Rage

The black SUV was rushing through the evening traffic.Vladimir was cursing, his forehead tinged with sweat.The cars were driving wildly through the streets.Someone had tipped them off that they saw a woman looking like Rebecca and a companion going in the direction of  the embassy.Vladimir had panicked, he decided not to call Azov till the news was confirmed. He asked all the cars in this entourage to head towards the embassy.He could not imagine that the Americans would think of doing anything without sovereign protection.He just wanted to get to them before they got into the safety of the embassy.He did not know how much this was to cost him

He asked the vehicles to disperse one block before the embassy.Hiding his weapon in his coat, he swiftly got out of the car after it screeched to a halt on the gravel.He was looking at the face of every woman in the place.
It wasn't helping, Rebecca was nowhere to be found.He asked all his teams to speed up the search.

After a good hour of searching, he finally gave up. They had checked every nook and corner in the area, visited every hotel loo and looked inside every garbage dump.She was nowhere to be found.

Escape

The taxi wheeled into the departure area, Danny spotted Rebecca at the Aeroflot counter and was happy to see that she was safe.He got out of the taxi and called out to her.Rebecca seemed relieved to see him.She grabbed his arm and both of them went into the terminal.Danny was dying to ask her all the questions he had, but he had to wait.They found a quiet corner of the waiting area and sat down.He got up to get coffee for her, but she stopped him, 'we need to stick together', he sat back down.

"What are you up to Rebecca? Can we pull this off?We are normal people , not action heroes, to go against Azov is foolish.Even if this comes out, there is a good chance that the company will get away with this and we will be left to die in of their many chemical dumps.I am talking sense, all this seems easy, but its not, Azov has links, we are just researchers."

"Danny, I am doing, this, with or without you, but I can't leave you to die here in Russia, if you do not want to come with me and join me, I need you to go somewhere safe...."

"I didn't mean that," Danny retorted.
"Well, we should just catch the flight, its been a long and hard day, lets talk when we are a little level headed."

Danny agreed.

They boarded the flight, they were going to Bologna, Italy.Danny loved Italy, he always wanted to go, but never thought that he would have to go there to hide for his life.Rebecca looked tired, she looked scared but determined to go ahead.Their flight was boarding, they decided to check in.They had got good seats, they could see the city lights beneath, blurring farther and farther away.
In the next seat, Rebecca was thinking hard , thinking of a plan to uncover those ugly b*****ds and teach them a lesson.Things had become more personal than she liked and she had to exact her revenge.

Fear...grips hard

'Those Americans..always running away when something happens..either to their embassy or back home...fools, can't live in the real world....and think of themselves as some environmental saviours...bull****',Vladimir thought to himself.He had a hunch that she would not go to the embassy.She had a plan,he had read it in her face that was fraught with fear, but belonged to someone who hadn't yet given up her cause.He decided to take a chance by going to the airport.He could almost see her boarding a flight and he felt truly scared of his employer for the first time in his life.

He had failed a couple of times before, but those victims were locals, he could mend what he missed, get the boss to bribe his way out, but, he felt like he was totally losing the plot here.If  he lost the girl, he could lose his life or worse , his boss would torcher him for the rest of his sorry life.Rebecca was intelligent.Vladimir knew that just a video on the internet or a letter to the editor in a popular publication could cause them great discomfort.

Meanwhile Danny was on his way to the airport, his mind a jumble of thoughts.He was going through all the places he thought they could escape to, at the same time, he was scared for Rebecca, was not sure she could handle this.He did not want her to get hurt and even thought of convincing her to let go of it all.Then he realised that the headstrong girl would just go off on her own and he didn't want that to happen.

'She is intelligent but a little naive', he thought and smiled..and wondered why he did....

Survival

Time passed real slow.It seemed like forever before she saw the airport.She asked the taxi to drop her off to the arrival gate.She paid the driver and got out of the cab.

Rebecca looked around for a payphone.It was getting cold.Her ankle was beginning to feel stiff.She saw airport security near the gate.They directed her to a payphone.She dialed Danny...silently praying that he would pick up.

"Hello..Danny?, its Rebecca..."
Danny didn't let her finish..."Are you safe, you were not there when I came by in the afternoon.Are you okay?Where are you?"

Pushing back tears, she narrated the whole story to him.Danny was stunned but composed.

"Go home, that is the only place that is safe for you.."
"but, what about you and I cannot go home.I will be putting my family in danger, Danny.Azov will not let you live.He will hound you till he finds you, alive or dead..That way he wins and we can never bring him down."

"Then Rebecca, what do u suggest we do, give up our work or run for our lives so Azov can flourish and millions of innocents die.."

"No Danny, I am not saying that, we need to lay low for a while,we need to live if we are to finish what we have started, maybe go out of the country but not home or anywhere in America...we need to go where no one will ever think we went.I am at the airport.See me there in 30 mins.Take ur passport, cash, some clothes ..don't withdraw from the bank or use the ATM...I am waiting at the Arrival lounge."

Danny was silent at the other end, after a few seconds , he replied, "Ok...I will be there."

She looked around, went to the Airline counter and booked two tickets for Paris.Both of them had an American passport.So, going around Europe would be easy. She would have to go there and then with the help of her friends, plan her next step.She had to do it fast.

Meanwhile, Vladimir was beginning to get scared.Fear that Rebecca had got away was eating him up.His men had searched the length and breadth of the shantytown with no luck.He had thought of all the places Rebecca would go to, the university, her Professor's office, research lab, the police station...
Just then something struck him...he shouted out orders to his men to get his car.He got in ..

."В аэропорт, быстро"  (To the airport..fast...")

His huge black off-roader swerved dangerously in the small space.He was on his way.

The Journey....

Meanwhile, safe in the confines of the taxi, Rebecca took in a deep breath.She leaned against the seat and putting her head back she closed her eyes. For a moment, her mind went blank.It was as if nothing had happened and she was back home with her family sitting around the dinner table smiling and having a good time with her parents.She felt warm and comforted.She could feel the aroma of hot chocolate waft through the kitchen and her father decorating the tree...here away from home, she just felt cold, felt emotionless.

"Are you okay?"

"Miss, are u okay?"....Rebecca opened her eyes.It was the cabbie.

"Yes, I am fine, just had a long day."

Looking out of the window, she saw the city was rushing by.It was almost 6 o' clock and outside it was dark.She prayed that she could get to the airport unnoticed. Taking out a kerchief from her purse, she wiped her face clean, tied her hair back in a tight ponytail and sprayed on her favourite cologne.It made her feel better.She hoped it would hide all that had transpired with her since morning and would help her blend in the crowd.

"You are American, aren't u?, the cabbie asked...Rebecca did her best to smile..."Going back?"

Rebecca realised she had no luggage with her, so she said she came to pick up her friend from the airport.The airport was still 15 minutes away.She began to plan in her head what she would tell Danny.She had to hatch her escape plan and that included him.Sooner or later Vladimir would catch up with him too.If her research papers were found, Danny would automatically be next on Vladimir's hit list.She could not let that happen.

A plan was beginning to take shape in her mind and she was sure she could convince him to escape......

The Search...

Rushing out of the area, Rebecca came to a shanty town.There were makeshift homes made of asbestos sheets, a few trailers parked in the narrow alleyways and homeless people puffing smokes in the morning.They seemed to notice her at first but clearly showed a lack of interest.She needed a payphone and some money to get away.First, she took her cellphone out of her bag, took out the sim card, batteries and threw them in a drain. Next she threw the phone in a garbage can.She looked around for a payphone in the little shops that dotted an alley of the shanty town.Finally, after a long time of searching she found one.She took out her wallet and found some coins.She remembered Danny's number.He was a toxicologist from Ukraine who was freelancing in Russia.She dialed his number, got his machine.
There were sounds of men running behind her...Rebecca kept the phone down and went deeper inside the alley.The children playing outside their huts stopped to look.She tried to go as fast as she could, but her foot slowed her down.After plodding for fifteen minutes through narrow alleyways, she finally came to a side street.The traffic hadn't started yet.She saw a taxi and hauled it down.
'Take me to the airport' , she told the driver.Settling herself in the back,Rebecca opened her wallet.She did not have much money left and using her credit card or ATM was not an option.She decided she would try to call Danny from the airport and alert him too.She probably would have to take the train or the bus and go hiding in the countryside , she thought, but no concrete plans were yet forming in her clouded, tired mind.
Meanwhile, Vladimir was fuming.The girl had indeed gotten away.His phone rang.The call that he dreaded but knew was unavoidable...it had finally come.
"How are we?"...a commanding voice said on the other side.It was Maya, Azov's personal assistant. She sounded angry, just like Vladimir imagined Mr. Azov to be right now.
"We will find her, she won't be gone for long, we will trace her, just give me a few hours", she kept the phone aside for a while and said something.Vladimir knew who it was.He hoped for a favourable reaction.
Maya came back on the line, "You have three hours.Finish the job".He heard the phone bang on the other side.
He looked around. The place was a sea of huts with people who had not seen a decent meal in ages.It was full of narrow lanes and dark corners.She could be anywhere.This was going to be difficult than he earlier thought......

On the run...2

She landed with a mild thud, which she hoped the men had not heard.Her ankle had sprained.Looking up she thought she saw someone peeking from the terrace.A chill ran down her spine, she slid slowly under the ledge, hoping they would not see her.She opened her little handbag and took a much needed swig of water . It was cold, but she could feel the beads of sweat trickle down her brow.She tried to stand by taking the support of the wall.She had to be out of here real quick.If she just found the right way out, she could easily make her way out unnoticed out of this abandoned industrial complex that was her home for about three weeks since the unfortunate discovery.

The men on the terrace were frustrated and angry.Their leader Vladimir, a former KGB agent now working for Azov Enterprises as a security head, was fuming.The girl had escaped from right under his nose.On getting the tip from one of his field operatives, he had set out to find Rebecca with five of his best men. She had to be terminated if he wanted to keep his reputation and his job.Mr. Azov was a generous employer and equally vicious as well.
The heir of a small mining and oil business, he had turned around the company and made it into a billion dollar business empire with interests from Siberia to Alaska and some newly acquired interests in the Australian iron ore business.One of the biggest employers in the remotest places of the country, politicians had made millions by ignoring what he wanted them to.

All this would change if that young stubborn exchange student from America decided to have her way.