Reach For the Spy (28 page)

“So Stemp was the only
high-level Sirius employee there.” I spoke into the silence.

Kane shrugged. “It
could be sheer coincidence. Our guy could have come and gone, after
I left and before Germain arrived. It wouldn’t take much time to
send a file.” He stood. “Come on, Aydan, it’s time for you to go
home. Webb, do you mind taking the key back down?”

“Sure.”

I handed Spider the
tiny box and trailed thoughtfully out the door behind Kane. I
really didn’t like Stemp. And I sure as hell didn’t trust him.

When I stepped outside,
a chilly wind was sweeping heavy clouds across the sky. I shivered
and rubbed my hands over my bare arms while I trotted to Kane’s
Expedition. Damn, I’d wasted two beautiful, sunny weeks trapped
underground. Now that I was aboveground again, the weather turned
to crap. Murphy’s Law.

I spent the evening
catching up on my bookkeeping entries for some quarterly clients
and doing some minor web updates for Spider’s Webb Design. Kane
stayed until Germain arrived to relieve him at eight. Rain pounded
down outside, and I pitied the two guards who’d drawn the night’s
outside duty.

I went to bed early,
and had another vividly erotic dream about Kane. While I lay there
in wakeful frustration, the phone rang.

Fine. Gotta get the
obligatory threatening phone call, too. Fuck my life.

I let Germain pick
up.

Morning was cool and
overcast. I decided to give the waist holster a try, since it would
be concealed by my sweatshirt. I squirmed uncomfortably at the
breakfast table and met Germain’s quizzical glance.

“How long did it take
you to get used to carrying your gun?” I asked. “This just feels
wrong.”

He chuckled. “I was
pretty much used to it after the first time it saved my life.”

“Yeah, I could see
that.”

“But seriously, you’ll
gradually get used to it. You’ll get to the point where you feel
naked without it.”

“Hmmph.” I pulled at it
again, trying to find a comfortable position. The doorbell rang,
and I got up to let Kane in.

“Ready to go?” he
inquired.

“In a minute.” I
grabbed my jacket and waist pouch and put on my hiking boots in
deference to the muddy ground outside.

Kane glanced over at me
as we pulled into Silverside. “Stemp wants another meeting this
morning.”

“Do you think he’s our
leak?”

Kane blew out a breath.
“I’d be inclined to say not. Webb and I spent several hours last
night digging into him. But we didn’t come up with anything
definitive.”

“You were there half
the night again? How much overtime do you guys do in a year?”

“What’s overtime?” His
lips crooked up. “This isn’t a job, it’s a way of life.”

“I guess it is, isn’t
it?” I said slowly. He was on call, 24/7. Lives depended on it.
God, I wouldn’t want that responsibility.

I wondered if he had
time left for any hobbies or life of his own. He worked ridiculous
hours, and I knew he must spend a lot of time working out,
practicing martial arts, and target shooting. He was a deadly
marksman in addition to his skill in unarmed combat.

Being a lethal weapon
really was a lifestyle. Once again, I thanked my lucky stars he was
on my side.

When we tapped on the
door to Stemp’s office, he looked up sharply from his desk. “Ms.
Kelly, come in. Kane, wait outside.”

I glanced nervously at
Kane, but his face was inscrutable as he took up a position at
parade rest outside the door.

I stepped inside and
obeyed Stemp’s command to close the door.

“Please sit.”

I stepped forward
slowly and took a seat in the chair facing Stemp’s desk. His face
was as unreadable as always, half in shadow from the light of the
window. Why the hell did he always keep the lights off in his
office? Like being in a cave. Or a snake burrow. That’d be
appropriate. I dragged my attention back to him as he spoke.

“Our mole made another
attempt to communicate with Fuzzy Bunny yesterday.”

“Yes.”

Should I mention I knew
he’d been there at the time? Before I could decide, he spoke.

“I was at the internet
cafe during the time that the file was apparently sent.”

“Oh.”

Interesting. He
admitted being there. I shut up to see what else he’d tell me.

“I was placing
surveillance cameras in the cafe so we can monitor activity there.
But I wanted to warn you again to be ready to defend yourself
without hesitation. Against anyone who threatens you, even if it’s
someone you know and have trusted up to this point.”

“I’ll keep that in
mind.”

He stood. “Are you
carrying your weapon?”

“Yes.”

“May I see it?”

I frowned up at him.
“Why?”

“It has come to my
attention that some of the Glock 26 magazines had a defect that
causes them to jam. I want to make sure that your gun is in top
working condition.”

I eased it out of the
holster and held it out reluctantly. He came around the desk and
took the gun, carrying it over to the window to stand with his back
to me. I heard him eject the magazine, and he took a moment to
examine it in the bright indirect daylight. He pushed the magazine
back into place as he turned, and stood silhouetted against the
window.

That just pissed me
off. It was an obvious power trick, to make me look at him backlit
so that I couldn’t read his face. I stood and walked over to stand
beside him, holding out my hand.

He returned the gun
without comment, and I stowed it back in my holster.

“Remember to stay
alert,” he reminded me.

I nodded, and he
watched me for a few more seconds. Snake eyes. Creepy.

“Please send Kane in on
your way out.”

I nodded again and
left.

Back in my office, I
took out the Glock again. I ejected the magazine partway and pushed
it into place again, just to make sure it was properly seated. Then
I worked the slide to chamber up a round and tucked it carefully
back in my holster.

I sighed. I really
didn’t want to have to use it.

How long would Kane’s
meeting would be? Spider was nowhere to be seen, so I dialled his
extension.

“Hey, Spider,” I
greeted him when he picked up. “Do you have time to get the network
key for me this morning?”

“Um...” he said.
“I’m... I can’t right now.”

“Okay.” I frowned.
“Spider, are you feeling all right? You sound like you’ve got a
cold or something.”

“Yeah...” he said
huskily. “Maybe... I’m coming down with something.”

“Well, I hope you feel
better soon. Take care of yourself, you’ve been working too hard
lately.”

“Thanks,” he croaked,
and hung up.

Poor guy. He sounded
awful. But maybe it was a good thing he didn’t have time to bring
me the key after all. At least he wouldn’t spread his germs to
me.

On the other hand, it
didn’t leave me very much to do. Without the key, I couldn’t
decrypt anything.

Hmmm. But I could at
least go into the network using my Sirius security fob and see if
there were any new files piled up in my listening program. And it
wouldn’t hurt my head. That’d be a nice change.

I leaned back on the
couch and stepped into the network.

There were a few more
files piled up in my program, and I eyed them with annoyance. I
could open them, but I couldn’t read them. I made myself invisible
and tried to check my program, but it resisted my efforts, too, and
I was afraid to try too hard in case I upset its delicate
balance.

Wandering aimlessly out
of the virtual corridor, I headed for the portal. Surely Kane had
to be finished soon.

When I re-entered my
physical body, I started slightly at Kane’s closeness. He had an
odd expression on his face that smoothed away almost instantly as
he stepped back.

“Sorry,” he said. “I
was just going to wake you from the network.”

“Good, I’m glad you’re
here. There are a couple more files in my listening program, but I
need the key to be able to read them.”

“Mm.” He spoke as he
turned away. “Leave them for now. I just got new orders from Stemp.
Let’s go.”

“Go? Where?” I rose and
followed him out of the office.

“New site.”

“Okay.” I frowned at
his receding back. “Will we need to take the key?”

“No.”

In the truck, I glanced
over at his expressionless profile. As usual, his body language was
relaxed, his face composed. But I could have sworn he was angry or
upset about something. He kept his gaze on the road, so I couldn’t
tell for sure.

I sighed and leaned
back in the seat as we drove out of Silverside. He’d tell me when
he was ready.

Meanwhile, I could
enjoy the drive. He steered the Expedition out into the country,
and I watched the watery sun gradually win its battle against the
clouds. The patchwork of fields kept me fascinated, with the vivid
yellow of canola in bloom beside the blue-green of oats and the
warm yellow-green of wheat. The wind swept across the fields in
endless waves and I caught myself smiling at the sight.

Out of the corner of my
eye, I saw Kane glance over and quickly look back at the road.
Something was definitely bothering him.

“Anything you want to
talk about?” I asked.

“No.”

I sat in silence while
we drove out of the farmland and into more rolling, treed terrain.
Kane turned the truck off the highway and made a series of turns on
the back roads while we wound deeper into the uninhabited area.

I hadn’t seen another
vehicle in miles, and I breathed satisfaction. I had no idea where
we were going, but the trip was wonderfully relaxing.

A few minutes later,
Kane pulled into an overgrown driveway and the Expedition bounced
down a rutted track. He stopped to engage the four-wheel drive, and
we churned our way along the muddy trail. At last he pulled over
and stopped, and we both got out.

The sun was warm in the
clearing sky and the birds sang in the silence of the deserted
area. I stretched happily and peeled off my sweatshirt in the
heat.

We walked a few hundred
yards toward a stand of trees and I puzzled over where the heck we
were going. More spy stuff. They probably had some top-secret
installation out here in the middle of nowhere.

“Wait here,” Kane
instructed, and I obediently halted a few yards from the edge of
the trees. Turning, I gazed out over the rolling open land behind
us while I soaked up the sun.

“Aydan.” Kane’s voice
sounded strange, and I turned to see him standing just in front of
the forested area.

I frowned at him. “Is
everything okay?”

“No.”

Something in his voice
sent a chill down my spine. “What’s wrong?” I started toward
him.

“Stay there.” He drew
his gun and pointed it directly at me.

Adrenaline surged
through my veins. “John... what’s going on?” I held my voice as
steady as I could.

“Aydan...” He stopped
and swallowed. “I got new orders this morning.”

“Oh...” My stomach
turned to lead and my head threatened to float away. “From
Stemp?”

“Stemp.” He stopped
again and took a deep breath. His gun never wavered. “And
Briggs.”

“Oh. So it’s official.”
I was proud that my voice was still steady.

“Yes.”

I took a deep breath of
my own. One of my last. Too bad it had been rainy last night. I
would have liked to have eaten one last meal of fresh peas.

“Do you need me to pass
on any messages for you?” Kane’s voice was still level.

“No, just notify the
usual authorities that I’m dead. Everything’s in order.” My heart
hammered furiously, as if trying to cram in as many beats as
possible before the end. “Oh. There is one thing you could do.”

“If it’s within my
power, I’ll do it.”

A shaft of sunlight
bathed him. I could see his eyes clearly at this distance, dark
with anguish. His gun hand was still rock-steady.

“Just a message. Tell
Stemp...” I stood tall and tossed my hair back. I wouldn’t die like
a snivelling coward. I gave Kane a vicious grin. “Tell Stemp he’s a
stupid asshole. I never would have betrayed the team. Or the
country.”

Kane’s voice was
hoarse. “I know.”

His finger moved to the
trigger. I tried to steady my shaking legs. Wouldn’t want to fall
down before the bullet hit me.

He wouldn’t miss. He
never missed.

The sound of the shot
made me flinch.

I stared at Kane in
shock. He’d missed.

He stared back at me,
wide-eyed.

Then he pitched forward
onto the ground and lay still.

I stood rooted to the
spot, unable to understand. A movement in the underbrush caught my
eye, and I stared blankly at Stemp as he stepped out beside Kane’s
body, gun in hand.

Caught in icy
paralysis, I gaped at him helplessly. I was vaguely aware that my
entire body was shaking. My brain lurched into gear and I swayed on
my feet when comprehension swamped me in a horrific flood.

Without thinking, I
yanked the Glock from its holster and delivered three quick, smooth
shots. I knew I wouldn’t miss.

Stemp smiled.

My mouth fell open
again and I resisted the idiot urge to peer into the barrel of my
gun to see what was wrong with it. I’d seen the casings eject. I
knew I’d fired three shots. I knew they were good shots. At such
close range, I couldn’t possibly miss.

“First rule,” Stemp
said smoothly. “Never let anyone else handle your weapon. Second
rule. If for some reason you must let someone else handle your
weapon, check it over thoroughly afterward.”

“You...” I tripped over
my unwieldy tongue. “You swapped magazines. Gave me blanks. You
fucking prick. I’ll kill you...”