These Are Very Dangerous and Difficult Times [dated to 10/31]

[chesspolitik]

By the day of Halloween, Anatoly was completely convinced that danger was lurking around every corner and that no corner of the island was safe. There was simply no telling where Molokov or de Courcey could be and he was afraid that if he stepped outside, even for a moment, that they would find a way to snatch him. He could only begin to imagine what sort of things they would have in store for him and he did not want to find out how the reality matched with his fears.

But as inconvenient as it was, he did need to do things like shower and eat and for that, he had to leave his hut. If Lex had not been there to act as his faithful bodyguard, he would have been content to remain a hungry and rather ripe grandmaster. Their trip to the compound passed without incident and after being reassured several times that Lex would be waiting in the rec room for him, Anatoly went to take a shower.

When he emerged and headed to the rec room, clean (if not exactly clean shaven), he found not Lex but a note in his handwriting. Opened, it simply said that Lex had spotted Molokov lurking about and advised him to leave the compound as soon as possible. He would be waiting outside and then the two of them could go to the IPD.

Without thinking or even stopping to pack up his chess set, Anatoly fled the rec room, heedless of the startled looks around him. He burst outside of the Compound and turned the corner, expecting to see Lex waiting for him. Instead, he found Molokov with de Courcey besides him with a nasty smirk. There was a burst of pain as Molokov's fist connected with his face and then he knew only blackness.

When his consciousness finally returned, he found himself tied to a palm tree on a deserted stretch of the beach. Lex was tied to a tree beside him, looking rather worse for the wear. Molokov and de Courcey weren't in sight but he had no doubt they were near, concocting some devious plan.

"Molokov, you Chekist bastard!" he shouted in Russian as he struggled futilely against his bonds. "What do you hope to accomplish by this?"

Comments

[pitythetrumper]

"If I had any ideas on that front, don't you think I would have searched there? If I had any hope at all, do you think I would have come here of all places? You were my last resort. ...my second-to-last resort and you already said you don't know where Florence is." That meant that Freddie didn't have one clue where Florence was, where Anatoly was, or even where Lex was. He was more concerned about the first two than the last, although if he were honest with himself, he wouldn't have wanted to see Lex go, either.

"So no, I don't know where they are." His fists clenched and unclenched as he thought about what might be happening. Nothing good, that was for sure.

[travellingjack]

"Actually, I thought you came here on the thought that Flore and Anatoly were off shaking the trees behind my back," Jack commented. "Okay, so, not helpful and not a fucking clue where to search. No way to track them, either, since sand is crap for holding a decent footprint. Christ, what I wouldn't give to have Wolf still here...." Jack waited for the sting of pain and loss - it was there, but duller than it had been. Bittersweet.

"Let's head in towards the Compound," he said at last. "Feds don't often make me think of guys out camping."

It wasn't much, but it was a start.

[pitythetrumper]

Freddie ground his teeth and bit his tongue. He'd been there already. He'd been there and scoured the place and had found nothing. And these guys weren't feds. At least Molokov wasn't and if the pair of them were working together instead of against each other... The idea was horrible, but he didn't have any better options for finding them. He'd run out of them. He'd failed.

"Fine," he said shortly. "Even though I've looked there already."