Ransom

Very good, Tatiana.

Natasha, please.

Bravo!

Tatiana.

The Presnensky Ballet is truly blessed

to have such prodigious talent.

But there can be only one prima.

You will have my decision

in the morning.

Good luck.

Those chaîné turns were flawless.

And you were so out of breath at the end.

Man, they've added a lot of new stuff.

What do you think? One of everything?

Babe.

Oh, s-sorry, I'm just checking in with the sitter.

It's bath time, and Cody and Amy are helping.

Wish you were there?

Yeah. I'm gone so much that when I'm home,

I just want to be with them every second.

What?

Nothing.

Do you want to order something to eat

or nosh on this delicious piece of chopped liver?

I'm being terrible, aren't I?

You haven't nodded off yet, so as far

as date night's concerned, I'd sayOh, God.

: we're doing better than usual.

I get it. You're juggling a lot of things,

between the kids and your other husband.

Will you quit calling him that?

Eric does get to spend more time with you than I do.

Oh, Mike, come on. That's the job.

Eric is my boss.

You're my husband.

No matter what, you always come first.

That's good to know.

How about after dinner we, um, stay out a little longer?

See where the night takes us?

I'll call him back later.

Hey, Eric, what's up?

Yeah, she's right here.

Hey.

Okay.

I'll catch a flight tonight.

We said no police.

Sir, I'm not law enforcement.

I'm a negotiator hired by the Presnensky Ballet.

My only goal is to ensure that both parties get what they want

and that nobody gets hurt.

You know what we want.

Four million U.S. dollars, cash.

Yes, your ransom note was very clear.

But before we proceed, we need some proof

that Natasha and Tatiana are still alive.

Here's your proof.

Tatiana.

If that bastard hurts one hair on my daughter's head...

- one hair... Mr. Popov,

you have to remain calm.

Satisfied?

Yes. Thank you.

Most of the company's funds are tied up

in their upcoming production,

and Natasha and Tatiana's parents aren't wealthy.

We can offer you $2 million.

That is half of what I asked.

Two million is still a very good payday.

You kidnapped two dancers

from the most respected ballet company in the world.

How long do you think we'll be able

to keep the police away from this?

Get the money together.

We'll call back with instructions.

Just know,

you will only be getting one ballerina back.

Okay.

Well, I think we've been very clear...

we're negotiating for both.

One ballerina.

You choose which.

Kidnapper is volatile,

stubborn, determined.

- No flexibility there? - I don't think so.

We offered half the ransom.

Half the ransom equals one dancer.

Yeah, he's leveraging the other ballerina,

forcing us to pay him the rest.

But we have no more money to spare.

Alexei, the kidnappers knew

that there was an audition taking place,

which means they were aware of the company's schedule.

You feel this is an inside job?

I can't imagine any of my employees

doing something like this.

- But you can think of someone. - Yes.

Ivan Orlov, my predecessor.

Before I took over, the Presnensky Ballet

was mired in corruption.

Ivan was accused of taking bribes,

money and sexual favors from dancers

in exchange for roles.

It became a national scandal, so he was fired three years ago.

And I'm guessing he didn't take this well.

That would be an understatement.

Eric?

We have a problem.

Stop talking! Listen to me!

I gave 100,000 to the ransom.

She contributed next to nothing. Nothing!

Natasha's life is just as valuable as Tatiana's,

if not more so.

Everyone knows she is the better dancer.

She should be the one chosen.

We won't be choosing.

I was hired to get both your daughters back,

and that's what I intend to do.

How?

My team and I will come up

with a strategy, but option one

is to raise the rest of the ransom.

We will give you a call when we have an update,

but for your daughters' sakes, please, let us do our job.

And how do you plan on raising the rest of the money?

I saw that you recently got a budget increase

from the minister of the arts.

We could contact him.

No. He'll call the police. It's his duty.

Okay, let me worry about that. Right now, he's our best hope

of getting two million on short notice.

Sorry to interrupt.

I have the sketches for your approval.

No, it's fine.

Handle your business. We'll, uh, take it from here.

Okay.

All right, Zara and I will contact the minster.

You two, uh, try and track down that old ballet director.

See what you can find out.

Natasha.

I said stop it!

Don't touch me!

You heard what he said. Only one of us is going home.

I have stop him! I have to try!

You think you can convince him to choose you?

Leave me here to rot?

Of course... of course not.

That's-that's not what I was trying to...

Everything comes easy for you, doesn't it?

The doe-eyed princess, always so entitled.

Looks like Miroslav serves

as the black sheep of the Russian government.

He used to be defense minister.

Barely lasted a year before the president removed him.

On what grounds?

Incompetence.

One military fiasco after the other.

The arts ministry is his last chance to prove himself.

Listen, I'm sorry about last night.

Last night?

Interrupting your date.

How's Mike doing?

He's doing great.

- We're great. - Great.

I think that's him.

Minister Kutznetsov. I'm Eric Beaumont.

- I'm here, uh, - Stand back.

Representing the Presnensky Ballet.

We tried to make an appointment,

but your secretary said that you were... Busy.

- Try again next week. - Okay.

- Who do you think you are? - Out of the car now.

I'm afraid it's urgent.

You have a problem with the Presnensky Ballet.

I'm a negotiator.

I was hired by the ballet to handle the kidnapping

of those two dancers.

You know them?

Of course I do.

Two of Russia's rising stars.

When did this happen?

- Last night. - And the demand?

Four million. Now, we've managed to raise half of that,

but the kidnapper won't budge.

He'll only return one, unless we come up with the rest.

We're hoping you can help.

Thank you for bringing this to my attention.

I will alert the FSB immediately.

Well, that would be a mistake.

In this country, Mr. Beaumont,

the government doesn't negotiate with terrorists,

and we certainly don't negotiate with kidnappers.

And how has that worked out for you so far?

Excuse me?

The siege at the Dubrovka Theater,

170 hostages dead.

The Beslan school siege, 334 dead.

Russia has a history of failed rescue attempts.

You call in the FSB right now, how do you think this works out?

Don't tell me how to do my job.