Panthera Spelaea Ch. 81: Conclusion

I shifted back to my human form, not caring the mercenary saw it. There was no way he was living, so it didn't matter. I tore off his pant leg and used it to staunch the blood. "Casualties?"

"Your man took a rifle round to the face. He's KIA," Zach said. "Where is Art?"

"He was right behind me," I said. Zach looked concerned, then took off running behind the house. Others arrived, with Edward behind them. "You all right?"

"We're fine, and Alexandra is still locked down," Edward replied. "Shit, you need to let my doctor look at you? How many times were you shot?"

"I have no idea," I said. One of the guards helped me sit down on the grass, and I noticed the holes in my body. The sight of my blood did something in my mind to unlock the pain receptors that adrenalin had shut down. "Owww," I moaned as the blackness took me.

I woke up in a bedroom, lying on top of a bed with an IV bag in my hand. I looked around the room; it hurt to move, but I could see bandages on my shoulders and chest, plus each of my legs. A woman in a nurses' uniform saw me wake and moved to calm me. "You're all right, John. The Doctor removed the bullets, and you should make a full recovery."

"How long have I been out?"

"About four hours," she said. "I'll let the Mistress know you are awake." She left the room and closed the door behind her.

It was only a few minutes before a screen on the wall lit up, with Edward's face on it. "How are you feeling?"

"A little sore," I replied.

"Doc pulled five bullets out of you, plus two through-and-throughs in your cat form. It's a good thing you are so damn big in your cat form."

I just nodded. "Yeah, I've been shot before. I should be fine in a few hours, thanks to switcher healing rates. What is going on now?"

"We couldn't keep the Russian Federal Police out of this with the gunfire and the helicopters, but the bridge being out slowed the response. You're in the safe room for the duration; it's well hidden, and the medical staff will stay until the police leave. I've sent word to Tasmania that you were hurt but will make a full recovery, and they should stay hidden until you return."

I could imagine what the girls would do if they saw the news and didn't see me. "Thank you. What about the others?"

"Your bodyguard is dead; his employers have been notified and will take care of his family with the insurance he carried. Our story for you is that you weren't here when the attack occurred, and your other bodyguard took you to an undisclosed location for your safety. Your driver is in hiding now, waiting to pick you up."

It sucked, but it was the life for men like these. He never had a chance. "I saw Zach, but what about Art? Is he in another room?"

His face fell, and he took a breath. "Art didn't make it, John. He took a shot to the back of the head that he couldn't survive."

"Damn." His death changed everything. "Who got the Cave Bear?"

"Zach. He took off after switching; we've got people out looking but haven't found him yet."

Zach was a good man, but the loss of Art was monumental. "How are his people handling it?"

"They are in damage control. There's not a body left behind, as Art's human side was on the other side when he died. No one knew what Art looked like, and his passport and background were of a junior deck worker on the Elements. We removed his belongings from your car before the Federal Police arrived."

"And the guy I captured?"

"He didn't survive his wounds. Before he passed, he made a video statement implicating Vadim Pushkov in the attack. Alexandra was the target, not Edward, and not us. It was all about money and power; Alexandra had it, and Vadim wanted it."

It didn't make sense. "How did Vadim expect to get her stock after she died?"

"Mikhail's will had a secret provision in it that if there were no surviving heirs at the time of Board elections, then Vadim would receive it. Mikhail told his friend about it, but the lawyer didn't read it to Alexandra because it didn't apply. Vadim didn't even know about Switchers." Edward looked offscreen. "The Federal Police is following up on the information right now, and Vadim is certain to face murder charges. You just heal up, John. You guys showing up when you did and taking out the helicopters made all the difference."

"Thanks, Edward. Good luck." He cut the feed, and I closed my eyes and rested. I needed to heal up and get back to my girls.

Ch. 87

I woke when the door opened to the small room. Opening an eye, I recognized Vasili, Alexandra's driver, and our overwatch sniper with the big-ass gun. "You awake?"

"Yeah," I said as I sat up. It had been a few hours, and my Cave Lion healing had me fully recovered. You couldn't even see the scars. "What is going on?"

He tossed a bag onto the chair next to the bed. "It's after nightfall, and we have work to do," he told me. "Zach is sixteen kilometers east of us, and we need to bring him in before someone shoots him."

The first shift could freak you out, and we didn't need him spotted. "Cool. Is Edward coming along?"

"No. Edward and Alexandra were helicoptered to Moscow by the Federal Police a few hours ago. This little battle set off a shitshow, I'll tell you."

I dumped the contents of the bag on the bed; it was the clothes I'd left in his car. I started dressing. "I've been kind of out of it, so what happened?"

"While they were carrying you to the safe room after the battle, I made my way down the hill to the bolt-hole entrance."

"Bolthole?"

"Yeah. The Abrahmovs were so paranoid about kidnappings and attacks that they built this safe room deep underground. The emergency entrance from the top is in the Master Bedroom, and it's well-hidden. That's how Alexandra got down here when the attack began. We are ten meters underground, and Mikhail had this room excavated out of solid bedrock. You could ride out an airstrike or wait out a threat for weeks on end. He built it to hold a dozen people for a month in case of nuclear war."

"So, what is the bolthole?"

"The second entrance. It's a tunnel that extends beyond the fences and a hundred meters into the surrounding woods. It's also booby-trapped if you don't know the codes. The exit is well-camouflaged, and its existence is known only to the family and their most trusted staff."

"Like you."

He smiled. "Yes, like me. Anyway, I got to the bolt-hole and opened the entrance, only to find Miss Alexandra waiting for me at the bottom of the ladder. I confirmed she was all right and asked for instructions."

"How was she?"

"A little freaked out, but still in control. Miss Alexandra gave me a burner phone with several numbers programmed in already. I was to drive the car at least twenty-five kilometers away and stay out of sight. The Federal Police would be coming quickly, and there wasn't a good way to explain why you and Art weren't around unless the car was gone too."

That made sense. "So the story is that you drove the two principals away while my bodyguard went to aid the defenders."

Vasili nodded. "Your bodyguard was dead, so there was no hiding our presence. With you hidden here, Zach running off in the bear, and Art being God knows where? Miss Alexandra thought it was the most believable story."

"How are they explaining your absence?" I pulled my suit jacket on, ready to go.

"They told the Federal Police that my standing orders in the event of an attack were to go underground and not allow or attempt contact for at least twenty-four hours. We will retrieve Zach, then make contact in the morning."

We had moved out of the small bedroom and into the 'main' living area, which had a living room and kitchenette. I waved at the doctor and nurse as they played cards at the table, then followed him into the storage room. He moved a heavy-duty storage cabinet aside on noiseless hidden hinges, exposing an armored hatch. Vasili entered a ten-digit code on the keypad, and the light changed from red to green. I heard a thunk, then he turned the handle and pulled it open. Red-colored LED lights came on inside. "Down you go," he told me.

I climbed down the ladder about ten feet into a closet-sized room with a tunnel on one wall. Vasili was right behind me, the hatch closed and secured behind him. I could smell both Vasili and Alexandra's scents, plus some stale ones. Vasili had me lay down on a fiberglass sled inside the tunnel. "This is faster than crawling," he told me. "When you get to the other end, hit the RETURN SLED button to send it back."

The tunnel was dark, so I couldn't tell how fast I was going when the motor started the sled moving. All I heard was the sound of wheels until I came to a stop in another closet. I stood up, found the button, and sent the sled back. It took another two minutes to get Vasili next to me. "Pretty slick," I told him. "What happens if they cut the power?"

"Battery backup, plus you can always crawl," he replied. There was a simple periscope setup he used to verify no one was around before he killed the lights. He opened the hatch, and I followed him up into the woods. He closed the hatch and locked it, then knelt next to me by the fake stump. "Don't move; let your eyes adjust to the night, and listen to make sure no one is coming."

The compound was well-lit, and you could see the fence and the summer home through the trees. There were spotlights set up around the outside, and I could see crime scene workers and detectives around the crashed helicopters. My ears were much better than his, so I quickly determined no one was coming. "Did you see the Bear fall?" I still couldn't believe Art was gone.

"No, I focused on the helicopters and their passengers," Vasili replied. "Only after I stopped firing did I see him. He was about five meters from the left corner of the wall where those evidence flags are. There was no doubt; his brains got splattered over the ground in front of him. You can see a little on the corner of the wall."

I tried to imagine it from the bloodstains. "The shooter was behind him?"

"Yes." A chill ran through my stomach; the shooter must have been in our direction for the blood spatter to go where it did. "Come on; we need to go."

My head was spinning as we moved silently away from the compound. It took us two hours to reach the car. We pulled off the pine boughs and folded the camouflage netting that hid it from aircraft. I got in the front, and he drove off. "The sighting was about five kilometers north of here."

"Get me close enough to catch his scent," I replied. Despite the cold weather, I kept the window part open as we drove. We hadn't gone far before I told him to stop.

I got out, removing my clothes and setting them on the seat. "The bear is upwind of us," I said as I pointed into the dark woods. "Are you coming with me?" I could tell he thought that was a bad idea. "I'll shift, and you get on. Keep your legs along my chest and grip the mane in front. You'll be fine; the girls love it." I switched, and Vasili climbed on my back. I stood up and headed into the woods, following my nose into the maze of trees and rocks.

I found Zach sleeping under a fallen tree. He woke up when he caught my scent, giving off a warning growl before stopping. Vasili jumped off, and I carefully approached the new Switcher. I could see him relax his posture as his Bear recognized my Lion. Somewhere in the background, I hoped Zach was following along. We sniffed each other before I ran my face along his shoulder.

Zach switched back first, collapsing to the dirt. I switched to my human form right after him. "Are you all right?"

"I feel like I got run over by a tank," he said. I remembered that weakness and soreness well.

I ended up switching back, and Vasili loaded Zach onto me before getting on himself. The pair were a lot heavier than my mates, but we didn't have far to go. We reached our car and set Zach in the back seat. I got dressed, then dressed Zach up as Vasili drove us towards town.

Along the way, Vasili updated Zach on what had happened. "By the time I had driven clear of the cops and the dacha, I had a text message that said only 'It was Vadim.' I contacted the Elements and identified myself. I told them that Anatoly was gone, and Zach was taking over." Anatoly was the name on Art's passport since Art was supposedly in his seventies. Anatoly was just a deckhand. "When they asked what happened, I told them Vadim Pushkov would know. Then I hung up."

Zach processed the information. "That would be enough for them to act," he told us. "I need to get back to the airport; I need to return to the yacht immediately."

"The Federal Police will want to question you," Vasili protested.

"The police can kiss my ass," Zach said. "If they don't have a warrant out for me, I'm gone. Now give me your burner phone." He made the arrangements as Vasili turned towards Moscow.

It was five in the morning by the time we arrived at the airfield. I'd decided to join Zach on the flight out of Russia over Vasili's objections. "What am I supposed to tell the Police?"

"Tell them the truth," I replied. "I'm not interested in being framed for something I didn't do AGAIN."

We watched the news as we waited for the Customs agents to arrive and stamp our passports. The attack on Alexandra Abrahmov was at the top of the broadcast. The breaking news was that Vadim Pushkov was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound when Federal Police raided his apartment. The suicide would help us all bury the investigation of the attack so we could move on.

The agent who cleared us to leave didn't bother to check the bedroom when we told him our friend was sleeping off last night's vodka. He scanned and stamped Anatoly Karpov's passport, removing the five hundred ruble bill in the front, and left. As far as Russian Customs knew, he'd left with us.

Once we were out of Russian airspace, I called my bodyguard back at the Moscow hotel and told him to ship my things back to my home in Houston. I wasn't ever going back to Russia.

I couldn't trust the Russian government.

And I couldn't shake the idea that Alexandra had taken advantage of the chaos to execute her father's rival with a single shot from the woods.

Ch. 88

The private jet landed at Paphos International Airport in Cyprus. While I'd been visiting Russia, the Elements had motored to the far tip of the island nation in the eastern Mediterranean. It was a short helicopter ride to the ship, moored off Amphitheater Bay on the northwest corner.

The diving here was excellent, and dozens of divers were in the water. It wasn't recreational, though. Police and Cypriot Coast Guard vessels searched the waters to the southeast, where Art Karpen was missing after he and his passenger got tossed from his jet ski. Tragically, he'd not been wearing his life jacket, and the accident knocked him into the water. Officials speculated that he drowned quickly.

A police boat took the jet ski onboard as evidence; DNA testing on blood from the handlebar would match samples of Art's hair provided by the Ship's Doctor. The other accident victim couldn't help with the search, as she'd nearly drowned herself. It took a few minutes for the riderless jet skis to be noticed and help to arrive. The young lady was rescued and was resting and was cooperating with the investigators but couldn't help much.

Art's body was gone, lost in the deep turquoise water. Strong currents made the underwater search difficult, and it became a recovery operation at nightfall. The next day, the Coast Guard called off the search. Art would legally be declared dead thirty days later.

Rumors were rampant about the events leading to his death, especially since the other victim was young, buxom, and blonde, plus a tourist boat had a picture of her getting pulled naked from the water. Art wasn't married, but that didn't stop speculation about Art's sexual activities. Later on, an investigator would leak that Art had been screwing the young woman while riding the jet ski before the tragic accident. A rich man on a yacht, surrounded by much younger women, had predictable endings. The rumors made the accidental death easier to believe, so Zach's people encouraged them with leaks.

Art's death was big news in the financial world. Karpen Investments was a private company, so there was no stock price to fall. It would take a team of lawyers a year to navigate the distribution of his estate. Thankfully, Art's team had planned for this.

I'd sometimes wondered why the superyacht Elements was an Estonian-flagged vessel. Art took the identity of an Estonian baby who fled to England during World War Two. He created a false educational background and history, becoming a dual-citizen along the way. He soon realized how punishing the taxes were as his company grew.

After the fall of the Soviet Union, Art "returned" to Estonia. He purchased a remote estate on the Baltic Sea and moved his company headquarters to the capital city of Tallinn. Like his rival Mikhail, he took advantage of the economic opportunities of the fall of Communism to purchase assets at a discount. Karpen Investments became a powerhouse in the next decade.

The Estonian Government needed capital, and Art helped them attract it by pushing growth-oriented policies. Estonia established a low income and corporate tax rate, no taxes on retained earnings (only dividend distributions), and no estate tax. These policies would allow Karpen Investments to transfer to the family members without losing half of it to the taxman.

The atmosphere on the Elements was different. The death of the centuries-old switcher shocked everyone. Art had been a constant presence in their lives. No one sat in his chair at the table as we ate lunch; perhaps no one ever would.

As for the mess in Russia, it wasn't as bad as I thought. Vasili had talked to the investigators, and since we were not suspects, no warrants were issued. Zach and I both refused to return to Russia but consented to video interviews with the investigators. I sat in Art's renovated office with one of Zach's lawyers and gave my story. I didn't have much to say. We drove towards the dacha, helicopters flew over us and blew up the bridge, and Vasili took us to safety. Since we didn't know if we were the intended targets, we got the hell out of Russia.

Without a body to bury at sunset that night, the entire crew turned out on the fantail for a brief funeral service. The Captain officiated the service, in which Art's family spoke of him as a loving father and grandfather. I told of my respect for him and his courage in death. The youngest of the crew tossed a ring of flowers into the water as paparazzi in boats nearby filmed us.

I met with Zach and his people later that night in the hastily-repaired main office. I looked around at everyone before taking a seat on the couch. "Are we good?"

"We'll be fine," Zach said. "Art's actions proved his intentions towards the other Switchers, and that cooperation will continue with me. Anything you need is yours, John. The resources of my company are at your disposal should you need them."

I nodded, happy that Zach was taking charge. He and I had fought and bled together, and I respected him. "What about Edward and Alexandra?"

"They feel the same," he replied. "Alexandra apologized for doubting Art. He died defending her, and she has pledged to assist all Switchers with anything we need."

"And her company?"

"We will all make money off it as the stock price recovers. Our people will ensure Vadim is blamed instead of Alexandra, and those investigations will close. Karpen Investments will vote in a block with Alexandra and Edward to vote in her slate of Directors. Vadim's death and duplicity killed any support his group had to block Alexandra from the top spot."