Whirlwind (17 page)

Mitch opened the donut box, revealing four cups of hot coffee and a

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dozen gloppy confections. He peeled a plastic lid off one of the coffees, then picked a sticky bun with hot pink icing. “Only work I seen in a long time.”

Charlie took a coffee for himself. He eyed the pastries, choosing the one that seemed least likely to trigger coronary thrombosis. “You’re going up against some pretty bad people, Mitch. They might rough you up some.”

“I been ridin’ rodeo since I was sixteen. I reckon anybody as whups up on me can’t do more than some horse already done twice.” He licked his fingers with relish and took another donut.

“Just so long as you know what you’re getting into.” Charlie passed a manila envelope to Mitch. “I’ve signed the BMW’s title over to you. The registration and all the paperwork are in here. Plus the twenty-five thousand cash I promised. When you get to Las Vegas, don’t blow it at the tables.”

“I ain’t no gambler. Most I’ll do is catch me a show and have a good steak dinner.”

“Smart man. Okay, now let’s go over the plan one last time.”

Mitch nodded. “Well, sir, like you told me, I bought me some khaki clothes same as yours. Also got built-up shoes to make me look taller. And I found a store out near the state college that sells makeup and wigs and such, so I got that stuff too. In a minute or so, I’m walkin’ into your bathroom, and when I come out I’m gonna look a mite like you leastways at a distance. Then I’m headin’ downstairs with a satchel similar to yours, goin’ out the backdoor “

“The BMW’s parked beneath a tree right by the fire exit. They’re watching it.”

“I’ll be limpin’ fast and keepin’ my head down. Then I’ll climb in that fancy vehicle of yours. Always did want me one of them German cars.” He smiled boyishly. “As the crow flies, we got ‘bout six hundred miles between here and Vegas. If I take the long way around, I won’t get there ‘til dark. Whereupon I drive up to the Mandalay Bay, throw my keys to the valet, and as soon as I go through the door, the wig and all goes into my satchel. Then I check in under my own name, and I stay there ‘til I hear from you or for three days, whichever comes first.”

“If you get pulled over and it won’t be by the police what do you do?”

“Tell the truth. Tell ‘em everythin’. Even ‘bout that pretty girl.”

Charlie looked warily at the donuts. Still hungry, he selected something slathered in chocolate and oozing whipped cream from the center. “Espe 112 .

daily about that pretty girl. And make sure they know that I’m the one who paid you to drive a high-visibility BMW from here to Vegas. You’re not part of this, Mitch, you’re just a hired hand. If they understand that, they’ll probably let you off easy.”

Mitch drained his coffee. “Will do. And now …” He pulled a folded envelope from his slacks pocket. “… here’s the papers for the car I got you. Ain’t much of a car. Beat up old rice burner actually. Most folks in this part of the world would sooner walk than be seen in a Jap car, so I got a right good price on it.”

“It’s not going any farther than the airport. By the way, I presume you had no problems chartering a private jet for me.”

“Nothin’ that wavin’ a big ol’ wad a hundred-dollar bills didn’t solve. They’s a-flyin’ in from Dallas. Be waitin’ for you at seven o’clock sharp.” He began to reach into his rear pocket. “Which reminds me, I got plenty of money left over from what you gave me yesterday.”

“Keep it.”

“Can’t do that. It’s close to two thousand dollars.”

“Put your damned wallet back in your damned pants. The money’s for you.”

Nodding, Mitch hefted the shopping bag containing his disguise and walked to the bathroom. Five minutes later, he was gone. Five minutes after that, Charlie followed.

When he returned to the room, Irina was sitting at the desk. She’d wolfed down three donuts and was working on her fourth. Charlie blackly observed that she’d polished off both remaining cups of coffee. He’d wanted a second cup for himself.

“No trouble?” she asked.

He pulled up a chair at the desk, peeked into the donut box, and decided that no power on earth could persuade him to eat another one of the things. “None. The night clerk is still on duty. He checked me out and went back to his nap.”

“Will Mitch…” Charlie noted the hesitancy in her voice. “.. . will he be all right?”

“Sure. Oh, they’ll be mad as hell, but that won’t change the fact that I skunked them into following the wrong man. If they stop him, I figure Mitch in will walk away with no more than a bloody nose. No one’s got any reason to hurt him.”

“I hope you are correct, Charlie. He has a good heart.”

She’d stopped calling him Mr. McKenzie. Charlie rather liked that. Of course it’s only appropriate to be on a first-name basis after spending the night with me, and damn but I had trouble falling asleep…. “Charlie?”

Hell, is it showing? “What?”

“I feel badly about what I did to him. Do you feel badly about what you did to me?” Caught off guard, Charlie returned a poker-faced stare. “Showing me those photographs, taking advantage of a weakness, playing mind games this is not so different from what I did to Mitch, I think.”

After a moment’s reflection, Charlie pursed his lips, “That’s good, Irina, in fact, it’s first-rate. If you make me feel guilty, then you’ll have the upper hand. Congratulations, you’ve scored a point.”

“You have not answered my question.”

“Two points. Now get ready to lose one. The answer is if you feel guilty, you’re in the wrong line of work. In this business, the only thing you’re entitled to is pride when you win and bitterness when you lose.”

“You still have not answered.”

Charlie chortled, although not happily. “Game, set, and match. Yeah, I do feel guilty. You were vulnerable. I took advantage of it. Even though it’s all part of the game, I feel like a louse. Now, are you satisfied?”

“Not really. I too feel guilty. Guilty in my heart.” She gave him a flat, emotionless look.

I loathe this job. I truly, truly do. He drew a deep breath, “If it’s any consolation to you, that confession makes you a better person than ninety-nine percent of the other guys.”

She refused to meet his eyes. “Now what? You will arrest me, and return your precious Whirlwind to its owners, I suppose?”

“Dead wrong. Make no mistake, Irina, if Whirlwind is critical to the national defense and I suspect it is I’m not letting you get it out of the country.” A small fire sparked in her eye. Good, Charlie thought, let’s see some spunk, girl. “On the other hand, I have no intention of bringing either it or you in until I know what it is. I’ve said this before, I’ll say it again: there’s more going on than meets the eye. They wouldn’t have brought me back from

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exile and they sure as hell wouldn’t have hired Johan Schmidt unless there’s a secret behind the secret. That second secret is the important one. If I can crack it, then I might just get what I want. If I do, if you help me, then maybe we can work something out between us.”

“I will make no deals with you, Charlie.”

No hesitation, nothing but resolution in her voice. Charlie would have been disappointed if there hadn’t been. The night before he’d mounted a full scale assault against the weakest place in her defenses. She’d fought back like a champ. The most he’d been able to accomplish was to plant a seed of self-doubt. That seed wouldn’t bloom until she started questioning her motives. And then, my dear, you belong to me. “Fair enough. Leave the deal-doing to me.” He glanced at his jeweled watch. “Look, I’m going to have to leave in a few minutes. I’d like to ask you some questions before I go.”

Astonished, she blurted, “You are leaving me here? I may do what I wish?”

Gotchya! “Tup. Right now, Schmidt and company are burning rubber trying to catch up with Mitch. They’ll be on his tail all day because they think he’s me, and they think he’ll lead them straight to you.” He smiled a smug cat smile at his own cleverness. “Okay, so right now according to the Marriott’s computer system this room is vacant. The cleaning crew won’t show up until nine. If you want to make a run for it, your best bet is to wait here for a few hours, then scoot over to the Hilton, check out, and hit the road. I’d be happier if you stayed holed up. That’s the safest thing to do. But I won’t stop you if you want to hightail it. Leave here at nine, and you can make it to Phoenix by late afternoon, get as far as San Diego or LA by ten tonight.”

She blinked in confusion. He could almost hear her mental gears grinding as she tried to puzzle her way through his motives. She opened her mouth twice, but said nothing.

“Okay, Irina, will you answer a few questions for me?”

She responded warily, “Only if you answer my questions too. Why have you chartered a plane? Where are you going?”

“California. That’s where DefCon Enterprises is. A chartered jet will get me there and back in jig time.” She nodded, although not trustingly. “My turn for a question. Tell me everything you saw when you stole Whirlwind every detail. I need to know it all.”

Irina began to speak. Charlie slouched back in his chair. As on the night before, his fingers were knitted behind his head. He closed his eyes. There, but not there, he emptied his mind, making it a blank slate upon which Irina would write. If he concentrated at all, he concentrated on not concentrating. Outside his own reality, he was inside hers.

An invisible ghost, he hovered over the desert night. Below he saw two figures flit like hunting owls through the darkness. Shadows danced in blood-orange firelight. An impenetrable building was penetrated.

Two curious cats intrigued by an open cupboard paw-padded their way to innocent predation. The mouse was plump and slow. They pounced.

Black flared white. Searchlights speared the sky. Angry bullets flocked in a killing hailstorm. Frightened rabbits fled the hunter’s horn, and fresh-spilled blood puddled on a sandy slope.

Irina fell silent. Charlie shook himself out of the world where he’d been and into the world where other men live.

Her skin was sallow. Charlie regretted that. Reliving those moments of terror could not have come easily. But she, a good soldier, had given him what she knew he wanted. He admired her for that. Which, he reflected, could become a problem.

Hands on her hips, she demanded, “Now I shall ask you a question, and you must answer truthfully.”

Damn she made a fast recovery. “Fire away.”

“What did you do with the disk you stole from me?”

Charlie froze. For a moment he could neither move nor react nor think. Then he exploded into laughter. Snorting and wiping his eyes, he barely managed to get the words out. “You know, I’ve never met my match before. But you… dear God!” He reached into his war bag, ran a fingernail along an invisible seam, and teased open a false bottom. “Here,” he said, handing her a disk. “Anyone as smart as you deserves it.”

Irina leaned across the table, took the disk, and flipped it over her shoulder. “I would like the real one now.”

“You are good, lady, so very, very good.” Abashed, Charlie opened a shirt button, fished a hand beneath his khaki, and pulled a disk from a secret pocket. “Is this what you’re looking for?”

She answered with a single crisp nod as she dropped it in her breast pocket.

It took no small effort to keep a straight face. The disk he’d given her had come from beneath the left side of his shirt. The disk she wanted was secreted on the right. “Okay, we’re square now. And I’ve got to hit the road. Just let me get two things straight. First: are you sure those generators were shielded?”

“I did not say they were shielded, only that the shed was made of thick metal. The fragments I saw from the explosion were very heavy. This is not so significant, I think.”

“I’ll be the judge of that. Second: you said there were gas canisters hooked to a lab hood. Do you remember what was in ‘em?”

She pressed a fingernail to her lip. Such a pretty gesture, Charlie thought. “No, the light was poor and… wait, I do remember… something … an anesthetic, I think.”

“Ether?”

“Dimethyl ether, yes. Why is this important?”

“Not an anesthetic, not in that lab.”

Her eyes sparked. “A coolant? It is quite cold, I think.”

“Liquefies at minus twenty-five degrees,” said Charlie, who hadn’t missed an issue of Scientific American since age fourteen. “Freezes somewhere under a hundred, a hundred and forty maybe.”

“Why would they need something that cold?”

“Think about it. You’re a smart cookie, you’ll work it out.”

She snapped her fingers. “Ha! They have developed a new superconductor!”

Damned smart. Girl, I’m going to have to keep my eye on you. “Got it in one. A material that conducts electricity with no resistance. Electrons zip through and they don’t even know it’s there.”

“But there are no practical applications for superconductors, not even the so-called high-temperature ones. It is merely an interesting phenomenon, a toy for experimenters.”

“It’s more than a toy. If they were using that ether to cool down that box you stole “

“I am not so sure it is a box, Charlie. I have carried it three times. There’s no lid or lock. It is solid, I think.”

Charlie shut his eyes again. “An ingot. Not metal, not plastic, right? A ceramic composite. Yeah, it would be a composite.” He was close, so tantalizingly close. They were there, all the puzzle pieces. All he had to do was shuffle them around, looking for their connecting points while he worked out the real, the undeniable, the absolute truth

No time! His head snapped up. “Irina, I’ve got to leave now. Before I go, tell me you’ll hide out at the Hilton. Tell me you’ll be waiting when I get back.”

She shook her head.

“Are you sure? I’ll be back from California no later than four or five this afternoon. You’ll be a lot safer if you join forces with me. I think we’d make a pretty good team.”

Another shaken “no.”

“Have it your way. But for God’s sake, be careful. If they get their hands on you, you’re going to get hurt.”

“They will not catch me.”

Charlie stood, picking up his war bag with his left hand. It struck him that he’d like to plant an unbecoming good-bye kiss on her cheek. But that would never do.