“And both of those times you were there for a party, right?” A.J. asked, finally connecting the dots to “The Count,” and great, now he had Sesame Street’s Dracula in his head.
“Yeah. I assume the Volkovs had some government officials in their pocket to allow them into the space after hours. But I attended two masquerade birthday parties down there. The first time I was there it was for a twelve-year-old’s Dracula-themed party. And the last time, was—and I can’t believe I forgot this—for Grigory freaking Volkov. Not that I knew any of their last names at the time. But it was Grigory’s sixteenth birthday.” She visibly cringed. “The celebration was for him, of course, not me.” She covered her mouth for a moment as if ashamed she’d suppressed the memory before now.
“Are you saying we should visit the labyrinths open to the public? Then once down there, try and locate the Volkovs’ secret tunnel network they were once operating, hoping those tunnels lead us to wherever some of the remaining Volkovs might be hiding?” A.J. asked.
“Yes, but also . . .” Ana let go of a deep breath. “What if the night of that first birthday party, my parents used that as cover to steal the ledger and key from Adrik before attending the party? Maybe one of those tunnels was near his home, or a secret compound or something?”
“Do you remember where you first entered the tunnel system that wasn’t on the official tour?” A.J. asked. “And where their tunnels connected with the public labyrinth?”
“I just remember we went in by a river one time, and then the other time was by a road. Very vague and unhelpful. I’m sorry.” Her brows scrunched with apology. “But maybe one of those exterior entrances is close to where Adrik had lived.” She huffed out a frustrated breath as if worried her theory would crumble before it even got wind in its sails.
“And are you suggesting your parents then hid the originals somewhere in the secret tunnels system, right under Adrik’s nose? And they did that three months later, on the night of Grigory’s birthday?” It was a long shot, but maybe? Why wouldn’t an urban legend such as the existence of a coded ledger be in a secret tunnel network that dated to prehistoric times? Fuuuck this is a lot to take in.
“That’s my best guess as to how a second ledger resurfaced fifteen years later. The Volkovs found it somewhere near where they may have been in hiding, which gave them the confidence to begin resurfacing.” Ana peeked toward the table as if looking for an assist. How much had they discussed while he’d been asleep? All of this couldn’t have been talked about during the three minutes he was gone to change.
“We don’t even know for certain if Adrik is dead,” Harper pointed out. “He may have remained in hiding since he’d always operated out of Hungary instead of in the U.S. where most of the Volkov spies were killed by the Russians.”
“And Grigory is the face of the organization to protect Adrik until they have both the key and ledger,” Roman elaborated on their new theory.
“And then Ana became their miracle, offering a path to the key.” A.J. braced the back of his neck and squeezed the tension. He’d need a chiropractor after this mission. “But why go back and hide the ledger and key there? That’s the part that still doesn’t make sense,” he drawled, his Southern accent deepening with his concern for Ana.
“There’s one possibility.” Roman stood and crossed his tanned arms as if ready to stand his ground on what he believed. As long as Dracula and harems didn’t come back up, A.J. was all ears. “Ana’s parents only planned on borrowing the ledger and key until copies were made, after which they’d return both to where they belonged before Adrik discovered her parents were the ones who’d taken them. Or maybe before Adrik was even aware they were missing.”
“But it took them longer than they anticipated to forge the copies,” Ana continued. “Knowing my parents, they wanted the book for themselves. Blackmail Russians, or more likely, the dirty American officials who’d been bribed into working for the SVR, for a huge payday.”
“Maybe they wanted to remain loyal to Adrik Volkov, while also making a few bucks on the side,” Chris joined in on the theorizing, stroking his jaw in thought.
“But rumors began pointing to my parents, which meant they needed a new plan, one that would protect them from Adrik’s wrath,” Ana said. “So, the night of Grigory’s party, they hid the ledger and key separately, in two different places, but never got a chance to anonymously tell Adrik the locations because they were killed within a week of returning home.”
A.J.’s shoulders slumped. “One question.” And wow, he was surprised his brain was working with only one-third of his coffee down. “Why would they risk showing their faces in Budapest, let alone go to Grigory’s party, if rumors were circulating they were the thieves?”
“The rumors about who took the ledger and key—did you ever confirm them yourself, or did you learn about them from Porter?” Harper rose, her forehead tightening as if working through a problem. “You see a report or anything?”
Ana stole a look at Harper. “Porter’s source, who told him about the rumors, died in prison. But no, he didn’t show me his interview notes. I don’t know how Porter first acquired that source or why the man ended up in prison, either. The entire Volkov case became classified after my parents died, and Porter said it had been to not only protect me but to protect any sources still working with the Bureau since it was believed there were dirty agents among them.” She paused for a breath. “But why would Porter lie?”
“To explain his theory to you without confessing how he really knew your parents had the ledger and key,” Roman said, his tone deepening. “We may not have the answer to that yet, as to how Porter knew . . . but we do know that your parents would never have shown up at that party a week before they died if they were aware Adrik was on to them as the thieves.”
Right. A.J. had never considered that theory. But who knew what lies Porter told Ana to gain her trust? Well, if he did lie. There was so much speculation and theory it was coming out of his ears. Man, he was growing dizzy. No bumps on the head needed to explain it.
“I’m not prepared to accept Porter as a Russian spy.” Ana turned, tearing her hands through her hair. “We need to talk to him tomorrow. And Anthony has to have answers, and I believe he’ll talk to me. He was always kind. Brought me a trinket every time he visited.” She smiled as if a happy memory had come to mind. “But, um, we’ll know a lot more after the meeting.” She slowly turned around, her eyes moving to everyone in the room before landing on A.J. last. “Either way, I’m certain the labyrinth will be where Grigory proposes we meet. Sort of brings us full circle. And then we can try and find out if Adrik is still alive.”
“And if he is alive, the man would be as important, if not more valuable, to the FBI than the ledger,” Roman commented. “It’s possible the Russians would want him just as much as they’d want the book.”
“If he’s still alive,” Harper reminded him, eyes on Roman, and the way she peered at him made A.J. feel like the two of them were having a telepathic conversation, reading each other’s thoughts.