found undecipherable offered a wall of anonymity for his own conversation.
"You were telling me about France... After you parents were killed."
"You really want to know more of my misery Colby?" She said as she extricated a wedged piece of baked cheese from her teeth with a delicately poised little finger. "Are you planning to write my life story after I'm dead?... My part in the downfall of Queen Natasha of Sachovia by C. Linden. Paperback Edition"
C. Linden smiled. "It's a plan," he said "actually I'd just like to know more about the girl I'm putting myself at risk for."
She made a guffaw, a noise of contempt, maybe a trace of humour softened the impact. Colby sipped from his glass of iced water and felt the stab of pain from his sensitive lower left molar.
"I'm really interested Natasha. Tell me how Valentina found you?"
"I don't know... Does it matter anymore? She's gone now." There was a long pause which Colby allowed to run to its conclusion. "I waited patiently for my brother, did my studies kept my lamp burning. Gregori never came back for me... Of course not... When I was taken to his funeral there was no one there that I knew. There were friends of my brother from the army, some distant relatives from my mother's side of the family that I had never met. All they asked me was if he had left a will... I felt totally alone... There was this attractive woman, slender, elegant like a model. She had a kind smile that somehow made me feel safe. I sort of knew we belonged together. She came up to me and took my hand... " Natasha lifted her eyes to the last slice of pizza.
"It's yours if you want it." Colby said.
"Sure?"
"Sure." He slid it onto her plate. "Go on you were telling me about this woman."
"So I could tell that we would be friends from the instant I saw her..." She bit into the soft cheesy dough, strands of elastic cheese drifting onto her chin. Colby knew what Natasha meant, Valentina had a similar effect on him. "She said she was a friend of Gregori that they had talked about him returning to Sachovia... I really had no idea that he was in line for the throne. When I was little there was sometimes talk about the family's regal past but it was not real to me just like a fairy tale. Valentina said that she would like to look after me now that I had no one."
"What about the French authorities? I'm assuming you were under state care at the time."
"I don't know about that stuff... I'm just a kid you know." Colby raised his eyebrows at the admission and allowed a smile to brighten his face.
"What?... don't make fun of me."
"I'm really not... Go on Natasha."
"So, Valentina said the government of Sachovia would square it with the French authorities."
"You were happy with that?"
"More or less... I had no one and suddenly here was this nice friendly person who said she wanted to take care of me. What would you have done?"
"Me?" He wondered what would he do if Valentina offered to take care of him. Probably run for my life. He thought. "I'd have grabbed her with both hands." He said.
"Me too... We lived in Paris for a while before going to Ikinos. Then she was off sailing and I was left with Katrina. I liked her too, she was like a big sister..."
The pizza was finished, the squabbling children had been bustled away to a waiting car. Natasha's eyes caught in the flickering fluorescent lights looked infinitely sad. "We'd better go..." Colby said, "make use of 'les toilettes' before we set off." he suddenly felt inadequate that he had so little French. He wished he could speak to her in her native tongue.
"Don't." She said. "I can't help my accent. Whether you people like it or not, I'm French – Est-ce que vous fucking comprenez, espèce d'andouille?" The sudden stab of anger seemed to rise from nowhere and shatter what Colby had hoped was the beginnings of a carefully drawn amnesty.
"Natasha, I never meant to imply anything, your accent is delightful."
She stood up. "Please just don't... I'm going to the loo."
...
After a final glance at the map Colby slipped it back into the tank-bag in front of him and started the engine. It idled with a satisfying rumble and he felt that he should be enjoying this time exploring Croatia. He edged out onto the road. "Hold on." He said to a silent response as they left the picturesque town of Slunj in their wake leaning the bike through the addictive sweeping curves. Colby pointed the bike up into the craggy hills overlooking the Korana canyon. Finally he pulled the BMW into a remote rest area. "Stretch your legs for a while, I need to try and contact my people at Equis." He got a sullen "Whatever." by way of response. Moving away from the bike he leaned against a metal rail, a barrier against an inadvertent plunge over the edge and down into the gorge below. He could see the river far below him, white water hung in a soft mist, as it careened across the rocky valley floor. The distant roar of endless rumbling water somehow isolating, soothing. Natasha watched as Colby fiddled with the controls of the satellite phone.
Natasha
climbed up onto the BMW and eased the pendulous weight from its side stand. She felt the strain of the bike balancing against her legs. Valentina had owned a scooter when they lived together in Paris for those few precious months. A time when it was just the two of them, no talk of Sachovia yet no talk of responsibility or duty. Occasionally Valentina had let her ride the little pink Vespa round the deserted streets outside the apartment and into the park. The scooter was much lighter than this monster though – the BMW's weight felt intimidating but in her imagination she could see herself riding away on the crest of its power. A massive stallion galloping into the distance to a place where Sachovia had no existence, to a place where her family still lived and were there waiting for her with open arms. She closed her eyes against reality and dreamed of a lifetime ripped away from her before it had begun...
...
"Is that you Jane?"
"Colby... you took your time getting back to me... Are you well?"
"I'm fine, it's all going to plan."
"Listen Colby I have no good news I'm afraid... This is something that might impact you directly."
"Sounds bad, go on spill the beans."
"Well, it seems that your friend Valentina may not be quite what she seems. Apparently the Gussev name has been linked with a certain Adam Prochniak. He's the leader of the Sachovian opposition, possessed of a somewhat chequered reputation."
"Yes, I know the name. In what way linked?"
"It's just a string of rumours at this stage Colby and how much truth is contained within rumour is always difficult to assess. But this Prochniak character is thought to be strongly against the monarchy re-establishing. If he does have Valentina Gussev's sympathy then you will need to re-asses just how safe the Kashinka girl is under her direction."
"Valentina is very close to Natasha, I can't believe she would put the girl in danger. Look Jane if Valentina wanted to harm Natasha she's had ample opportunity. In any case she is out of the picture now, gone back to Ikinos we are no longer in contact with her."
"I that so... I'll have to think about that... Maybe I need to re-asses my facts... Or maybe now that Gussev has set the ball rolling it's been handed on to others to pull the strings together."
"What strings Jane?... What do you think she's up to and why would Valentina have come to Equis in the first place? A bullet between the girl's eyes would have been simpler and quicker." The words made him glance across at Natasha. She sat quite still on the bike appearing to be lost in thought.
"I might have an answer for that Colby. Toby Fitch has picked up on some more gossip, and before you say anything I'm fully aware of your opinion of Toby."
"Busy little beaver isn't he?"
"Listen man for God's sake this is important... What he told me was something I needed to check out before burdening you with any unnecessary hearsay. I've now had a corroboration from another source."
"Who?"
"Can't say... Connected to our foreign ministry... I'm not at liberty to reveal names."
"You move in exulted circles these days Jane..."
"Yes I do, goes with the territory, and it mostly gives me no pleasure..."
"So what have you managed to corroborate?"
"Well... this may be painful to hear, but it has been suggested that you were chosen for the mission specifically because of your past history."
"Let's not mince words, you mean the 'The Khan Debacle'."
"Just so..."
"Go on Jane don't spare my feelings now you've started."
He glanced across towards Natasha again who was fiddling with the controls and leaning the bike's weight precariously between her slender legs.
"Colby the suggestion has been made that if the Kashinka girl were to meet with an accident on her journey then your well documented 'incompetence' could be blamed."
"Ouch. You really know how to boost a guy's confidence Jane."
"Yes I know... The point being that suspicion would be diverted from the true guilty party... In my view that guilty party might be Adam Prochniak; you can join your own dots. It's only speculation."
"I'm having trouble with all this Jane, I'll need some time to let it sink in... Valentina is a friend, more than a friend. She wouldn't betray me or Natasha... She just wouldn't."
"OK I hope you're right but watch your back Colby, if Gussev really is the bitch I'm starting to think she is then you could be walking a dangerous path."
"Advice?" He said expecting none.
"You're the man on the spot."
"Yes... So should I go on to my assigned rendezvous or make a dash across Europe and bring Natasha home to England?"
"Whoa... That could rip open a whole other can of worms. The danger for Equis is that we've not just got a thirteen year old girl to take care of but a political time-bomb. If you really want my advice I suggest you continue to head for the rendezvous. But trust no one. Frankly the sooner you can get Kashinka off our hands the better."
"I understand what you're saying and to be honest she's being a total pain at the moment, but Jane there's no way I'm going to deliver her into the hands of some damn assassins. Not you, not Valentina, no one will make me do that."
"OK Colby, I'll support you until you start to threaten the good name of Equis... If that happens, all bets are off... I don't want you to come home in a pine box and I really don't want to be the one who has to put you in one."
"Meaning you will if it's me or the good name of Equis."
"Like I said Colby, you have my support for the moment... Call me soon."
She ended the call and Colby's head was spinning with the implications of what he had just heard. He had a sudden insight into how Natasha must have felt when Valentina abandoned her at Dubrovnik.
He returned his gaze back down to the gorge, his eyes hardly focussed as he traced a couple of kayakers who were negotiating the rapids, a blur of red craft and fluro yellow jackets and green and white water. Then he heard the engine of the bike start. He turned and watched as Natasha wobbled the machine that was far too big for her across the rest area and down onto the twisting mountain road. He screamed out for her to stop and sprinted after her. When he reached the road she had gone. Only the distant roar of crashing water filled his ears and a misted ribbon of narrow twisting road vanishing behind a hairpin bend filled his eyes.
...
He had no choice but to follow her. He picked up his helmet and back pack that lay discarded on the damp concrete of the rest area and set off at marching speed. He tried to remember details of the map, how far they were from a town, what lay down the winding pass. It was all a blur, he had taken little notice at the time. He hoped there might be a car that he could hitch a ride with but this was no highway just a scenic route he had taken to find some seclusion for his call to Equis. When he turned the corner the road dropped away twisting down into the green forested valley. He marched on trying to keep the demons at bay. He had lost one child and paid a heavy price for it, another would be unthinkable. The mist was starting to thicken and a feeling of helplessness was draping itself over him like a shroud.
Colby was lost in a commotion of disconnected thought as he paced angrily after Natasha. He knew she may be gone for good, there was zero chance he could catch her on foot. Before he had time to react, an old drab olive coloured 80's Opel Rekord, unwashed since the last rain storm, suddenly rattled past him. Scarred with rust, it housed a group of teenage boys, blaring the car horn, gesticulating from the greasy windows, cans of beer grasped in angry fists. He considered maybe he was lucky to have missed the opportunity of thumbing a lift. The road had straightened by the time he had gathered his wits. Shadowed in the distance he could just make out the BMW resting on its side like a beached whale. Natasha was trying to lift it back onto its wheels but the machine was far too heavy for her. He started to run as the car full of teenagers slowed to make a close inspection of the vulnerable girl. A sudden thickening swirl of mountain mist fell down from the craggy rock that towered ab
ove him. He felt an ominous chill across his back and a darkness across his thoughts.
When he got down to the stricken bike the boys already had Natasha pinned by her arms against the car. She was screaming and kicking wildly with her booted feet but the delicate frame of the girl was no match for three burly inebriated young men.
"Gentlemen... I think the young lady would like you to let her go."
They turned their attention to the voice, none of them spoke more than rudimentary English but the understanding in his words was clear enough. Colby dropped his pack and helmet and moved closer to the sneering youths. Emboldened by alcohol more than reason, one of the boys took an overly optimistic swing at him but Colby was in no mood for delicacy, he sent the boy onto his back with a single punch. Bloody faced he was scooped up by his comrades and they quickly took their leave in a cloud of worn-cylinder oil smoke.
"What the fuck where you thinking... you stupid child." Natasha backed away her eyes wide in fear. She had never seen Colby Linden angry before. She had pictured him as emotionless, hardly a real person, just an annoyance she had to tolerate until the assassins finally found her and ended her miserable existence.
"I'm sorry she whimpered." As Colby came within striking range, he watched her flinch. "No, please... I'm really sorry."
Colby felt deeply ashamed that he had frightened her. "What did you think you were doing?" He said in softer voice kneeling down beside her. "You could have been killed." Natasha was in tears now; she had no explanation for what she had done. It was hardly even an attempt to get away from him just an opportunity she had unthinkingly grabbed. Natasha was beaten, she had no where to run to, no means to get away now that the bike was sleeping on its side. Despite herself she screamed: "I hate you... I hate all of this merde."
Colby's head was still buzzing with what Jane had told him; he suddenly need space to think, to calm down. He turned away and started marching from the girl and the comatose BMW. Natasha watched him move away and was suddenly struck with panic.
"Don't leave me please..." She called. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm the one you once called Cup-cake. You said you would keep me safe." Colby's ears were shut to her plea, he was no longer there... The bright sun, the black shadows, detail lost in the brightness, the shadow filled with unseen danger as he edged across the stable doors where the sleek polished Arab mares were kept... He could smell the sweet musky hay-scent of their breath... He could hear the sound of angry gunshots... the scream of a child, his weight suddenly limp and heavy in his arms... the sting of hot metal in his shoulder...