Read Online The Boy Who Glowed in the Dark by Orest Stelmach - Free Book Online
Authors: Orest Stelmach
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she said.
She turned and bustled toward a man in a suit and tie standing near the gate to the airplane.
Bobby took his phone out of his pocket and dropped it on the floor. He fell to his knees to pick it up. He scooped the phone up, kept his body bent, and ducked out of sight behind a group of passengers. Followed them back toward the restroom.
An unmarked door burst open along the wall. Two uniformed policemen emerged. One held a two-way radio close to his mouth. The other held his hand on the gun in his holster. They hustled toward gate nine.
Bobby marched past them into the men’s room.
A businessman with a briefcase was trying to open the stall Bobby had locked from the inside. Then a toilet flushed, a man stepped out of an adjacent stall, and the businessman took his place.
Bobby hoisted himself to the top of the door and climbed into the stall. His bag was sitting on the toilet seat exactly where he’d left it. He took off his cap, let his hair fall to his shoulders, and changed back into his original clothes. When he was done, he pulled out his cell phone and called Nadia.
“Where are you?” she said.
“Men’s room.”
“I thought so. I saw you go in but I didn’t see you come out.”
“Good.”
“Good?”
“Yeah, good.”
“I’m confused. All hell’s broken loose here. First a couple of cops showed up. Then six guys in suits joined them. Had to be TSA or Homeland Security or something like that. They broke into two teams of four and guess what they did?”
“Arrested the two guys?”
“They took them away. I’m guessing someone managed to accuse them of a crime of some sorts and they were hauled away for questioning. Is this your handiwork?”
“Nah. I’m just a constipated kid stuck in the bathroom.”
“You want to tell me how you managed that?”
“Later.”
“Two more Port Authority cops showed up at gate nine. They talked to an agent—a large woman, looked like she was in charge. Then they went around the waiting areas—with the agent—as though they were looking for someone.”
Bobby looked down at his bag. His green fleece protruded from a gap in his duffel bag. He stuffed it inside and zipped the bag shut.
“They’re looking for someone who doesn’t exist.” He checked his watch. “Our flight is boarding. Meet you on the plane.”
The two Port Authority cops and the agent from gate nine were searching for him in the corridor, shops, and waiting areas.
None of them even noticed the well-dressed young man that walked by them. He looked like an entitled rich kid from Manhattan, not like a con artist’s son from Chornobyl.
CHAPTER 11
N ADIA CALLED S IMEON Simeonovich from the plane. He wasn’t available so she left a message with his assistant that she would be on a plane for thirteen hours and she would call back.
The Russian oligarch had recently retained Nadia’s services as a forensic security analyst to scrub the books of a Ukrainian energy company he wanted to buy. Nadia had travelled to Kyiv on his behalf and met with the company. She’d also investigated Bobby’s past during the same trip, and discovered the backstory behind his arrest for murder in New York. That information had helped Johnny win the case.
Simeonovich was forty-two years old, divorced with two young children, and dating a twenty-seven-year-old Russian socialite. Still, they weren’t married and Simmy, as his friends called him, was one of the world’s most eligible bachelors. He was the opposite of what Nadia had expected—understated and humble. He’d helped Nadia and her brother get out of Ukraine when they’d feared for their lives. Simmy had expressed interest in seeing Nadia again in New York. They’d shared instant chemistry.
Nadia called him again an hour later. She was put on hold for less than ten seconds.
“Where are you?” Simmy said.
“Not sure. Somewhere over Canada?”
“Where are you headed?”
“I’m afraid I have to postpone our dinner plans
She turned and bustled toward a man in a suit and tie standing near the gate to the airplane.
Bobby took his phone out of his pocket and dropped it on the floor. He fell to his knees to pick it up. He scooped the phone up, kept his body bent, and ducked out of sight behind a group of passengers. Followed them back toward the restroom.
An unmarked door burst open along the wall. Two uniformed policemen emerged. One held a two-way radio close to his mouth. The other held his hand on the gun in his holster. They hustled toward gate nine.
Bobby marched past them into the men’s room.
A businessman with a briefcase was trying to open the stall Bobby had locked from the inside. Then a toilet flushed, a man stepped out of an adjacent stall, and the businessman took his place.
Bobby hoisted himself to the top of the door and climbed into the stall. His bag was sitting on the toilet seat exactly where he’d left it. He took off his cap, let his hair fall to his shoulders, and changed back into his original clothes. When he was done, he pulled out his cell phone and called Nadia.
“Where are you?” she said.
“Men’s room.”
“I thought so. I saw you go in but I didn’t see you come out.”
“Good.”
“Good?”
“Yeah, good.”
“I’m confused. All hell’s broken loose here. First a couple of cops showed up. Then six guys in suits joined them. Had to be TSA or Homeland Security or something like that. They broke into two teams of four and guess what they did?”
“Arrested the two guys?”
“They took them away. I’m guessing someone managed to accuse them of a crime of some sorts and they were hauled away for questioning. Is this your handiwork?”
“Nah. I’m just a constipated kid stuck in the bathroom.”
“You want to tell me how you managed that?”
“Later.”
“Two more Port Authority cops showed up at gate nine. They talked to an agent—a large woman, looked like she was in charge. Then they went around the waiting areas—with the agent—as though they were looking for someone.”
Bobby looked down at his bag. His green fleece protruded from a gap in his duffel bag. He stuffed it inside and zipped the bag shut.
“They’re looking for someone who doesn’t exist.” He checked his watch. “Our flight is boarding. Meet you on the plane.”
The two Port Authority cops and the agent from gate nine were searching for him in the corridor, shops, and waiting areas.
None of them even noticed the well-dressed young man that walked by them. He looked like an entitled rich kid from Manhattan, not like a con artist’s son from Chornobyl.
CHAPTER 11
N ADIA CALLED S IMEON Simeonovich from the plane. He wasn’t available so she left a message with his assistant that she would be on a plane for thirteen hours and she would call back.
The Russian oligarch had recently retained Nadia’s services as a forensic security analyst to scrub the books of a Ukrainian energy company he wanted to buy. Nadia had travelled to Kyiv on his behalf and met with the company. She’d also investigated Bobby’s past during the same trip, and discovered the backstory behind his arrest for murder in New York. That information had helped Johnny win the case.
Simeonovich was forty-two years old, divorced with two young children, and dating a twenty-seven-year-old Russian socialite. Still, they weren’t married and Simmy, as his friends called him, was one of the world’s most eligible bachelors. He was the opposite of what Nadia had expected—understated and humble. He’d helped Nadia and her brother get out of Ukraine when they’d feared for their lives. Simmy had expressed interest in seeing Nadia again in New York. They’d shared instant chemistry.
Nadia called him again an hour later. She was put on hold for less than ten seconds.
“Where are you?” Simmy said.
“Not sure. Somewhere over Canada?”
“Where are you headed?”
“I’m afraid I have to postpone our dinner plans
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