Betrayal (63 page)

Claire Brackett moved inside the abandoned building on L Street slowly. “This must be good,” she said as she entered a small room.

“Claire,” the man answered. “Nice of you to show.”

“Can’t say as I expected to see you any time soon,” she dripped with insincerity.

“Yes, well…things have changed.” He handed her a paper. “That is an address and a container number.”

“I can read,” she shot back at him.

“You will need to be cautious, Claire. The contents are hazardous.”

“All right. Why the rush?”

“Toles is on this already. Agent Brady put her on the path this morning. You need to move.” He handed her a small case. She opened it and regarded the series of needles laid out inside. She took a deep breath with a sudden understanding of the potential danger.

“Prussian Blue. Let’s hope you won’t need them,” he said. “I am sending Agent Anderson with you.” She looked to him with alarm as the second agent appeared. “He will not enter, but he will be in constant communication. He knows the landscape.”

“He’s NSA,” she said skeptically, warning the tall, muscular man before her with her eyes.

“He’s ours. They have no idea what they are walking into. You do. You have the advantage, but you need to move now.”

“I don’t like it,” she said definitively, still staring at the man before her. Agent Marc Anderson towered over the smaller, older man that stood at the room’s center. His seemed to almost glisten where the light from the cracks in the window boards filtered onto his dark skin. He watched her appraisal of him. His short sleeved, white T-shirt accented his muscular features and he could see her appreciative gaze. “Don’t worry,” the agent assured. “You’ll be safe with me.”

Claire Brackett stared at him. “If I were you, Agent Anderson…I would be the one that would worry,” she hissed. “One move that I don’t like…”

“You are spunky,” he allowed a smile to escape.

“Relax, Claire,” the older man intervened. “And, get used to it. You and Anderson will be seeing a lot of each other.”

She seethed at the remark. “We’ll see.”

“No. It wasn’t a suggestion. It isn’t a request. It’s a fact. Go. Anderson knows the drop plan.”

Reluctantly, Brackett moved to follow her new partner. She turned back slowly. “One day she will figure it all out, you know,” Brackett gloated.

“Perhaps,” he said. “Not today.”

“Toles…let me go in,” Krause urged.

“Now how does that make sense?” she asked. “If anything happens and I do get stopped…at least
I
have a chance of leaving quietly, without any altercation. My name alone gives me an advantage. It is a Carecom facility after all.”

Krause hated to admit that Alex was right. “I don’t like it. We don’t even know what the package is.”

“No, we don’t,” Alex agreed. “All the more reason we need as many advantages as we can get.” He nodded with apprehension. Alex opened the car door and adjusted the feed in her ear. Krause opened a small netbook on his lap. “Listen,” she said as she exited the car. “Remember what I asked you…”

“I’ll have you on screen the entire time, Toles. The first sign of trouble and…”

Alex smiled genuinely. “I almost think you are worried there, Pip.”

“You just watch yourself,” he instructed. Alex smiled and headed toward the rear of the warehouse, adjusting her side arm under her sweater. “Watch yourself, Toles,” he muttered.

“I’m not certain what Dimitri is up to,” Admiral Brackett said.

“You know he is just Viktor’s errand boy, Bill,” Callier responded.

“Yes, well, I am fairly certain he has Claire in his pocket. She came home empty handed.”

“The Russians don’t trust Matthews either,” Callier surmised.

“No. Merrow did.”

“Umm…how close was he?” Callier inquired.

“Too close,” the admiral answered. “I need to know, Edmond. Which side of this you come down on.”

Edmond Callier smiled confidently. “The same as I always have, just as you. What choice do we have?”

“And Krause?” the admiral asked.

“He’ll fall in line.”

“You seem rather sure of that. He and Merrow…and now the boy.”

“Krause is secure, Bill,” Callier assured. “When the time comes he will stand firm. I have no doubt.” Admiral Brackett took a deep breath. “You want to make the call?” Callier asked.

“I think it had best come from you at this juncture, Edmond.”

“Very well.”

Claire Brackett moved cautiously through the narrow hallway toward a large steel door. She paused briefly to look side to side where two corridors met. Seeing that her pathway was clear she continued forward. ‘4-1-1-2-1-2’ she punched the numbers into the keypad and the door clicked. “Showtime,” she whispered.

Alex watched as Brackett entered the room. She followed behind and grabbed the door just before it shut. “You getting this?” she asked quietly.

“Yeah, I see her,” Krause responded.

“At least she was kind enough to let me in,” Alex joked.

“Just keep your distance. Let her lead,” he instructed. Alex did not answer. She positioned herself behind a loader and watched the younger agent search an aisle loaded with steel containers. “Toles,” Krause broke in. “I mean it, just watch for now.” The sound of the car door opening startled the CIA agent. “What in the hell?”

“What am I looking for, Anderson? None of these are numbered,” Brackett griped.

“It will be small. Look for a red stamp on the front. USMED,” he answered.

Several yards away Alex ducked behind a pallet full of packing materials. She crouched as low as her body would allow and listened carefully. Brackett, believing she was alone spoke again. “USMED?”

“Think about it, Brackett,” Anderson replied.

She shook off her question and continued her search. Alex kept her gaze locked on Brackett and attempted to scan ahead for a secure pathway to follow. She heard Krause’s question. “What in the hell?”

“What?” Alex asked in a whisper. “Krause, what do you see?”

“Brady,” was his response.

“You see Brady?”

“Yeah, he’s next to me.”

“What in the hell?” Alex now repeated.

“What are you doing here?” Krause asked the NSA agent.

“Listen to me, Krause, we don’t have much time,” Brady answered.

“What are you talking about?” Krause asked.

Alex tried to discern the conversation in the car while keeping tabs on Brackett. “She’s moving, I gotta find an avenue.”

“Get her out of there now,” Brady demanded.

“What?” Krause shook his head. “Why would I do that?”

“It’s not biological, Krause. Get her out of there. It’s Cesium-137.”

“What are you talking about, where did you…”

“Doesn’t matter now. Later…she’s not prepared. Get her out of there.”

Krause recognized the tension on Brady’s face. “Toles, leave it. Get out of there now.”

“Are you insane?” Alex responded. “I am not letting Claire Brackett get her hands on any kind of weapon.”

“Toles!” he shouted. She did not respond. “Shit!” He reached in a bag behind his seat and handed Brady an ear piece. “You watch her and tell me where she goes.”

“Where are you going?” Brady asked.

“To get her,” Krause responded.

“What the hell are you doing, Brackett?” Alex asked herself.

“Toles!” Krause’s voice bellowed through the earpiece. “Stay where you are.” The decibel of the agent’s voice in her ear was maddening and she loosened the device slightly. “Do you hear me?”