by David Archer
It was Molly’s turn to have eyes the size of saucers. “Oh my—is it really you?”
“It’s me. Long story, and I don’t have time to go into it right now, but I work for a government agency you probably never heard of, and that girl and the guy with her are part of my team. I sent them in to watch you because I have reason to believe you may be in some danger.”
“What about the other bunch that’s been watching me? Are they with you, too?”
“Some of them are working with us, four of them. As for the rest, we believe they’re working for the man I’m after. He’s trying to draw me out into a trap, and we have a theory that he may try to use you as bait. We’re hoping to catch him before he can act on his plans, so that means we have to keep you in sight at all times.”
“For what it’s worth, I knew you weren’t dead. Suicide is not logical, you’d never have taken your own life. That meant somebody faked it, to get you out of Leavenworth. CIA?”
“Molly, I’m sorry, but I’m not sure you have a high enough clearance for me to answer that.”
Molly’s eyes flicked to Sarah. “Does your team know all about you? The things I know?”
“Yes, they know it all. It’s one of the reasons I was recruited.”
“I figured they probably did, since you’re the one who’s using me as bait now. Most people would get upset about that, seeing as how we’re old childhood friends. They’d have to understand you, or they probably couldn’t work with you.”
“Yeah, it caused me some problems at first, but they finally caught on. Question: are you leaving the restaurant with your date?”
“No, we just get together for dinner once in a while. It’s not like that. I’ll have the restaurant call me a cab when I’m ready to leave.”
“I’ve got a better idea,” Noah said. “I think it’s time to show myself. When you go back to your booth, make a point of telling your date that you ran into an old friend—her name is Sarah, by the way—and you’re going to hang out with her after dinner. Point her out when she comes back to the table, and when you get done eating, just come on out with her and Moose. We’ll drive you home, which will let the men watching you get a look at me. For now, you need to get back to your date, you’ve been gone long enough. And Molly? Trust me when I say we’ll do everything we can to keep you safe.”
Molly nodded. “I know that,” she said, “as long as it doesn’t interfere with your mission, right? Don’t answer that, I already know. I’m giving this back, now.” She lifted the earpiece off her ear and passed it back to Sarah. “Okay, I trust him, so I’ll trust you. See you after dinner.” She glanced at herself in the mirror and then turned and walked out of the restroom.
Sarah slipped the earpiece back on. “I thought you didn’t want her to know you were around?”
“She made you and Moose, so it was the best way to handle the situation. Wait a few more seconds and then go back out to join him. Moose, did you copy all that?”
“I did. She just slid back into the booth, but not before she took a good look at me.”
“Yeah, I see her again. I think you guys were what was making her nervous; her body language is nice and calm, now.”
Noah watched as Sarah took a seat at the table again, and noticed that Morabito was looking her way as she did so. “Watch Pasquale,” he said. “He got suspicious because the two of you were gone so long. I think he’s made you.”
Molly turned and gave Sarah a finger wave, and Sarah returned it. Molly was smiling as she pointed Sarah out to Kitchener, and Morabito seemed to relax a bit.
Their waitress appeared then, bringing their plates and refilling their glasses. Moose and Sarah dug in to eat, doing their best to avoid paying any attention to Molly or her stalker. Molly’s dinner had arrived while she and Sarah were in the ladies’ room, and she and Mr. Kitchener were also concentrating on the meal.
THIRTEEN
Neil had gotten hungry while they were waiting, so Noah sent him to get sandwiches from a fast food restaurant across the street. While he was gone, Noah called Parker to fill him in on the change of plans.
“She made us,” he said when Parker answered. “Molly figured out that Moose and Sarah were watching her, and confronted Sarah in the bathroom at the restaurant. I decided the best option was to let her know that I’m here, and what the situation is. I didn’t go into detail about who I work for.”
“The girl has a top-secret clearance, and we occasionally employ Dexter Reedy when we run into problems we can’t solve on our own. It’s quite possible your old friend already knows something about us. You’ve got free rein on this, Camelot. Do what you feel necessary.”
“Yes, Sir. We’ll be driving her home after dinner tonight, so there’s a good chance Nicolaich’s people will spot me. That’s what I’m hoping for, at this point. If he knows I’m in town, he might try to switch over onto me, rather than her.”
“Just be sure he doesn’t get a clear shot,” Parker said. “With the shape we’re in, I can’t afford to lose you right now.”
“I understand, Sir, and I have no intention of letting him win. He wants to turn this into a game but he doesn’t realize that all games of skill are based on logic. When it comes to games, I tend to excel.”
“That’s what I’m counting on, Camelot.”
The line went dead, so Noah put the phone away. Neil returned only a moment later and they ate in the car.
The two of them watched the monitor as Moose, Sarah and Molly finished their meals. Moose and Sarah were done first, and waited a few extra minutes for Molly, but finally Noah saw them all rise and start toward the door. He got back into the front passenger seat as the three of them came out of the restaurant and walked toward the car.
“Stalker is on the move,” Neil said. “Pasquale waited until our bunch got outside and then headed for the door, himself. He should be stepping out right about—now!”
Noah opened his door and stepped out, looking toward the door of the restaurant. Morabito and another man were standing there, and Morabito seemed to be watching Molly, but his eyes locked on Noah’s face instantly when Noah stood erect. The two men looked each other in the eyes for the seconds it took for Molly to slide into the backseat between Moose and Neil, and then Morabito and his companion turned and walked toward a car that was parked near the entrance.
Noah got back inside as Sarah started the car, and they were moving only a couple of seconds later.
“Turn right,” Noah said. Sarah did as he instructed, which took them past the restaurant’s driveway entrance as Morabito was pulling out. He fell in behind them but drove slowly, so that another car got between them only a few moments later.
“Fish took the bait, Boss,” Neil said. “They’re in the second car back.”
“I see him,” Noah said, looking into the mirror on his side of the car. “One of them is on the phone, so everyone stay alert.”
“Okay, Noah, it’s time to tell me what’s going on. Who is it you’re using me as bait for? And don’t give me any of that security clearance crap, I’m cleared for Top Secret, Restricted Access. It don’t get any higher, Hotshot.”
Noah turned in the seat to look at her. “His name is Nicolaich Andropov. He’s a former official of the SVR in Russia, the guy who handled sanctioning assassinations. He and I had a little run-in a few weeks back, and he seems to be the kind of guy who carries a grudge.”
Molly was nodding. “Nicolaich Andropov,” she said. “He headed up the ‘Eraser’ division at SVR. He went rogue about two months or so back, had his rank and his entire operation stripped from him because he used agency assets on a personal vendetta mission. The way we got it, he was going after what he believed to be an American agent who killed his son during an operation to rescue the daughter of the president of Mauritania. I’m gonna go out on a limb, here, and guess that you are that agent?”
Sarah glanced at Noah. “Crap, she’s good.”
“I’m the agent,” Noah said. “H
ow do you know so much about it?”
“DR gets called in on a lot of national security issues, and apparently the NSA was scared to death you were going to end up leaving us exposed in Moscow. They didn’t tell us who you were, just gave us a codename and the background information on the CIA rescue mission. On the other hand, rumors up on Capitol Hill say that it wasn’t CIA at all, but E & E. Now that I know it was you, I think I believe the rumors.”
Neil let out a low whistle. “Boss, she must have one hell of a clearance.”
“What do you know about E & E?” Noah asked. “That’s generally limited to need-to-know.”
Molly grinned. “Up until today, all I knew was that they exist. Rumor says you guys might have been involved in that big explosion in Missouri last week. Any truth to that?”
“Need-to-know,” Noah said. “I’ll concede you have enough clearance to know what we’re up to, but I’m not going to give you any other information. I wasn’t even planning on letting you know I was here until you called Sarah out in the bathroom. I had sent her in there to strike up a conversation and try to get some idea why you seemed so tense when you were sitting in your booth, but you beat her to the punch. At that point, I just figured it was best to bring you in on it.”
“Well, I...” Molly began, but Sarah cut her off.
“Noah, two more cars just fell in with our friend back there, one behind him and one right beside. I get the feeling they’re working together and waiting for something. The last time I saw a maneuver like this, it was some undercover cops trying to catch me and my dad in a pincer move. If I’m right, somebody’s going to be cutting us off up ahead any second now.”
“Then get us out of here,” Noah said. “Let’s shake them up.”
Sarah grinned evilly, and pushed down slightly on her accelerator. The car moved ahead quickly, leaving the three followers behind for several seconds, before they caught on. All three of them suddenly floored their own gas pedals, and a second later they were rapidly gaining on the Chrysler.
Moose reached an arm around Molly and pulled her down suddenly so that she was below the line of sight through the back window. At the same moment, Molly yanked the steering wheel to the left and cut onto a side street. The three pursuers were moving too fast to make the turn, but only one of them slammed on brakes. A moment later, that car reversed, then pulled into the street and began flying toward them.
Sarah had no choice but to slow down when she came to the end, because she couldn’t see whether anything was coming. That gave the single car a chance to get a bit closer, but then she floored the Chrysler again and roared out and to the left. By the time the follower got to the corner, she had already turned right at the next intersection and was out of sight. She hit a color button and the car went from its normal silver to a bright green.
The powerful car was making eighty miles an hour through the streets of what appeared to be a residential neighborhood, squealing around corner after corner as Sarah drove a random path in order to throw off their pursuers. After five minutes of such driving, she suddenly slowed to the speed limit and made three more turns in quick succession.
“We lost them,” she said. “Now I just want to get away from here quietly before the cops show up.”
Moose let Molly sit up again, and she stared at him for a few seconds. “Just so you know,” she said, “any other man who shoved my face into his lap like that would have gotten a taste of my pepper spray. Since you’re with Noah, I gave you the benefit of the doubt this time, but don’t try it again.” She turned to Noah. “Does she always drive like that?”
“That’s her job,” Noah said. “Sarah is one of the best drivers in the whole world, and she can handle just about anything that has wheels. She doesn’t have to drive that way very often, but I’m glad she can when it’s necessary.”
Molly looked at Neil. “Okay, and what about these two back here? One looks like a string bean, and the other looks like he ought to be playing football.”
“The quarterback is Moose, he’s my backup man. That skinny kid on the other side is Neil, and he could probably give you a run for your money in the IQ department. According to our bosses, he’s got the highest IQ they’ve ever seen, and he can pull intelligence out of thin air with a computer. He hacked into the security cameras at that restaurant, and that’s how I was able to watch you. I don’t think we’ve found anything yet that he couldn’t find out, if I asked him to.”
Molly was nodding again. “A three-man support team, right? Transportation, intel and muscle. I’ve seen a paper on the advantages of espionage teams built that way, but I didn’t know any of our alphabet soups were using it. You’re E & E, right? Did I get it right?”
“He could tell you,” Moose said, “but then he might have to kill you. And if you know the Boss, you know he’d do it.”
Molly’s eyes shot open wide and she stared at Moose. “Good point,” she said. “Noah, forget I asked.”
Sara switched the car back to its original silver color and took a different route back to Molly’s place. She wasn’t surprised to see one of the three cars that had been following them sitting outside the gate that led into the subdivision. She pointed it out to Noah, who nodded.
“I see them,” he said. “I would have been surprised if they weren’t waiting for us here, but they won’t make a move on us here, not with the security on this place.”
Sarah pulled in and stopped at the gate, and the guard on duty stepped out to the car.
“Good evening,” he said politely. “How can I help you this evening?”
Molly leaned forward. “Hey, Ray,” she said. “These are some friends of mine, they’re giving me a ride home.”
Ray looked the other occupants of the car over, then smiled at Molly. “Okay, Ms. Hanson,” he said. “Oh, by the way, I’m supposed to get your signature on a receipt for something that got delivered today. Could you come inside the guard shack for a moment?”
Molly rolled her eyes. “Sure, Ray, no problem.” She turned to Moose. “Open up, Muscles,” she said. “They’re not going to let us pass here until I go inside and assure them you’re not holding a gun to my head.”
Ray grinned as Moose opened the door and stepped out, allowing Molly to get out as well. “Sorry, folks, it’s our protocol, and I have to follow it. Everything I do here is being videotaped and recorded, and I happen to like my job.”
Noah smiled at him. “Trust me, I understand completely. You need to frisk us?”
“No, that’s okay. As long as she’s able to get out of the car and step inside, it’s a pretty safe bet you’re not forcing her to take you in with her.” Ray followed Molly into the guard shack, where she could be seen through the windows smiling and talking with the other guards. A moment later, he escorted her back to the car. “Okay, folks, you can go on in. And by the way, I appreciate your cooperation.”
“Not a problem,” Sarah said, and Noah nodded his agreement. As soon as Molly and Moose were settled back into the car, she put it back in gear and eased through the opening gates.
“Sorry,” Molly said. “I should have warned you about that. This whole complex is owned by DR, and they get pretty sticky about security.”
“Yes, but under the circumstances, that’s a good thing,” Noah said. “Nicolaich isn’t one who would be stopped for very long by your average security company, but these guys are professional enough to make him stop and think it over. Let’s get you home, then we’ll go play cat and mouse with whoever’s in that car out there.”
“Wait a minute,” Molly said, her eyes wide. “You think you’re just gonna drop me off and leave? I don’t think so. You guys are coming in and filling me in on what’s going on here. I want to know everything.”
“I’ll fill you in,” Noah said, “but not tonight. Right now, it’s extremely critical that the watchdog out there at the gate sees us leaving. There’s no doubt in my mind that they’re reporting directly to Nicolaich, and what I’m hoping is tha
t he’ll decide to leave you alone and come after me, now that he knows I’m here.”
Molly glared at him. “Fine, but come by my office tomorrow, we can talk freely there. Make it about 10 o’clock, will that work? I’m guessing you’re not using your own names, right now, so what names should I put on the approval list?”
Neil produced a notepad and pen and wrote down the four names they were using for her. She stuffed the note into her purse as Sarah maneuvered through the subdivision. Noah noticed four Blackstone Security SUVs patrolling the streets, which told him there were probably several more he hadn’t seen. The homes were townhouse-style, each one sharing an adjoining wall with at least one other unit. The GPS in the dashboard led Sarah directly to Molly’s place and she pulled into the driveway.
“Okay,” Molly said as she got out of the car. “Don’t forget, 10 AM. I’ll make sure no one else is around, so we can talk.”
Noah nodded. “We’ll be there. Maybe you can help us figure out how to handle this whole situation.”
They waited until Molly was inside, then drove away. As they passed through the gate and turned right, the dark sedan pulled away from the curb and followed them.
“Want me to lose them?” Sarah asked. “Or no?”
“Let them follow us for a bit, but don’t go back to the hotel just yet. Let’s take a ride up to Arlington and shake them there.”
Sarah grinned as she headed for the interstate.
While Sarah took care of their shadows, Noah called up on his phone the files on the four DEA agents. He called them one by one, introduced himself as Camelot and then instructed them to await his further orders.
FOURTEEN
When your car can change color, it’s not hard to avoid being noticed by people looking for a particular shade. They got back to the hotel without picking up another tail, and gathered in Noah and Sarah’s room.
“There’s no doubt Nicolaich knows we’re here, now,” Noah said. “I’m sure those guys managed to snap a few pictures of us, and I’m sure Nicolaich will recognize us easily. From here on out, we need to stay alert and ready for anything. Neil, I have to give you a weapon, but I haven’t had a chance to look into that shotgun.” He reached into a bag sitting on the dresser and produced one of the MP9 machine pistols, along with a pair of long, stick-like magazines. “I think this will do for now. It’s a full auto pistol, but it’s set for three-round bursts, which means you’ll fire three shots every time you pull the trigger. If you’ve got it pointed at someone, there’s a good chance at least one of those rounds will hit him.”