The Lost Throne

16

Payne and Jones made the necessary arrangements as they drove to MacDill AFB. A cargo flight was leaving within the hour that would fly them to Ramstein Air Base in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, where they could catch a plane to any country in Europe.

It was one of the perks of being special advisers to the Pentagon.

From there, they would travel to Kaiserslautern, approximately 10 miles from the base. Known as “K-Town” to American personnel, it was a city of 100,000 people and could provide them with anything they required: weapons, clothes, or a good German lager. They had been there several times over the years and knew the layout of the city. The only question was which of their contacts they wanted to involve in such a hastily planned trip to Russia.

That was one of the things they would discuss during their transatlantic flight.

Another was Allison Taylor.

She was the biggest unknown in a mission that was full of them. They had gleaned some information during their initial conversation with her, but when it came right down to it, they knew very little about her background — other than her supposed connection to Richard Byrd.

Hoping to learn more, Payne called Petr Ulster and asked if Byrd had ever brought his assistant to the Archives. Ulster could remember three different females during the last year. All of them were young. All of them were attractive. But none of them was named Allison.

“You know,” Jones said from the back of the cargo plane, “there’s no telling what we’re getting into, other than it’s dangerous and probably illegal.”

“I know. But I’m a sucker for a crying woman.”

“Yeah. Me too. I just want to kiss their boo-boos and make them feel better.”

Payne laughed. “Define boo-boo.”

“Not a chance,” Jones said with a smile. “Anyway, the point I’m trying to make is this: I’m more concerned than normal.”

“Why’s that?”

“Why? Because I can’t get arrested in Russia. Maybe you can with your big muscles and your white skin, but I can’t. I mean, there’s a drink called a Black Russian, but as far as I know, that’s the only black thing they’ve got. And I want to keep it that way.”

“No problem,” Payne assured him. “If the cops are called, I’ll shoot you myself.”

“I’m serious, Jon. I don’t want to be the black Yuri Gagarin.”

“What in the hell does that mean? You don’t want to be a cosmonaut?”

“No, I don’t want to be a guinea pig. There’s no telling what tests they’ll run on my black ass if I get caught. Not to mention everything else that’s done to a man’s ass in prison.”

Payne laughed, knowing full well that Jones was joking about Russia. In fact, just about the only time race was mentioned by either of them was when they were joking around.

And it had been that way from the very beginning.

They had met a decade earlier when they were handpicked to run the MANIACs. After a rocky start — mostly because Payne attended Annapolis and Jones attended the Air Force Academy — they became good friends. That bond had strengthened over time, a common occurrence when two soldiers watched each other’s back in countries all over the globe. Eventually, it evolved into something stronger than friendship. They became brothers.

A few years ago, Payne’s grandfather passed away, giving him the controlling interest in the family business. It had grown from a one-man shop near the Ohio River into a multinational corporation called Payne Industries. At the time, Payne hadn’t been ready to leave the service, but out of love and respect for the man who raised him, he retired from the military and moved back home to fulfill his familial duties.

To help with his adjustment to civilian life, Payne convinced Jones to retire and move to Pittsburgh. He sweetened the deal by giving Jones office space in the Payne Industries complex and lending him enough start-up capital to open his own business. It had always been Jones’s dream to run a detective agency, and Payne had the means to help. So Payne figured, why not? After the death of Grandpa Payne, Jones was the only family that Payne had left.

Not surprisingly, the pace of their life had slowed significantly in recent years. Other than the rare occasions when Payne helped Jones with one of his cases, the only time they got to carry guns and have some fun was when they went out on their own.

And truth be told, even though they hated the circumstances of this particular adventure — namely, the death of Richard Byrd — both of them loved the adrenaline rush of a freelance mission. Not only did it get their juices flowing, it helped them stay sharp in case the government ever needed their talents for a special operation.

Sitting in the belly of the cargo plane, Jones couldn’t plug his computer into a phone line, which meant he wasn’t able to do the research he required. Since they were cruising 30,000 feet above the Atlantic, the odds of getting a wireless connection were pretty damn slim.

One of the most important skills in the Special Forces was the ability to adapt. Whether it was hand-to-hand combat or the planning of a mission, a soldier had to make the best of a bad situation or he wouldn’t survive very long. Knowing how much work needed to be done before they landed in Germany, Jones decided to contact one of the few people he could count on.

“Research,” said his friend as he answered his phone at the Pentagon.

“Hey, Randy. How’s life?”

Raskin groaned. “It would be much easier if you and Jon forgot my number.”

Jones smiled while adjusting his bulky headset. Without it, he couldn’t hear anything in the back of the noisy plane. “Truth be told, I didn’t even dial your number. I simply asked the pilot to patch me through to the smartest guy at the Pentagon, and you answered the phone.”

“The smartest guy at the Pentagon, huh? Talk about faint praise.”

“At least it was a compliment. When Jon calls you, he insults you for ten minutes.”

“That’s a very good point. I’m in counseling because of him.” Raskin laughed at his own joke. “So what do you need from me now? Does your Russian friend need more help?”

“Actually,” Jones said in a serious tone, “we think he’s dead.”

“Oh, man. I’m sorry.”

“That’s all right. We never met the guy. He was more of a friend of a friend.”

“Even so, I’m sorry for the loss. What can I do to help?”

“At this point we’re looking for confirmation of his death. As you know, he was calling us from Saint Petersburg, but we never talked to him. According to one source, he was shot and killed in some kind of fountain. Can you check to see if anything matches that description?”

“Do you have a name?”

“Richard Byrd. Although he might have been using an alias.”

Raskin went to work on his keyboard, quickly searching the main criminal database in Russia. Insiders called it Kremlin.com because its real name was written in Cyrillic and impossible to pronounce. “Bad news, I’m afraid.”

“No luck?”

“Just the opposite. I found something that matches your description. White male, mid to late forties, discovered in one of the Peterhof fountains. Single shot to the head.”

“Damn,” Jones muttered. He glanced at Payne and made a slashing motion across his neck. Payne nodded in understanding. “Was he identified?”

“Not according to this. Then again, that could mean a number of things. Maybe they’re holding his identity until they notify his family. Or maybe the killer took his wallet. The truth is I have no way of knowing without calling them myself.”

“Which is something we don’t want you to do. We need to keep a low profile on this.”

“I figured as much.”

“Next question. Can you check on Byrd’s movement during the past few months?”

“Hold on. Different database.” Twenty seconds passed before Raskin spoke again. “No visas listed for Russia, but he visited Greece, Italy, Germany, and several other countries in Europe. I can send you a list if you want.”

“Go ahead. But I won’t have access until we land.”

“Where are you headed?”

“Ramstein.”

“Then what?”

“A rendezvous in Russia.”

“Sounds romantic.”

“I wish.”

“In that case, you should tell Jon how you really feel.”

Jones laughed. “Damn, Randy! For you, that was pretty funny.”

“Thanks. Wait. What did you mean by that?”

“I’ll tell you later. First, I have one more question. I need some background information on an American named Allison Taylor. Middle name and hometown unknown. Current employer is believed to be Richard Byrd. At least until a few hours ago.”

“Hold on. That’s another database.”

Jones figured it would be. “Out of curiosity, how many databases do you have?”

“Let me put it to you this way: I have a database to keep track of my databases.”

Jones whistled, impressed. “Seriously, Randy, I don’t know how you do it.”

“Actually, it’s pretty simple. I’m the smartest guy in the Pentagon, remember?”

“That’s right. I forgot.”

Raskin smiled as he continued to type. A few seconds later, he found the information he was looking for. “Okay, here you go. Allison Renée Taylor… Born in California… Graduated from Stanford… Single… Valid driver’s license… Hot as hell! Seriously, you should see her photo. She even looks great on her ID.”

“Send it to me. The highest resolution possible.”

“Done.”

“What about employment? Any connection to Byrd?”

“Duh! That’s how I found her so fast. He filed a single document with the IRS. A personal-services contract. Whatever that means.”

“Anything else?”

“Not that I can find. Then again, I can’t stop staring at her picture. It’s really strange. No matter where I move, it’s like her eyes are following me.”

Jones laughed. “Damn! How much caffeine have you had today?”

“Define today.”

He laughed again. “Another all-nighter?”

“Another all-weeker. You know me, I never leave my desk.”

“That’s one of the reasons we love you: your dedication to your country.”

“That and the fact I do your dirty work for free.”

Jones nodded in agreement. “Yep. That too.”

“Okay, chief, I gotta jet. But send me a postcard from Siberia.”

“Not funny,” Jones said. “Not funny at all.”