It Takes a Thief

by Liz Wolfe

  “Damn. I’ve worked with him before.” LaCaria shook his head.

  “Also, Zoe Alexander. Five feet one inch, one hundred five pounds. Amber eyes, curly red hair. Both agents are in exceptional physical condition, so even if they’ve been injured, they’re still probably mobile.”

  “That would be a plus.” Timmens pointed at the map. “So, this is the facility. Looks like there’snothing around it, so we don’t have to worry about any citizens in the area. That’s good. It won’t limit our use of artillery.”

  “Any idea of the best place for us to gain egress?” Schufreider asked.

  “Once we land in Bern, we’ll take a helicopter to the site. After we’re there, you go in any way you can.” Ethan looked at the men. “We know nothing about the facility, so you’ll have to wing it.”

  “I’ll set up the snipers here, here, and here.” LaCaria pointed to three places on the map. “Of course that’s a guess. It could change depending on what we find when we get there.”

  “My men will go in first. They can blow an exterior door and use flash bangs if necessary. LaCaria’s snipers can give us cover,” Schufreider said. “Since we don’t know anything about the facility, I’d suggest we go in through the front doors. That’ll give us the best access routes once we’re inside.”

  “My men will provide backup with heavy artillery. We’ll go in right behind you.” Timmens said.

  Cournoyer nodded. “I’ll link up to Robyn and get the satellite download. I can let everyone know where there might be personnel. Unfortunately, we won’t know if they’re friendly or not.”

  Timmens shrugged his massive shoulders. “I’ll go make sure everyone’s eaten and had plenty of water.”

  “Great,” Schufreider said. “They’ll all have to stop to take a piss.”

  “I don’t care if they piss their pants as long as they aren’t slowed down by a muscle cramp.” Timmens moved to the rear of the plane.

  The copilot opened the door of the cockpit and motioned to Ethan. “Sir? You have a phone call. You can take it on that phone.”

  Ethan nodded and picked up the phone. “Calder here.”

  “Ethan, where the hell are you? I called your office and it took almost five minutes for them to route me to this phone.”

  Ethan swallowed hard. “I’m working off-site, sir. Do you have an update?”

  “Actually, I have good news. We have the goahead to proceed. How soon can you have a team in Switzerland?”

  “Before you know it, sir.” Ethan glanced to the rear of the plane where the team leaders were informing their men. “Everyone’s on standby.”

  “I can hardly hear you, but I got that. Sounds like you’re on a damn plane or something.”

  “I’ll contact you as soon as I know something, sir.”

  January 18, The Order Facility Outside Bern, Switzerland

  “Okay. You check for a way out and I’ll go find Logan.” Zoe ran out of the guard station and headed up the first flight of stairs ignoring Drake’s hissed command for her to return. Maybe by the time she located Logan, Drake would have found a way out of the facility that wouldn’t alert anyone to their escape. She paused at the top of the stairs and looked down the hallway. To the left the hallway was dark. To the right she saw a partially open doorway. Zoe approached the doorway cautiously. She peered around the door jamb but the room was empty.

  “He has to be here somewhere,” she muttered to herself.

  “I imagine you’re looking for Logan?”

  Zoe jerked and turned at the unexpected voice.

  “Giovanni Castiglia. I don’t believe we’ve met.” He chuckled as he moved into the room. “Although I know quite a bit about you.”

  “Sorry I can’t say the same.”

  “Of course. But you know that I am Logan’s uncle.”

  Zoe nodded. From what Logan had told her, Giovanni was an elderly Italian man. This man appeared to be in his sixties, but he moved like ayounger man. And he didn’t sound especially Italian. Her eyes darted about the room, looking for another way out.

  “I’m afraid I’m blocking the only door.” Giovanni shook his head. “You can probably get past me but the Peacekeepers will stop you.”

  “Peacekeepers?” Zoe asked.

  “The guards,” Giovanni explained. “They’ve been specially trained. Actually they’ve been bred for the job. They’re very good at what they do. Exceptionally good.”

  “I’ll bet.” Zoe hefted her gun. “But I’ll also bet that I can get out of here without a problem. With you as a hostage.”

  “Me?”

  “Yeah. They still need you, don’t they? For whatever they’re doing? The alternative energy source?”

  “Ah. I didn’t realize you knew about our energy source.” Giovanni didn’t appear to be very upset about it.

  “What she knows is of no importance, because she won’t be alive to tell anyone.”

  Zoe’s attention flew to the sound of Weisbaum’s voice. He stood in the hallway, a few feet behind Castiglia, and behind him, one of the Peacekeepers that gave her the willies. Damn it!

  “Take care of them, then meet me in the lab.” Giovanni started toward the door.

  “We still don’t know where Drake is,” Weisbaum said. “I’d rather keep her alive until we have him, too. Besides, I have a few questions I want answered before we kill them.” He waved a hand toward the door, then held it out for Zoe’s gun. Zoe slapped the gun into his hand and strode past him.

  “Please join us.” Weisbaum motioned toward the door with the gun, then handed it to the guard, who tucked it into his belt. “Really. I insist.”

  Zoe followed Weisbaum down the hall, extremely conscious of the man behind her with the guns. Where the hell was Drake? And where was Logan? She glanced back at the Peacekeeper. No expression on his face. Zoe wondered if there ever had been.

  “Here we are.” Weisbaum pressed his palm against a glass panel and the metal door slid open.

  Zoe did not want to go into that room. Every fiber of her being resisted crossing that threshold. The Peacekeeper placed a hand on her shoulder and pushed. She stumbled and Giovanni put his hand under her elbow.

  “This is very much the heart of the facility. Let me show you.” He walked over to a control panel.

  “Really, Capo, is this necessary?” Weisbaum asked.

  Giovanni shrugged. “There’s no harm in it. I just want her to see what we’re really about. To understand the service we are giving to humankind.”

  Zoe shivered and looked around the vast area. At the far end of the room a glass wall separated them from a huge device. “Capo? I thought your name was Castiglia.”

  Giovanni shrugged. “It’s a term. It means leader.”

  “You’re the leader of the Dominion Order?” Zoe asked.

  “Even the Order needs leadership. Someone who sees the big picture. Someone who sees the vision. And puts it into action.”

  “Does Logan know you’re the leader?”

  “Not really.” Giovanni waved a hand. “Logan is like a son to me. I never had a son to bring into the fold. Not even a daughter. But by the time I realized that it just wasn’t going to happen, Logan was already eight.” He shook his head. “Most Legacy children are indoctrinated from birth.”

  “Indoctrinated?” Zoe had a really bad feeling about that.

  “Just a term. We are all descended from original members of the Brotherhood. Of course, the Brotherhood disbanded at the end of the eighteenth century.” Giovanni held up a finger. “But that doesn’t mean the ideals were abandoned. Some of the members knew that this way of thinking was right. That it would save the world.”

  “And we will,” Weisbaum added.

  “Yes. The time has come.” Giovanni turned back to Zoe. “Our forefathers created a Legacy for us. After a while, they wrote down the instructions, the prophecies. They told us what would happen and when it would happen and how we would know the time was right.”

  “Yeah, that
’s gotta be handy.” Zoe glanced back at the Peacekeeper but he stood at attention, oblivious to everything. “But how does Logan figure into this?”

  “Ah, yes. Logan. If he’d been my son, he’d have been indoctrinated at a much earlier age. But, as I said, I didn’t realize that I would have no children of my own. Still, I started when I could. I’d visit his mother and father every summer.” Giovanni chuckled. “But even I am not immune to doubt. Until recently, I doubted I’d be able to bring him in. To make him see the rightness of what we are doing.”

  “Until recently?” Zoe asked. Where the hell was Drake? He should be here by now. She didn’t know how much longer she could keep him talking.

  “Logan is almost ready. He doesn’t know that I’m the leader of the Order. Not yet. But he will. Soon. He’s almost ready to learn everything. Almost.” Giovanni pulled a small cut crystal globe from his pocket. He dangled it from the attached silver chain. “One more session. Maybe two. Then he’ll be ready.”

  “You really think your little group is going to make a difference?” she asked.

  “Our little group?” Weisbaum laughed. “We aren’t so little, my dear. But more importantly, we are powerful.”

  “Because of your gizmo here?” Zoe gestured at the cylinder.

  Weisbaum shook his head. “Our members are powerful. We have senators, princes, prime ministers, heads of powerful international corporations. We even have the next president of your country.”

  “President-elect Hemings is a member of the Order?” Zoe’s stomach twisted with nausea.

  “Ah, here we go.” Giovanni typed on the keyboard again, then pointed to the cylinder.

  Zoe watched as a purple light shot out from a cone into the silver cylinder. Lights flashed on the bank of computer screens.

  “This is the source of an energy such as man has never seen.” Giovanni’s fingers flew across the keyboard. “And we can end the threat of nuclear war. The energy can be converted into a weapon that can intercept and annihilate a nuclear device, rendering it useless.”

  “Impressive. How’s it work?” Zoe asked. Surely Drake would be here soon. Unless he’d escaped and just left her behind.

  “I doubt you’d understand the complexities, Zoe.”

  Weisbaum stepped over to one of the computers and typed in a command. “No reason you can’t see the demonstration video, though. It’s not like you’ll be able to tell anyone about it.” He nodded at one of the monitors as the video began. “This was all done from a satellite.”

  Zoe watched as the camera zoomed in on an old barn. Nothing happened for several seconds, then the barn exploded, throwing splintered wood into the air. Zoe flinched and watched as the camera panned to an old truck. After a moment, it burst into flames.

  “Of course, these are small-scale demonstrations,” Weisman said. “The weapon can be targeted at a single person or an entire city.”

  “Impressive. And Logan thinks this is a good idea?” Zoe asked.

  “He doesn’t know all the particulars just yet.” Giovanni waved his hands in the air. “But you are only looking at this as a negative.”

  “And there’s a positive side to this?” Zoe asked.

  “It is our wish that the weapon never be used.”

  “Of course. You just have it for what? A backup plan in case the passive path to world domination doesn’t work for you?”

  “It is there to ensure that others don’t use their weapons.”

  “Sure. Just another Peacekeeper, right?” Zoe asked. She glanced at the guard, then yelped at the sharp report of a gunshot. The Peacekeeper dropped his gun and fell to the floor.

  20

  January 18, The Order Facility, outside Bern, Switzerland

  “I GUESS I OWE LOGAN a big apology.” Drake stood in the doorway, his gun aimed at Giovanni. “All this time, I just thought he was one of the regular bad guys.”

  “Took you long enough to get here,” Zoe said. “Yeah, I got a little lost. Saw some interesting stuff, though. Seems the Order is involved in a lot of unsavory activities.” He looked at Weisbaum. “You want to explain what’s in those tanks?”

  “You got into the Genetics Lab?” Weisbaum asked. “How?”

  Drake grinned and shook his head. “It’s really not that hard. So, what are you doing in there?” Giovanni shrugged. “Experiments.”

  “On humans?” Drake asked.

  “We believe they will be classified differently than humans.” Weisbaum crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against a table.

  “You don’t understand,” Giovanni said. “They’ve been created to help humans. To free us from drudgery, from dangerous work. The Domestics will take care of our homes and rear our children with more patience than we could ever muster. The Laborers will work longer hours than we possibly could. The Peacekeepers will ensure our safety. And they’ll do all that happily, because it’s what they’ve been bred to do.”

  “You’re breeding slaves?” Zoe asked. “That’s disgusting.”

  “You sick bastard.” Drake looked at Zoe. “We need to find a way to contact Ethan.”

  “I don’t think so,” Weisbaum said.

  “You plan on stopping us?” Drake asked.

  “No, I plan on Messieurs von Bayem and Simitiere stopping you.”

  Zoe looked past Weisbaum where von Bayem and Simitiere stood, both holding guns. Von Bayem lifted his gun and fired. Drake fell to the floor, rolled over, and aimed his gun at von Bayem. Zoe dove for the automatic pistol the Peacekeeper had dropped and saw Logan step out from behind a bank of computer servers holding a metal stool.

  He brought the stool down on Simitiere’s back causing him to stumble forward. Simitiere caughthimself, pulled up his gun, and fired. Drake emptied his pistol in the general direction of Weisbaum and Castiglia. Von Bayem fired repeatedly and Zoe did the same.

  Zoe’s ears rang in the sudden silence. She pushed herself off the floor and looked at the bodies. Logan still held the stool he’d hit Simitiere with. His shoulders sagged and tears streamed down his face. Castiglia lay on top of Weisbaum, blood flowing freely from the gaping hole in his back. A few yards away, von Bayem’s arm was shot off above the elbow and the top half of his head was missing.

  Drake stood up holding his bleeding side. They both heard the noise at the same time. Drake pivoted and fired a final shot into Simitiere’s forehead.

  Zoe ran over to him. “How bad is it?” She pulled Drake’s sweater up. The bullet had gone through his side. Blood seeped from the wounds.

  “I think it nicked a rib, but I’m okay.” Drake hobbled to a stool and slumped down on it.

  “What about you, Logan?” Zoe moved over and touched his hand. “You okay?”

  “He was mentally programming me and I didn’t even know it.” Logan pulled his eyes from the sight of his uncle’s body and wiped his sleeve across his face.

  “But it didn’t work. Not totally. When you found out, you overcame it.” Zoe grinned at him. “You were stronger than the programming.”

  “What’s that?” Drake pointed to one of the computer screens that was emitting a high-pitched beep.

  “Oh, God, no!” Logan rushed to a console and typed in commands. “The energy source is overloading.” He typed in more commands and watched the screen. The bars were all flashing red. He turned to Zoe. “You need to get him out of here. I’ll stay and shut this down, then join you.”

  “We’ll wait for you. Then we’ll all leave together.”

  “No,” Logan said. “Drake can’t move very fast. You need to start now. Once I’m done, I’ll catch up.”

  Zoe tucked her shoulder under Drake’s arm to support him.

  “Go out that door and turn right. There’s a door marked Emergency Exit. It leads to a tunnel that will take you outside behind the tree line.”

  Zoe nodded. “Hurry.” She pulled Drake to his feet and helped him across the room and out to the emergency exit. The tunnel was dimly lit and had been built as a switchback,
turning every twenty yards or so, sloping up to the ground level. Zoe looked over her shoulder at each turn to see if Logan was following, but there was no sign of him. They made the final turn and she could see a door at the end.

  Zoe’s hand was only inches from the door handle when the explosion threw her and Drake to thefloor. The concussion rolled through the tunnel like an earthquake. Behind them the ceiling cracked and a beam fell down. Zoe crawled through the dusty air to the door and pulled it open. She sucked in the fresh air and turned to help Drake up. They struggled up the steps and onto the ground.

  “I can’t see the building from here because of the trees,” Zoe said.

  Drake shook his head. “I doubt there’s any building left.”

  “Do you think Logan got out in time?”

  Drake looked up at the sky. “You hear that?”

  Zoe looked up. “A helicopter?”

  “That’s what it sounds like to me.”

  Zoe stood and pulled a flashlight from her fanny pack. She turned it on and waved it at the sky. The huge helicopter flew over them, then turned and flew back. After a moment of hovering, it moved off and started descending.

  “I think they saw us,” Zoe said. She helped Drake up and they walked slowly toward the clearing. Minutes later, two men in fatigues trotted toward them.

  “Leatherman? Alexander?” one of them asked.

  They both nodded. “That’s us,” Zoe said.

  “I’m Timmens and this is Cournoyer.” The man nodded. He gently pulled Zoe away from Drake and took her place. Cournoyer took the other side and theyalmost carried Drake. Zoe trotted along behind them. In the clearing, a dozen other men stood next to the helicopter.

  “Ethan!” Zoe threw herself at him. “I’ve never been so damn happy to see anyone.”

  Ethan patted her back, then pushed her away to look at her. “What happened?”

  “The energy source overloaded. When we left, Logan was trying to shut it down.”

  “Obviously that didn’t happen,” Ethan said. “Let’s get you two some medical attention.”

  “We need to go back and find Logan,” Zoe said.

  “There’s nothing left, Zoe. If Logan was in the building …”