Part 36 (1/2)
”He's got the secretary of defense,” Gold said. ”Under the circ.u.mstances that alone is enough to make trouble for you.”
The wind was whipping up and Hart caught her hair, pushed it off her face. ”Coming into CI and marching me out in cuffs . . . LaValle made a big mistake grandstanding like that.” She turned, looked back at the headquarters of the NSA in which she'd been incarcerated for three hours until the moment Gold showed up with his order from a federal judge for her temporary release. ”He'll pay for humiliating me.”
”Veronica, don't do anything rash.” Gold opened the car door, ushered her inside. ”Knowing LaValle as I do it's more than likely that he wants you to go off half-c.o.c.ked. That's how fatal mistakes are made.”
He went around the front of the car, got behind the wheel, and they drove off.
”We can't let him get away with this, Stu. Unless we stop him he's going to hijack CI right out from under us.” She watched the Virginia night turn into the district night as they crossed the Arlington Memorial Bridge. The Lincoln Memorial rose up before them. ”I made a pledge when I signed on.”
”Like all DCIs.”
”No, I'm talking about a personal pledge.” She very much wanted to see Lincoln sitting on his chair, contemplating all the unknowns that lay before every human being. She asked Gold to make a stop there. ”I never told anyone this, Stu, but the day I officially became DCI I went to the Old Man's grave. Have you ever been to the Arlington National Cemetery? It's a sobering place, but in its own way a joyous place as well. So many heroes, so much courage, the bedrock of our freedom, Stu, every one of us.”
They'd come to the memorial. They both got out, walked up to the majestic floodlit granite statue, stood gazing up into Lincoln's stern, wise face. Someone had left a bouquet of flowers at his feet, withered heads nodding in the wind.
”I stayed at the Old Man's grave for a long time,” Hart continued in a faraway voice. ”I swear I could feel him, I swear I felt something stir against me, then inside me.” Her gaze swung around to fix on the attorney. ”There's a long, exemplary legacy at CI, Stu. I swore then, and I'm swearing now, that I won't let anything or anyone damage that legacy.” She took a breath. ”So whatever it takes.”
Gold returned her stare without flinching. ”Do you know what you're asking?”
”Yes, I believe I do.”
At last, he said, ”All right, Veronica, it's your call. Whatever it takes.”
Feeling invigorated and invulnerable after his workout, Rodney Feir met General Kendall in the champagne room, reserved for those VIPs who had consummated the evening's pleasures and wanted to linger, with or without their girls. Of course time spent in there was far more expensive with the girls than without.
The champagne room was decorated like a Middle Eastern pasha's den. The two men lazed on voluminous pillows while being served the bubbly of their choice. This was where Feir planned to hand over the intel on Typhon's field agents. But first he wanted to luxuriate in the pure pleasure provided in the back rooms of The Gla.s.s Slipper. After all, the moment he set foot outside, the real world would come cras.h.i.+ng in on him with all its annoyances, petty humiliations, drudgery, and the piquancy of fear that preceded every move he made to advance LaValle's position vis-a-vis CI.
Kendall, his cell phone at his right hand, sat rather stiffly, as befitted a military man. Feir thought he must be slightly uncomfortable in such lush surroundings. The men chatted for a time, sipping their champagne, exchanging theories about steroids and baseball, about the chances of the Redskins making the play-offs next year, the gyrations of the stock market, anything but politics.
After a time, when the bottle of champagne was nearly exhausted, Kendall looked at his watch. ”What d'you have for me?”
This was the moment Feir had been keenly antic.i.p.ating. He couldn't wait to see the look on the general's face when he caught a glimpse of the intel. Reaching into the pocket in the lining of his coat, he brought out the packet. A low-tech hard copy was the safest way to smuggle data out of the CI building, since security systems were in place to monitor the comings and goings of any device with a hard drive large enough to hold substantial data files.
A smile broke out across Feir's face. ”The whole enchilada. Every last detail on the Typhon agents across the globe.” He held up the packet. ”Now let's talk about what I get in return.”
”What do you want?” Kendall said without much enthusiasm. ”A higher grade? More control?”
”I want respect,” Feir said. ”I want LaValle to respect me the way you do.”
A curious smile curled the general's lips. ”I can't speak for Luther, but I'll see what I can do.”
As he leaned forward to take the intel, Feir was wondering why he was so solemn-no, worse than solemn, he was downright glum. Feir was on the point of asking him about it when a tall, elegant black woman began snapping a series of photos.
”What the h.e.l.l?” he said, through the blinding string of flashes.
When his vision cleared, he saw Soraya Moore standing beside them. She had the packet of intel in her hand.
”This isn't a good night for you, Rodney.” She picked up the general's cell phone, thumbed it on, and there was the conversation between the general and Feir recorded and regurgitated so everyone could hear his treachery for themselves. ”No, I would have to say that all things considered it's the end of the line.”
I'm not afraid to die,” Devra said, ”if that's what you're worried about.”
”I'm not worried,” Arkadin said. ”What makes you think I'm worried?”
She bit into the chocolate ice cream he'd bought her. ”You've got that deep vertical indentation between your eyes.”
She wanted ice cream even though it was the middle of winter. Maybe it was the chocolate she wanted, he thought. Not that it mattered; pleasing her in little ways was strangely satisfying-as if in pleasing her he was also pleasing himself, although that seemed like an impossibility to him.
”I'm not worried,” he said. ”I'm thoroughly p.i.s.sed off.”
”Because your boss told you to stay away from Bourne.”
”I'm not going to stay away from Bourne.”
”You'll p.i.s.s off your boss.”
”There comes a time,” Arkadin said, walking faster.
They were in the center of Munich; he wanted to be in a central location when Icoupov told him where he was meeting Bourne in order to get there as quickly as possible.
”I'm not afraid to die,” Devra repeated, ”the only thing is, though, what do you do when you no longer have memories?”
Arkadin shot her a look. ”What?”
”When you look at a dead person what do you see?” She took another bite of ice cream between her teeth, leaving little indentations in what was left of the scoop. ”Nothing, right? Not a d.a.m.n thing. Life has flown the coop, and with it all the memories that have been built up over the years.” She looked at him. ”At that moment, you cease to be human, so what are you?”
”Who gives a s.h.i.+t?” Arkadin said. ”It'll be a f.u.c.king relief to be without memories.”
Soraya presented herself at the NSA safe house just before 10 AM AM, so that by the time she cleared the various levels of security, she was being ushered into the Library precisely on time.
”Breakfast, madam?” Willard asked as he escorted her across the plush carpet.
”I believe I will, today,” she said. ”A fines herbes omelet would be nice. Do you have a baguette?”
”We do, indeed, madam.”
”Fine.” She s.h.i.+fted the evidence d.a.m.ning General Kendall from one hand to the other. ”And a pot of Ceylon tea, Willard. Thank you.”
She walked the rest of the way to where Luther LaValle sat, drinking his morning cup of coffee. He stared out the window, casting a jaundiced eye on the early spring. It was so warm the fireplace held only cold, white ash.
He did not turn when she sat down. She placed the evidence file on her lap, then said without preamble, ”I've come to take Tyrone home.”
LaValle ignored her. ”There's nothing on your Black Legion; there's no unusual terrorist activities inside the US. We've come up blank.”
”Did you hear what I said? I've come for Tyrone.”
”That's not going to happen,” LaValle said.
Soraya brought out Kendall's cell phone, played back the conversation he'd had with Rodney Feir in the champagne room of The Gla.s.s Slipper.
”Every last detail on the Typhon agents across the globe,” came Feir's voice. came Feir's voice. ”Now let's talk about what I get in return.” ”Now let's talk about what I get in return.”