Buck woke to the sound of steel clanking on steel. “Hit the deck, gentlemen. The party is over. It’s time to pound the pavement!” The officer walked around the cell rudely poking each askew resident with his nightstick.
“Oh, crap” thought Buck. He knew the drill. He’d been here a few times before; different jail; same reason. He knew that making sense of it would come soon enough. But for now it was a problem of putting one foot in front of the other and getting out of here the quickest way possible. Get up, line up, and shut up; just get it done.
As Buck stepped up to the ‘Evidence Room’ counter a light went on in his head and he slammed his hand over his pocket to locate his attaché key.
“Is this what you’re looking for, Mr. Lempky?” The officer dangled his keys in front of him. We didn’t want you to have to sleep on these.”
Buck’s armament case lay on the counter. “What you got in here. Are you a brick salesman?” Buck shook his head “No; hardware sales.”
“Hope you got a license for that hardware.” The sergeant jabbed but he already knew the answer.
Buck signed his name with a few uncomfortable jerks and twitches. He paid his fine with the only money he had; his expense card. He’d have to think of an excuse later when the expense report snitched on him.
Out in street Buck sat at the bus stop attempting to regroup. Another drink to clear his head was out of the question. He was on a mission and to this point he was batting zero. In fact he was rapidly falling behind.
On the second try to cross his legs, Buck finally managed to reconstruct his lap. He dragged the attaché into place and shuttled the tumblers with the polished key. The sound alone was enough to sharpen Buck’s focus. After a quick look around to check for prying eyes, he cracked open the case for the first time. A red velvet deck covered the arsenal; above, the accordion-fold file storage sagged open. One folder showed itself. He carefully removed the folder and let the case click shut.
Loren was right; the dossier was light on specifics and heavy on possibles. Like himself the mark was using an expense card to finance his travels but unlike him a government agency accounting office listed the user as a project designation. The card may have been stolen and unreported or used in an unintended manner. Because of some anomaly in the accounting procedure the tracking of a user of such a card was complicated and the delay allowed the user to stay one step ahead of the authorities.
Another complication was the need for secrecy to avoid any social impact or media attention. The home authority for Loren’s agency was referred to as “the sponsor” even though everyone knew it to be the UNIS, a cloak and dagger outfit sanctioned by the UN
Because of the hits on the card the computer was able to correlate the mark’s movement, and to establish some general parameters. Also, intercepted communications indicated that the mark would be leaving New York on or about the fifth of February, with a somewhere in London destination. From there the mark could either be contacting a research outfit in London or crossing the channel to enter Europe.
Buck had three full days to make a three day trip, but he would have to book a seat on the train today. Because of the moratorium on airline flight, Buck knew that the likelihood that he could bump his way onto a ‘security flight’ was nil. The Wave Schooner out of New York was not limited by the moratorium because it didn’t use fossil fuels. However its schedule was weather sensitive and departures were at best a one or two day estimate.
It was Buck’s lucky day. He had three hours to get ready and across town. He felt confident he could make it for departure time.