“He was one of my trainers at the plant when I just started at the CIS, and my mentor,” Justin said in a voice full of confidence and admiration.
Carrie nodded. “OK, what sort of intel?”
Matthew reached slowly into one of his black coat’s pockets. “I have a flash drive with some classified documents,” he said when he pulled out his gloved hand. He extended it toward Carrie. “It’s about your father, and his operation in the Soviet Union.”
Carrie tipped her head to the side and pondered the many questions rushing through her mind. She paused for a moment, then asked, “Why? And why now?”
Matthew nodded. “Good questions. I thought you’d want to know, to get some closure.”
Carrie spread her arms out. “I just buried my father. I have closure.”
“Yes, but this is about why he was sent to Moscow and what was expected from his operation.” Matthew gestured with his outstretched hand for Carrie to come forward and pick up the flash drive. When she still did not move, he added, “Now it’s the right time… well, for me at least. By the time they find out I gave you classified intel, I will not be around to suffer the consequences.” He gestured again with his trembling hand.
Carrie stepped forward and picked up the flash drive. It barely weighed anything in her hand but she knew the crushing burden it might put on her once she accessed the files and read the reports. Perhaps I’m not ready to find the entire truth.
“Thank you for this intelligence, Mr. Nicolas,” she said in a measured tone of gratitude mixed with a certain uneasiness.
Matthew offered her a hesitant smile. “You’re welcome. If and when you read them, I’m willing to answer all your questions, to the extent that I know the answers. And if I don’t, I’ll find out as much as I can, considering that I’m retired and no longer have a carte blanche access.” He paused for a moment, let out a deep sigh, and added, “And not many friends, I’m afraid. Most of them are resting in peace here. And I shall join them soon.”
Carrie could not think of an appropriate reply to Matthew’s remarks, so she said nothing.
“I have to go back, Mr. Nicolas,” Carrie said. “Thanks again.”
She put the flash drive in one of her inside coat pockets.
“I’ll join you in a minute,” Justin said.
“All right,” Carrie said and began to walk back toward her father’s gravesite.
Epilogue
Justin was waiting for Carrie in the large main hall by the elevators. He was sitting on one of the black leather couches reserved for visitors waiting to be escorted inside the building. His crutches were to his left, and he gave them a look full of disgust. He could not wait until he was free of them. The Russian doctors at the military base in Dagestan had done their best to treat his arm and leg wounds, but he still had to use crutches for at least another two weeks. An infection had slowed down the healing.
Justin glanced at his wristwatch. Carrie was not late, but she usually got to the HQ before eight. They were scheduled to meet with McClain at eight that morning, and he had hoped to have a few minutes to talk to Carrie before the meeting about something that was bothering him. Something Anna had told him last night.
Carrie appeared at the main entrance and showed the guards her credentials. They smiled and ran her purse and her briefcase through the X-ray scanner and asked her to walk through the metal detector. Carrie obliged but her face showed she was a bit annoyed with the time-consuming procedure.
She picked up her belonging and walked toward him. “Hey, Justin, how are you?” she said and sat next to him.
“Fine, how about yourself?”
“Great, I’m doing great.”
“I see you ditched the splint.” Justin pointed at her right arm.
“Yeah, it was getting in the way and my arm feels fine. The doctor said three weeks and it has been almost that long.”
Justin sighed and shook his head. “I wish I could get rid of my crutches. They’re slowing me down.”
“When are they coming off?”
“Don’t know. It depends on the infection.”
Carrie nodded.
Justin said, “I want to talk to you about a concern of mine.”
Carrie tried to read Justin’s face. “What is it?”
“Not here.”
Justin looked at two men in gray suits who had just gone through the metal detector and were collecting their large briefcases.
Carrie said, “I want to show you something too. Let’s go.”
They made their way to the elevators and shared the ride to the fourth floor with the two gray suits. Justin and Carrie stepped out while they continued to the next floor.
“Lawyers?” Justin asked as he limped down the hall.
“Definitely. Dressed too nice to be anything but.”
Justin smiled. He took a few more steps and found a small, empty conference room without any windows. It had a table with four chairs around it. “This will do,” he said.
Carrie closed the door behind them and sat in a chair. Justin hobbled around the rectangular table and sat across from her.
“It’s about Anna,” he said.
Carrie raised her hand in a defensive gesture. “I know where you’re going with this. I didn’t convince her. She asked me a question and I told her the truth. She had already figured it out that you’re worried sick about her. I just confirmed her suspicion.”
Justin said, “Yes, but I wish you would have told me.”
“No, it was her decision, and Anna told me she wanted to give you the news. I respected her wish and her decision.” She paused for a second. “And so should you.”
Justin smiled. “Of course I will. It’s just… I don’t know if I should be more worried now that she’s coming back to the CIS as a surveillant.”
Carrie shrugged. “She was at the agency before you met her, Justin. And she’ll be in a position to defend herself much better inside the CIS rather than outside it. That’s what you wanted, right?”
“Hmmm, I don’t know… I want her to be safe.”
“This will keep her safe. She got the same training we all did at the plant. You started as a surveillant too.”
Justin looked at Carrie’s smiling face, then away at the gray wall. She was not exactly wrong, but she was not exactly right either. A moment later, he said, “Yeah, and look where it’s got me.” He nodded toward the crutches resting against the wall behind him.
“Gunfights happen. At least Anna will be packing heat and prepared at all times. She’ll be fine.”
“I hope so,” Justin said and let out a small sigh.
“Let me cheer you up with this.” Carrie went for her briefcase lying on the floor and pulled out a laptop. “Remember our mission in Bosnia in November?”
Justin nodded. “I do. What about it?”
“A woman was killed during the firefight.” Carrie tapped a few keys on the laptop.
“Yes, Carrie. Hakim’s wife. I… I shot her.” Justin’s voice was low and gloomy. “Are there any problems? Have local authorities discovered anything linking us to that op?” His voice turned edgy and his eyes turned into narrow slits.
Carrie spun the laptop around so that it was facing Justin. “Hit play.”
A video file was ready for playback, and Justin clicked the right button. A newscaster came up, reporting on what appeared to be some sort of police operation in northern Bosnia. Justin fiddled with the volume but the newscaster was speaking a language he did not understand, though he assumed it was Bosnian.