by Gini Koch
She said she could reach them if it was vital, but it had to be vital for her to do it. Passed along the news of Brewer’s death, but chose not to use Kelly’s access at this moment. Mostly because I figured I might need it at another time.
We got back and got Nathalie into Tito and Nurse Carter’s care. She had to go to the infirmary because Tito had to give her a sedative to calm her down, and, as with Buchanan, he wanted her watched.
The others were already back, so the rest of our team met up with them in the Computer Lab. Thankfully it was big. What it wasn’t, though, was full of answers.
“Serene’s checked in,” Gower told us. “She hasn’t gotten much from the emotional overlay device. Once she had all she could get, she tried to open it.”
“Is she okay?”
“Oh, yes, she used robotic arms within a blast-proof container. Unfortunately, it was a good thing she took the precaution.”
“Blew to bits?” This was an easy guess.
“Yeah, so we have nothing, other than what we’ll get from what we took from Gaultier Research.”
“It’s going to take us weeks to go through everything from Gaultier,” Amy said. “It’s giving me great ammunition for my case to take over the company, but otherwise, it’s a morass of data and information, and it’s going to require detailed attention and a lot more time before we have a hope of knowing what all’s going on.”
“So, we say we got what we needed out of Gaultier, which is Malcolm hopefully back with us soon, and we say they’re a dead end for now.”
“What if the Mastermind is at Gaultier?” Amy asked.
“Then we don’t find him or her right now. Look, I go back to what I said to James yesterday, I think it was—we need to solve these murders, first. If that leads us to our Professor Moriarty, great. If it only leads us to the Sith Apprentice, then at least we stop that person.”
“If Clarence is back, where’s he hiding out?” Jeff asked.
“I’m more interested in who he’s working with. Because I’m going to bet money that Clarence is who hit Malcolm with the suspended animation drug. He’s about the only one who could.”
“Clarence isn’t the brains of the operation,” Christopher said. “There’s no way.”
“There’s no way he’s the Sith Apprentice, either. I’m sure he’s being used as really effective and apparently quite loyal muscle.”
White shook his head. “Loyalties shift. I’m sure Clarence is loyal to whoever helped him recover after the invasion. That may not be anyone he’s known before.”
“Sith Lord or Sith Apprentice,” Stryker suggested. The rest of Hacker International nodded their agreement.
“Chief,” Walter said over the com, “Mister Beaumont is here.”
“Send him in and up, Walt. Scan him first, if you’re able.”
“Yes, Chief.”
“Did you invite him?” Reader asked.
“No. I’m assuming he’s heard about Edmund’s death.”
Vance arrived. “Now do you people believe me?” he asked by way of saying hello and proving me right. He had an overnight bag with him.
“I’ve been with you for a while, but yeah, I think we have more converts to the theory. What’s with the bag?”
“Lydia’s still at our place. I’m hoping to spend the night here again. Potentially for weeks or until she removes herself.”
“Fine with me, we can fit you in I’m sure. And I don’t think we want to let Nathalie go home alone so if she insists, you can go with her.”
“I’m agreeable. My husband’s consoling one new widow, I’ll be happy to console the much better-looking new widow. Have you figured out who’s killing everyone?”
“Not yet,” I admitted.
“Have you at least figured out why?”
“Sort of. It’s political.”
“In this town, that’s like saying water is wet.”
“We have assassins here,” Jeff pointed out. “Why are we assuming they aren’t involved?”
“Well, one of them is, for sure. And, I’m going to say something and I want everyone to let me finish before they yell at me or forbid me to do something.”
“Can’t wait for this,” Jeff growled under his breath.
“I called the Dingo. He insists he and Surly Vic are not the assassins we’re looking for. However, he also confirmed that Raul is a professional name, kind of like Madonna. Raul also uses the alias Dier, though he’s never used Reid to the Dingo’s knowledge.”
Chuckie cursed quietly and looked at Mom. “This has never popped, not once.”
“No,” Mom agreed. “It hasn’t.” She looked seriously pissed.
“So, it’s safe to assume that Leventhal Reid still has friends in high as well as low places. However, the various Reps’ murders were not carried out by Club Fifty-One—they just don’t possess the skills.”
“Could Reid have been the Sith Lord?” Reader asked.
“He was too young when he died to have been involved as far back as the Mastermind theory takes us,” Mom said.
“Not if he was the Apprentice to the first Sith,” Stryker said. “I’m looking at timelines here, and I’d say it would have been very easy. He was a career politician, he went to George Washington University, and did all his internships on the Hill.”
“And Reid was a sick, twisted bastard. And that means he’d have been attractive to whoever was running their Overlord Campaign.”
“It’s all pure conjecture,” Mom said. “We have no facts and less proof.”
“That matters for you, Mom, and Chuckie, but it doesn’t matter for us. I’ve spent the past three years working with no facts and less proof, and I always end up being right, because the Force is strong on my Megalomaniac Girl skills. By the way, you all interrupted me before I was done.”
“Oh, beg pardon,” Mom said, sarcasm knob firmly at eleven. “Do go on.”
“I will. I made a date with the Dingo.”
A lot of people started talking, loudly. “Quiet down!” It wasn’t Jeff bellowing—it was Raj. And he wasn’t bellowing, just speaking strongly. But everyone shut the heck up. “Thank you. The ambassador has more to say. Let’s allow her to say it.”
“Thanks, Raj, I officially like having a troubadour around. Okay, the Dingo knows more than he wants to tell me. I think I can get it out of him in a face-to-face meeting. However, he won’t show if I come with anyone who might have the idea of arresting him, and that includes Mom, Chuckie, Kevin, all of Alpha Team, all of Airborne, and Jeff and Christopher, too.”
“Then you’re sure as hell not going,” Jeff said.
“No, I’m going. I told him I wasn’t going alone. And I won’t.”
“Just who do you plan to take to a meeting with the best assassins in the world?” Mom snapped.
“I plan to take Richard, Raj, and the two best warriors currently on planet Earth.”
CHAPTER 82
“NO,” Jeff said flatly. “You are not going to this without me along.”
“Sorry, you’re not invited. You are the target, not me. Besides, I’m sure Rahmi and Rhee will be thrilled to be given a mission by the Great Tito, and I’m equally sure they’ll kill any man I tell them to and not even think about asking questions later. They can move at hyperspeed, they’re stronger than A-Cs, and they have an even faster ability to heal.”
“Take your Glock,” Mom said. She looked at Jeff. “Kitty’s right, she’s going, you’re not. I’ll have Charles knock you out if you argue. Because, what none of you know is that the President wants Jeff in the severest form of protective custody.”
“Does he think Jeff killed Brewer or anyone else?”
“No. He, like you and Vance and, frankly, me, thinks that Jeff is a target. Now that I’ve brought the number of dead representatives to his attention, the President is also worried that we have a conspiracy or serial killer on our hands. And the absolute last representative the President wants killed is our first A-C congressman.”
“I don’t care, Kitty’s not going to this meeting without me. I don’t want her going at all, but if she’s going, then she’s taking me, period. And that’s an order.”
White cleared his throat. “Ah, Jeffrey, I hate to say this to you, but you’re actually not in a position to give anyone in the Embassy orders any more. You’re now a congressman. Missus Martini is the ambassador and, as such, her word is law in here.”
“James,” Jeff said. “You can overrule her.”
“I can, but I don’t think we want me to. We have nothing to go on. The leads we have are all going on a fast path to nowhere. We think it’s Clarence, but we don’t know. We think Raul the assassin is Leventhal Reid’s relative, but we don’t know. People are dropping dead all over and we have no handle on why or how. You were shot, and it’s only by a miracle of a string of coincidences that you’re alive at all. If we have a chance to get some clarity, even a little, then I say we go for it.”
“I’m not going to allow my wife to have a midnight meeting with assassins,” Jeff growled. “And that’s final.”
“Then I have no choice but to arrest you,” Mom said. “For your own good.”
Jeff’s jaw dropped. “You can’t be serious.”
“I can and I am. I’m not talking as your mother-in-law. I’m speaking as the Head of the P.T.C.U.”
“It’s Mom’s turn to use me for bait, Jeff. And, just like way back when, I approve and endorse being the bait.”
“Jamie’s birthday is tomorrow,” Jeff said quietly, but with a catch in his voice.
Went to him and hugged him. “I know. And I’ll be there for it. I’m not going alone. I’ll be with four others, and we all have hyperspeed. Richard and I know what we’re doing, we really do. The princesses will protect us. And Raj will find what Christopher couldn’t.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” Christopher asked, as I received a nice blast of Patented Glare #5.
“You’ve been searching for where the assassins are holed up. Chuckie thought that they might be using someplace in the cemetery as a base. The Dingo asked me to meet there, so I think the likelihood just went up. But you don’t think like a sneaky human—and that’s a compliment—so you’re not going to spot where a really sneaky human would be hiding. Chuckie would be best for this, but he can’t go. So Raj will have to do.”
“What makes you think Raj will be better at this than me? He has no Field training at all.”
“I’m happy to arrest you, too, Christopher,” Mom said.
“I don’t want to go. I mean, I would if Kitty wanted me, but clearly she prefers my dad. But at least they’ve worked together before. What does Raj have that I don’t have?”
“Troubadour talent and an actual awareness of popular culture,” I answered without missing a beat. “He’s also seen all the evidence we found. And the only reason Raj has no Field training is that you wouldn’t let him have any. I’m not prejudiced against troubadours like you are. So he’s coming with me.”
“I agree,” Mom said, voice icy and completely in charge. “And I want to make sure that every person in this room understands that the person with the most authority in this room is me.”
Jeff and Christopher glowered, but they both shut up. Everyone else other than Kevin and Chuckie had I’m A Good Boy or Girl expressions on their faces. Kevin and Chuckie merely looked like they were enjoying that Mom was laying down the law to someone other than themselves.
“I’m approving this, but I want all five of you in Kevlar. I don’t want to hear any whining about it being heavy or itching or anything like that. You’re in Kevlar or you’re not leaving any more than Jeff is.”
“No problem, Mom. I’m all for not getting shot.”
Reader made a call. “We’ll have something for all five of them before they go.”
“Good, thank you, James. Kitty, when is your meeting?”
“Ten at night.”
“Fine. Go brief your strike force, then relax until it’s time to get ready to go. Jeff, if you put one toe out of the Embassy Complex I will shoot it off, is that clear?”
“Yes,” he said with a sigh. “Fine. I’m neutered, you don’t have to put the plastic collar on me, too.”
Hugged him again. “It’s not being neutered. It’s being protected. Because I don’t want to experience what Nathalie is going through right now, ever.”
He hugged me back. “I don’t, either, which is why I don’t want you to go.”
“If you two are going to start, do you mind taking it to your room?” Tim asked. “Some of us have spouses who are elsewhere and we’re a little bitter.”
“Happy to,” Jeff said, a little too eagerly.
Mom rolled her eyes again. “Kevin, Charles, you’re assigned to Representative Martini. I’d assign Christopher as well, but he tends to be as much of a problem.”
Michael, Abigail, and Naomi Gower came in. “You wanted us, Amy?” Michael asked.
“Yeah. Kitty’s about to do her usual, and Jeff and Christopher are confined to the Embassy. Chuck and Kevin are on guard duty, but I think it’ll be a good idea to have some A-Cs along who can keep them in line.” She looked at Mom. “If that’s okay with you, Angela.”
“Works for me,” Mom said tiredly. “As long as Lorraine and Claudia are at Dulce.”
“All of Airborne is at the Science Center,” Tim confirmed.
“Bummer,” Vance said quietly.
“Do you want them brought out?” Tim asked Mom.
“No, but have them stay ready.”
“Kitty’s a bad influence on you,” Christopher said to Amy, who just laughed.
“We’re happy to help,” Abigail said. Michael nodded.
“What can we do?” Naomi asked with more than a little disinterest in her tone. “I mean, me and Abby. Any more.”
“Can you help keep Jeff and Christopher in the Embassy Complex?” Amy asked. “If yes, then we need you to help. Because we can’t trust them to behave like adults right now.”
“Fine,” Jeff said. “I’ll be a good little boy and let my wife run headlong into danger. Again.”
Reader shrugged. “It’s her specialty, Jeff, and you know it.”
“You can come with me to tell Tito about the fun orders he gets to hand out to Rahmi and Rhee.”
“So, that would be me, Christopher, Reynolds, Kevin, Michael, Naomi, and Abigail included in this field trip?”
“Yeah. It’s a party. Vance can come, too, so he can see Nathalie, if she’s conscious.”
“We have hours to kill before you leave,” Reader said as we headed for the elevator. “So make sure the ‘party’ focuses on what little solid intelligence we have. If we can figure out who’s behind what’s going on, Kitty and her team won’t need to go on their group date.”
CHAPTER 83
TITO HAD NO ISSUE giving Rahmi and Rhee their special orders. As expected, the princesses were beside themselves with the excitement of being sent on this top secret and vital mission. They raced off to work out and prepare in our exercise room, which was where they spent most of their free time anyway.
That took far less than an hour. Nathalie was still sleeping, so we all went up to the kitchen to look one more time at what Jeff and I had brought back from Rayburn House. One by one and in small groups, the rest of the team other than Hacker International wandered into the kitchen to join us.
We hadn’t had the findings from the Cannon or Longworth Houses before. Reader brought those and we added them in.
Unfortunately, extra trash, planners, calendars, scraps of paper, and brainpower or not, we weren’t getting much more than we’d had, and that included Chuckie. “I’m not seeing anything other than the letter L connection, and while it might mean something, it might not as well.”
“It’s on at least a third of the calendars or planners we found,” Raj pointed out. “I think it has significance.”
“It might.” Chuckie shook his head. “But if it does, one letter,
with nothing else added in, isn’t enough to go on.”
“My Conspiracy King is letting me down? I’m crushed.” I looked around. “Hey, where’s Mister Joel Oliver? I thought he slept here last night.”
“He did,” Reader said. “I have no idea where he is, though. He was supposed to tell me if he left.”
Looked around. Oliver wasn’t the only one missing. “Com on! Walter, are Mister Joel Oliver, Len, or Kyle within the Embassy complex?”
“No, Chief. Len asked me to tell you, when you noticed that they were gone, that he and Kyle were meeting Mister Joel Oliver at the Romanian Embassy. Mister Joel Oliver left right after you and Representative Martini went to have brunch. Len and Kyle left shortly after you all returned.”
“Super, thanks.” Pulled out my phone and dialed.
“Ambassador, I was wondering when you’d notice the young men and I were missing.”
“Tell me you’re over there extracting useful information from Olga, MJO.”
“We are indeed. We’ll be back shortly to share what we’ve learned. It was a hard fought lesson.”
“If it was hard for you, I’m thankful I missed it. I’m a little too stressed to indulge Olga’s sense of humor right now.”
“Which she’s quite aware of. You’ll be pleased to know that your young men gave a good showing.”
“Awesome. Hurry back. The rest of us are very lead-frustrated.”
Tim’s phone beeped. “Interesting. Kitty, Oren from the Israeli mission asked me to tell you and Chuck that Pia Ryan was a double agent for, and you’re going to love this, France. She was considered a benign mole, by the way, just someone passing along low-level intelligence.”
“There’s no such thing as a benign mole in espionage,” Chuckie said. “So, why did Mossad wait this long to tell us?”
“I’d assume because it wasn’t relevant until now,” Tim said. “They’re trying to help us by running their own intel on anyone who could be involved.”
“And I didn’t have a relationship with them during Operation Assassination, which was when Pia’s husband ‘killed himself.’ You know, if she was still alive, I’d suggest that she was the one who shoved Edmund Brewer off his roof, or at least the one who orchestrated it.”