Hannah stared at one of the half dozen screens in front of her, trying to make sense of the map of Sofia.
“So, if they take the direct route to the factory, there will be little opportunity to intercept them between the point they reach the outskirts of the city and when they leave the A1, which is the main road that goes all the way from Istanbul to Sofia. Are you sure the risk is too great for an earlier interception? We could have them taken down in less than five minutes.”
The voice came from another of the screens, where several uniformed men sat around a conference table with a guy that Hannah typically referred to as ‘The Suit’. In other words, the senior politician drafted in to make the decisions.
“Commissar, nobody is doubting that you and your men could have this wrapped up very quickly, if it was just a matter of taking down the men on the outside.” Hannah smiled. “Where the problem lies is that the traffickers have heavily armed men in the back of the trucks guarding the women. If they were to hear any gunfire, or suspect the convoy had been intercepted, there’s no guaranteeing that they won’t turn the guns on the hostages. They could kill an awful lot of women in five minutes.”
“Then the only solution is to wait until they reach the factory and have unloaded the women.” The Suit from the Interior Ministry shrugged. “We can’t have anything occurring on the streets of Sofia, or there could be danger to the public.”
“I agree that this seems the best option for Sofia.” Kaz nodded.
“What do you mean, ‘for Sofia’?” The Suit leaned forwards.
“As I’ve already explained, Minister, the route could change at a moment’s notice, or they could switch between several factories they use.” Hannah pointed out. “The intel we’re getting is fluid at best, and subject to change at a moment’s notice. So, as well as speaking to you, we’re having similar conversations with authorities in three or four other cities along the route, just in case they actually get that far. We don’t want anyone to be caught unawares, and while the likelihood of them being needed reduces the further along the route we look, we can’t assume that everything will go to plan at the first, second, or even the third location.”
“How reliable is your informant?” One of the officer’s leaned forward. “We would like some reassurance that our people won’t be walking into some kind of trap.”
“Ok, well, that’s been the biggest difficulty throughout.” Hannah admitted. “They’re pretty senior in the organisation, but they don’t want to be identified until it’s absolutely necessary. I think we have to understand and appreciate what a brutal world they live in. There would be no second chances if they were caught. Hell, if they were even suspected of betrayal, their bodies would probably end up mutilated and tortured, and buried in a shallow grave.”
“Then how do you know that any of what they say is true?” The Suit threw up his hands in a dramatic gesture. “This could all be someone’s sick imagination, or someone gaining pleasure from leading the police on a wild goose-chase.”
“Because I already have six men inserted into the organisation to travel with them this week, and the intel they’ve come back with exactly mirrors what the informant has told us.” Hannah countered. “It’s for real.”
“Can’t your people identify who they are?” The Commissar asked.
“I spoke to one of our men this morning, and he’s narrowed it down to half a dozen people it could be.” Hannah explained. “Ilya Federov keeps the people he trusts to a very minimum. There’s his sister, Nikita, or Niko as she prefers to be known, his girlfriend, Vanya, his right-hand-man, Drago something-or-other, and maybe three junior lieutenants.”
“Can’t your guys do a bit of fishing, to see who takes the bait?” The Suit asked.
“They could.” Danny interrupted. “And they could also say the wrong thing to the wrong person and end up with their bollocks blown off. These people aren’t the type you go ‘fishing’ with.”
Hannah turned and smiled at her husband.
“Thanks for the visual, baby.” She patted his knee under the table, before turning back to the screen. “Kaz and I were talking about this earlier, and we think it’s got to be either Niko or Drago. Hollywood reckons that the other lieutenants are little more than foremen, keeping the lower ranks under control. While it gives them some power over the other men, he doesn’t think that they know any more about what’s going on than anyone else. He’s also ruled out Vanya, because he reckons an amoeba has more brain cells. That could be an act, of course, but Hollywood doesn’t think it’s likely.”
“So, that leaves the two people closest to Federov?” The Commissar asked.
“Yes. And they’re the two people with the most to lose. If we’re going to gamble on it being one of them, then we’d better make sure we get the right one, because either one of them has the authority to have our men wiped out at a moment’s notice.” Hannah explained. “And I really would rather that didn’t happen. I happen to be quite fond of our team.”
“Commissar, can you have your team in position by midday?” Niels leaned forward. “The expectation is that they’ll arrive no later than two o’clock, allowing for a comfort break at the halfway point.”
“I’m sure we can arrange something.” He nodded. “Do you know if there are already people in the factory?”
“I’m picking up half a dozen heat signatures.” Hannah glanced at a different screen. “But the unit is constructed mostly of steel. If there’s a secondary building inside that has a steel roof, then it may be blocking any images getting through, so we can’t be absolutely certain there aren’t more.”
“We’ll work on getting our men in place without being seen.” The Commissar nodded. “Will there be any way we’ll be able to distinguish your team from Federov’s men? We don’t want to shoot the good guys by mistake.”
“Apart from the fact that they’re all well over six feet tall, and they’re not dragging their knuckles on the floor like Neanderthals? I’m guessing you’ll be able to tell them apart if the shooting starts, because they’ll be the ones shooting in the same direction as your men, rather than at them.” Hannah smiled. “They’ll also identify themselves as Guardians if challenged.”
“They’ll also probably have hit the floor and be shooting military style.” Danny added. “Not randomly firing off in all directions.”
“That’s something at least.” The Commissar shrugged. “Ok, well, let us know if there are any changes to the plan.”
“Will do. Kaz, one of our Interpol liaisons will keep a channel open.” Hannah gave a small wave and signed off.
“One down and three more to go.” Niels smiled at her.
Hannah sighed and ran her fingers through her hair in agitation.
“He’s right about one thing… we need to find out who our informant is.” She declared. “I’ll speak to Hollywood as soon as we’re done here. We can’t keep wasting police resources halfway across Europe on a ‘maybe’.”
“The only ‘maybe’ is the route.” Danny pointed out. “The certainty is that a hundred women will be trafficked to God knows what sort of fate if we don’t manage to stop the trucks reaching Rotterdam. Personally, I’d rather be responsible for wasting police time than for losing the hostages.”
Hannah turned and stared at her husband with adoration.
“I always knew I’d married a drop-dead gorgeous sex-God, with a body made for sin, and a heart of pure gold. But now he throws in ‘the voice of reason’?” She leaned in and kissed him hard and fast. “God, I love you Danny Simons!”
“We can step out for a coffee if you’d like some ‘alone time’” Niels offered, causing Kaz to cover her mouth to stifle her smile.
“Nah, we’re good.” Hannah still smiled up at Danny. “What I have in mind for my husband would last at least as long as a three-course lunch.”
“Then, how about we start with the next city on the route.” Niels suggested. “Where next?”
Hannah glanced back at the map on her screen.
“Belgrade is almost certainly next, followed by either Budapest or Zagreb, depending on the route they take.” She said confidently.
“Then Belgrade it is.” Kaz picked up her phone and started dialling. “The sooner we start making plans, the less chance there is that we end up losing anyone.”