In the irony of ironies, Steiner and his team were literally delivering the assassin to the very man they needed to keep alive above any other.
Steiner glanced at his companion, Brett Taylor, a woman built like a man and now disguised as one. He just hoped he wasn’t delivering her to her death, her or the other two members of their team, Jessica Klein, the disgraced English newsreader, and Eric Wolf, the young German computer hacker, both of whom he’d grown very fond of during their time together. And I’ve grown fond of Brett, too, for that matter, he thought.
A military drone hovered above them and Steiner averted his gaze, only for it to be met by various counterterrorist operatives, who patrolled the steps leading up to the Capitol Building.
‘Stay calm,’ Brett whispered. She was leading the way. ‘They’re trained to spot signs of agitation.’
‘Not helping,’ Steiner said. He looked up at Jessica, Eric, and the unwanted figure of the towering assassin, Ophion Nexus, ahead of them on the stairs. They had already joined the queue for the next security check and Steiner held his breath as he saw them move inside. This is it, he thought, as he and Brett lined up at the entrance behind a gaggle of other suits who, unlike them, were there on official business. An FBI agent ran a scanner over Brett, and then Steiner stepped forward to be similarly checked. Their disguises had held up so far, but the moment of truth had come.
♦
Two weeks until the asteroid impacts New Mexico, Jessica Klein told herself. She touched the ginger strands of her wig. Time enough for us to make contact with the president so he can stop it with a nuclear strike. If she thought about it quickly, it almost seemed plausible, but when she thought again in more detail, it was a different story. Two weeks? What are we thinking? It’s not enough time at all!
One step at a time, Jessica, she told herself. One step at a time. Stay calm and we can do this. I have to do this. There’s no other choice. Jessica glanced back and saw Steiner and Brett being scanned at the building’s main entrance.
She took a breath. So far, so good, she thought, as a Capitol police officer waved her forward.
‘State your business,’ – he accepted Jessica’s documents – ‘Ms Schweinsteiger.’
‘We’re here on behalf of the German embassy,’ she said, trying to sound German, but not too German.
‘The EU embassy has sent their own representatives,’ said an FBI agent, who stood just behind the seated officer. He gestured at a couple of women dressed in grey who’d just traversed a walkthrough scanner. ‘Why do they need you, as well?’
Jessica opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. This was not in the script, she thought, her mind racing. Bic was supposed to make us necessary to proceedings, not a third wheel! Her heart beat faster and she licked her lips.
‘Es gibt ein problem?’ said a deep voice.
Everyone looked up at the imposing figure of Ophion Nexus, who towered over Jessica and Eric like a giant.
‘They say we’re not needed,’ Jessica said in flawless German.
‘Then convince them we are,’ Ophion said, his German as perfect as her own.
Jessica turned back to the FBI agent. ‘My colleague is a security specialist. We’re here to liaise between the Secret Service and the EU president’s security detail. But if you want to compromise the conference, then by all means,’ – she motioned to the EU delegates – ‘leave it up to people in charge of getting drinks and biscuits.’
The FBI agent kept his gaze on Ophion and then held out his hand. ‘Documents.’
Ophion handed them his I.D., created by Bic only half an hour before.
The agent handed them to the police officer, who ran them through the system.
‘Gerhard Beck,’ the officer said. ‘Executive clearance.’
‘Is there a problem here?’ another FBI agent said, walking over.
Jessica eyed the growing number of people before them and knew they were in trouble.
She glanced back again and saw Steiner and Brett had made it inside, but she wasn’t sure if they’d noticed the unfolding situation. If they had, Brett might be able to intervene, or do something: anything. Where’s Brett’s contact? Jessica thought, her panic rising.
‘Call the embassy,’ the latest agent said.
The officer pointed at the screen. ‘They’re on the system.’
‘Then a few more seconds won’t make any difference, will it?’
‘Wir sind in schwierigkeiten,’ Eric whispered to her.
Jessica didn’t reply, because what Eric had just told her she already knew. But the only problem was, they weren’t just in trouble, they were in big trouble.
♦
‘Something’s wrong,’ Brett said to Professor Steiner.
Steiner blinked a couple of times. His eyes watered from his new contact lenses and he was having trouble seeing. ‘The walk-through scanner?’
‘No, they’re still at the desk.’ She glanced at him. ‘Stop rubbing them, you’ll make it worse.’
Steiner removed his hand. He hadn’t even realised he’d been doing it. And it wasn’t just his eyes; his high-tech prosthetic nose itched even worse. ‘Can you see your Secret Service contact?’
Brett looked around the vast security entrance leading into the Capitol, but Steiner knew it was like searching for a needle in a haystack. He could see no sign of this Agent Dante, and even if he was around, Brett needed to get him on his own, not flag him down in the middle of a circus while wearing a disguise. She’d blow their cover in an instant.
Four police officers strode past them across the marble floor, their footsteps echoing through the hall. Moments later they stopped behind Jessica, Eric and the unwelcome form of the assassin, Ophion Nexus.
Steiner heard raised voices and soon after, Jessica’s party of three was escorted by the police, back past those still waiting in line.
Steiner caught Jessica’s eye as they passed. She looked terrified, as did Eric, and rightly so.
He glanced round as they were led into another area and out of sight.
‘What do we do?’ Brett said, as they moved forward in the queue.
‘Stick to the plan,’ Steiner said, praying he hadn’t made a mistake in trusting Bic. ‘That’s all we can do.’
The Capitol police officer waved them forward and Steiner handed over his and Brett’s documentation.
The officer scanned the paperwork and then handed it to the FBI agent behind him. The man looked up at Steiner and then his gaze moved to Brett, his expression furrowing into a frown.
‘Do I know you?’
Brett shook her head. ‘I don’t think so.’
‘You look familiar.’
Steiner looked at Brett and realised the man must have known her. She’d spent her whole career as an FBI agent and even though she’d worked out of the LA field office, she had trained in Quantico, like all the rest.
The agent still looked puzzled, but he shook it off and said, ‘You’re here for the conference?’
‘Yes,’ Steiner said, trying to distract him from looking at Brett for too long. ‘Is there a problem?’
The agent didn’t respond, but his eyes flicked to Brett once more.
‘Special Agent Dante can vouch for us,’ Brett said, throwing caution to the wind and putting their plan into action.
The FBI agent looked Brett up and down, perhaps subconsciously knowing Brett was a woman, but thrown by the prosthetics designed to make her look like a man.
Steiner suddenly had a worrying thought. What if they were more than just colleagues, but friends? Or worse, lovers? Steiner tried to suppress his fear. He’ll see through her disguise, if he hasn’t already. If our cover’s blown now, they won’t ask questions, we’ll be shot on sight!
‘The president’s head of security?’ the FBI agent said.
‘Yes, he’s the reason we’re here,’ Brett told him. ‘If you can get a message to him for me, he’ll come down or send someone to get us.’
T
he man stared at her and Steiner thought that was it, he recognised her voice, but then, rather than sound the alarm, the agent dialled a number into his computer and turned away as someone answered.
Steiner tried to move closer in an attempt to overhear, but Brett had the same idea and stepped forward as well, preventing him from doing so. Unable to eavesdrop, Steiner’s eyes were drawn to a host of screens which displayed information for those attending the conference. As he looked, he noticed something odd. One of the displays had a section of text that blinked on and off, the strange thing being that the text itself was upside down and the first word was Steiner’s well used honorific title: ‘Professor’.
Was Bic trying to communicate with him? The hacker had gone silent once they’d entered the building, as they’d had to remove their earpieces. If he was trying to make contact, he wasn’t making it easy. Steiner tried to concentrate, but it was impossible to read upside down, especially with his watering eyes. An arrow briefly appeared pointing down and then the flashing text came back to replace it.
Steiner looked down and saw the screen reflected the right way up in the shiny marble floor. He adjusted his position and started to read:
Professor Steiner, I’ve been deceived.
Do not trust Brett! She’s trying to sabotage our plan!! I intercepted a communication made before you left. She’s been in contact with the Secret Service the whole time. She’s planning to turn us in, in exchange for a presidential pardon and reinstatement into the FBI! STOP HER!!!
Steiner whirled round just as the agent turned back to Brett.
‘What’s the message?’ the agent said.
Brett stood up straighter. ‘Is that Dante on the phone?’
Steiner didn’t know what to do; if he made a scene he’d blow their cover, if he did nothing, Brett would do it for him.
The agent’s expression turned hostile. ‘The message,’ he said to Brett, ‘now.’
She’s trying to get the man to recognise her without me knowing, Steiner thought in horror. She’s been playing me all along! Gaining my trust!!
‘Tell him, his Quantico buddy needs to speak with him, his special Quantico buddy.’
The FBI agent looked at Brett again. ‘I thought I recognised you, you were there in thirty-one, right?’
Brett nodded and Steiner knew the game was nearly up.
The FBI agent relayed the message and then his expression changed and he gestured to two of his colleagues nearby.
Brett glanced at them as they walked towards her and Steiner. ‘You’re taking us up?’ Brett said to the agent. ‘Or is he coming down?’
‘Neither.’ The agent behind the desk drew his gun. ‘The only place you’re both going is a cell.’
‘PUT YOUR HANDS ON YOUR HEAD!’ one of the other agents said, also drawing his weapon.
Cries of alarm rippled through the hall and Steiner grasped Brett’s arm. ‘I trusted you!’
‘DO IT NOW!!’ said the agent, his sidearm pointing at Steiner.
Steiner did as he was told; he knew Bic had been proven right and he’d been too blind to see it, despite Eric’s continued warnings.
Professor Steiner glared at Brett as handcuffs encircled his wrists. They’d been betrayed.
Chapter One Hundred Eighty
‘What do you mean, he’s not ready yet?! He needs to be here!’
‘I’m sorry, sir. That’s what he told me to tell you.’
‘The conference is starting in less than an hour. What is he thinking?!’ Paul Brown, the U.S. Administration’s Chief of Staff, paced around the Capitol Building’s Senate Conference Room. He looked at the clock again and wondered how John could do this to him. Of all the times to go AWOL, his close friend, who also happened to be the President of the United States, had chosen this moment, just before the most important meeting of his life. And not just of his life; it was perhaps the most important meeting for a generation, perhaps of all time! A meeting not just to stop a global war, but one to halt the GMRC’s relentless quest for power and the crippling sanctions they’d applied. What could be more important than that?!
Paul paced up and down in agitation and then stopped as he suddenly realised something. ‘He’s still looking for that damn light, isn’t he?’ He glared at his advisor, daring him to disagree. ‘He’s not in a meeting with the Vice President at all, is he?’
The man who’d given him the news shifted in discomfort and Paul’s eyes narrowed. ‘What did he tell you to say?’
The advisor gave him a guilty look. ‘He told me not to tell you.’
‘God damn it! Do you think this is some kind of game?! This nation is almost at war!’
‘Sir.’
‘What!?’ Paul whirled round and focused on who’d spoken: another of his aides, a woman called Martha.
‘Shall we contact the Vice President?’ she said.
Paul hesitated. He didn’t want to undermine John’s authority, but he was leaving him with little choice. ‘Do it, and tell him we need him here a-sap. If John doesn’t get here in time, the VP can at least stall until he does.’
Martha nodded and moved away to carry out his orders. Martial law was all very good, Paul realised, but when big decisions rested in one man’s hands, the pressure of making the right choices increased a hundredfold. Not for the first time he questioned if John could continue to keep it together. If his current stunt is anything to go by, he thought, the answer’s no.
A pair of double doors swung open and Head of Security, Special Agent Dante, entered, followed closely by the First Lady and a large contingent of Secret Service officers.
‘Thank God,’ Paul said. ‘I take it you’ve heard?’
Dante nodded, his face grim. ‘The president asked me to join Ashley’s security team before he left. We think it was to get me out of the way.’
‘This is just like, John,’ Ashley said. ‘Keeping everyone waiting. He only cares about himself.’
Paul considered the First Lady for a moment then looked back to Dante. ‘Your team was supposed to bring him back,’ Paul said. ‘What happened?’
‘He’s Commander in Chief, what do you think happened? He told them to go to hell.’
Paul resisted the urge to kick something. He pointed at Dante. ‘I need you over there. Drag him back if you need to.’ He looked at Ashley. ‘And you go with him. You, of all people, might be able to knock some sense into that stubborn head of his.’
‘I’ll try,’ Ashley said, her expression doubtful. Everyone knew about the marital problems they’d been having, Paul more than most.
‘The Chinese delegation has landed,’ the advisor said. ‘And the EU president is en route.’
Paul rubbed his hands over his face. ‘There’s something else, isn’t there?’
The advisor nodded. ‘We’ve got a situation at security.
‘What? What sort of situation?’
‘Three delegates from the German embassy who no one seems to have heard of, and two nationals claiming to be members of your staff.’
‘Members of my staff?’ Paul said, not quite believing what he was hearing.
The man nodded.
‘You think they’re working for the GMRC?’ Paul said.
The advisor shrugged. ‘Who else could it be?’
‘Jesus Christ,’ he said. ‘Can anything else go wrong?’
Martha, the aide who’d been sent to contact the Vice President, re-entered the room.
‘Martha, what news? Is he on his way?’
Martha gave a shake of her head. ‘I’m not sure how to tell you this.’
Paul’s eyes narrowed. ‘Tell me what?’
‘We’ve been unable to contact the Vice President.’
‘What? What do you mean you’ve been unable to contact him? He’s the Vice President, for God’s sake!’ Paul turned to Dante. ‘Who’s in charge of his Secret Service detail?’
‘Frank Miller,’ Dante said.
‘Call him.’
‘Already done.’ Da
nte pointed to his earpiece.
The seconds ticked by and Paul’s blood pressure went up another notch. ‘Is he not answering?’
Dante raised a finger. ‘I’m trying his personal cell.’ A few more seconds passed. ‘Frank, Dante. Where are you? The VP’s needed at the Hill.’ Dante listened and then nodded. ‘I see. And all other coms are down?’ His expression darkened. ‘And that happened, when?’ He paused. ‘Right, I’ll let him know.’
‘Well?’ Paul said.
‘The Vice President has been taken ill.’ Dante held up his hands. ‘It’s nothing serious, at least, not if it’s treated.’
‘What’s wrong with him?’ Ashley said in concern.
‘Sounds like a case of food poisoning,’ Dante said. ‘They were going to let us know as soon as the diagnosis came back. They didn’t want to cause alarm.’
‘And what about their coms?’ Paul said. ‘They’re down?’
‘It appears so. They had no idea we were trying to reach them.’
‘It must be the hacker.’ Paul massaged his eyes and looked up at the ceiling in despair. ‘He’s been disrupting communications for weeks.’
‘We’ll get the agencies onto it,’ Dante said. ‘Frank’s personal line connected, so we can tell everyone to switch to private lines as a workaround until we sort it.’
‘Good, that’s good.’ Paul tried to gather his thoughts. ‘So, we’re left without John or the VP.’
‘I’ll go get John,’ Ashley said. ‘Dante, you help Paul with security.’
Ancient Origins: Books 4 - 6 (Ancient Origins Boxset Book 2) Page 98