The cheap motel room was not the type of lodging that Anatoly Putchin had become accustomed to since coming to the United States. Over the last few years the former KGB agent had grown accustomed to staying in the finest hotels as he had quickly risen through the ranks of the Russian mafia. Tonight his shabby surroundings were the least of his concerns as he worked on his laptop to find information on a man that, until today, he had thought was dead.
Ten years ago, Ezra Simpson been presumed dead after a shoot out in Hong Kong had ended in an explosion that had taken out half the dock. Three days earlier, two CIA agents had broken into the Soviet consulate, killing two guards and stealing several important documents in Anatoly Putchin’s possession. His superiors had blamed the theft on his security measures and charged him with returning the documents or else.
Putchin found witness to the crime who had been able to identify Simpson as one of two men seen leaving the embassy after the theft. Putchin had tracked the American agent to a pier where he had been attempting to board a ship leaving the island. Simpson managed to elude capture but was shot in the leg while escaping leaving a blood trail to which Putchin had followed into one a warehouse on the edge of the dock. Before he could bring in the agent the warehouse had gone up in flames. It was never determined what had caused the massive explosion but everyone had agreed that Simpson was dead. The retrieval of a badly burnt corpse and the disappearance of the agent in question seemed to support this conclusion.
Simpson’s partner was never identified and the documents were never recovered. Anatoly Putchin’s career had been ruined. He blamed Simpson for the destruction of his career and the ultimate fall of the Soviet Union. That such a premise was an insane leap of logic never occurred to Putchin.
Today, Anatoly Putchin had discovered that Simpson was still alive. He meant to correct that situation as soon as possible.
After several hours Putchin managed to break in to the ATF computer system. The task had taken longer than he had expected. Someone with a considerable skill had installed several safeguards and firewalls in the system. He eventually was able to access the personnel files of the agents working in the Denver office. Through a painstaking search he found what he was looking for, Ezra Standish undercover FBI agent assigned to ATF Team Seven. Putchin accessed the personnel files for the other agents on the team: Larabee, Tanner, Sanchez, Jackson, Wilmington, andDunne.
Anatoly smiled as he stared at the picture of Ezra Standish. Soon he would have his revenge on the former CIA agent who had wronged him ten years ago and on those who had dared to try and trap him today. Smiling again, Anatoly began to plan his first move.
After speaking with Ezra on the phone, Clayton Webb made plans to get to Denver as soon as possible. From what he remembered, Putchin was unstable at the best of times. If he were out for revenge there would be no way to predict how or where he would strike. In their last mission together Ezra and Clayton went up against Putchin. That mission earned Clayton a promotion, cost Putchin his career, and almost cost Ezra his life. Ezra nearly bled to death before he had pulled him out of that warehouse. A convenient stash of fireworks and a little C-4 provided the perfect cover for their escape.
That turned out to be Ezra’s last mission with the CIA. He was laid up in the hospital for three months recovering from Putchin’s bullet. After the incident in Hong Kong, Ezra was taken off the field roster and assigned to a desk. A little over a month later, Ezra had resigned from the CIA and enrolled in the FBI academy using his real name. Ezra Simpson, CIA agent, was dead and buried. According to his personnel file, Ezra Standish had spent the last two years traveling the world in the company of his rich cousin.
Clayton kept in touch with his cousin over the years. He and Ezra were close as children. Whenever Ezra was kicked out of one of those expensive boarding schools, Maude had left Ezra with the Webb’s until she could arrange for him to attend a new school. After finishing college, Clayton had recruited his cousin to join him at the CIA. They had been partners for 17 months. Ezra thought he had found a home within the CIA only to have it taken from him Putchin’s bullet. The FBI never allowed him the opportunity to make himself a home with them. Larabee and his team had accepted him into their ranks as a brother. It had taken a long time before Ezra had allowed himself to acknowledge that home. After so many disappointments he was afraid that it would be taken away from him like all the others. Eventually he had accepted his place with them. For the first time in a long time Ezra had a home and a place where he truly belonged. Clayton was not going to let anyone take that away from Ezra this time.
Before making any plans, Clayton had a long talk with the director. He was informed that what he did with his vacation time was his business and not to expect any help from within the company. Anatoly Putchin was out of the game as far as the CIA was concerned. They were willing to let the FBI and ATF deal with him as best they could.
After his meeting, Clayton finalized his trip to Denver by calling in a few favors. By tomorrow morning, FBI agents Stone and Blackwell would be assigned a new case. Without company resources to pull from, he was going to have to find someone to back him up. Putchin had undoubtedly begun researching Team Seven. He needed someone to help him that Putchin would not recognize. With that in mind Clayton Webb made his way to Falls Church Virginia to the office of the Navy’s Judge Advocate General.