The Asset by Saul Herzog

The Asset by Saul Herzog

Author:Saul Herzog [Herzog, Saul]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Author Contact
Published: 2020-04-09T22:00:00+00:00


43

Tatyana woke with a gasp. Everything was black. For a split second, she wondered if she was still alive.

Then she saw the steam billowing from the ventilation shaft. She was soaking wet, and she was freezing cold, so cold she was in danger of hypothermia.

A gust of steam came from the vent beneath her and warmed her for the briefest second. Then it was gone and the icy cold returned. The steam kept her just warm enough to stay alive, but it also made her wet. If she left the vent, she’d freeze in a matter of minutes.

Memories of what had happened came rushing back to her in flashes.

She remembered getting rid of her electronics. She remembered struggling along the tunnel as far as a steel ladder. She remembered crawling through a ventilation shaft for what felt like eternity.

Every second had been agony, the bullet wound in her arm burning like fire.

She didn’t remember stopping, but if it wasn’t for the steam she’d have frozen to death.

She looked at her watch. It was analog, her grandmother’s. It said seven.

The ID she had, the credit cards, all of it would lead the GRU right to her. She went through her purse and counted her cash, a couple hundred dollars. She got rid of anything that would have allowed Igor to track her. She didn’t have her gun. She’d thrown it away when she realized the bullets were duds. Goldin must have changed them in the hotel room.

She thought about the gun for a moment. She remembered when she’d gotten it.

She’d been careless.

Distracted.

She’d let her guard down, rushed to make the meeting with Spector, and that had caused her to make a mistake.

This was the price.

Her tights were tied around the bullet wound. She vaguely remembered doing that. It would need proper attention soon.

She stood up and felt faint. She instantly felt the absence of the steam. She was shivering so badly she had to hold on to the wall to steady herself. She looked down at her clothing. They were black, which would conceal some of the dirt. Her feet were completely bare. There was a bullet hole in the Chanel dress. That hurt almost as much as the wound.

There was a ladder leading to a manhole above her and she could tell from the ring of light around it that it led to the surface.

She climbed the ladder. The cover at the top was locked but there was a safety mechanism that allowed it to be opened from the inside. She turned it and pushed. The door was heavy, it took all her strength to move it, but it opened. She climbed through and found herself in a small maintenance shed. She sat on the ground for a few seconds catching her breath, then tried the door. It opened, and outside she saw the banks of the Hudson river. Across the water she recognized the Hoboken and Jersey City skylines.

The shed was in a small, waterfront park and she had to cross West Street to get back to the city.



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