Night Tide (40 page)

agency! recruited! him! as! an! undercover! informant! to! spy! on!

student! radicals! at! Columbia! University! when! he! was! a! kid.! I!

think!he!was!barely!eighteen.”!

!

I! recalled! the! photo! I’d! seen! of! students! barricaded! in! a!

building! on! the! Columbia! campus,! a! younger! likeness! of!

Drucker!clearly!visible.!

!

“The!agency!moved!him!out!west!as!part!of!COINTELPRO,”!

she! went! on.! “He! infiltrated! Black! Panther! meetings! here! in!

Seattle!around!the!time!of!the!race!riots!the!summer!of!’sixty6

eight.!Later,!he!signed!on!with!the!agency!permanently.”!

!

“So!he!would!have!been!here!in!Seattle!when!the!Wilsons!

arrived!from!Madison!and!did!behind6the6scenes!work!for!SDS!

at!UW.”!

!

“That!sounds!right.!But!I!wonder!why!he!waited!till!now.!

What! changed?! And! how! did! he! get! wind! of! Langford’s! place!

over!here?”!

!

“The!technology!the!Chinese!are!after—maybe!the!Wilsons!

had! it! all! this! time.! Maybe! they! decided! whatever! Kwan! was!

working!on!was!valuable!enough!to!try!to!sell.”!

!

“And! that’s! what! those! goons! are! after.”! Her! voice! held! a!

note!of!excitement.!

!

“The!shooters?!Maybe.!Where!the!hell!did!they!come!from,!

anyway?!Seems!like!every!time!I!turn!around!they!show!up.”!

!

“You’ve!seen!them!before?”!

!

I!squinted.!“I!thought!you!said!you’ve!been!keeping!tabs!on!

me.”!

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!

Reyna!looked!quizzical.!I!filled!her!in!on!my!run6ins!with!

the! commando! team—the! assault! on! Charlie’s! parents! place!

and!the!attack!outside!the!restaurant.!Her!eyes!widened.!!

!

“I’m! sorry,”! she! said.! “I! had! no! idea.! I! knew! you! were!

Langford’s!friend!once.!I!thought!that’s!how!you!got!mixed!up!

in!all!this.”!

!

“I! didn’t! know! they! were! connected! at! the! time.! But! it!

looks!like!they!are.”!!

!

A!freight!train!of!thoughts!rumbled!by,!too!fast!to!catch!a!

glimpse!of!more!than!a!couple!of!words!written!across!the!side!

of!each!car.!Soon,!the!jumble!nothing!but!a!mesmerizing!blur.!

One!stood!out.!

!

“Keely,”!I!said.!!

!

“The!woman?”!

!

I!thought!it!through!out!loud.!“She!was!the!only!one!who!

knew!where!we!were!going.!She!had!plenty!of!time.!I!left!the!

maps! in! the! car! on! the! ferry.! And! we! stopped! for! breakfast,!

giving!them!time!to!come!after!us.!She!was!slow!coming!out!of!

the! restaurant! after.! Probably! checking! in! to! see! where! they!

were.”!

!

“So,!you!
were
!followed.”!

!

“They!didn’t!have!to.!She!could!have!given!them!the!exact!

location.”!!

!

Reyna!wrinkled!her!nose.!“Who!is!she?”!

!

“Keely!Radcliffe.!Her!sister!was!killed!in!the!lab!explosion.!

She!said!she!wanted!to!find!the!people!who!did!it.!She!said!she!

didn’t!believe!Wink!was!responsible.”!

!

She!peered!at!me.!“Her!sister?!Are!you!sure?”!

!

“Pretty!sure.!Why?”!

!

“Radcliffe’s!not!the!name!from!the!file.”!

!

“Maybe!her!sister’s!name!was!different.”!

!

“I’ll!get!my!laptop!and!see!if!we!can!find!out.”!

!

She! walked! out! to! her! car! and! returned! a! moment! later!

with! a! small! notebook! computer.! She! set! it! on! the! table,!

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plugged! a! cellular! modem! into! a! USB! port! and! booted! it! up.!

When! her! browser! opened! she! typed! Keely’s! name! into! a!

search!box.!!

!

The! search! engine! returned! several! hundred! thousand!

hits.!A!few!scattered!near!the!top!came!from!short!news!pieces!

in! the! entertainment! sections! of! both! San! Francisco! papers.!

The!most!recent,!from!nearly!ten!years!earlier,!documented!an!

apparently! messy! divorce! from! James! Radcliffe,! a! San!

Francisco! investment! banker.! Messy,! the! papers! said,! due! to!

Radcliffe’s!alleged!penchant!for!younger!men.!Keely,!according!

to! the! rumored! settlement,! was! pretty! much! set! for! life.!

Financially,!anyway.!

!

Reyna!scrolled!through!a!couple!of!pages!and!found!earlier!

stories! on! social! events! Keely! and! James! Radcliffe! had!

attended.!Lots!of!philanthropic!events—charitable!auctions!for!

non6profits! groups,! openings! at! new! hospital! wings! and!

museum! galleries—and! the! usual! social! gatherings—

symphonies,!art!galleries,!theaters.!Recent!photos!had!them!in!

groups! of! mostly! same6sex! couples,! standing! slightly! apart,!

wearing! forced! smiles! and! dead! eyes.! Earlier! shots! showed!

them! hanging! onto! each! other’s! arms,! or! holding! each! other!

around!the!waist,!their!smiles!genuine,!expressions!animated.!

!

“There.”!Reyna!pointed!at!the!screen.!!

!

An! older! photo! showed! a! bright6faced,! younger! Keely!

hugging!an!adorably!cute!mongrel!puppy!at!a!function!for!San!

Francisco!Bay!Humane!Friends.!I!couldn’t!make!out!what!had!

caught!Reyna’s!attention!until!I!scanned!the!caption!a!second!

time.! The! reporter! had! listed! Keely’s! name! formally! as! Keely!

Baines!Radcliffe.!

!

“Baines! was! the! sister’s! name?”! It! rang! a! distant! bell.! I!

hadn’t!followed!Wink’s!trial!back!then,!hoping!to!hold!the!guilt!

I!felt!at!bay.!Avoiding!the!newspaper!clippings!my!mother!sent!

had!been!harder.!!

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!

“I! thought! that! was! right,”! Reyna! said.! She! looked! at! me!

over!her!shoulder.!“Jill!Baines.!Part!of!the!reason!her!death!was!

such!a!big!deal!was!that!she!was!Tucker!Baines’s!daughter.”!

!

I!pinched!the!bridge!of!my!nose.!“I!don’t!follow.”!

!

She!gave!me!a!look!that!begged!to!know!what!rock!I’d!been!

living!under.!

!

“Baines! is! head! of! Ross! Industries,”! she! said.! “Well,! he! is!

now.! Back! then! he! was! in! charge! of! marketing! or! sales! or!

something.!Ross!is!a!big!defense!contractor!based!in!California.!

You!never!heard!of!him?”!

!

“Should!I?!I!mean!I!know!about!the!company,!but—”!

!

“Maybe!not.!Company!got!started!way!back!in!the!’Thirties!

by!a!guy!named!Thomas!Wainwright!Ross.!He!picked!up!a!lot!of!

contract!work!during!WW!II!and!the!business!took!off.!One!of!

those! genius! types! who! helped! create! Silicon! Valley.! Tucker!

Baines! married! the! boss’s! daughter.! Worked! his! way! up!

through! the! ranks.! Took! over! from! Ross! a! while! back,! maybe!

fifteen! years! ago.! The! company’s! big! push! recently! has! been!

remote!warfare.”!

!

It! slowly! sank! in.! “The! contractor! working! on! your!

submarine!projects.!The!one!Kwan!worked!for!before!he!went!

to!SIU.”!

!

She!nodded!slowly.!

!

“No!wonder!Keely!wants!revenge,”!I!said.!“Baines!must!be!

bankrolling!her.!Not!that!she!needs!the!money.!But,!damn,!he!

must! have! been! doubly! pissed.! His! other! daughter! was!

working!with!a!former!researcher!on!his!staff.!And!then!she’s!

killed?”!!

!

Reyna!stared!out!the!window,!preoccupied.!!

!

“What?”!

!

She!gave!her!head!a!little!shake.!“Nothing.!It!might!explain!

the! commando! team! is! all.! They’re! all! pros,! using! military!

equipment.!Hard!for!anyone!to!get!that!stuff!even!on!the!black!

market.!Easy!enough,!though,!if!you’re!in!that!business.”!

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!

“So,! maybe! this! doesn’t! have! anything! to! do! with! the!

Chinese! after! all.! Sounds! like! straight6up! revenge! to! me.!

Langford,! Keely,! Baines—they! all! want! the! same! thing.! The!

Wilsons.”!

!

“Maybe.”!She!didn’t!sound!convinced.!!

!

I!stared!at!the!photo!on!the!screen.!Keely’s!hair!had!been!

long! then,! swept! back! into! a! ponytail! with! the! sides! left!

hanging! straight.! Her! gamin! features! were! set! in! a! serious!

expression,! The! total! trust! and! unconditional! affection! of! the!

little! dog! she! held! softened! it! slightly.! She! looked! less!

careworn,! less! hardened! by! life! than! I! remembered! her! just!

hours!before!across!the!table!at!breakfast.!The!longer!I!stared,!

the! more! the! individual! pieces! of! her! face! stood! out,! until! I!

realized!what!my!subconscious!had!been!niggling!all!this!time.!

The! most! ianthine! notion! I’d! ever! had! filled! my! overtaxed!

brain.!!

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!

!

Chapter&41&

!

!

Langford! waited! twenty! minutes! after! they! finally! left!

before!he!moved!from!the!table.!The!one!thing!he’d!learned!in!

prison! was! patience.! Finally,! he! picked! up! his! empty! glass,!

collected!the!rest!of!the!glasses!at!the!table!and!washed!them!

in! the! sink.! He! dried! them! carefully! and! put! them! away.! He’d!

already!cleaned!up!most!of!the!cabin!when!he’d!returned!the!

night! before,! even! taken! the! garbage! out! in! anticipation! of! a!

quick! exit.! He! hadn’t! been! quick! enough.! But! all! was! not! lost.!

He! knew! more! now! than! he! had! twenty6four! hours! earlier.!

Enough,! perhaps,! to! guess! where! they’d! taken! the! Wilson!

couple.!He!had!to!figure!out!what!to!do!about!Sanders,!too.!But!

for!now,!the!Wilsons!were!his!number6one!priority.!Legs!could!

wait.!!

!

He!worked!quickly!and!methodically,!closing!up!the!cabin!

as!if!leaving!for!the!season,!even!though!summer!hadn’t!even!

officially!arrived!yet.!He!didn’t!know!when!he!would!return,!or!

if.!He!hadn’t!really!given!thought!to!what!he!would!do!with!the!

rest! of! his! life,! only! what! he! had! to! do! now.! He! thought! only!

about!finishing!what!he’d!set!out!to!accomplish!when!they!let!

him!out!of!prison.!The!rest,!if!he!was!still!alive,!would!take!care!

of!itself,!somehow.!

!

He!still!heard!the!screams!in!his!head!as!if!it!had!happened!

yesterday.!Still!remembered!the!heft!of!the!gun!in!his!hand,!the!

sight!of!her!blood!mingling!with!the!chalky!dust!that!covered!

her! face! and! clothing,! the! smell! of! gunpowder! even! more!

prevalent! than! all! those! released! by! the! explosion! that!

pulverized! wood! and! concrete,! that! bent! and! fractured! steel.!

He!shook!off!the!memories!and!kept!moving.!

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!

They! hadn’t! arrested! him,! or! taken! him! in! after!

questioning! him,! for! the! same! reason! they’d! found! a! way! to!

commute! his! sentence.! They! wanted! to! follow! him.! They!

wanted! him! to! do! their! work! for! them.! He! wasn’t! sure! how!

they!planned!to!keep!him!in!their!sights—a!homing!device!on!

his! SUV,! maybe,! or! a! tail! when! he! left! the! property—but! he!

wasn’t! going! to! give! them! the! chance.! They’d! pushed! him! to!

keep!his!end!of!the!bargain,!freedom!in!exchange!for!whatever!

he!knew!about!the!SIU!bombers.!He’d!balked!long!enough!to!be!

convincing! and! told! them! what! they! wanted! to! hear.! But! he!

was!damned!if!he’d!let!them!put!a!choke!chain!on!him.!He’d!do!

this!on!
his
!terms,!no!one!else’s.!

!

He’d! already! packed! most! of! the! things! he! thought! he’d!

need.!As!he!closed!up!the!cabin,!he!picked!up!a!few!other!items!

that!might!be!useful!and!stuffed!them!in!a!backpack.!When!he!

finished,!he!collected!the!pack!on!his!way!out.!Stopping!in!the!

doorway,!he!turned!and!surveyed!the!interior,!going!through!a!

mental! checklist! one! more! time.! Satisfied,! he! pulled! the! door!

shut,!locked!the!deadbolt!and!descended!the!steps.!!

!

With!a!growing!sense!of!urgency!he!turned!away!from!the!

Scout! and! strode! around! the! side! of! the! cabin! toward! the!

woods! where! he’d! hidden! from! the! assault! team.! An!

overgrown! trail! led! along! the! forest’s! edge! parallel! to! the!

water.!He!followed!it!for!a!hundred!yards!and!came!to!a!fork!

that!led!a!few!short!steps!down!to!the!water.!Half!hidden!by!the!

low6hanging! branches! of! sumac! growing! at! water’s! edge!

floated!an!old!Zodiac.!Until!recently!it!had!been!in!storage.!Now!

it!was!packed!and!ready!and!sported!a!406hp!outboard!motor!

he’d!purchased!new.!!

!

He!untied!it!and!stepped!aboard,!shoving!off!from!shore!as!

he!climbed!on.!After!donning!a!lifejacket,!he!adjusted!the!choke!

and! throttle! and! gave! the! engine! a! couple! of! quick! pulls.! It!

caught!and!growled!loudly!until!he!throttled!down!and!pushed!

in!the!choke.!It!burbled!merrily!as!he!took!his!seat!and!put!it!in!

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gear.! He! turned! its! nose! to! the! south! and! let! it! idle! out! into!

deep!water,!anxious!now.!!