The president heard the ambassador just outside the door, exchanging pleasantries with Ivan. "And how is your niece, Ivan?"

"Much better, Mr. Ambassador. Back at home now."

"Very good to hear."

The door opened, and Ivan looked at the president. "The American ambassador, sir." The president could see Ivan's eyes stray for just an instant to the cloth-draped assembly at the side of the room, and Ivan made a small nod, probably unconsciously. He looked relieved.

The president put on his most obsequious smile. "Yes, show him in, Ivan. Thank you." He rose from his chair and walked around his desk, his hand held outward, and said in English, "Good to see you as always, Mr. Kenner. I am sure any problems with your Senate can be dealt with successfully."

Trotting up the marble steps of the People's House and stopping on them, two busloads of army soldiers, in blue and yellow formal dress uniforms, designed (so the story went) by Dimitri Gerov himself, using the colors of the Irkhetnian flag adopted after the country's withdrawal from the Soviet Union, assembled in four lines of twenty-six men each, from top to bottom of the steps, two of the lines, one behind the other, facing the other two lines, with a five meter wide space between. All one-hundred-odd men stood at attention, rifles at port arms, giving the appearance of being an honor guard. People walking up and down the steps between the lines looked self-conscious, but not especially alarmed, generally assuming some formal ceremony was about to take place. Perhaps an important foreign visitor was about to be received. Formal ceremonies were fairly commonplace at the People's House.

At the top of the steps, in the shadow of the entrance, General Anatoly Perelenko stood looking down the steps at his men, holding a cell phone to his ear.

Kenner shook the offered hand, sat in the seat in front of the desk, crossing one leg over the other, trying to look casually relaxed. He responded to the president's English greeting in Russian. "No doubt, Mr. President." Just about a minute, he thought. Give Ivan time to get away from the immediate area of the door so he can't burst back in in an instant. Kenner avoided looking towards the side of the room where the statues had been.

The president looked puzzled. Following Kenner's lead, he resumed the conversation in Russian. "I thought you said General Perelenko was with you."

"He'll be along," Kenner offered vaguely.

The president shrugged. "Well, tell me the problem. Is there information you need from me? I would have thought General Perelenko could handle that on his own."

Kenner stood, put his hands in his pockets, and began slowly pacing. "Well, from the information we have, it appears most of the senators would be satisfied with a statement of exactly how the jets will be put to use."

The president's brow wrinkled. "Surely that is a question for Perelenko. And in any case, we can't know exactly how they will be used until they are needed to defend against a national emergency. It's hard to predict in advance what the nature of such an emergency might be."

Kenner had let his steps take him gradually closer to a bulky object at the side of the room, covered in a sheet. "I understand that. It may be more accurately said to be a matter of stating how they won't be used. Are you able to give assurances that they will be used only in a defensive manner?"

"Well, of course. Irkhetnia is not exactly in a position to start trying to conquer its neighbors..."

Kenner reached out quickly and jerked the cloth away, tossing it to the side. He heard the president behind him gasp, "What are you doing??"

Kenner's jaw dropped. Lord in Heaven, he thought to himself. Talk about cutting it close!

There was a girl -- the Irkhet girl Anya, the little statue he remembered, now sitting in a glass-enclosed tank half full of water, obviously being drained from another tank above her, which held sufficient remaining water to drown her. So this, Kenner thought, is what they came up with, at the president's demand. The girl was as motionless as she had been that night he had seen her before, her expression completely blank. Kenner wasn't sure she was still alive until he saw her chest slowly rise and fall.

He heard the president rushing up behind him, sputtering, "What makes you think..."

Kenner spun and held up one finger, as if he was a father stopping a child's tantrum. Remarkably, Gerov did stop, his eyes wide.

The president turned and rushed back to his desk, punching savagely at the intercom. "Ivan. Security detail. Armed. Now!"

Kenner held up his cell phone, already live in a connection to General Perelenko. "Don't do anything too rash, Mr. President. I have the U.S. State Department on the line." Pretending the phone connection went to his own people was a very effective safety net. The president would know that, no matter what the provocation, he had to be careful with any foreign ambassador whose government could hear what was happening to him.

Kenner glared at Gerov. "Where is Rachel Preston?"

The president was watching the door, waiting for his security men. "I don't even know who..."

Kenner turned towards the room's other door, the one behind the drowning tank. That has to be the one the nurses use, he realized. "What's behind that door, Mr. President?"

"You are very far overstepping the line, Mr. Ambassador. Immunity in no sense allows..."

Kenner strode forward and pulled the door open. It was unlocked. No reason to lock it on this side had been foreseen.

Inside the room behind the door, the decor matched reasonably closely what Kenner had expected. And in the center of the room, sitting upright on a table, facing him...

His hand shaking, Kenner raised the cell phone to his mouth, and choked out a single word in English. "Confirmed."

He heard Perelenko respond in Russian, "Coming," followed by the general issuing orders to his men. A clatter of running boots ensued.

Kenner watched as three women rushed out of different doors at the back and far side of the room, and stopped just beyond the doors, staring at the unknown intruder with stunned expressions. Kenner held up his hand, palm outwards, in a "stop" gesture. He hoped it looked friendly rather than threatening.

Dimitri Gerov never took long to make decisions.

He knew that it was all over. Thousands of miles away, the United States Government, listening to Rudy Kenner's phone, already knew what Gerov had done with one of its citizens.

He had planned for this day -- not these exact circumstances, but he knew things would fall apart someday. They always do. Nothing lasts forever. It was time to transition to the next phase of his life.

He pulled his own cell phone from his pocket, thumbed in a number, and said, "Code one one six. Repeat. One one six. Say that back to me."

He heard the voice from the other end of the connection say, "One one six. Yes, sir." He thumbed the End button. Taking a last look around the room and sighing, he quickly exited through the door. He could hear a commotion down the hall. Probably his security team coming. Too late, he thought, for them to do any good. Should have stationed them closer. He turned in the opposite direction and headed down the hall.

The nurses all looked terrified. Kenner's throat had tightened to the point where he wasn't sure he could speak. He moved around the table on which Rachel Preston sat, partly to avoid looking at the nude Preston, knowing she was powerless to hide herself. He cleared his throat and said in Russian, "Where is Raisa Grozneva?"

One of the nurses gasped and looked close to collapsing. She stammered out tearfully, "Please, sir, please, Tatyana didn't have anything to do with it. I sent the message. She didn't know it was coming. She didn't know anything about it. Please don't hurt her!" The other two spun towards her and stared, their jaws hanging loose. One whispered, "What message??"

Behind him, beyond the door, a group of men burst into the president's office. One came through the open door to the nurses' ward, gun drawn. He stopped, looking confused. In a voice both threatening and puzzled, he asked, "Where is the president?"

Kenner looked at the man in genuine surprise. "Isn't he in there?"

The man aimed his gun at Kenner. "Turn to face me. Hold your hands out away from your body."

A second squad of men ran in through the same door the first had used. As they came into view, Kenner saw the parade uniforms, the rifles held ready, aimed at various members of the first group. He smiled. He heard Perelenko's voice shouting, "Stand down!"

The first group of men, looking shocked, lowered their weapons, recognizing superior authority -- not so much that of the general, as imposing as he might be, but the greater number of men with the firepower of Kalashnikovs against a smaller number with handguns. The one facing Kenner in the nurses' ward said slowly, "What the hell is going on?" He put his gun down quickly as a rifle was pointed at him.

Perelenko looked into the ward from the doorway. "Everything under control, Rudy?" He saw Rachel, and looked away in embarrassment. "Is that her?"

The nurse standing beside Raisa Grozneva said, barely audibly, "Who are you people?"

Kenner turned to her. "My name is Rudolph Kenner. I am the ambassador to Irkhetnia from the United States."

The nurse, her face instantly pale, went helplessly down on both knees. Beside her, Raisa fainted altogether, collapsing in a heap on the floor.

The third nurse knelt to help Raisa. Kenner smiled at the one who'd spoken. "I'll explain everything, but there's something I need to do first."

He came back around in front of Rachel, trying not to stare at her breasts. As with the other girl, he could tell she was alive, now that he was close enough to see her breathing. Her face was as frozen as the rest of her, her eyes unable to look up at him. Squatting down to bring his face to her eye level, he said in English, "Rachel, I don't know if you remember seeing me. It was hard to tell if you did see me. My name is Rudolph Kenner. I was here that night, when you were statues." Surprising himself, he found his eyes were filling with tears. "I've come to take you home."

Okay, I'm dreaming, thought Rachel. But I still can't move. Usually I can move in my dreams.

There wasn't any of the feeling of a dream. The cushion was soft enough to lie on, but it was hurting her butt to sit up on it in one posture for so long. She concentrated on the ache. It felt exactly like a butt ache should feel. She decided tentatively this might really be happening.

I do remember him now, she thought. Maybe he doesn't remember I had my eyes closed, but I know his voice. So does that mean it's real? Or does it mean I'm dreaming?

Anya!! Oh God, where is Anya?? Is the water still running in? Look, don't just stand there staring at me! Go help Anya!

Kenner pointed at the one nurse not occupied, the one who'd spoken to him. "Oh, you'd better go bring the other one in here." The woman hurried off into the other room.

Perelenko said, "Where is the president, Rudy? Over the phone I heard you talking to him, so I know he was here."

Kenner looked up at him and blinked. "Why is everybody asking where the president is? Either he's in there, or you ran into him on the way down here."

"No sign of him." He looked back into the president's office, where one of his men shook his head and shrugged.

He unclipped a walkie-talkie from his belt, and said into it, "Petrosyan, secure the main entrance, and all other exits. Twenty men should be enough. Let anyone enter and leave, except detain the president. Tell him he is under arrest."

Kenner could hear a voice respond, "Sir, three helicopters just took off from the roof, all going in different directions."

Perelenko made an exasperated gesture. "Shit!" He spoke into the device again. "Contact the airport. I want radar tracking."

"Will do, sir, but they were all flying low to the ground. I don't think they'll be on radar."

Perelenko rolled his eyes. "Over and out." He looked at Kenner. "Well, at least you got your bird. I missed mine. For now."

The nurse returned holding the smaller girl, still dripping water from her legs, and set her down on the table facing Rachel.

Raisa was back on her feet now, still pale, partly supported by the third nurse. "Mr. Ambassador...?"

He turned to her. "Yes, Raisa?"

"There's something I couldn't put in the message. It was just too dangerous, in case the wrong people found it... Is the president really not in there?"

Kenner looked at Perelenko, who checked at the door and turned back. Perelenko said to Kenner, "Not unless he's found a way to make himself invisible. I'm going to guess he had to be in one of those helicopters."

Kenner looked back at Raisa, who seemed to be getting a little of her color back. Raisa asked, "Is there a laptop computer on his desk?"

Kenner had seen it. He nodded.

"Well, look for another one, in a drawer in the desk. It's really important. We think... well, Rachel told us the president had a big organization dealing in illegal drugs. And the information about it should be on that hidden laptop. That's all I know."

Kenner looked at her, his brow deeply furrowed. "What?"

Raisa threw up her hands. "Look, really, all I know is what I just said. But it can't hurt to look for it."

Kenner looked at Perelenko, who said, "Somehow it wouldn't surprise me." He went through the door into the office.

Kenner heard a locked drawer rattling, and a hushed conversation. There followed a loud pounding, and a crashing sound. One of the men said, "There we go."

Perelenko returned, holding a laptop, and showed it to Raisa. "Is this it?"

"I never saw it, sir. I only know what Rachel said."

Perelenko said to Kenner, "I'll have a hardware expert and a data transfer man look at it. It may be password protected, and it could be rigged to wipe the hard drive if the wrong person uses it. If anything can be recovered, we should know by tomorrow, I hope."

Kenner said, "Okay, let me make arrangements to get Miss Preston out of here." He ended the unneeded phone connection to the man who was now standing in the room with him and scrolled down to the embassy number on the contact list. While the phone rang at the other end, he said, "We also need to figure out somehow where Miss... errr, Anya belongs."

Zlata suddenly realized Rachel and Anya were about to be separated. All she could think about was the three-blink signal constantly exchanged by both girls. About Anya telling her that she had no one in her life but Rachel. She said quickly, "Mr. Ambassador, sir, Anya belongs with Rachel! You need to keep them together!"

The ambassador put down his phone. "Together? Why?"

Zlata's mind spun with different arguments. She knew how Rachel and Anya felt about each other, but realized that might not be enough. "She told me they're family. They're... I didn't get this for sure, I think they might be cousins. Anya was going to go back to America with Rachel."

The ambassador blinked. "She told you. Oh! You must be Zlata."

Zlata gaped at him. "Ummm... Zlata Chermanova, yes sir. How did you... Oh." She looked at Raisa.

Raisa smiled weakly. "I got a note to my cousin, Tatyana. I was afraid to tell you, afraid it wouldn't work and we'd all be in trouble." She looked at the ambassador. "Is Tatyana okay?"

The ambassador smiled at her. "She was playing chess with my receptionist when I left."

Raisa giggled.

He turned back to Zlata. "Family, you say? Are you sure?"

Zlata decided she was as far out on that limb as she wanted to go. A different tack had occurred to her. "I don't know anything about them for sure, sir, except for one thing. I think Rachel must be right about the drug dealing. I think knowing about that must be what got her in trouble in the first place. If it's all true, you really owe a huge debt to her." She looked him directly in the eye, somehow seeming in that moment to be the one authority figure in the room. "And she'll never forgive you if you take her away and leave Anya behind."

Kenner stared at her for several seconds. Then he nodded. He put his phone to his ear, and heard a puzzled David Branch asking, as if worried about the extended lack of response, "Rudy, you there?"

He spoke in Russian, so that Zlata would understand. "Here, David. I'm going to want to evacuate two patients to... well, see if we can get them cleared for the hospital at Ramstein Air Base, in Germany. And send Dr. Shayes here, please." Ellen Shayes was the chief medical officer assigned to the embassy.

"Two?? You found them both?"

"Not Amanda Forrest, if that's what you mean. I have Rachel Preston, and the other girl here, Anya. We'll get the last name later. But clear them both for Ramstein."

"This Anya isn't a citizen, is she?"

"I'll take responsibility. Get as far as you can without raising that question, and refer any problems with it to me."

"On it."

Zlata spoke up again. "If you have a doctor coming, maybe he could look at Larisa?"

"Where is Larisa?"

Zlata led him to the door of Larisa's room. "I think she's in trouble. She's been curled up like that and hasn't moved all morning. Since we set up..." She pointed back to the office, looking uncomfortable. "You know."

"I'll make sure Dr. Shayes looks at her." He looked at Raisa. "Did you find out anything about Amanda Forrest? That would be the 'Mandiy' you mentioned in the message. Did Rachel ever say where she is?"

Raisa looked at the others, and shook her head along with them. "We just guess she's probably still at the prison."

Perelenko said, "I can check on that. Which prison was it?"

Zlata looked at the ceiling, searching her memory for the name. "Trevachevski."

Perelenko rolled his eyes. "I was afraid of that."

Kenner gave him a worried look. "Why, what's wrong?"

"It's Gerov's special prison. It's a military prison, but it's outside my chain of command."

Kenner gaped at him. "How is anything military 'outside your chain of command'?"

"That's just how it was. The commandant of that prison reports to Gerov personally." Looking uncomfortable, he went on, "I'm not even sure exactly where the place is. I believe I can find people who would probably know. Meanwhile I should work on putting together a statement about the situation to go out on television."

The third of the nurses spoke up. "Sir? General?" Perelenko nodded, and she went on, "I think I can find it. We went there once, and I'm really good at remembering places I've been. We'd have to fly there in helicopters, though, the way I went before. I wouldn't know what roads to use, and it's way up in the mountains. I don't think there's any roads that go all the way."

Kenner bit his lip. "Anatoly, I understand about the announcement, but is there any way you could give this priority? We don't know where Gerov is, and I'm sure he feels cornered. He might decide to go to this prison and hold Forrest as a hostage, for leverage. If he's trying to get there underneath the radar, you might beat him there." He looked at the nurse. "You must be Veronika."

She smiled. "Yes, sir."

"Could you draw the general a map of how to get there?"

She shook her head. "I'd have to see landmarks along the way. And my medical training can help. There could be women there in bad shape. Don't trust the prison doctor." She spoke emphatically. "He's a monster."

Kenner gave Perelenko a pleading look. "This may be the only way to protect Forrest. And your last chance to find Gerov."

Perelenko took out his cell phone. "I'll order up three helicopters. I'm making a guess that thirty armed men should be sufficient. I'll need to leave most of my men here to keep this building secure." He looked at Veronika. "And yes, you come along too."