“What do you dislike most of all?”

“When they try to corner me.”

(from Rina’s interview for magazine ‘Citizen’)

Nikolai received a call from Merinov at home exactly two hours later, when after a shower and breakfast he was lying on the couch with a laptop. In a businesslike tone, he reported that he had started looking for Rina and there was already some progress. In particular, it became known that the singer was seen on the morning of the disappearance at the bus stop. Nikolai described in detail the girl's clothes: wide brown trousers and a green blouse with large peas - adding that he had already left in that direction, and promised to report in half an hour. Victor Dimitrievich chuckled contentedly and reset his email address. Nikolai grinned when he saw that the mail was not personal: it means that not only Merinov will read the message.

Exactly half an hour later, Nikolai sent the first report from the same sofa: a photo of a plump young woman dressed in brown pants and a green blouse with large peas. In the photo, a stranger was weeding weeds in the garden, and chickens were walking around her. Nikolai briefly unsubscribed: the trail is false, because the dimensions of this woman clearly exceed the parameters of the desired object. And as proof, he sent two more pictures. One was Rina, photographed from the back. And on the other - a stranger bent over and exposed a voluminous fifth point covered with trousers. Nikolai attributed that he was forced to return and that he had already received other news about Rina. Merinov replied: ‘I'm waiting’.

An hour later, Nikolai sent the following report: scans from the singer's communities with versions of her fans. He selected the most unrealistic assumptions: for example, the trip of the celebrity to India to the yogis in order to purify the chakras, secret childbirth and going to a monastery. Nikolai finished the message with the phrase that he verifies the information. Merinov turned out to be more verbose this time and demonstrated the rudiments of irony: he asked if the detective was going to personally look for the singer from the yogis? Nikolai reassured Victor Dimitrievich by saying that he had acquaintances in India and that he had already sent them a request. He promised to get in touch in another hour and a half.

Promising to get in touch in an hour and a half, Nikolai went to the grocery store and to the pharmacy for bandages. When he returned home, he sent a message to Lev: ‘the horse pinched the eggs’, hoping that the Jaguar would draw an analogy with the horse and the surname Merinov. And if not, then at least the second part of the message will be understood. Jaguar was not slow to respond: ‘ours?’ Nikolai sent a friend a smiley face full of pain to make it clear whose. After answering: ‘I'm already calling the veterinarian,’ Nikolai realized that sometimes he needed to clarify with words. But, following the ‘animal’ theme, he sent another message: ‘Pulling the cat by the tail’. He meant that he was dragging out time as best he could, but in fact the situation was critical. The fact that the cryptographer is so-so, Nikolai was convinced when he received from Jaguar a question full of perplexities: ‘and what do cats have to do with it?’ And, imagining how Lev read the word ‘tail’, cursed and decided not to play with encryption.

At the appointed hour, Nikolai sent Merinov another report, attaching medical statements and photos dug up on the Internet for credibility. In the message, he wrote that the singer was not noticed in secret childbirth. She is not among the yogis either, because, as it turned out, she was fond of Pilates. And there is no news from the assistant who went to the convent to check the latest version. Merinov said nothing. It was already noon. Apparently, Victor Dimitrievich was having a meal, so Nikolai went to the kitchen with a clear conscience.

During lunch, he found a photo of Rina from everyday life on the Internet, started a new account on social networks and from it posted a concocted advertisement about the singer's search in several profile communities. At the appointed hour, Nikolai sent scans to Merinov, attributing that volunteers had joined the search for Rina.

Victor Dimitrievich didn’t answer.

Lev was also silent, and ignorance, coupled with inaction, drove him crazy. Jaguar asked not to make any sudden movements and wait for his return from Korea, but the situation became more complicated. Everything was aggravated by the fact that Nikolai didn’t know whether his phone was tapped or not, so he was afraid of ruining everything with one careless call. It remained to be hoped that Lev still understood his encryption and didn’t joke about the call to the ‘veterinarian’.

Trying to let off steam, Nikolai continued to come off on Merinov and an hour after the last ‘report’ sent a new one: full of delight that an incredible number of people reposted the announcement of the singer's disappearance! He finished the letter with the phrase that the assistant, sent to the monastery, prays together with the nuns for the health of Rina and her speedy return. And since not only volunteers joined the search, but also the heavenly chancellery, the chances of finding Rina have increased significantly!

Victor Dimitrievich remained silent, and Nikolai began to worry. Perhaps it would have been worth stopping there, but he again remembered Merinov's smug grin when he shook the green folder. So he went back to his computer, made a Photoshop banner with a photo of a bug-eyed dog with teeth sticking out like a fan, and wrote in large letters: ‘Rina! Come back! Shusha is waiting for you!’ Realizing that after this trick Merinov would pinch him not only in the balls, Nikolai still sent a banner to the Rina’s community, which caused a furor there. After that, he printed out the ad that had been slapped before, went down to the street and pasted it on a pole under the announcement of the disappearance of someone's old one-eyed cat. Then he took a picture of his ‘work’ and, closer to night, sent it to Merinov with a note that he had pasted these leaflets all over the district.

This time Victor Dimitrievich responded: he called and barked into the phone in a voice ringing with rage:

“Melnik, are you a complete idiot?!”

Nikolai smiled: trolling was a success, but the ‘bill’ will now be rolled into him unaffordable. Then he put the phone with the screaming Merinov on the table and went to cook dinner.

By nightfall, the seclusion became completely unbearable, and Nikolai decided to walk in the gathering dusk. It had been two days since Rina had been taken away, and he could no longer stand inaction.

On the street, despite the late hour, life was still in full swing: teenagers occupied swings and benches on the playground and buried each in their smartphone. A little further away, in a specially equipped place, dog walkers were walking their pets. Muffled music was coming from the night bar. Somewhere a car roared away with its engine. Someone was in a hurry to his entrance, someone, on the contrary, from home - to the convenience store. The neighborhood was new, well-maintained, although it was far from the center. Nikolai liked it here. Usually this place seemed to be quite a safe and secure oasis, but not today, when he was choking with anxiety. If not for the wounded side, which responded with pain even when walking slowly, Nikolai would have released some of the adrenaline while jogging.

He passed the ‘fortress wall’, as the residents dubbed the multi-entrance high-rise building, and walked along the sidewalk along the parked cars. Suddenly one of them, the color of which merged with the darkness, flashed its headlights and quietly moved after. The car was not picking up speed, it was going level with him. And when the glass from the passenger seat went down, Nikolai jerked to the side. That's the end of the game! Either Merinov himself rushed over, or he sent someone.

“Melnik! Kolya? Why are you so scared?” a familiar voice sounded through the slightly open window.

“Damn it!” Nikolai laughed when he saw Jaguar in the cabin. “That's right, jumped out like the devil out of a snuffbox! You can bring anyone to a heart attack! And even an unfamiliar car!”

“This is Yana’s, mine is sick. Are you going to stand there? Get in, let's talk!”

Nikolai squeezed into the cabin of a small car and clapped Lev on the shoulder as a greeting. Perhaps he had never been so glad to see a friend.

“You should still be in Korea!”

“We arrived earlier, changed tickets. Once, you say, they took you for… and what's wrong with your hand? Broke?”

“Hurt.”

“Where are you so?”

“Should I tell you the “official’ version or the truth?” Nikolai grinned.

“The truth,” Lev frowned. “Of course, the truth.”

They first walked through the streets of the microdistrict, then drove out onto a suburban highway.

“Where are we going?” Nikolai asked.

“To one quiet place where you can talk and eat delicious food.”

“I've already had dinner.”

“I'm not. Yana was very tired from the road, and of course I didn't bother her with cooking. At home, she likes to order all sorts of sushi and, oh, seaweed! And I want a great chop with a side dish, salad and something else! And Yana will have her own sushi holiday today, since she wants it so much. Fair enough? Fair enough! So you and I will have a quiet dinner and talk at Mikhail Svetakov’s Hunting Lodge.”

“Mikhail Svetakov?” Nikolai wrinkled his forehead, remembering where he had recently heard this name. Didn't three businessmen disappear from his restaurant after Rina’s speech?

“Svetakov has several restaurants, from chain to elite,” Lev explained. “And the ‘Hunting Lodge’ is a place of its own. It is located outside the city on the territory of an old manor. Mikhail, by the way, restored the estate at his own expense. He invests money not only in the restaurant business, but also in cultural monuments like manors, and even in abandoned or sparsely populated villages, saving them from final death. A good thing, I think!”

“Wait, Svetakov by any chance is familiar with Lebedev? Since he is engaged in investing in addition to the restaurant business, it means that he and Lebedev are in the same circles!

“Perhaps!” Lev smiled. “That's why we're going to him, and not just for a delicious dinner. So why did Lebedev annoy you so much?”

The road was enough to tell the whole story from the very beginning. At some point, Nikolai doubted whether to tell about Rina’s abilities, because he promised not to give away her secret. But the situation turned out so that Rina’s abilities turned out to be the key moment in it. Nikolai trusted Lev unconditionally, although this thought immediately caused unpleasant memories associated with Vika’s act. But Jaguar definitely knew how to keep secrets.

After the story about trolling Merinov, the Jaguar initially laughed for a long time, and then just as long berated a friend for an outburst. Nikolai patiently endured a dressing down from an older comrade, but with a smile he made it clear that he didn’t regret what he had done.

“He's also grinning!” Lev was indignant, but eventually relented and smiled. “I would like to see the face of this Merinov!”

“I can't agree with you. I definitely don't want to see him.”

“Yeah. I don't think he'll forgive you for this circus with horses.”

“Come what may,” Nikolai replied with humility, turning away to the window, behind which the night, lined with the light of lanterns, hid the surroundings. “If Merinov decided to put me in jail, he will do it, even if I fulfill all his whims. He doesn't need me anymore. I'm in the way. I learned too much. Perhaps he is afraid that I will not stop there and climb further.”

“So you will dig up everything about the trials in the past?”

“That's not the worst thing. I already roughly understand what happened there. People disappeared in another parallel because the portal could not be closed for a long time. And those who did not disappear were killed by the creatures that broke out. There were photos in the secret archives. And, believe me, I wish I hadn't seen them! And the worst thing, Jaguar, is that what is happening now is very similar to what happened in the past. Or rather, that's what it's all about. I have suspicions that those experiments have been resumed.”

Lev frowned and said:

“So this is it: I'm almost sure that your phone is not tapped yet. But this does not mean that traps have not been prepared for you in other places. Don't try to get into the archive again. Naturally, they had to curtail the research due to the failure, but they were clearly going to thoroughly study the result and resume attempts. You were needed while you were collecting and giving the necessary information. Other people analyzed this data, and the reports went to Merinov and others like him. As you understand, Merinov is also an intermediate link. The most important decisions do not come from him. Now one of the links - you - suddenly ‘hooked’ on the other and threatens to break the whole chain. Be on your guard.”

“Yes, I understand everything,” Nikolai nodded. “Not born yesterday. I not only got into an unpleasant business, but also dared to think about everything and dig deeper… But I can't blame Gennadiy Sergeevich for dragging me into all this either. If I really wanted to leave everything unchanged, I would just refuse the assignment.”

“But you didn't refuse.”

“No. And because I still want to find out what happened to my father. And because it's easy to collect information… it's not enough for me anymore.”

“This was your mistake: when you wondered for whom and why you were ‘digging’ information, you became uncomfortable.”

“Listen, Jaguar, you're much more ‘uncomfortable’ than me! How do you manage to get out of it?”

“I know a lot more people than you do, Kolya. Plus experience, plus I'm older, so the blood has cooled down and is not bubbling like yours. I have learned composure in places from which not everyone returns alive and unharmed.”

“I understand, I understand, you deftly beat my trump ‘six’ with an ace!” Nikolai laughed.

“Well, so much for the ‘six’! You've never been in the ‘sixes’. Consider yourself a ‘jack’. And I'm not an ace. And I don't go there, unlike Lebedev. This ambitious fellow is aiming at big politics, but he has not swung at his height.”

They drove into the estate, and Lev stopped the car in the parking lot.

Nikolai went outside and looked around curiously. A wide alley led from the carved gate to the pompous, palace-like main building. Behind it, as Lev explained, there was a huge park with a pond, swans and fountains. And the restaurant itself was located nearby: in a building that had once been a hunting lodge.

Nikolai liked the restaurant right away. In a small room with log walls and a wooden ceiling, the entourage of a hunting lodge was recreated: a fireplace, armchairs, sofas and wooden tables. The floor was covered with colorful carpets and imitation skins. Kitchen utensils, lamps and moose horns hung on the walls.

“It's good that it's not guns, as in the classics,” Nikolai quietly commented. “Otherwise, sooner or later, the ‘Hunting Lodge’ would have to be renamed ‘Drama on the Hunt’.”

Lev nodded understandingly and smiled at the man in a cashmere pullover and dark jeans who came out to meet them.

“Hello, Mikhail!”

After exchanging greetings, Svetakov personally escorted them to a table located in a small nook.

“No one will bother you here,” the owner nodded in response to Lev’s gratitude. “First - dinner, then - business.”

Mikhail left, and the waiter came to the table. Lev made an order, almost without looking at the menu, choosing, as he wanted, a chop, a side dish of baked potatoes and assorted pickled vegetables. Nikolai followed his example, but asked to replace vegetables with salted pears, and kvass with dark beer.

“So, Rina,” Lev returned to the conversation he had started in the car. “A talented girl with an unusual gift. By the way, I haven't heard her sing. Or just didn't pay attention. Yana may be listening to her, but I love the good old rock.”

“Like me,” Nikolai grinned, watching Jaguar search for concert videos.

“Powerful!” Jaguar approved.

“Live is more powerful. She closes portals with her voice. I don't know how she does it. But once you see it, you won't forget it anymore.”

“It looks like she left you scars not only on the skin,” Lev laughed. “Otherwise, it is unlikely that you would have dug the ground because of her. Bit the bit and popped against everyone: Merinov, oligarchs and worse. Okay, lyrics aside. We'll decide how to get her out. The fact that Dimitri has it, and not Merinov, makes the task easier, though not by much.”

“Lebedev needs it to send competitors to monsters. But for what purpose is Merinov looking for her… Surely she attracted attention after she closed the portal near Tivastopol. Just estimate the scale of her power: to ‘pull out’ from another parallel an entire island with a base, a hospital, and so on! Imagine what else she is capable of with such potential. Only those who hunt her did not take into account that she is now trampled and weak: she was betrayed by a loved one, she punishes herself for businessmen and worries about friends. And, in the end, she lost her favorite thing - she left the stage. Her ‘positive’ strength is at zero, Lev. But if you make her angry, she can open new portals. Do you understand? Open it! It is unique and…”

“Kolya, Kolya!” Jaguar interrupted and fell silent when he saw the waiter heading towards them. And only when they were alone with Nikolai again, he continued: “You are fixated on Rina, believing that she is the main one in this story. No. She's not even a tool.”

“What do you mean?” Nikolai was surprised. “And then why does Merinov and his leadership need it?”

“Is it necessary?” Lev asked and made an eloquent pause. “No. Not needed. Not-needed. Do you understand? Kolya, do you really think that no one can do anything without Rina? That such a talented girl has appeared, and if she only points out points on the map with her finger, she immediately opens a bunch of portals through which tanks will go and missiles will fly? Kolya, yes, everything is on the ointment there without it! You're right: they came to her through the island near Tivastopol, took note of her, and watched how she would act next. Rina was ‘silent’ for a long time and did not use her opportunities in any way. And then suddenly she sent three people to hell. So, maybe so! What else can she do? And when? In what mood? What else would she think of? Nikolai, it can only create interference for them: disposable, but unnecessary. Rina is for them like a mobile phone turned on when landing: it can lead to a disaster, or maybe not. Probably not, but it's better to turn it off anyway. Kolya, tests with portals were carried out twenty years ago. Yes, there was an overlay in the form of a ‘hole’ in another parallel and residents who fell into it. The ‘hole’ and everything connected with it have been well studied during this time, the screws have been tightened, the graphs have been redrawn, the power has been reduced or, conversely, added. And voila! New secret technologies. They don't need monsters, but energy that can be taken from those parallels and where to direct it. Electronics, for example, on enemy equipment to extinguish! And you can also try to ‘conduct’ tanks or troops anywhere through these portals imperceptibly and quickly. I recently caught sight of one piece of news. They removed it quickly. At first glance, it was a fake, but in light of what you told me, I began to doubt it. In short, our submarine suddenly surfaced near the American military base the other day. This caused a terrible commotion, because she could not pass unnoticed in any way. The boat appeared, but immediately disappeared and almost at the same time turned up at one of our northern bases,” Lev was interrupted again: the waiter brought the rest of the dishes and a compliment from the chef. And while he was arranging the plates, Nikolai thought about Lev’s words. Many things became clear, but it was not pleasing, but on the contrary frightening. If everything is really as Lev thinks, then Rina will definitely not be left alone. And the tests can lead to unpredictable results again.

“New technologies, you say…” Nikolai broke the silence that hung at their table in an angry whisper. “These trials have a bad side effect! They break through the boundaries between parallels, these ‘holes’ spread like oil slicks on water. And from there, along with energy emissions, toothy and bloodthirsty creatures climb. I am already silent about the fact that animals die in such places and ordinary people are in danger. But who cares about birds, fish and villagers? Perish and perish. Just think: the ecology is bad!”

“You can't stop it,” Lev answered just as quietly, looking at him from under his brows. “Neither you nor that girl. They'll get ahead of you and twist you into a steep horn, you know?”

“Rina still needs to be found,” Nikolai muttered darkly. “And I'm already starting to think that Lebedev is not the greatest evil for her. It would have been worse if he had been beaten by Merinov, who, I think, was just a little late. He was following me through Vika and sooner or later would have come out to Rina. And also, Lev, I suspect that Gennadiy Sergeevich had a heart attack for a reason. He knew something! And not just knew, but tried to prevent it. He was friends with my father. He pulled me out of my ass then, so it's unlikely that he would have entrusted this case without a good reason. I think he knew about the consequences of such tests, and saw them as a great threat… Perhaps he really wanted me to calculate all the points, and with the help of Rina he was going to close the portals. Although it is too risky and presumptuous to rely only on her. What can she, a small bird, do against powerful machines?”

“You yourself recently said that Rina has a huge potential,” Lev reminded.

“And you compared its potential with a ‘mobile phone’ during the landing of the plane.”

“Which can also lead to a crash…”

“We're going around in circles,” Nikolai gave up. “I don’t know the real plans of Gennadiy Sergeevich, and now you can't ask him. I don't know what strings to pull, Jaguar.”

“Or not to pull,” Lev calmly retorted. “Sometimes you need to retreat, and not throw your chest at the embrasure.”

Mikhail Svetakov came up to their table and asked if everything was in order. Lev and Nikolai assured him in a voice that the food was divine, thanked him for the compliment from the chef and promised to return more than once. Svetakov smiled discreetly, pushed back his chair and sat down. A waiter immediately appeared at the table, and Mikhail ordered the guests and himself an mug of unfiltered beer.

“I'm driving,” Lev refused.

“You'd better admit that our kvass tastes better than foreign beer,” Mikhail winked slyly.

“I'm going so far for your kvass!

“How is Yana? Has she already sended the new book?”

“Sended,” Jaguar breathed out with relief, and he and Svetakov laughed understandingly.

“Mikhail’s wife is a former journalist, and now she is the owner of a popular magazine,” Lev explained to Nikolai. “And when she rents a room, it's even worse than when my wife hands over a book to a publisher. It's a nightmare for Mikhail and me: one man's wife falls into a portal called ‘editorial office’, the other - into the portal ‘my characters!’ It just needs to be experienced… over and over again. By the way, Mikhail, told Natasha from Yana‘thanks’ for the interview.”

“Instead of ‘thanks’, let her send a manuscript to Natasha!” Mikhail laughed. “My wife is all worn out, because yours is still that schemer! I cut off the first part at the most interesting place. At least Natasha will calm down, and then she will publish a review of the book in a magazine.”

The waiter brought beer and kvass, and Nikolai finally relaxed. He liked the company. Mikhail turned out to be pleasant, charismatic and his own on the board. But as soon as the waiter left the table, Svetakov asked in a different tone:

“So what's your business with me?”

“Are you with a Lebedev sign?” Lev asked bluntly. “Do you have any business in common?”

“Fortunately, there are no common cases,” Mikhail frowned. “But we crossed paths with him. A slippery fellow, I don't believe in his honesty. Intuition, you know! That's why I don't want to deal with him. And… one story happened recently. I don't know if you've heard that three businessmen disappeared during dinner at my restaurant? I don't seem to have anything to do with it, but everything happened on my territory. And I knew Serov well.”

“I heard,” Lev answered briefly. “That's why I'm wondering if you know Lebedev. There are guesses that he is involved in the disappearance of businessmen. And now he's kidnapped a girl. She didn't immediately realize what kind of scumbag she was messing with, and when she realized, she ran away. But Lebedev found her. It's scary to imagine what he can do to her.

“When did he kidnap her?”

“Yesterday morning,” Nikolai said gloomily and clutched the mug with such force that his knuckles turned white.

“Is this the fiancee that the press was buzzing about? A singer?”

“She is.”

“Well, thank God, at least she's alive,” Mikhail breathed. “Natasha’s magazine has published interviews with her several times. Nice girl.”

“This good girl is now in the clutches of Lebedev.”

Svetakov looked from Lev to Nikolai again and nodded:

“Got it. I'll call you when I find out something.”

“Can you call me right away?” Nikolai blurted out. “I promise not to whip up a fever. I just need to know what's wrong with her.”

“Give me the phone,” said Mikhail, writing down the dictated number and getting up. “Well, I won't bother you. Have dinner. Our dessert is still delicious, Jean has created a real masterpiece. I recommend it!”

“Another time, Mikhail,” Lev replied. “We'll go. Yana is probably worried, we just arrived today.

“I see. As soon as I find out something, I'll call you right away.”

“At any hour,” Nikolai asked.

They went out on the porch, and Lev pulled out a pack of cigarettes.

“Yes, yes, I know, it's time to quit,” he grinned, catching Nikolai’s questioning look. “But I rarely smoke now.”

“And when Yana doesn't see,” Nikolai laughed knowingly.

The hour was late, but the night was not black with impenetrable darkness, but silvered with stars. Animal-like clouds glided across the sky like silent shadows, driven like a shepherd by the rising wind. There was a smell of herbal freshness, wood smoke with a bitterness of cigarette smoke, and for some reason these aromas brought back memories of the village in which Rina was hiding. It smelled similar there in the early morning, although Rina didn’t light the fireplace with firewood and didn’t smoke. But the wind brought the smell of smoke from somewhere, mixed it, like a perfumer, with the freshness of the river, added floral notes and generously splashed the fragrance around the neighborhood. And in the smells of this night there was a sharp lack of apple blossom fragrance, from this the train seemed incomplete and bitter.

“Sitsov,” Lev broke the silence and turned to Nikolai. “Did you find out who it is?”

“One of my father's colleagues. I found a photo of them all together: father, Merinov, Sitsov and Gennadiy Segreevich. But I didn't learn anything else. There wasn't enough time.

“But it was enough for the ‘circus’ that you arranged for Merinov,” Lev teased him good-naturedly.

“I thought I had my phone tapped… I couldn't openly search!”

“Okay, okay, don't make excuses. Dig in this direction, but be careful not to fall into traps.

“How do you know about them?”

“Real feel. As for mines and ambushes,” Lev grinned and threw the extinguished cigarette butt into the trash.

“Got it. Can I connect Rubik? I'm not a computer genius like him.”

“You can, if you're careful,” Lev allowed. “Let's go, I'll take you to a doctor I know. Have him examine your battle wounds. He will not ask if you entered the glass door or scratched yourself on a snag.”

“Will he not tolerate a visit until morning?”

“He won't stand for it,” Jaguar snapped, coming down from the porch. “If it gets inflamed, you won't be happy. And judging by what you've told me, your wounds are not scratches left by a seal. You will turn to the same doctor when the stitches need to be removed.”

When they were already approaching the parked car, Nikolai received a call from Violet Volkova.

She apologized for the late call and asked if there was any news about Rina.

“Call me at any hour, as soon as you find out something,” Violet asked, as a quarter of an hour ago Nikolai - Mikhial Svetakov. She spoke too quickly because of her worries. Violet said that she had sent Nikolai a payment for his services and, without listening to objections, added that she would pay all the costs of finding Rina.

“My dad has already arrived,” she said after a short pause. “He, my older brother and Elizabeth. Dad will stay in Russia and try to get to Lebedev through friends. Elizabeth and my brother will take my daughters to Italy for a while. Vsevolod and I decided that it would be better for their safety. Dad was furious when he found out that some worm was threatening to deal with his granddaughters… Lebedev won't get off easy, even if he threatens in words! We also warned Elvira and Valery. Thank you, Nikolai.”

“Not yet,” he replied.

“Take care of yourself,” Violet said instead of saying goodbye.

“The Italian ‘mafia’ has tightened up,” Nikolai jokingly explained to Lev, who was looking at him questioningly. “‘Don Corleone’, who was infuriated by Lebedev’s threats, his eldest son and his wife. Calling her father, Violet chose the right strategy: not kidnapping her friend, but threatening the twins.

“Lebedev will not live,” Jaguar said with theatrical gloom. “I'm telling you, he's not an ace, but just a ‘six’ who barely made it to the ‘sevens.”

Nikolai got home long after midnight. There were only a few hours left before dawn, and there was no sleep in either eye, although the doctor who took it at night warned that drowsiness could appear from a mixture of injected medications and analgesics.

First of all,Nikolai wrote to Rubik and gave him a new task. Then he opened his notes, turned on the computer and downloaded the maps. But at that moment he was distracted by the phone ringing.

“Yes?!”Nikolai barked when he saw that Mikhail was calling him.

“Woke you up?”

“Where there!”

“In general, I found out. Rina really was at Lebedev’s, but disappeared in the afternoon. That bastard kept her under guard. But Rina somehow managed to escape from a locked room without windows, bypassing both ‘closets’, and dogs, and Lebedev himself. It's like it's leaked into a drain. Lebedev, as intelligence reported, is furious and comes off on his ‘cabinets’. But the fact remains that the girl has disappeared. So sorry, I couldn't help much.”

“You helped a lot,” Nikolai replied and thanked Mikhail for everything.

He paused for a moment, weighing not so much the phone in the palm of his hand as a difficult decision. But then he called Volkova and told her everything he had heard from Mikhail.

“She opened the portal,” Violet voiced Nikolai’s thoughts. “But where to?”

“Where to,” he echoed, and involuntarily shuddered, remembering the toothy creature in the whirlpool.

After the conversation with Violet, Lev called him next.

“You know already? Did Mikhail call back?”

“Yes. Rina must have opened a portal and escaped.”

“Desperate girl!”

“I don't know where to look for her now…” Nikolai said bitterly, approaching the window, behind which the night entered the darkest hour before dawn. Rina ran away from Dimitri, but no one knew what would happen next. Will she be able to get out? Would the creatures tear her apart? Won't she get lost there forever?

“Nikolai?” Lev called softly, but did not finish the sentence, realizing that the consolations would sound fake. Instead, he said with poorly concealed sarcasm: “But now you can tell Merinov with a clear conscience that Lebedev took Rina away. Let them unleash their rage on each other. And you will buy at least a little time.”

“I'll do that. Right now!” Nikolai grinned, imagining with pleasure how he would wake up Victor Dimitirevich with a call. And there is nothing to sleep for when others suffer from insomnia!

“Just let's not have a circus this time,” Lev replied, and Nikolai could hear a smile in his voice.

Victor Dimitrievich at the first moment barked into the phone so that Nikolai's ears were blocked. But when he found out what news they called him with, he suspiciously asked if it was a hoax again. And only then he thanked him dryly and, without saying goodbye, dropped the call.

It seemed that nothing could surprise Nikolai tonight, even the doorbell that rang a few minutes after the last conversation. And yet Nikolai was surprised to see Vika on the threshold.