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“Are you saying MAP kidnapped someone and held him until he could be arrested?”
“Not just someone. Sergei Kava, son of a Russian oligarch. Sergei runs the largest piracy platform in the world.”
Jack suddenly connected the dots. “Does Sergei have a nine-year-old daughter?”
“Yes.”
“They live here in London?”
“Londongrad, some call it.”
“Is this nine-year-old girl a fan of Imani, by any chance?”
Coffey smiled. “My, you do put two plus two together quickly, Mr. Swyteck.”
Jack finished the “equation,” leaving the attaché no wiggle room. “Itsounds like the FBI no longer needs Imani to perform for the granddaughter of a certain oligarch.”
“That would be awkward. Sergei Kava is currently in the high-security unit of one of Her Majesty’s prisons, Belmarsh, awaiting an extradition hearing.”
They stopped on the corner at the red light. A double-decker bus rushed past them.
“Are you telling me that Theo participated in the extraction kidnapping of Sergei Kava?”
“He denies it.”
“Do you believe him?”
“The more important question is whether Sergei’s father, Vladimir Kava, will believe him. I think not. Which puts your friend in serious danger.”
The light turned green, but Jack didn’t move. “Are you talking about the Witness Security Program?”
“That could be an option. We’ll monitor the situation.”
“Does Theo know this yet? That this could lead to life in witness protection?”
“Not yet. I’ll explain all of that before he leaves London.”
Jack glanced back toward the station house. It was hard to say whether Theo would be better off on an airplane home. “Theo’s my best friend. I need to speak to him about this.”
“That’s not possible while he’s in London.”
“Why?”
“As long as he’s here, his safety is my responsibility. I’ll pass along any message you want to give him, and I’ll convey any message he wants to send to you.”
“That seems a bit extreme,” said Jack.
“Vladimir Kava controls one of the most sophisticated internet platforms in cyberspace. He makes billions from piracy, but he makes even more by stealing personal information from anyone who is stupid enough to visit his piracy websites. Any electronic communication between you and Theo could lead Kava directly to him.”
“Then let us talk face-to-face. I can go to the embassy right now.”
“Brilliant. That way whoever is tailing you on Kava’s orders can follow you straight to Theo’s precise location.”
It was frustrating, but Jack saw her point.
“Do you have a message you want me to give Theo?” she asked.
Jack appreciated the offer, but strangely, his search for the right message harkened back to the darkest of times, when Jack struggled to find words of encouragement for an innocent man on death row.
