“What security violations would those be, Nate?”
“Asking about a disk that’s above your security clearance, for one!”
“A disk that you said doesn’t exist? Are unicorns above my security clearance too?”
“You are spending too much time with that woman,” said the scientist, his face tightening. “Now look! I don’t know what’s brought all this on, but I’d advise you to forget about it.”
“I’ve forgotten too much already,” Adam replied. “I’m trying to get some of it back.”
Outright worry flashed across Kiddrick’s features before anger covered it. “I’ll remind you of something you’ve forgotten, for free: You asked us to erase your memory. In fact, you begged us to! We gave you something a lot of people would give their eyeteeth to have—a clean slate, with all of that pain in your past wiped away. We did it before … and we can do it again. So drop it!”
He glared at Adam, who stared back at him without emotion. Kiddrick was the first to look away, ire dissolving to discomfort under the other man’s level gaze, but it was Adam who broke the silence. “Okay,” he said simply. He turned and left the office.
Breathing heavily, Kiddrick watched him go. Even after the door had closed he remained still for several seconds, trying to compose himself—then he hurried to his desk and picked up the phone, stabbing in a number. He waited impatiently for the call to be transferred from Tony’s office line to his cell phone. “Tony!” he barked, on getting an answer. “Have you been talking to Adam?”
Even through his tiredness, Tony’s sarcasm was clear. “Well, yeah. It’s a lot easier than using semaphore.”
“What is this, comedian day? I meant, why did you tell him we recorded your persona when you joined the project?”
“Because he asked? Look, what is this? I’m on my way home, but I can come back in if there’s a problem.”
“No, no, there’s no problem.” Kiddrick hung up without a further word, regarding the phone grimly as he pondered his next action before entering another number. “I need to talk to Admiral Harper.”
Adam entered the Cube. “What did he say?” Bianca asked.
“Nothing helpful. And nothing I liked, either.”
“Did he say anything about the disk?”
“Only that there wasn’t one. But I know he’s lying. I’m sure he’s got it in his office safe.”
“Maybe we should use the PERSONA on him to get the combination.”
“There’s an easier way.” The coolly matter-of-fact way he said it made Bianca give him a curious, slightly unsettled look. “I think you were right, though.”
“About what?”
“About there being some sort of cover-up. Kiddrick didn’t say anything outright, but he implied that he knew what had happened to me before I joined the project. So if I really am a traitor, then he’s involved in concealing it …”
“And if you’re not, then there’s a lot more to whatever’s going on,” Bianca finished excitedly. “I know which I believe.”
“I know which I prefer. One way or another, though … I’ve got to find out the truth.”
“How are you going to do that?”
He thought for a moment—then made what he knew was a fateful decision. “The only person who knows what really happened is me—the original me, before I had my memory wiped. I’ve got to get that disk. Are you still willing to help me?”
She nodded. “Yes, of course.”
“Whatever I have to do?”
Another nod, though somewhat hesitant. “Yeah … although I’d be happier if I knew exactly what you had in mind.”
He gave her a lopsided grin. “Really, you wouldn’t. But we’re going to need the PERSONA gear again. Can you get it from the lab?”
“The whole lot?”
“Yes. Do you know where the emergency stairwell is?”
“The one past the break room?”
“That’s right. Take the gear there and wait for me—I’ll meet you in about ten minutes. Oh, and … put your foot in the door to keep it open.”
She cocked her head, puzzled. “Why?”
“Just a precaution.” He collected a jacket from the wardrobe and donned it.
“And what do I say if somebody wants to know why I’m standing there with my foot stuck in the fire door?”
“Tell them you thought you smelled smoke. Okay, I’ll see you there.” He went to the door, then looked back. “Thank you.”
“Glad to help.” Her smile faded. “I hope …”
He left the room, making his way out of the Bullpen and heading for the armory. His ID card opened the security doors; as lead agent, he had full access to STS’s inventory.
He made use of it, first collecting a few items from the equipment storage area and putting them into a carryall before opening another locked door to enter the weapons room. A couple more objects went into the bag; then he collected a SIG Sauer P228 and a magazine. He loaded the weapon and pulled back the slide to chamber the first round. He very much hoped that he wouldn’t need to use the gun, but he had a horrible suspicion that once he committed to his goal, matters would escalate very quickly …
The door opened behind him.
He didn’t look around, somehow knowing who it was. “Tony.”
“Adam. Not planning something else crazy, are you?”
“That depends on your definition.” He slipped the gun into his jacket and turned to face the new arrival. While Tony appeared tired from the long night, his eyes were anything but, watching him intently. “I thought you’d gone home.”
“I was on the way. Kiddrick called me. From the way he was ranting, it sounded like I needed to get back here.” His gaze flicked to the angular bulge beneath Adam’s lapel. “I guess I was right.”
“I’m not planning to hurt anyone.”
“Glad to hear it.”
“But I need to know the truth,” insisted Adam. “I need to know who I am. This is the only way I can do that.”
“Are you sure of that?”
“Kiddrick threatened me with erasing my memory again if I didn’t drop this. He’s part of it—he’s actively trying to stop me from finding out what really happened to me in Islamabad.”
“So you did get something from Qasid.” Tony didn’t sound surprised—but there was clear disappointment at not having been trusted enough to be told.
“Yeah. And I didn’t like any of it. Qasid had met me before—right before the secretary of state was killed. I was connected to it, somehow. I’ve seen Qasid’s side of what happened—now I need to see mine.” His voice became imploring. “Tony, please. I have to know what really happened. Someone’s trying to keep the truth about the bombing hidden.”
Tony looked concerned. “Who?”
“I don’t know. It might even …” He hesitated. “It might even be me.” At the other man’s shock, he continued: “That’s why I have to do this. Kiddrick has a recording of my persona from when I joined the project. The truth’s on that disk. But he’s never going to give it to me voluntarily.”
“So you’re going to threaten to shoot him if he doesn’t give it to you? What if he calls your bluff?”
“He won’t. This is Kiddrick we’re talking about.”
“Point taken,” said Tony with a wry smile. “But have you thought about what happens after he gives you the disk? And I don’t mean about finding the truth. I mean, what happens to you, personally.”
Adam squared his shoulders. “I’ll take whatever’s due to me—whether for this, or for anything I did before. That’s a promise, Tony. But I’ve got to know, one way or another. I’m not asking you to help me openly—but I need to know if you’re going to try to stop me.”
Tony looked back down at Adam’s chest. “I’d feel a lot better if I knew you weren’t going to pull a gun on anyone at STS. Even Kiddrick.”
Adam was still for a moment, then took out the gun. His thumb moved to the magazine release, about to press the button …
then he lifted it, extending his arm to the other man. “Here.”
“How do you know I won’t take you in?”
“Because I trust you to do the right thing.”
Tony hesitated, then took the gun. The muzzle pointed at Adam …
Then it disappeared into Tony’s jacket. “Okay,” he said, voice somewhere between encouragement and resignation. “Do what you have to. Just remember what you promised.”
“I will,” Adam replied. He picked up the bag. “Thanks.”
“I hope that what you find out is worth it,” Tony said.
Adam didn’t reply.
Adam checked his watch as he exited the armory and headed quickly through the building. Talking to Tony had cost him time. Bianca would be at the stairwell by now—and the longer she waited there, the more chance there was of her attracting unwanted attention.
His destination was just ahead. He took a breath to prepare himself—then burst into Kiddrick’s office.
Kiddrick jumped in shock at the unexpected intrusion. “What—what the hell do you think you’re doing? You can’t just—”
Adam dropped the bag as he marched around the desk. He grabbed the scientist and yanked him to his feet, slamming him against the wall. The framed diplomas rattled, one dropping from its hook and falling to the floor with a crack of glass. “Open the safe,” he growled.
“Are you mad?” Kiddrick spluttered. “I’m not going to—”
Adam hurled him bodily over the desk. The computer and phones crashed down around him, scattered papers whirling like snowflakes. Before Kiddrick could recover, Adam rounded the desk and dragged him across the office.
“Open it!” he barked, swinging the framed photograph aside with such force that one of the hinges broke. He pushed Kiddrick’s face hard against the cold steel door.
The older man tried to break free, but Adam was too strong. “Help!” Kiddrick shrieked. “Somebody help me!”
Adam was unfazed. “It’s a secure office,” he reminded him. “Soundproofed.” He shoved Kiddrick across the safe door until the combination dial was pressed hard into his cheek. “If it’s not open in ten seconds, I’m gonna smash your teeth out on that dial.”
“You’re out of your fucking mind!” Kiddrick croaked. “You won’t get away with this!”
“And you won’t be eating solid food. Open the safe!” He forced Kiddrick’s head harder against the metal with each word. “Five! Four! Three!”
“Wait, wait!” screeched the scientist. One hand clawed desperately at the dial. “I’ll open it!”
“If you set off an alarm—”
“I won’t, I won’t!” He fumbled with the dial, squinting to read the figures etched into its surface. “Seventeen left, fifty right, and, uh …” A gasp of fear as Adam pressed harder. “Thirty-eight left! That’s it, that’s the combination!”
Adam pushed him away, sending him stumbling to the carpet, and opened the safe. If an alarm had been tripped, it was a silent one. He looked inside. Folders bearing the TOP SECRET: SCI classification, a small stack of optical disks and flash drives …
And at the back, a plastic box like an extra-thick DVD case. He pulled it out. The label on the spine read GRAY, A. He opened it. One of the blocky memory modules was inside.
He snapped the case shut and picked up the bag, dropping the disk inside. Kiddrick recoiled as Adam walked toward him and reached down, but it was only to pick up the fallen phone. He yanked out the cable and threw the handset against the wall. It broke apart, plastic pieces scattering. “Don’t move,” he ordered as he went to the door, knowing that he would not be obeyed.
He left the room, moving briskly down the corridor. He had ten seconds, fifteen at most, before Kiddrick summoned the courage to get up and scream for help. There was a security door ahead. He inserted his ID. The wait for the green light felt interminable. He snatched the door open and hurried through, moving at a trot now. Any moment …
“Help!”
He looked back, seeing through the door’s reinforced glass that Kiddrick had left his office. “Security, get security!” the scientist yelled. “Help me!”
Adam broke into a run. “Clear the way!” he barked. The people in the corridor hurriedly moved aside to let the agent through.
He rounded a corner, Kiddrick’s yells fading behind him. Another security door. “Coming through, move!” he shouted. More STS personnel cleared his path. He reached the barrier and jammed his card into the slot. Waiting, waiting—
Green light.
He barged through the door—barely a second before an alarm sounded, a strident two-tone klaxon signifying a security breach. All the security doors were now locked, every exit from the building sealed, and STS’s squad of security protective officers placed on full alert to hunt him down.
It wouldn’t take them long to find him. And if Bianca hadn’t held the stairwell door open, their job would be even easier …
Another corner, and he entered the short passage leading to the emergency stairs. Bianca was there, with the PERSONA cases—and one foot in the doorway. “Open it!” he shouted.
“What’s going on?” she asked, confused and scared.
“We’re in trouble! Go!”
She picked up the cases and entered the stairwell. “What did you do?”
“I persuaded Kiddrick to open his safe,” he said as he followed. She was about to start down the stairs. “No, go up! They’ll be coming from below.”
Bianca reversed direction. “Who will?”
“Security.”
“I take it your persuasion wasn’t the gentle kind!”
“Like they say, flattery gets you nowhere. Here.” He took one of the cases from her as they reached the next landing. “Keep going, all the way to the top.”
“Where are we going?”
“The roof.”
“Ah … why?”
“It’s the only exit that won’t have armed men guarding it.”
“But—it’s the roof! How are we supposed to get down?”
Adam didn’t answer. They reached the top landing. A utilitarian door marked with a DANGER: NO ADMITTANCE WITHOUT AUTHORIZATION sign awaited them. He pointed to the corner of the landing. “Wait over there.”
“What are you doing?”
He took a hemispherical object the size of an orange from the bag. “It’s locked. I’m going to open it.” He peeled a plastic sheet from the item’s flat side.
“What’s that?”
“A bomb.”
Bianca spluttered in disbelief. “A—a what?”
“A bomb.” He slapped the half sphere against the door beside the card lock. It stuck fast. There was a small switch set into the curved casing; he flicked it. A red LED started to flash. “Cover your ears.”
He ran to her and shielded her with his body. The light flickered faster, then turned solid as a shrill bleep sounded. Adam pressed his hands to his head—
A piercing bang shook the stairwell as the shaped charge detonated. Adam looked around. A ragged hole the size of a fist had been blown through the door. “Okay, come on,” he told Bianca as he picked up the case again and hurried back to the exit. He pulled at the door handle. It rattled, but didn’t open. For a moment, he thought they were trapped—then something inside the frame gave as he tugged again.
He waved Bianca through. The echoes of the explosion had faded—but he could now hear another sound.
Charging footsteps. A security team was clattering up the stairs after them.
“Adam!” Morgan’s voice boomed from the building’s PA system. “Whatever it is you’re doing, I want you and Dr. Childs to stop and turn yourselves in, right now!”
Adam had no intention of doing so. He went through the door after Bianca. The rumble of machinery surrounded him as he entered the maintenance level. “Follow the yellow line,” he told her, pointing at a painted marking on the concrete floor. “It goes to the roof access.”
She saw that he had stopped, and pau
sed to wait for him. “What’re you doing?”
“I need to slow them down. Go on, keep moving!” He took out another charge and placed it facing the doorway at the base of a large metal tank.
Morgan spoke again, his tone more somber—and threatening. “Adam, this is your last warning. If you don’t surrender immediately, I’ll have no choice but to declare you a category one security threat.”
“What does that mean?” Bianca asked.
He flicked the switch and raced after her. “It means they’re authorized to use deadly force.”
Her reply was almost a shriek. “What?”
“Just get to the roof. Quick!”
“Agent Gray! Dr. Childs!” someone shouted from the landing. “Put your hands in the air and show yourselves! This is your only warning!” Red laser lines lanced through the machine level—then suddenly converged on one spot, drawn by an electronic trill. “Oh shit! Back, get ba—”
The bomb exploded.
Adam had placed it on a seam running up one of the tanks containing the building’s emergency water supply. The steel split along the welded join—and the pressure of the thousands of gallons of water behind it ripped the metal wall open.
A deluge burst out, sweeping through the doorway onto the landing. Members of the security team, already reeling from the detonation, were knocked off their feet by the frothing flood. They crashed against the railings, a couple of luckless tail-enders tumbling back down the stairs.
That was not the only damage. A waterfall cascaded over the edge of the landing down into the building, another wave sweeping through the maintenance level and dashing against banks of humming machinery.
Sharp bangs rippled through the space as equipment short-circuited in showers of sparks. The lights went out. A moment later, yellow emergency bulbs came to life, casting a sickly glow over the churning water.
The wave raced after Adam and Bianca, but too late to catch them as they reached the stairs to the roof and pounded up them. He opened the door. “Come on.”
Bianca followed him outside, squinting at the bright light of day. Her eyes focused on the flat expanse of the roof—and the drop beyond each edge. “You haven’t got a helicopter, have you?”