High Treason (Noah Wolf Book 18)

by David Archer

“Of course not,” Allison said. “This will take me to the secret airstrip at one of the small private airports. Just relax, Cody, everything’s okay.”

  She climbed out of the car and was met by two uniformed soldiers. They checked her ID carefully, then escorted her directly to the helicopter while the guard in the Jeep motioned for Cody to follow him back to the gate. Cody gave him a thumbs up and they were off once again.

  None of them spoke about what had happened until they were clear of Camp David.

  “Does anybody besides me get the feeling that the world is starting to fall apart?” Marco asked.

  Renée nodded. “Sometimes, yeah,” she said. “I’m never really sure who’s in charge of what anymore.”

  * * *

  Noah had come to the conclusion that giving birth was one of the most intense things he had ever seen. After more than six hours in labor that reminded him of various torture techniques, the doctor told Sarah that she probably still had at least that much time to go. That resulted in Sarah making some comments toward himself that he was certain were motivated mostly by the pain she was suffering, rather than any genuine desire to remove certain parts of his anatomy.

  Noah decided to give the others an update, and went to find them in the waiting room. Jenny and Molly were curled up asleep in chairs, while Wally and Catherine were sitting at a table playing poker with a couple of other men. When they looked up and saw him, they excused themselves from the game momentarily.

  “Hey, Noah,” Wally said. “How’s it going back there?”

  “It’s taking a while,” Noah said. “I’ve read about the childbirth process, but actually seeing it is another thing altogether. Sarah is in a lot of pain, and there’s nothing I can do about it.”

  “This will pass,” Catherine said. “The agony of childbirth is nothing compared to the joys of motherhood. When it’s over and you’re holding your baby, suddenly it’s all worth it.”

  “I hope so,” Noah said. “At the moment, Sarah can’t seem to decide whether she wants to shoot me or castrate me.”

  Wally giggled. “That comes with the territory,” he said. “My wife Glenda, God rest her soul, gave me three wonderful sons and a daughter, and made me swear after each one was born that I would never touch her again.” He shrugged. “She always changed her mind a few days later.”

  Noah nodded. “I understand. As I said, I read up on childbirth so I know that the animosity of the mother toward the father is normal, but that doesn’t actually prepare you for when the real thing is happening right there in front of you. It’s like when you read about how to fly an airplane; the theory sounds logical and relatively easy to follow, but the reality is that the slightest wrong move with the controls can send you nose first into the ground.”

  Catherine grinned. “That’s probably an appropriate analogy,” she said. “This is definitely a case of reality being far more sensitive and intense than the theory would indicate.” She laid a hand on his arm. “I’m sure you’re doing fine, Travis,” she said. “And while you’re here for a moment, I have some news for you. There’s been some decisions made back in DC, and one of those decisions has been to replace our friend Allison in her most recent job. She’s being retired permanently, you might say, and is picking up one of the options that she was always offering to other people. A new name, a new start, both of which will arrive here sometime in the next few hours.”

  Noah looked at her. “Why is she coming here?”

  “It seems that her usefulness in DC had come to an end, because of all the scandals revolving around her previous employment. She was appointed to head the CIA less than three months before E & E was exposed, and it looks like the president was trying to pull a fast one on the people. Apparently she and the president talked it over and decided that she’s better suited to keeping control over you and your compatriots. She’s coming to take charge again.”

  Noah’s eyebrows rose. “I can’t say I’ll be sorry to let her do so,” he said. “Especially if we’re going to remain in a semi-rogue situation. Her mind is a lot more devious than mine; I’m not sure I could manage to balance all the different factions that will be necessary to keeping us alive and safe.”

  “Well, you’ll know soon enough,” Wally said. “She’s coming in on a diplomatic flight that will land around ten a.m. at Heathrow. Molly and I will go to pick her up.”

  Noah nodded. “That sounds good. I’m sure we’ll all still be here when you get back.”

  * * *

  The news of Senator Clark’s death broke the following morning, when he failed to show up at his office and could not be reached by phone. DC police had gone to his hotel and convinced the maid to open his door, finding him lying naked on the bed. His eyes were open and he seemed to be clutching at his chest, so it took only a second for them to surmise that he had died of an apparent heart attack. The medical examiner’s initial report suggested he had been dead for a little over twelve hours at the time he was found.

  Of course, they would have to wait for the coroner’s report for an official cause of death, but the rumors about what he might have been doing when his heart gave out began spreading within an hour. The maid who had let the police in suddenly became several thousand dollars richer after the pictures she snapped with her iPhone were shown to the right reporters, and it seemed rather obvious that the senator had been engaged in some sort of sexual activities shortly before his death.

  Quite a few of his colleagues on Capitol Hill spoke up in his defense on the various news programs. Some insisted that the photos had to be faked, while others said they simply suspected the man liked to sleep in the raw, and there was nothing wrong with that.

  Senator Serafina Mitchell, a regular supporter of any bill Clark wanted to sponsor, was surprisingly quiet. She was asked by several news outlets to offer a statement but refused them all, and it became more and more difficult even to locate her as the day wore on.

  Finally, just in time for the six o’clock news, the coroner issued a statement that Senator Clark had indeed succumbed to a cardiac arrest. There was no evidence of any kind of foul play, and the coroner ruled that his death was due to natural causes.

  Interestingly, Clark’s death received quite a bit more attention than the apparent abduction of the director of the CIA, whose car was found crashed and abandoned. Ms. Peterson’s purse and other personal effects were still in the vehicle, but there was no sign of her. Forensic technicians had discovered footprints of two men who had apparently rushed toward the car after the crash, and seemed to have partially carried Ms. Peterson away from it. There had been no contact from the kidnappers, and the FBI was theorizing that it might be the work of militia groups who were angered by the recent exposure of E & E and her involvement with it.

  When asked whether they felt any responsibility for the director’s abduction, Government Watch spokeswoman Paula McNair literally laughed. “Why should we feel any responsibility?” she asked. “Ms. Peterson was a ghoul; she routinely ordered the deaths of men, women and probably children. She ran an organization whose members had only one purpose, to kill. Why should we feel any remorse or responsibility whatsoever if the people rise up and say they’ve had enough?”

  The CNN reporter wasn’t finished, though. “You’re assuming that she was abducted by someone local,” he said. “On the other hand, isn’t it far more likely it was one of our enemies who took her? After all, you have told the whole world that she ran E & E, that it was she who ordered the assassinations of God knows how many people. Has it not occurred to you that some of our enemies might like to know how she did that? Might like to know how she managed to run such an organization? Ms. McNair, isn’t it likely that you have created a new national security threat by exposing US officials to worldwide scrutiny?”

  McNair tried to respond, but all that came out was a few sputters. She closed her notepad and turned to walk away from the podium as two dozen reporters shouted more questions at her.

  * * *


  It was almost 10:30 by the time the doctor announced that the baby was finally coming, and Noah was quickly shuffled into a room where he could scrub up and put on a full gown and mask. It was required, the doctor said, if he wanted to be in the birthing room, and he confirmed that he did.

  When they got into the birthing room, Noah was told to stand just behind Sarah, allowing her to lean back on him. She was sweaty and flushed and alternated between laughing and crying, but suddenly she looked up at him with a face full of rapture.

  “Noah,” she said, gasping, “if it really is a girl, I want to name her Norah, with an H on the end. I always thought that was a beautiful name, and it blends both of our names together.”

  “Norah it is,” Noah said. “Norah Wolf, daughter of Noah and Sarah Wolf.”

  The smile she rewarded him with was one of the most beautiful he had ever seen.

  Once the actual delivery began, it went rather quickly. The doctor told Sarah to push a few times, and there was a lot of heavy breathing, and then suddenly, more suddenly than Noah could register, the doctor was holding up a wrinkled little doll that seemed like it could actually move on its own, and then that wrinkled little doll let out a screech and Noah knew that he had just met his daughter.

  The baby was quickly cleaned up and wrapped in blankets, and then she was handed to Sarah, who was crying and laughing at the same time. Noah was right beside her, looking down in wonder at his wife and child. Sarah’s gaze was bouncing between his face and the baby’s, but the smile she was wearing said everything that needed to be said.

  Noah was allowed to hold the baby for a few moments while the nurses helped get Sarah cleaned up and transferred into another room with a clean bed. A bassinet was brought in for the baby and placed beside the bed, and then Noah was told it was okay to bring family back to see the latest addition to the Lightner household.

  With Sarah almost asleep, Noah slipped out to the waiting area. He was not surprised to find Wally asleep, but everyone else—Molly, Jenny, Catherine and some blonde lady Noah didn’t recognize—were wide awake and looking at him expectantly.

  “Well?” Molly demanded. “Is everything okay?”

  “Everything is fine,” Noah said. “I have a daughter, who arrived twenty minutes ago weighing eight pounds and six ounces.” He took a second look at the blonde woman and then shook his head. “So you made it? I understand you’re here to stay?”

  “That’s how it looks,” Allison said. “The president believes, and I concur, that GW’s exposé about us has tainted any value I have to the American intelligence community. You know that only a limited number of people knew that we existed, even within the intelligence agencies themselves; this has caused a number of issues ranging from jealousy to anger among those who are just finding out about us, and there’s been a rumor mill suggesting we were responsible for a lot of deaths within the administration, ranging back all the way to Clinton and Bush Senior. That was going to fester until it blew up in the president’s face, so we decided to make me the bogeyman. Now that I’m out of the picture and ready to be painted as the villain, we can start a new narrative. It just means I can’t go back home, but I don’t exactly have a home to go back to so that’s not that big a deal.”

  Noah nodded. “You have one here,” he said. “Now, are you all ready to meet my daughter?”

  “Of course,” Allison said, and she was echoed by all the others. Even Wally had managed to rouse himself. “Have you given her a name yet?”

  “We have,” Noah said. “But I’m going to let Sarah tell you.”

  He led them back to Sarah’s room, where he found her sitting up and holding the baby. She looked up and smiled, then the smile got even wider when she saw Allison standing there.

  “Oh, my goodness, you’re here,” she exclaimed. “How did you manage that?”

  “It’s a long story, and it can wait. I’m here to see this little princess.”

  Sarah beamed. “Well, then,” she said. “I would like all of you to meet Norah Jean Wolf.” She held the baby so that everyone could see her face.

  Noah looked at Sarah and raised an eyebrow. “Jean?”

  “Just go with it,” his wife said, so he shrugged and let it go.

  FOURTEEN

  While Ralph and Team Pegasus were stalking Senator Mitchell, working out her routine to try to find the best opportunity for Ralph to approach her, the rest of the world went on about its business. Noah had told Esmeralda to keep her team in place, just in case Ralph were to need them, so they simply acted like tourists visiting the nation’s capital. Esmeralda particularly enjoyed visiting the Smithsonian, and Cody agreed when he saw the 1948 Tucker sedan on display.

  Team Aladdin was also hanging around, although they weren’t exactly having fun. Having been assigned to protect Senator Clark, they were taking a lot of flack even though the coroner had ruled that his death was from natural causes. Fortunately, Esmeralda’s editing of the video feeds from the hotel had been thorough, and there was no evidence that anyone had gotten close to the senator, or could have caused his heart attack. After a couple of days, the pressure began to slack off and they were suddenly summoned to the White House. There, they were briefed by the president of the United States on another potential threat, and told to do whatever was necessary to determine just how serious that threat might be.

  Back in Guildford, Noah and Sarah were getting used to the idea of being parents. Little Norah was the hit of the Manor from the moment she arrived home, welcomed by an amazing assortment of gifts purchased by the staff. There were stuffed animals galore, toys that she would play with eventually, and more than a dozen different clothing sets designed to showcase what a beautiful baby she was.

  Caroline Collins, wife of Thomas the butler and chief housekeeper for the estate, decreed that Sarah must have a nanny. Fortunately, she knew a girl who was available and experienced, and Noah approved her hiring. Rachel Wallingford joined them the following day, moving into a hastily prepared room on the first floor, in the servants’ area of the house. A second nursery was set up off her room, so that she could take care of the baby at any time of the day or night. By the third night, Sarah decided that having a nanny was definitely beneficial, at least to her sleep patterns.

  Allison had been to the Manor once before under the name of Judy Walker, and she resumed it when they had arrived. Molly’s local identity was as Emily Walker, who was Judy’s daughter. Thomas and the staff welcomed her like a long-lost relative, and then it was time to put her to work.

  Sarah and the baby had been released the day after Norah was born, and it was the day after that when Noah finally took Allison out to the factory. A lot of the equipment had arrived, along with Wally’s chosen personnel, so the place was a lot busier than the last time Noah had seen it.

  “This will be your office,” Noah said. “We are installing you as chief operations officer, with Molly as your assistant. She can handle a lot of the day-to-day business aspects, leaving you free to deal with more important matters.”

  “That sounds good,” Allison said. “I’m going to need a very secure phone line, one that the president can use to reach me. He’s taken upon himself the necessity of requesting sanctions, based on his national security briefings each day. We don’t anticipate being as busy as we used to be, but there will still be times when we will need more than one team. You only brought in Pegasus and Aladdin at this point; can we make a spot for the rest of them?”

  “I’ve been giving that some thought,” Noah said. “I think the best idea would be to establish some branch office locations for this company, and use them as staff there. That way, we’ll have people in different locations around the world, which might make it simpler to assign missions. In particular, I’m thinking of setting up offices in Abu Dhabi, Rio de Janeiro, Johannesburg and Beijing. Since none of our people have been compromised in the intelligence community, they should be able to function as British and American businesspeople. Neil can set u
p secure communications between all of the offices, and it will also help generate sales for the company.”

  Allison nodded. “Good thinking,” she said. “I had a couple of ideas along the same lines, so I’m glad we are on the same page. Molly will get started on that, since setting up satellite sales locations would be part of the operations department. Now, tell me more about what this company does.”

  “Wally?” Noah said. “That’s your department.”

  “Well,” Wally began, “we make things that take the drudgery out of labor at home. We already designed a laundry system that not only washes, dries and folds your clothing, but puts it away for you, as well. There’s also a robotic chef that takes raw ingredients and turns them into a full meal. You can set how many people you’re going to serve, and it does the rest.” He giggled. “I’ve actually added a few features while you were gone, Noah. The laundry system has an optional robot that can go around the house and pick up clothing that needs to be washed, and even strip sheets and blankets and put them back. And the chef can double as a bakery, baking cakes, cookies, bread, whatever.”

  “Wow,” Allison said. “I want one of each. And these things are actually going to be affordable for the masses?”

  “Oh, yes,” Wally said. “Almost everything is made with off-the-shelf parts, except for some of the external stuff. The real trick is in the software that controls it all, but Esmeralda can write that in a matter of minutes. She’s already got the basics done for the laundry system and the chef, but I’ll need her to touch them up a bit for the new options.”

  Allison turned to Noah. “When is she due back? Do you think we should recall her now, to be available for Wally when she’s needed?”

  “I had her stay in DC in case Ralph needed some backup, but with Aladdin there, I suppose we could bring her home. Give me a minute, and I’ll let her know that it’s time for them to come back.”

  He activated his subcom and sent a message directly to Esmeralda, who answered instantly.