Alex closed her eyes. Now he made sense. It was only natural, she thought, that once he found out about the assassin he’d think it was her. She had kept the conversation she’d overheard between El-Hashim and the warden to herself.
When she opened her eyes again, she locked her gaze on his. In no uncertain terms, she said, “No. It is not me. The last thing I want is for that woman to be killed. She has information that’s very important to me personally.”
“So? You get information, then you kill.”
“No,” she told him, her voice rising. “My employers need to talk to her, too. None of us, none of us, wants her dead. Do you understand? If she dies, my time here has been wasted.”
The doctor looked uncertain. Irina said something to him and he looked at her, then glanced back at Alex before walking out of the cell and shutting her alone inside.
Cursing under her breath, Alex moved over to the door and pressed her ear against it, hearing only muffled voices.
This lasted maybe two minutes before all went silent.
Chapter Twenty-One
“Are you sure Petro is right about this?” Irina asked.
“He told me it was a rumor,” Teterya said. “But you know he’s always aware of what’s going on around here before the rest of us.”
“Even if he is right, that doesn’t mean this woman Powell is the killer.”
“She came into this prison simply to get close to A’isha Najem. Isn’t that proof enough?”
“But did you listen to her? Did you watch her? She wasn’t lying. I’m sure of it.”
“You can’t know that.”
Irina was silent for a moment. “You’re right. I can’t. But I have to believe it. And so do you.”
“What are you talking about?”
“If we don’t help her now, what do you think the people who sent her here are going to do?”
That stopped him. He knew very well what they would do. They would expose him and Irina, and the two of them would be arrested and undoubtedly given a severe sentence.
“So we go along with it?” he said. “What if she is the assassin?”
“If she kills Najem in the prison, the guards will get her, probably even kill her. You can say she coerced you, threatened your family. If she takes Najem out and kills her somewhere else, that’s not our problem. Don’t you see? We have no choice.”
Teterya felt faint. “I…I need some water.”
What he really needed was time to think, and since Irina knew him better than anyone, she didn’t follow him when he left the room.
Alex was all but certain Teterya and Irina were telling the guards right now that they had the assassin locked in an infirmary cell. When she heard someone grab the door handle on the other side, she stepped back, hoping to God that McElroy had some way of getting her out of this mess.
But instead of a squad of guards, it was just the doctor and the nurse. They stepped into the room, and Irina closed the door behind them as Teterya set a cloth bundle on the bed.
“Why is A’isha Najem important to you?” he asked.
Alex decided to be as forthcoming as possible. “That’s not her real name. The name I know her by is El-Hashim. I’m not sure that’s her real name, either. She launders money for terrorist organizations that then fund bombings and murders and God knows what else.”
“Then you do want to kill her.”
“No,” Alex said quickly. “Killing her serves nothing. If she’s alive, we can find out who she works with. She could be the key to unraveling a very large network. Who knows how many lives that could save?”
“Don’t understand,” Irina said.
The doctor translated for her, then said to Alex, “You said you have personal need to talk to her. Is same?”
Alex hesitated. “No.”
“What is it?”
“Like I said, it’s personal.”
“Tell me.”
“If you don’t mind, I’d rather not.”
Teterya considered her for several seconds. Then he pointed at the bundle on the bed. Clothes that looked very much like those being worn by Irina and the other nurse.
“Put them on,” he said.
He turned to the wall to give Alex some privacy.
“The guard staff is told you stay here for observation,” he continued. “Is standard. Happens many time. They never check.”
Alex slipped out of the gray dress. “What about your other nurse?”
“She work here only short time. Irina in charge and you Irina’s patient. Only Irina or me check you.”
Alex would have to take their word for that. She pulled on the nurse’s outfit.
“Okay,” she said.
The doctor turned back around.
“What about this?” She raised her bandaged arm.
The doctor said something to Irina, who left the room for a few seconds and returned with a thin, cream-colored sweater. Alex donned it. It would make her a bit hotter than necessary, but hiding the wound was worth the price. Irina moved in behind her and started pulling at Alex’s hair.
“Hey, what are you doing?” Alex asked.
“No move,” Irina told her.
She attacked Alex’s hair with a brush and comb and a few bobby pins, and in record time sculpted a whole new look. At least it felt different. When Irina was done, she took a step back and stared at Alex.
“So?” Alex asked.
“One moment.”
She disappeared again. This time she returned with a pair of black, thick-framed glasses and a nurse’s cap. She handed the glasses to Alex.
“Wear, please.”
Alex put them on, relieved that the prescription wasn’t too strong. There was only a minute distortion to her vision.
Irina fixed the cap to the top of Alex’s head. This time, after she checked her handiwork, she pulled a small mirror from her pocket and held it up so Alex could see.
Alex had to admit that for a quick change, it wasn’t a bad disguise. Still, she wasn’t confident it would work, and said as much to the doctor.
“Will be fine,” he told her. “We have many different staff come through infirmary. Some only work one time. Is too much for them.” He handed her a laminated badge. “Is pass for temporary employee. Clip to dress.”
She did so.
“Now take this.” He handed her a file. “When walking, look at this as much as possible. You are ready?”
“Sure,” Alex said. “Why not?”
Teterya led her to the locked back exit of the infirmary.
“Take care,” Irina told them.
Alex had the distinct impression the words were more for the doctor than for her.
They stepped through the doorway into a vacant hallway, moved quickly over to the central stairwell, and began their descent. They had nearly reached the first floor when the door below flew open and two guards walked in.
Alex immediately looked down at the file in her hands, pretending to study the sheet of paper attached to the cover. She felt acutely self-conscious, certain that her disguise would fool no one.
As the guards passed them heading up, one of them said something to Teterya. He responded with what sounded like a complaint, punctuated by an ironic laugh. The guards snickered as they continued their ascent without slowing.
Alex let out a breath.
When she and the doctor reached the first-floor landing, Teterya leaned in and whispered, “Stay close.”
The corridor was bustling with activity. There were several guards present, a few escorting prisoners. There were also a couple of men in suits— administrators, Alex guessed — walking toward the far end on the right.