by Stephen Frey
She laughed softly. “Yeah, I heard there were a lot of sales going on. You know, because of the holidays. But honestly, I didn’t think the prices were very good.”
Jennie had a sense of humor even when she was hurting. He liked that.
Her smile faded. “Look, a lot of people had a much worse trip that day than I did.”
He liked that, too. She kept things in perspective. It wasn’t all about her.
“I’m Troy.” She reminded him of Lisa. That beautiful smile of hers was a perfect replica. “I’m with the Feds.”
She nodded. “I know. One of the guys outside told me you were coming. Thanks, by the way.”
“For what?”
“For having those guys posted outside my door twenty-four/seven.”
“Well, I don’t want somebody trying to finish what he started.”
“Neither do I, believe me.”
The bandages on her shoulder were obvious, even beneath her pajama top. But he couldn’t see evidence of anything on her chest. If the bullet had entered her back where Dr. Harrison claimed, it must have come through her chest somewhere. And it amazed him that she could be sitting up like this so soon after being shot. She was tough. He liked that, too.
He’d confirmed that two other people in the mall had been shot from close range, execution-style, after taking a bullet from an automatic weapon in the initial burst of fire. They’d both died. As Dr. Harrison had said, Jennie Perez was a very lucky young woman.
“How’s your shoulder?” he asked.
“Dr. Harrison says I’ll be okay eventually.” She grinned. “But I won’t be playing tennis anytime soon.”
Troy chuckled. “And your back?”
“Fine.”
“The bullet came out of your chest, right?”
“Um, yeah.”
“It didn’t stay in there.”
“No.”
“A one-in-a-million wound.” She didn’t touch herself anywhere on her chest when he’d asked that. She hadn’t even looked down at the spot. Most people would have. Maybe it was nothing. He glanced at the end of the bed, then around the room. No charts anywhere.
“That’s what he keeps telling me.”
He was so suspicious of everything, a function of being in RCS for six years. “You’re a hero. You saved that little girl.”
“I just did what anyone else would have done.”
Troy gazed at her for several moments. He was attracted to her, he couldn’t deny it. “I’m not sure that’s true,” he said softly, reaching out to take her hand. It was a very forward action, but he liked it when she squeezed his fingers. “I’m not sure everyone would have been that brave. That little girl owes you her life.”
“Thank you. That’s nice of you to say.”
She squeezed his hand again with her warm fingers, even more tightly this time. It felt good. “Did you see the men who did this to you, Jennie?”
She nodded. “I saw them, but not up close. I was facedown on the mall floor when the guy shot me from close range. I was lying beside the little girl. After that I don’t remember anything.”
“You didn’t notice anything at all about him? Shoes, a smell, his voice, something he said?”
She shook her head as she pulled her hand away and glanced at the other side of the room. “No.”
She didn’t seem comfortable with the question. Maybe it was too hard to think back on those moments. He could understand that. “Well, I—”
“Hello there.”
Troy turned quickly. It was Dr. Harrison. And over the doctor’s shoulder, he noticed Travers standing by the door. The major had gone to his place in the mountains to retrieve his phone while Troy had taken care of several things in downtown Washington, and then hopped a taxi here to northern Virginia and the Fairfax County Hospital. Troy wondered how long the major had been standing there at the doorway.
“Hello, Dr. Harrison.”
“You didn’t tell me you were coming,” Harrison said as they shook hands. “I would have appreciated that.”
“Sorry.”
“Ms. Perez is still recovering.”
Troy glanced at Jennie and grinned. “She seems to be doing pretty well.” She smiled back, but it didn’t seem as sincere this time.
BECKY KIMMEL gazed up at the golden dome of the university’s main building as she walked across the God Quad—crowded by students at this hour—with her friend Vanessa. One more early class, and she was going home to San Diego for a few weeks of sun and fun. Just like all the other kids around her were headed home today. She couldn’t wait to hit the beach. It had been brutally cold in South Bend during the last few days, especially for a Cali-kid.
Becky and Vanessa didn’t make it much farther. Three men came around the corner of the main building, in the shadow of the statue of St. Mary that topped the dome, and opened fire on the God Quad.
The bullet that struck Becky pierced her lung fatally. As her life quickly ebbed away, she gazed at Vanessa, who was lying beside her and staring at her with doll eyes. Vanessa had taken a round directly in the middle of her forehead. She was already gone.
Three more universities, four churches, and two more restaurants were hit during the course of the day—including the University of Richmond by the northern Virginia squad. All of the attacks were well away from the big malls that had been hit initially, and they were all in smaller towns. The squads were spreading out, and the country was shutting down completely.
EVERYTHING WAS playing out exactly as Daniel Gadanz had anticipated—and prayed for. His father would have been so very proud.
He nodded to the pair of naked women, and they approached the man who was seated in the uncomfortable chair before his throne. The man would have them for a few hours and then be killed for stealing. The man was in charge of distribution in three southern states, and he was holding back more than his share of the take. His bookkeeper had squealed, and action was about to be taken. But not before Daniel enjoyed watching the women pleasure the man.
Daniel took a deep breath as he watched the scene unfold. If Jacob hadn’t been Daniel’s brother, he would have been murdered as well. The bloodline had provided him one more chance. But that would be it.
CHAPTER 27
BILL JENSEN eased into the chair in front of the vertical bars, while keeping a watchful eye on the prisoner the entire time.
Shane Maddux stared back unflinchingly from inside the cell.
Bill had made certain that the chair was positioned well back from the bars, well beyond Maddux’s reach. He knew better than anyone what Maddux was capable of, and he wasn’t about to give the man a chance to take a hostage in case this exchange grew testy. Bill had a member of the new security team at the house watching via hidden camera, too. The guy had orders to get in here immediately if anything seemed even slightly amiss on the screen.
There was a camera but no microphone. Bill couldn’t have anyone but the two of them privy to this conversation. Maddux couldn’t, either. It was a good standoff.
“Decus septum,” Bill murmured.
“Decus septum,” Maddux replied. “Protect the peak.”
“Protect the peak. You okay?” Bill asked.
“Of course.”
“You were tased three times on the way in here from the cemetery.”
“What was that?” Maddux asked, putting a hand to his ear.
Bill began to lean forward, closer to the bars, and then stopped abruptly. That had been a subtle attempt to draw him physically closer. He could tell by the smug look on Maddux’s face.
“You heard me, Shane.”
“So, what are you going to do with me?” Maddux asked.
“First, we need to talk. Karen said you kept asking about Travers after you chased her down. Why?”
“You know why.”
; “Was it because Travers gave Kaashif TQ Haze at the interrogation?”
Maddux nodded. “And I want to find Kaashif. If I have Travers, I have Kaashif. As long as the Haze is still working on Kaashif, of course.”
“But why did you come after Karen? You had Nathan Kohler slip Travers some of the TQ he was carrying. I know you did. Travers said his stomach hurt like he had food poisoning. And Kohler got him a drink before Travers went in with Kaashif again. That must mean Kohler lit Travers up like a TQ neon sign.”
Maddux nodded once more. “Very good, and my phone had Travers covered just fine. Then, poof, all of a sudden the track-and-trace app stops working.” He shrugged. “Sometimes that happens. I’m sure you’ve been told. Some bodies flush the micro-shards faster than others, and some do it really fast. Travers was one of those; he turned out to be a bad host. The guys who came up with the stuff are still working out the kinks.” He shrugged. “I figured Karen knew where Travers was because she showed up in North Carolina the other night.”
Bill shook his head. “She doesn’t even know who Wilson Travers is. She was telling you the truth when she said that. I was the one who had her go to North Carolina, not Troy.”
“Interesting, you putting a woman who isn’t even in RCS directly in the path of danger like that. What’s your real motive in all that?”
“No hidden agenda, Shane. She’s very capable, and she asked if she could help. She can handle herself very well.”
“So I saw.” Maddux stood up and began pacing slowly back and forth. It was a decent-size cell, so he had room to take several paces in each direction. “Who tased me, Bill?”
“Not saying.”
Maddux stopped directly in front of where Bill was sitting and wrapped the fingers of both hands slowly and tightly around separate bars. “Why do you and I have so many secrets these days?”
“You know why.”
“We used to work so well together.”
“Yes, we did.”
“It wasn’t that long ago, either.” Maddux glanced at a corner of the room behind Bill. “Maybe we should consider joining up again,” he suggested, covering his mouth with one hand as he spoke.
Amazing, Bill thought. Maddux had already pegged the camera’s location, and he’d covered his mouth so no one looking through it or examining a tape later could lip-read. “How did you find Imelda? What led you to her in Manassas?”
“I got a tip from one of my guys at Fort Meade.”
“Did she tell you anything during the interrogation?”
Maddux shook his head. “All she did was scare the hell out of me, Bill.”
That didn’t sound good. As far as Bill knew, the man standing in front of him wasn’t scared of anything. “What do you mean?”
“I know she was in on it somehow. I’m convinced. I can always tell when they’re lying.”
Bill was convinced, too, and he’d never even seen the woman. “But why did she scare you so much?” He’d heard Maddux refer to the woman in the past tense.
“I killed her son right in front of her. I sliced the boy’s neck wide open while she watched.”
Bill grimaced and glanced at the cement floor. How had the world come to this? How could a civilized man kill a small child, even in the name of protecting a country?
His eyes raced back to Maddux, aware that he’d let down his guard for a split second, and that was all it would take. But Maddux hadn’t moved. A wave of relief rushed through him.
“Imelda didn’t blink. I gave her a lot of chances to open up, Bill, but she didn’t.”
“Maybe you were wrong. I know how good you are at interrogation, but maybe this once you had it—”
“Imelda recognized Jack’s name when I said it. When I said Jack Jensen, she showed me her hand. She couldn’t hide it.”
Bill nodded. “That makes sense,” he muttered, thinking about what the woman had said when she’d first contacted him. “How did you get in that basement in North Carolina?” he asked. “Troy and Travers swore you weren’t down there when they cased the place initially. Travers said it was like you appeared out of thin air.”
Maddux grinned. “I’m a ghost, Bill. You know that.”
“Come on, Shane.”
“One of the fireplaces down there isn’t a working fireplace. The chimney is really a tiny elevator, big enough for one small person. There’s an entrance to the chimney from the house’s porch. I’d used it before.”
Bill stared at Maddux for a long time, then, against his better judgment, stood up and moved close. “Do you have a tape of Rita Hayes and me?”
Maddux stared back. “Did you have her killed?”
“Was she your mole, Shane?”
Maddux nodded. “Yes.”
“Do you have a tape of Rita and me?” Bill asked again.
“Protect the peak, Bill.”
“Yes, yes, protect the—”
“Which one is it?”
“Which one is what?”
“I know you know, Bill. Where is the Executive Order that Nixon signed? What peak is it hidden on?”
“I have no idea.”
“Carlson told you. He swore to me he did. We must move it. The enemies are closing in.”
Bill stared at Maddux. He hated and loved this man at the same time. How could that be?
“Let me go, Bill. Let me do what I do best. Let me protect this country.”
“I—I can’t.”
“More people were killed today.”
How could he know that? Bill wondered as he glanced at Maddux’s knuckles, which were milky white because they were gripping the bars so tightly. The attacks had started a few hours ago. Maddux had been in here the entire time.
“I must be allowed to stop them. Please, Bill. I’ll get you the tape Rita made. No one but you will ever see it again. I promise.” Maddux hesitated. “Decus septum.”
Bill stared hard at Maddux, trying to decide. Ending a promise with “decus septum” was tantamount to taking an oath. Shane Maddux would never break an RCS oath. Would he?
“There’s a deal here, Bill.”
Bill’s head was pounding. He absolutely could not have that tape out in the ether. He cringed and nearly vomited at the thought of it being played on some Internet site. At the thought of his business associates watching the intimate things he and Rita had done over the last few years. He put his hands to his face and shut his eyes tightly as he thought about Cheryl watching it, after he’d promised her he’d be faithful to her forever so long ago. He was close to the bars, and he wasn’t watching Maddux, but he didn’t care. For a few seconds, he hoped Maddux would do something. But what would that get Shane? Nothing at all, which meant he was safe.
“If I don’t check in by noon, that tape of you and Rita goes viral,” Maddux spoke up, his tone turning nasty. “That’s the agreement I have with one of my people. You don’t want that, Bill.”
“No, I don’t,” he whispered.
“Set me free,” Maddux pushed, “and tell me which peak it is. Tell me where that original of the Executive Order is hidden. You do, and you get your tape.” He shook his head. “Do I really need to describe all the ways she pleases you in the recording, Bill? Do you need me to remind you that in the opening scene you use your tie to secure her to the bed while you—”
“Stop it,” Bill hissed. Why had he been so damn weak? “No more, Shane.”
“And tell me where Kaashif is,” Maddux demanded. “I swear to God if you don’t tell me that right away, your video will grow wings and fly. Everyone from Washington to Wall Street to Greenwich will see it. Do you really want that? Above all, do you really want Cheryl to see it?”
Bill swallowed hard. He’d never before considered suicide. He’d always called people who took that route weak and cowardly. He’d always sworn to himself that no matter ho
w bad anything got, he would never take his own life. Suddenly he wasn’t so sure.
CHAPTER 28
“THAT YOUNG woman likes you,” Travers said as they hustled through the Tysons One Mall together. It was the first day the mall had been open since the attack, and it was like a ghost town in there when it should have been jammed.
“What woman?” Troy asked.
They were almost to the cell phone store. They’d been inside the cavernous building for thirty seconds, and he’d counted a grand total of nine shoppers, none of whom looked comfortable being here. This morning’s attacks obviously had the majority of the population barricaded inside their homes for good, terrorized. No one was coming out now, not until they were convinced the insanity had been stopped and the bloodshed was over.
Travers snickered. “What woman? You know what woman—the woman in the hospital. Jennie Perez.”
“Give me a break.”
“Give me a break. I saw the way she was looking at you. I saw how you took her hand, and the way she squeezed yours back.”
Troy grinned as they headed inside the store. He couldn’t help it. She’d definitely snagged his interest—which made all of this so much more difficult. “How long were you standing there, Major?”
“Long enough to see sparks, Captain.”
“Hey,” Troy called loudly as he approached the first salesperson he saw inside the store.
“Hello, sir,” the young man answered in a deliberate, bored tone. He glanced up from the People magazine he’d been flipping through. “How can I help you?”
The kid was probably wondering what in the hell he was doing here today, Troy figured as he pulled a heavy gold badge from his pocket and held it up. He probably wasn’t afraid of the place being attacked again—why would he be? There was no one here to kill.
“I’m a federal agent, and I’m investigating the Holiday Mall Attacks.”
The kid had been leaning on the glass counter, which was filled with different phones, but he stood straight up to look at the badge when he heard that. “Yes, sir.”