‘What?’
‘And it gets even more strange. It was Groh Sitaarah, the Star Brigade on the Subcontinent, that just killed all those poor people in Pakistan. It seems they’re all connected, George; all connected.’
‘I truly don’t understand, my dear.’
Abigail gave a frustrated sigh. ‘As well as the Star Brigade name that connects them, they’ve all been playing the same game, that Global WarTek game that was made special for the nice folks at Blue Atlantico.’
‘Oh my,’ Gantry said, although he still seemed genuinely confused.
‘Oh my?’ Abigail repeated. ‘Does your young protégé out there play this WarTek thing too, George? Did your Texas Star Brigade boys’ club have something to do with Fort Hood?’
‘Now now, my dear, how can you even suggest,’ Gantry blustered. ‘I mean that’s too ridiculous for words. You are clearly upset dear lady, but…’
Abigail van Louden West wondered for a moment if perhaps her old friend was telling the truth, and then decided she did not care either way. She showed him her present; and then she shot him with it.
The Lieutenant-Governor of Texas pitched forward, head first, into the glass-topped case that held his Civil War memorabilia. He didn’t feel a thing.
It took Abigail a moment to register the odd screaming noise that accompanied the fall of George Gantry, Lieutenant-Governor of Texas.
It was that horrible little Jesse person. And he was screeching as he ran full pelt at her across the room.
Jesse-Jay launched himself at Abigail West and tackled her to the floor.
The gun went off again.
The White House, Washington
Saturday 6.30 pm
Garner Brock paced the carpet in the Oval Office while various department heads gave their latest updates on every damn disaster besetting his country and his people at the moment. It really was too much.
‘Goddamnit,’ he said suddenly. ‘What is the world coming to when an American isn’t even safe in Australia?’
Adam Lyall and Aiden Bonney actually laughed, so that cheered the President up.
‘The Vice President has informed me that he intends to stay in Sydney for the duration of the summit,’ Bonney said.
‘I heard he had a hand in the capture of the terrorists who tried to kill him,’ van Louden said.
Brenda Janeway smiled. ‘I believe he was present at the arrest, Nate, that’s all.’
When two cell phones began ringing at the same time, the President suggested they all adjourn soon for an early dinner.
Brenda Janeway was watching Nate van Louden take a call on his cell as she listened with a frown to the FBI Agent from Houston who had called her. She hung up her call when the Secretary of Defense dropped his cell in his lap and just sat there.
Before she could get everyone’s attention, however, Aiden Bonney had noticed van Louden’s ashen expression.
‘Nate, are you okay. My goodness, what on earth has happened this time?’
‘My, my sister, Abigail,’ he shook his head in disbelief.
Janeway took over. ‘Nate’s sister Abigail,’ she waved her own cell to indicate she’d had the same news, ‘was arrested by the FBI in Houston half an hour ago.’
‘Arrested?’ Bonney said.
‘What on earth for?’ Lyall asked.
‘Two counts of murder,’ Janeway said.
‘Actually only one was murder,’ van Louden said, his face presenting a roll call of emotions. ‘The other was apparently unintentional - and self-defense.’
‘Who, on earth, would your sweet sister wish to kill,’ Garner Brock asked, recalling the doll-like woman he’d met just last weekend.
‘A young man wanted in connection with the Dallas bombings was the accidental victim,’ Janeway said. ‘So, obviously, no great loss.’
‘My God,’ Bonney said. ‘Then who was the intended?’
‘George Gantry, the Lieutenant-Governor of Texas.’
Well, that’s one little problem solved. Adam Lyall scratched his ear and tried not to smile.
‘Just when I thought the world could not get any more strange,’ Bonney said.
‘Is this something we can cover up?’ Brock asked. ‘Because it sounds like something we should cover up.’
Van Louden stood to protest. ‘No, no, Mr President. That is not something I could ask of you or anyone in this room. Nor would I expect it.’
‘Well, actually,’ Brenda Janeway stood, to stand beside her friend Nathanial van Louden. ‘Abigail West technically just shot two of the Dallas conspirators. We have had Mr Gantry under surveillance since Wednesday. We were about to arrest him for treason, terrorism, illegal arms dealing and homicide, before and after the fact.’
Van Louden stared at her. ‘All of that - and my 65-year-old sister beat you to it?’
‘Well, all I can say,’ the President said, ‘is good on her.’
Chapter Fifty-Eight
Back Door, Sydney Australia
Sunday 11 am
Gideon, coffee in hand, wandered towards the Recon Room, mostly because she had nothing better to do. The worst thing about the end of a mission - even a spontaneous, last minute, unwanted and unpaid mission - was the down-time afterwards. It was always so very down.
She didn’t expect to find anyone in the Recon Room, it being Sunday and with every Redback home and accounted for, so she was surprised to find the place a hive of activity.
‘Did you forget to send my invitation?’ she asked from the doorway.
‘Oh, hey Bryn,’ Jana said. ‘Oliver has been regaling us with the technical details of his remote control device for the now-dead Humvee.’
‘Well you can stop that right now Oliver, or you’ll put everyone to sleep. Why are you all here anyway?’
Scott raised his hand. ‘Oliver called me because there was an incoming video-link from Brenda Janeway at the FBI. Apparently the elderly sister of the US Secretary of Defense shot and killed two of the home-grown Texas terrorists, one of whom was the Lieutenant-Governor of the State.’
‘You mean that lanky old bloke in the huge hat sharing the same photo opportunity with Jamal Zahkri and Assad bin Khalid?’ Gideon said.
Scott grinned. ‘The very same.’
‘I’m here because I saw Scott in here,’ Jana said.
‘Ditto Scott and Jana,’ Coop said.
‘Well, I suggest we order in lunch and make a meal of it.’ Gideon sat on the edge of the boardroom table facing the giant screen.
‘I guess you’ve got one helluva story Scott,’ Coop said.
Scott nodded. ‘Oh yeah. I’ve still also got a helluva lot of background research to finish and some stray facts and missing pieces to find - but I’m thinking it’s a book rather than a story.’
‘Hey cool, do we get to be in it?’ Coop asked.
‘Only if Scott is willing to name you Doofus et al,’ Gideon said.
Jana patted him on the arm. ‘Secret organisation Coop. Remember?’
Gideon, as usual when she was in this room, always had a bit of her mind on the always incoming and ever-changing flow of information that coursed across the big screen. Something caught her eye and trapped her attention.
‘Hey Oliver,’ she said, ‘you’ve been running fresh stuff through your brain boxes haven’t you?’
‘Always Bryn, you know that.’
‘Well, what’s that there, top right?’ she asked pointing.
Oliver brought the top-right screen down to front and centre and twice the size.
‘Telamon,’ Jana read. ‘What’s Telamon?’
‘I think I might have heard of that,’ Scott asked.
‘Let’s see,’ Oliver said. ‘Telamon is an American institute-company kind of deal that specialises in satellite technology, navigations systems and lots of my kind of techno-shit.’
‘Why did it come up here, now?’ Coop asked.
‘Because the other day I fed in, let me see: Edward Drake, that British spy guy; and
Jennifer Leland, our High Commissioner to the UK. According to this they both have a connection to Telamon. Him because Telamon is working with a British company to beef up military navigation systems. Her, ditto, but with the Australian government for civilian services not military.’
‘You better dig up everything you can find on them, Oliver.’
‘Why, what have they got to do with this?’ Scott waved his hands around and then at the screen.
‘Because this is an uh-oh,’ Gideon said.
‘Uh-oh,’ Coop repeated. ‘That’s usually an ominous sound coming from Bryn.’
‘I just have a feeling this is not over.’
‘Bryn, this is never over, you know that,’ Coop said.
‘But I don’t mean the stuff that we do, Coop. I mean this - this Rashmana, Atarsa Kára, Jamal Zahkri, Kelman, and now Telamon thing is not over.’
‘What are you seeing that we not? Jana asked.
‘Telamon,’ Gideon stressed as she stood to face them all. ‘Telamon is another word for ‘caryatid’, which is another word for ‘atlantes’.’
‘Which is the other name for the book of Rashmana,’ said Scott.
Gideon spread her arms. ‘Which was based on Assad bin Khalid’s Document of Encouragement.’
Jana Rossi waved her hands around her head. ‘This is never ending.’
‘The battle is won, but the war games go on,’ Oliver said dranatically.
Bryn Gideon laughed.‘Or as I said - this is not over yet.’
CLAN DESTINE PRESS
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First published in eBook form by Clan Destine Press in 2010
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Copyright © Lindy Cameron 2010
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National Library of Australia Cataloguing-In-Publication data:
Cameron, Lindy
Redback
ISBN 978-0-9871603-0-0
Cover Design © Ran Valerhon http://www.valerhon.com
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