by David Archer
“Just one thing,” Allison said. “I want all of you to be as careful as possible. If the people behind this get wind of your involvement, then the most deadly weapon we’ve ever encountered could be aimed at you. After recent events, it might be a little bit obvious that I’ve become fond of your entire team. Come back safe, Noah, all of you.”
“One more thing,” Jefferson said. “Noah, you’re in dangerous territory. Officially, we cannot act inside the borders of an ally, but you have skirted around that regulation in the past. This time, while the request came from the Home Secretary, we know that it originated much higher. One of your old friends requested your help specifically, so we have to assume that Her Majesty is aware that you are in country. Whatever you do, don’t upset that old lady.”
Noah nodded. “We’ll do our best,” he said.
The screen went blank, and Neil disconnected from the channel. He turned around and looked at Noah, who was staring thoughtfully at the blank monitor.
“Boss? You really think we can help?”
“It doesn’t matter what I think,” Noah said. “Apparently, the queen thinks we can. That’s good enough for me.”
He took out his phone, thought for a moment, and then dialed a number from memory. He put the phone on speaker so that all of them could hear, and it was answered a few seconds later.
“Catherine Potts,” they heard. “Would this be Mr. Lightner?”
“Yes, it is,” Noah said. “We’re all here, Catherine. I just got word from back at Neverland that you requested our help. What can we do?”
“Well, that depends,” Catherine replied. “How soon can you get to London?”
“We’re about an hour away, maybe a little more. Do you want us to come right away?”
“Please. I have assigned a team of agents to work on this situation, but they could certainly use your input. Allison suggested that we put your intelligence man to work with ours, and I personally think that’s an excellent idea.” She paused for a moment, and then came back on the line. “Let’s meet at The Long Table, it’s an excellent restaurant. 7 o’clock? We’ll have dinner, and I can introduce you to my people.”
“7 o’clock,” Noah said. “We’ll be there.” He hung up the phone and stuck it back into his pocket. “We might as well pack some clothes,” he said. “Marco, get hold of Leon Kendall and let him know we’ve been activated. I’m not sure what we’ll need in terms of equipment or weapons just yet, but put him on notice.”
“You got it, boss,” Marco said.
“Neil, don’t forget your computer. It’s probably better than anything they’ve got, and you’re bound to need it.”
“What about vehicles?” Sarah asked. “Should we take the cars from the estate?”
“Yes,” Noah said. “All of them. Two per car. You and I will take the Jaguar, Neil and Jenny will go in the Land Rover, and Marco can take Renée in the Bentley. That way, we’ll have enough transportation without having to worry about securing any. It’s nearly 4 o’clock, now, so that gives us about an hour and a half to get ready. I’d like to be at the restaurant a little early, just to recon the situation.”
He got up from his chair and the rest did likewise. They all went to their own rooms to begin packing, while Noah and Sarah went to theirs.
“Do you really think we can help them find whoever is doing this?” Sarah asked.
“I don’t really know,” Noah said. “We’ll do what we can, but I think the real reason they want us close is so that we can handle the situation once the people behind it are identified.” He turned and looked at her. “I want you to stay close to Renée most of the time. This is her first time in the field, and she’s bound to be nervous. I’ll let you know if I need anything, of course, but I’m perfectly capable of driving myself around London.”
Sarah rolled her eyes. “You’re not fooling anyone,” she said. “Allison said to keep Renée close to Catherine, so you’re trying to keep me out of the line of fire. That’s sweet, Noah, but it’s not my job. I’m supposed to be your wheel man, remember?”
“That doesn’t mean I can’t use you in another area,” he said. “In this case, I think you will be most useful helping Renée to figure out what it is she’s doing.”
“Okay, sure,” Sarah said. She knew there was no point in trying to argue once he had made up his mind. “You’re the boss.”
Thomas was in the Great Hall when they came down the stairs ninety minutes later, and raised an eyebrow when he saw them carrying luggage.
“Mr. Lightner? Will you be leaving us so soon?”
“Just temporarily, Thomas,” Noah said. “We’re going to spend a few days in London, try to help a friend out with a problem. We shouldn’t be gone very long.”
“Into London, you say? Please be careful. I understand there’s some dangers in the city at the moment.”
“Oh, I don’t think we’ll be anywhere near the problem. We’re just going to help figure out a website issue, that’s all.” He started out the door, then stopped. “We’ll be taking all three of the cars. Is that going to cause a problem for you?”
Thomas smiled. “Not at all, sir. We’ve each got our own automobiles, and there is the pickup truck that we use for fetching supplies. I’m sure we’ll be more than fine.”
“Okay, good,” Noah said. He led the way out the door and around to the garage, so they could each get the car they’d be taking. Moments later, luggage stowed away, Noah sat back while Sarah drove the old XKE out of the drive, with the Bentley and the Land Rover right behind.
“This is awesome,” Sarah said as they cruised along the road with the top down. “I’ve always loved these old Jags, but this is the first one I ever got to drive.”
“I like them, too,” Noah said. “They have the smoothest lines of just about any sports car of their day, and they did well on the road rally circuits for years. That’s because of the innovations in their suspension systems more than anything else, but they had a very good power-to-weight ratio, as well. With a top speed of 150 miles per hour and less than seven seconds from zero to sixty, it’s one of the quickest production cars of its era.”
Sarah glanced over at him. “Sounds like you’ve researched it.”
He nodded. “I saw one in Austin Powers and always thought it was an interesting car, then I read an article that named these the number one most beautiful car ever built. That made me want to know more, so I looked them up. I had a plan to buy one after I got out of the Army, but that got sidetracked.”
Sarah grinned. “We all got sidetracked. At least you’ve got one now.”
“Yes,” he said simply. “We’ve got one now.”
The drive into London on the A3 took a little over an hour, but then it was another fifteen minutes to the restaurant. They were lucky enough to find three parking spaces together, then walked inside. The maître d’ greeted them at the door, and Noah smiled at him.
“I’m Travis Lightner,” he said. “I believe there’s a party waiting for us?”
The maître d’ smiled and nodded. “Yes, sir,” he said. “If you’ll just come this way?”
He led them to a private dining room, and they found Catherine Potts waiting there with three men and another woman. She looked up with a smile as they entered, then invited them to take their seats around the large, oval table. The waiter appeared instantly and they each ordered a drink, but Catherine told the waiter they wanted to visit for a while before they ordered their dinner.
As soon as the drinks were served and the door to the room was closed firmly, she began making introductions.
“These folks with me are Albert Lingenfelter, whom you’ve met before, Charles Wimbley, Liam Scott and Angeline Portnoy. Since they happen to be four of our very best, I’ll dispense with the cover identities you’ve been using for the moment, if that’s all right?”
“That’s fine,” Noah said.
She smiled at him. “Albert, Charles, William and Angeline, I’d like you all to meet
Noah Wolf, his wife Sarah, Neil Blessing, Jennifer Lance, Marco Turin and—oh, I’m sorry, dear, I don’t remember your name.”
Renée smiled. “I’m Renée Turin,” she said. “Marco and I were married just a week ago. I’ve only just joined the team.”
“Yes, I had heard, but your name since then slipped my mind. These are the E & E Team Camelot, whom I’m sure you’ve all heard of.”
Only Albert managed to maintain a simple expression. Charles looked almost frightened, Liam looked excited and Angeline was merely curious.
“Now, Noah,” Catherine said, “I’m sure you’ve been hearing about the mysterious poisonings that have taken place around London?”
“Yes, I’ve been following on the news. It sounds like something pretty serious.”
“We’re quite certain it is. What hasn’t been released to the press just yet is the fact that it’s not a simple poison at all. What we are dealing with is a complex protein, one that can break down the membrane of the red blood cells in the body, and is capable of duplicating itself so rapidly that death occurs within a matter of minutes. To be perfectly frank, we have never seen anything like it in the past.”
Noah nodded. “It’s certainly an incredible weapon,” he said. “Any idea where it came from?”
“From the mind of a monster,” Catherine replied. “This would have taken the work of a biochemist, someone experienced in what they call protein folding. From what little I understand, proteins are made up of amino acids, and in some way I can’t possibly fathom, they can be folded into different shapes to produce different properties. It’s all far beyond me, but I’m assured that it’s true, nonetheless.”
“Death within minutes,” Noah said. “And it’s delivered simply by absorption through the skin?”
“Yes. As far as we can tell, it seems to have been administered simply with a touch, which is why MI5 has named it the Touch of Death. However, one of the greatest dangers of this substance is that it does not dry quickly. The victim dies within a matter of minutes, but the poison is still active on their skin for quite some time. That’s what happened to a couple of paramedics and the nurse. They came into contact with it on the victim’s body, and also died within a very short time.”
“Then this has to be stopped,” Noah said. “What do you want us to do, Catherine?”
“I’d like you to assist Mr. Lingenfelter and his team with their investigations,” she replied. “And when we have found the bastards behind this, I should like you to ensure that they can never do such a thing again.”
Noah looked at her for a moment. “We are not really investigators,” he said. “To be honest, we usually have our missions handed to us with all the relevant suspects laid out. Without at least a target to look at, I’m not sure we’ll be a lot of help in that regard.” He looked thoughtful for a moment, then cocked his head to the side as he looked back at Catherine. “What if I could bring in somebody who might be able to help?”
Catherine shrugged. “I’m certainly open to suggestions,” she said. “Who did you have in mind?”
“A few months ago, we worked with a special investigator. The guy was probably one of the best I’ve ever seen, and he’s actually made a name for himself with our government. To put it simply, his security clearance allows him to know what we do, and that’s not something that’s easily obtained. I’d like to make a call and see if it might be possible to get him over here.”
Catherine glanced at Albert, but he only nodded. “I’ll take all the bloody help we can find,” he said. “We’re out on a limb with this one.”
Catherine turned back to Noah. “All right,” she said. “May I ask who it is?”
Noah looked into her eyes. “His name is Prichard,” he said. “Sam Prichard.”
SIX
Sam Prichard was in the break room at Windlass Security, having lunch with Denny Cortlandt. The rest of his team was out on various assignments, but Denny had just returned from a case in Silicon Valley. Windlass had been hired to recover a laptop that contained sensitive corporate information regarding the operating system of an autonomous automobile. The computer had been stolen during a burglary at the home of an executive from the company, and they had found references to it on the Dark Web. The thief was trying to sell the stolen technology, and the auction had only a short time to go when they were called in. Denny had flown out immediately,
“So, anyway,” Denny was saying, “once I had identified the thief, I needed to get into his house and find the bloody computer, but the guy had a state-of-the-art security system. Time was running out on me, so I didn’t want to waste a lot of it trying to get past better security than you’ve got at Fort Knox.”
Sam paused with his burger halfway to his mouth. “So? What did you do?”
Denny grinned. “Well, I had noticed the bloke’s wife. The thief, Lambert, was a decent looking chap who liked to play the ladies, but his wife—goodness, she looked like a younger version of Princess Anne.” The blank look on Sam’s face made Denny grin. “All right, so you’re probably not familiar with British royalty, so just imagine a rather homely woman who obviously knew that her husband played around a lot. I bought myself a cheap clipboard, stuck some random forms on it and knocked on her door while hubby was out. Told her I was hired by the city to ask questions about traffic in residential areas, then turned on the charm. I told her she reminded me of my cousin Beth, and how I always had a crush on my cousin.” He shook his head. “Pity it was so easy. She invited me in for coffee, sat beside me on the sofa and made it plain that I could have my way with her. It was a bit on the tricky side, but I managed to slip a few drops of sedative into her cup, so by the time we got past a couple of kisses, she was out. I found the laptop in hubby’s office and was gone within twenty minutes.”
Sam shook his head. “Leave it to you,” he said. “If anybody can charm the ladies, it’s you.”
“Yeah, but it leaves me feeling a bit dirty, you know? Poor girl probably thought it was her lucky day, but all she ended up getting was a nap.” He shrugged and grinned. “So, we got anything else on the spikes?”
“Not at the moment,” Sam said. “Things have been a little quiet the last couple days. Summer and Jade are in Miami, playing wealthy widows and trying to draw the attention of a local Lothario. The guy has been going after rich, single women, and he’s stolen quite a bit of expensive jewelry. One of the insurance companies hired us to put a stop to him, so I sent the girls down there to play wealthy play girls. Steve and Walter are in Vancouver, consulting on a series of high-value thefts up there. The most excitement I’ve had the last week is reading all the reports.”
“Well, if anything comes up…”
Sam’s cell phone rang, and he grinned when he looked at the caller ID. It was Harry Winslow calling.
“Harry,” he said, “how are you doing?”
“Fit as a fiddle,” the old man said, his southern drawl sounding like he was back to his old self. Harry had been grievously wounded a few months earlier and had nearly died. “Unfortunately, Sam, boy, this is not a social call. I’ve been asked to request your assistance on a case that could be extremely important.”
“DHS?” Sam asked. “Why are they coming through you?”
“Unfortunately, no,” Harry said. “It’s not Homeland Security. Sam, a while back you were put into a position of working with some very special American operatives. You recall?”
Sam’s blood suddenly ran cold. “I remember,” he said. “Harry, tell me you don’t want me to do something with them again.”
“Now, Sam, boy, remember that this isn’t me asking. I’m afraid the request has come down from that agency’s director, and that nameless gentleman you worked with has asked for you personally. I understand he was on vacation in England when his help was requested with a British operation, but he needs the services of a crack investigator. He remembered how much help you were on that previous case, and is hoping he can call on you again.”
Sam grimaced. “What’s the case?”
“Have you heard about the poisonings going on in London? That’s what it’s about, but I don’t have details. All I was told is that your help is needed to track down the people behind it before they can step up to a mass casualty event.” Harry paused for a moment, then went on. “Sam, I know you found working with them to be very distasteful, but I’m afraid I have to agree with their assessment. If anyone can find out who is doing this, it’s going to be you.”
The grimace turned into a bitter grin. “Flattery isn’t going to get you anywhere, old man. Harry, it took me weeks to get over the last time I dealt with those people. Don’t get me wrong, I know that people like them can be necessary, but having to watch them in action left me feeling—well, sick to my stomach.”
“And how are you going to feel if terrorists manage to kill thousands of people at once? Knowing you might have been able to help stop it from happening? Could you even live with yourself after that, Sam?”
Sam chewed on his bottom lip for a moment, then shook his head. “You’re a bastard, Harry.”
The old man chuckled. “Of course I am, that’s what made me so good at my job. Sam, there was a time when the work those people do was handled by guys like me. I’ve had to terminate quite a few undesirables, sometimes simply because that was my orders. Since E & E was formed under a previous administration, the regular spooks haven’t had to carry out those orders. I’d much rather see specialists handling that kind of work, but sometimes they need more than just the willingness. Sometimes, it takes somebody like you to let them know where their services are needed most.”
Sam hesitated for a moment, and noticed Denny watching him closely. Sam started to speak, thought better of whatever he was going to say, then tried again. “Be straight with me, Harry,” he said. “Do you honestly want me to do this?”
“If I had called you in August of ’01 and told you that you might be able to stop terrorists from killing everyone on 9/11, would you have hesitated? You didn’t even know me then, but I think you would have willingly volunteered to help prevent such a tragedy, am I right?”