Mousetrap

Chapter 5: House Cats

Monday, July 23, 2007.

They flew to Nicosia the next morning. Neal didn't expect to return to Prague afterward. This was to be the swan song for Francesco. He and Mozzie had weighed the odds of Phoenix believing that yet another client had gotten coincidentally entangled with Interpol, and they weren't good.

He was glad Henry and Klaus were along for Francesco's final con. As in Prague, Henry was in charge of Travis's electronics. He'd monitor their conversation with the client from the hotel room.

Cyprus's location made it an ideal site for organized crime. The island was an inviting crossroads for illegal activities such as smuggling and arms trafficking. Interpol maintained a robust presence in Cyprus, and it was reassuring to know that John Hobhouse had already placed agents on alert.

Neal spoke with John before leaving Prague. In Phoenix's instructions, he told Klaus not to mark the forgery with pinpricks. Was that because their client had his own design? All they knew about him was that he lived in a house in old Nicosia.

Before leaving Prague, the pride had gone clothes shopping. Nicosia in July was significantly hotter than New York City. As a tourist destination, most wore casual clothes. Neal was pleased with his linen sportswear. He looked forward to wearing the garments with Sara.

After they checked in at their hotel, Klaus called the number provided by Phoenix. A man's voice answered the phone. He provided an address and requested they be there in an hour.

Would this be a case of dueling mousetraps? Neal was confident of the trap they'd prepared with the Rembrandt as the bait. But what—and who—was waiting for them?

Henry knocked on Neal's door while he was dressing for the meeting. "I'd feel a lot better if I went with you," Henry said as he entered the room. "I could be your muscle man."

"Then who would call John if we get caught?" Neal countered. "We've already gone over this. Letting Klaus come along is enough of a risk."

"Exactly. He's not a con man."

"Yeah, but Travis would have our heads if we gave Klaus access to his electronics."

Henry made a face but didn't raise any further objections. How could he?

Neal sat down on the edge of the bed to sew Travis's fractal button to the hem of his shirt. The bug would allow Henry to eavesdrop.

"Have you ever run a con with Klaus?" Henry asked.

"No, but you were present during the practice session. He'll be fine."

"You're not worried he'll double-cross you?"

"No, I'm not," Neal said firmly.

Henry lifted his hands in a gesture of surrender. "Just checking. And for the record, I agree with you. What with his wedding next weekend, Klaus won't do anything to jeopardize it. Does he know about the amber music box con we ran before your wedding?"

"No. It's never come up, and Chantal wasn't aware of our extracurricular activities either." He'd been much more confident about that con where the Black Diamonds were in full control throughout. In this situation, there were far too many unknowns for his liking. He knew that was why Henry was uneasy as well.

At the appointed time, he and Klaus walked to the address in old Nicosia. It was only a few blocks away from their hotel. The house corresponding to the address had a bright blue door. A welcoming sign or bait for the trap? The man answering Neal's knock set him back for a second. Yuri Bolotnov was an unexpected sight.

The Russian oligarch seemed pleased to see them. "Neal Caffrey. I've waited a long time for this."

Neal quickly composed his features into a surprised smile. "As have I," he said in Russian. Klaus wouldn't have any difficulty following the conversation. His command of the language was also excellent. "Were those earlier incidents job auditions?"