Chapter 35
Natalia
I woke up to an alarm going off on my satellite phone. As I listened to the voice message it said “I have a job for you be in NYC in three days!” I had just gotten back from a job in Barcelona where I had to kill a diplomat who was a traitor to his country. I was still jet lagged from taking the red eye back to Montana. I had been living in the mountains of Montana for the last three years and I now went by the name Rachel Maddox. I couldn’t believe I had just turned thirty only a few days ago. Everything I had done in my past life, I had to leave behind. A few weeks after the Moscow mission I found out I was pregnant, so I fell off the grid. I even cut my hair into a short, wavy bob and dyed it a dark cherry, brown which took some time to get used to. As I got out of bed, I was greeted by my German Shepherd, Max. I went in the kitchen and filled Max’s bowl with some food while I made myself a cup of coffee. Suddenly I hear little footsteps coming down the hallway. My son, Justin runs into the kitchen and jumps into my arms.
“Hey, Mommy, I missed you!”
“I missed you too peanut!”
“I want pancakes.”
“Coming right up, sir.”
Max runs up to Justin and starts to lick his face. I instantly had a flashback of Jason’s dog Brooklyn and how cute he was. I had gotten Max when Justin was just a baby because I wanted a protector for him when I wasn’t around. Max was fully grown now and well trained to kill if I gave him the command. When I had to go away for jobs I would leave Justin and Max with my sitter, Jessica. I had five million dollars in a safety deposit box for Justin in case anything ever happened to me. Justin was conceived during those two days Jason and I spent together in that villa in Fiji. It was the happiest memories I have of us together. I had Justin at home in Montana with a private doctor and midwife. His birth name is Justin Jason Maddox, but I call him JJ for short. JJ looked just like his father. His blue eyes and sandy blond hair took me back to the time when Jason and I were young, and I met him that first time at summer training camp. I had obtained a fake birth certificate for Justin from a forger I know just so everything looked legit. Whenever anyone asked about Justin’s father I just tell them he was killed in the military serving his country. Justin had just turned three years old yesterday. I didn’t want anyone from my family to know about his birth that is why I moved to Montana and changed my name. I never wanted anyone from my previous life to know about Justin so that he would never be in any danger.
Whenever Justin asked where his daddy was I would say he was in heaven with God. A piece of me died that day they took Jason away from me. I always felt I could feel he was still alive even though Boris ordered for him and the others to be killed. How could I ever tell JJ what really happened to his father? My father ordered me to never speak of Jason again. How would I ever be able to tell my son about that his parents really were “trained assassins”. I liked my life now with the exception that my father was sending me out on his personal killing missions. The only thing missing was Jason. I wanted Justin to know his father loved him as much as I did. I disavowed my family name a long time ago because it only led me down a road of secrecy, betrayal, murder and lies. I began to pack a bag when my cell phone started to ring.
“Hello, Natalia!”
“What do you want Alexi? I told you never to call me!”
“Well I have instructions for your next mission in NYC.”
“Okay well tell me then! I think you just like to torture me Alexi. I haven’t talked to you in years and have always received my instructions via recorded message from father. Why are you calling me now?”
“Maybe I missed you sister. Father thought it was time we reconnect and get on with business.”
“You’re evil and incapable of feeling anything good so just tell me what you want.”
“Once you get to NYC check into the Sofitel Hotel in Times Square into room 2126. Your cover name is Kimberly Brown-Turner. All your equipment along with your target photos will be under the bed as usual.”
“Goodbye, Alexi!”
Once I hung up the phone, I took a shower and looked in the mirror at the small healed cuts all over my body. I got dressed and went in Justin’s room to get him dressed. I put Justin in his car seat while Max jumped in the back seat.
“Where we going momma?”
“I’m taking you and Max to Jessica’s house for a few days while I go to work.”
“I don’t want you to go, momma.”
“I promise I will be back in a few days and I will bring you a surprise.”
“Okay, you promise?”
“Yes, Baby.” I kissed Justin on the cheek and buckled his seatbelt. I dropped Justin and Max off at Jessica’s house. “I love you, JJ.”
“Love you too, Momma.” As I drove away I looked at my rearview mirror and saw JJ waving to me. I left specific instructions about what to do if there ever was a time that I never came back for Justin. She didn’t know anything about my past, but I told her I worked for the government. This time I took my family’s private jet at Billings Airport to NYC. I needed to bring my full automatic sniper rifle on this trip and that’s not something I could get through security at the airport. I slept most of the way on the plane. I often had trouble sleeping and used alcohol and Xanax to cope. The guilt over what I had done to Jason and the team completely consumed me. I feel like a tormented soul. I woke up just before the plane was about to land at the airfield. Once I arrived at the airfield, an all-black Audi A8 was waiting to pick me up. When the driver got out I automatically knew who was waiting for me.
“Hello, Mr. Ketch!”
“Hello, Ms. Valchek, your father is waiting for you.”
As Mr. Ketch closed my passenger door, I could feel my anxiety rising. Once we drove through the gates of my father’s compound, I started to feel sick to my stomach. As Mr. Ketch and I walked into my father’s office we saw that he was standing by the crackling fireplace.
“Hello, Father!”
“Hello, Natalia. “How are you? We haven’t spoken in years!” Boris said
“I’m fine Father! I’m here on your instructions correct?”
“Yes, I’m here personally to make sure this mission is completed. You will finish this once and for all with no mistakes! Do you understand?”
“Yes, Father! But who is the target?”
“All will be revealed in time! I have your brother down in Texas handling his part, now you do yours! Mr. Ketch see that Natalia follows my instructions! You can go now Natalia!!”
I was totally confused by my father’s comments. Why was Alexi doing a job in Texas? After the meeting with my father, Mr. Ketch drove me the hotel and dropped me off.
“I will be back when it’s time for the mission Natalia,” Mr. Ketch stated. I had a bad feeling about this job. I checked into room 2126 as instructed. I pulled a long black case from under the bed and opened it. In the side pouch was a yellow envelope with six target photos. When I looked through them my heart began to ache. I temporarily blacked out for a few seconds because I could not believe what I was looking at. I immediately felt nauseous. I ran into the bathroom and puked in the toilet. I washed my mouth out in the sink. I sat on the side of the bed next to the gun case and picked up the envelope. There were five photos of my old team members, Nick, Chase, Vince, Maurice, and Jason. Why was Ryan’s picture missing? I knew there had to be a good reason for my father to come out of hiding. All these years my father lied to me. I thought they were all dead after that fateful night in Moscow. Why all of a sudden now did he want them dead? I did everything my father told me to leave my former life in the past. After my father was shot three years ago in the neck by Chase on our team’s last mission, he almost died that night. But his surgeons were able to save him and he has been recovering for the past few years in Italy. I felt a piece of me died that night when I thought the love of my life was killed. The fact that I had betrayed my team that night has haunted me ever since. I loved Jason with every inch of my being and now knowing he was alive was everything I needed in my life.