Page 61 of Operation: Silent Angel
The meeting took place in their room. Seth Makris arrived first, and Shepherd introduced him to Diana. She hadn’t been in Mykonos and had not met him when he’d been in town a few months earlier. Cooper and Madison arrived several minutes later. Cooper knew Mac as well as Shepherd did, and Madison was acquainted with him from both the Mykonos and Cancun cases.
Shepherd and Mac laid out the mission and its timeline. Its success hinged on timing and the concealment behind the masks. The two couples didn’t have to look identical, just similar enough to make the deception work.
“You’re a few inches taller than our target, Diana. You’ll have to wear flats and she’ll wear heels,” Mac said.
Diana shook her head. “Their handlers know what they look like. Even with masks on, surely, they’ll know Sam and I are not the two people in their charge.” Her nervousness was palpable.
“I could stand in for Diana,” Madison offered.
“You would be a passable double,” Mac said, his gaze shifting between the two women. “But you’re too tall, sorry. We need Diana.”
“And I will be going to the masquerade ball on my husband’s arm,” Diana insisted.
Mac laughed. “You are quite a match for Shepherd. I expected nothing less.” He stopped laughing when Shepherd threw him a look of warning. “Besides, we need Madison’s help with the getaway.”
“Are you sure they will only have two handlers with them?” Madison asked.
“That’s standard procedure, right out of the FSB playbook,” Shepherd answered for Mac. The FSB was the acronym of the Federal Security Service, which was the Russian service that succeeded the KGB.
“A second set is assigned on occasion, but we haven’t seen it happen with these two so far,” Mac clarified. “I’ve been shadowing them for two weeks.”
“Anything else?” Shepherd asked.
“This is how she’ll be wearing her hair. Can you duplicate it, Diana?” Mac asked, handing the photo to her.
Diana studied it. “I should be able to,” she said.
“I’ll be able to help,” Madison volunteered. “I don’t have to be in position until just before the ball begins.”
“We’ll want Mr. and Mrs. Shepherd in the ballroom before they arrive,” Mac said. “So, plan on being there promptly at seven. Kira will delay their departure from their room by ten minutes. No one will question a woman taking longer than planned to get ready,” Mac said.
Diana lifted the photo again of the target couple, Kira and Anatoly Koslov. She and Sam did physically resemble them in hair color and build. “And when they realize we are not the Koslovs?” Diana asked.
“I’ll be long gone with them,” Mac answered.
“And they won’t confront us?” Diana asked.
Both Shepherd and Cooper’s lips settled in matching smirks. “Don’t worry about that. They won’t be a threat to us,” Shepherd said.
“They will be leaving suddenly and will be extremely disappointed to have lost their charges,” Cooper added.
Later, after she’d donned the exquisite gold gown, Diana twisted her hair into an updo as best she could to match how Kira Koslov would be wearing her hair. Mac had also brought her a necklace that was on a black chain. He’d advised that she was to leave about two inches trailing down her back. The earrings he brought were antique-looking crystal, with a center stone surrounded in a circular pattern of matching stones. Several crystals hung down from the main cluster. The jewelry matched what Kira would be wearing.
“You look beautiful,” Shepherd said, coming up behind her at the desk where she sat doing her hair and putting her makeup on. He kissed her bare neck, sending shivers down her spine. He still had that effect on her, which he loved.
“Thank you.” She admired his appearance as well. The gold tie stood out against his black suit over the black dress shirt. “You look quite handsome yourself.”
“Are you nervous about this?” he asked.
“No, I trust you, Cooper, and Madison, to keep me safe if anything goes wrong.”
“It will be a quick switch of you for Kira. And then Madison will be nearby while I stand in as Anatoly with the sellers.”
That part of the plan caused a chill to overtake her. That part was dangerous, no matter how much Sam had tried to convince her it wouldn’t be.
Romeo
After ten minutes in the main ballroom, Diana and Shepherd separated. Shepherd headed towards the Green Street Tavern at the front of the hotel and the planned switch with Anatoly Koslov. Diana’s heart pounded hard in her chest as she approached the ladies’ room. Madison, in a server uniform, stood outside the door. Their eyes met for a brief moment. Diana prayed there wouldn’t be many other guests inside.
