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He slowly nodded and covered the picture

Her husband…?

"Why would she do that?" Kat asked She stared at him with a bit more focused intent "Draw such a picture"

Yuri stared back at the girl His heart pounded harder, and his vision narrowed It was Sasha’s drawings that had saved the man’s life And now here was the same man’s wife It was beyond coincidence, outside probable chance What was going on?

"Dr Raev?" the wo to answer by the flutter of tiny lashes Sasha’s eyes opened, revealing their watery blue depths Yuri scooted closer The woaze unfocused But her heart-shaped face turned toward Yuri "Unchi Pepe…?"

That nah him He flashed to a dark aisle in a cold church, to a child clutching a rag doll before a stone altar, staring up at him with the same blue eyes

Here were the same words The saele, the Butcher of Auschwitz

He took Sasha’s hand, knocking loose the blood pressure ain

Tears blurred his vision

Her tiny fingers clamped weakly to him Her lids fluttered "Papa…Papa Yuri…?"

"Yes," he whispered "I’m here, baby I won’t leave you"

Her lips ers relaxed and slipped from his "Marta…Marta’s scared…"

11:50 PM

Southern Ural Mountains

The body was still warm, but the blood was cold

The kill was an hour or so old

Lieutenant Borsakov lifted his palrabbed an ear, and tugged up The other earthis cat as Arkady

He dropped it and stood

In his other hand, Borsakov carried his sidear it was chaer than 9 n of the cat

Behind him, the old ibza still smoked and smoldered

Impressed at the escape, he crossed back to the airboat A pilot and two other soldiers sat aboard, bearing assault rifles, covering him The headlaiant fan at the back of the craft slowly spun as the pilot idled its engine

Borsakov climbed back aboard and waved theine whined, the fan spun to a gale, and they sailed away froe and headed back out into the night The hunt would have been easier if they’d had the use of infrared scopes or night-vision goggles, but Borsakov had discovered so the past day and daed their limited equipment

Either the American or the children

They’d known they would be hunted

"Should we not report in with General-Major Martov?" his second in command asked and reached to the teaeneral-h the swamp

He would call when the Alanced back to the island, to the s ruins and dead cat He pictured the American and what he had accoet his training?

6:02 PM

Washington, DC

Trent McBride lifted the phone’s receiver to his ear They’d allowed him to use a wall phone and patched his call to Mapplethorpe’s office Trent was under no illusion that the conversation would be private So

But that wouldn’t stop hi in a status report

After a few cursory exchanges with Mapplethorpe, Trent said, "It looks like the girl may survive"

If she had died, then there would be no reason to proceed

"Very good," Mapplethorpe answered A short and significant pause followed; then he spoke "How long until we know for sure?"

Trent checked his watch and calculated how much time he’d need "To be certain Six hours," he said