Page 85 of Radar

“West?” Xander looked down to see water to the west.

“West,” Finley tapped the map. “Lavrentiya, Russia. The pilot said his passenger held him at gunpoint and forced him to fly over the Bering Strait below radar.”

“The Bering Strait separates Russia and Alaska at their closest point — a distance of around fifty-three miles,” Hiro said. “It was a quick crime to planejack a ride to Russia and then send the pilot back.” Hiro leaned forward. “Did you know that the Bering Strait isnamed after a guy named Vitus Bering? He was a Danish-born navigator who served the Russian Navy.And he’s the first one to go up there and map the Strait. That was sometime in the 1700s. The Bering Strait was named in his honor.” He sat back again. “I always thought that it was named because the compass bearing was north or straight up, and that someone spelled it wrong a long time ago. They just left it that way. Live and learn.”

“Interesting,” Xander said to Hiro, then turned back to Finley. “But the pilot made it back. He wasn’t arrested in Russia and sent to the Gulag?”

“Everyone over in Russia seemed okay that he touched down. They unloaded the three boxes, and then Dr. Tapper told the pilot to go home. The pilot refueled, got back in his plane, and flew low to the water back to Wales. He said he was terrified that the U.S. Air Force was going to shoot him down. Now, going home was a bit more traumatic than his reception in Russia had been. Fairbanks FBI had this all figured out by the time he landed. To be clear, the kidnappers weren’t trying to cover their tracks, excuse that play on words. They’re in the wind. When the pilot landed, the feds had a lengthy discussion.”

“I’m sure. They believed his story?” Xander pushed the map back to Finley.

“Not entirely. Part of the problem was that he wanted to head to the bar instead of making a report,” Hiro said.

“Maybe he needed a couple of scotches first,” Xander said, thinking that was entirely reasonable.

“I think life’s going to get a little tricky for him from now on,” Hiro said. “For sure, he isn’t getting a security clearance if he ever wanted one.”

“Our theory of the case, then, is that Paca and Eddie were transported in those boxes, and the third box was empty because Elyssa’s kidnapping was thwarted?” Xander’s heart was squeezing down tight as he said that, though he worked hard to keep his tone neutral.

“We do. Dr. Tapper was the one who hired a flight out of Wales, and he’s the one, according to the pilot’s account, with the gun in his hand as they rerouted to Russia. Dr. Tapper had a slew of medical equipment with him, and we think that was to make sure Eddie and Paca didn’t die along with whatever was in what I’m calling the fourth box. The third being in FBI custody.”

“Orest Kalinsky all along,” Xander turned to White. “Orest is a new player to me. I first heard his name in Bratislava when I talked with Anna. York was on your team. Did you all have a psych workup? How would that make any sense at all in Orest’s mind? How would he even think up a stupid scheme like this?”

“If it worked, it’s not so stupid,” White said. “To Orest, this would make all the sense in the world. You remember, it wasn’t that long ago that there was a bus filled with scientists who were taken hostage and hidden in an old World War II bunker under the mountains in—”

“Slovakia, somewhere near Bratislava.” Xander exhaled.

“Exactly.” White was moving her file folder back into her briefcase. “The kidnapper put the scientists on a drip and kept them unaware, so he didn’t have to deal with them trying to escape. This is the same scenario, albeit more complex due to the flights. It was less complicated because they were planning for three scientists and whatever was in the fourth box.”

“They planned for three,” Finley said. “But Elyssa escaped thanks to Radar.”

“I had a little to do with it, but okay, we can hand the win to Radar. My ego isn’t involved here.” Xander had meant a little self-deprecating humor. But his words sounded tone-deaf even to his ears. “Are Eddie and Paca just going to be in—what is it called—Lavrentiya, Russia?”

“Looking at air traffic,” Finley said. “The Bureau thinks that a private jet flew out of Lavrentiya with a flight path that would take it toward Singapore.”

“Can someone meet them in Singapore and get Claude and Eddie back?” Xander asked.

“Not if the jet lands directly on Davidson Realm, no,” White said.

“There’s enough space for a landing?” Xander asked. “When Anna showed me the overhead image, I didn’t see a runway.”

“Field landing,” White said. “If it’s a good pilot, yes.”

“Okay, lastly, York,” Hiro said.

Xander leaned forward. “How is he? Did you get the codes to his laptop and surveillance?”

“He’s been given a paralytic cocktail because he’s on a ventilator. No, we don’t have access to his codes.”

“What we have is this pile of photos from his briefcase,” White handed him a file.

Xander rifled through. They were pictures of Elyssa. Just Elyssa. The back of each 8 X 10 glossy had a number. Each image featured a relaxed-looking Elyssa, sometimes smiling, sometimes not, against foliage. None of them were posed. She never looked at the camera.

“What is this? What does it mean?” Xander asked, handing them back.

“I have no idea.” White stood. “Time to talk to Elyssa. Xander, what do you think of her vis-a-vis this situation?”

“Ithinkshe’s a scientist who believed she was doing good work for the world. I wouldn’t have slept with her if I ascribed any malicious intent to her. I’m not that needy.” Xander stood. “Ithinkshe’s courageous, and she’ll do what she can if we are forthright with her. But what Iknowis that she has POTS, and it’s disabling. If she’s willing to help us, we need to protect her at every step.”

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