Nick rolled out from underneath the car and came up beside her.
"Three of them," she said. "By a gray BMW." She pointed. "Pistols."
"At least…"
Whatever Nick was going to say was interrupted by a machine pistol opening up. Bullets peppered the suburban, making star-shaped patterns on the windows and punching into the bodywork on the other side of the car.
"At least what?"
"I was going to say, at least they don't have a machine gun."
They heard doors slam, then tires screeching. The gray sedan roared by them on the other side. The car fishtailed out of the parking lot and into the street.
Nick ran to the driver side and pulled open the door. It was stitched with bullet holes. Selena climbed in on the right as Nick started the engine. He pulled the wheel hard left and stepped on the gas, bouncing over the parking lot curb and onto the road. Ahead, the BMW accelerated away.
Star-shaped spots pockmarked the windshield where rounds had struck, but he could see well enough ahead to follow the shooters. They were in a part of the city that was a mix of industrial and residential. Traffic was light. They passed an outlet advertising tile and granite countertops. Nick put his foot down and the turbos cut in. The big Suburban began gaining on the car fleeing in front of them. They passed over a humped railroad crossing and left the ground, coming down hard.
Ahead, one of the shooters leaned out of a window and began firing. More stars appeared on the windshield.
Maybe an Uzi, Nick thought. They keep that up, I won't be able to see where I'm going.
Selena rolled down her window, reached out and fired four rounds. The man with the machine pistol jerked and slumped over the side of his door. His weapon flew out of his hand.
"Good shooting," Nick said.
They were coming up fast on a T-shaped intersection with a stop sign. Across the intersection stood a large ceramics factory that manufactured pots and containers. Hundreds of ceramic pots of varying sizes were stacked up in the yard in front of the building. Glazed pots of every color, plain clay pots, big and small pots, a pot for every fancy.
The sound of the turbos was a muted howl as they sped toward the intersection. Nick glanced at the speedometer. They were going over ninety and running out of road. A stream of traffic flowed by across the T ahead. Nick took his foot off the accelerator and hit the brakes hard. The car vibrated and juddered as the ABS kicked in.
Nick saw the BMW's brake lights go on, but the driver had left it too late. The car went through the stop sign and clipped the back of a pickup truck. Pieces of metal flew into the air. The BMW spun out of control, flipped, and rolled into the mesh fence separating the ceramics factory from the road. It flattened the fence, bounced into the air and landed in the pottery display.
The pots exploded into thousands of fragments, a chaotic, colorful shower that fountained high into the air. The BMW came to rest on its roof. Then it caught fire.
Nick drove across the intersection and brought the Suburban to a stop. Cars slowed to gawk at the burning wreckage..
"Maybe they're still alive," Selena said. "We should…"
The BMW exploded in bright, orange flame before she could finish her sentence.
"We should what?"
"Never mind," she said.
CHAPTER 24
Back at Project HQ, Nick gave Cotter's recorder to Stephanie. But when she played the recording, it was blank. Nick called Elizabeth and briefed her on what had happened. Selena and Stephanie listened to the conversation.
"We have to assume the men in that car were the ones who killed Cotter and searched his apartment," Nick said. "But why were they still at Cotter's building? If I'd just murdered someone, I wouldn't hang around."
"They could have been waiting for someone," Elizabeth said.
"How would they know someone would show up?"
My analysis indicates an eighty-nine point four percent possibility that they were waiting for you, Nick.
"Freddie. I didn't know you were listening."
I am always listening, unless I have been instructed not to.
"Okay, I'll bite. Why do you think they were waiting for us?"
I do not understand your reference to mastication.
"Freddie," Stephanie said, "I'll explain it later. Why do you think those people were waiting for Nick and Selena?"
Analysis of the video purporting to show a defecting Russian agent claiming that Washington and Moscow have formed an alliance against China reveals a unique technical signature consistent with the technology found in the camera used in the drone destroyed by Nick. Logically, whoever is responsible for sending the drone to spy on Project Headquarters is also responsible for the video.
According to that video, the assassination of the Chinese ambassador by a North Korean agent is a false flag designed to distract the Chinese from the supposed conspiracy between Washington and Moscow. The Project team was present at the assassination. Therefore, it is logical to assume that we would be involved in investigating that event. It is also logical to assume we would interview Cotter and try to determine where he had gotten his information.
Stephanie heard Freddie say "we"' and realized that the computer's artificial intelligence had evolved to the point of identification with humans, at least with the members of the Project team. It was unexpected.
"Are you saying the same person who sent men to kill Cotter told them to wait for us to show up and ambush us?" Nick asked.
That is the logical conclusion.
Harker's voice came over the speaker phone. "Freddie, this is Elizabeth. I have a question."
Good morning, Director Harker. How are you feeling today?
"I'm fine, Freddie, thank you. Let me see if I understand what you're saying. You think that the same person who sent the drone also manufactured the false video."
That is correct.
"You also think this person knew we would want to talk to Cotter?"
That is correct.
"That still doesn't provide a reason to ambush us."
I do not have enough information to determine a reason.
"Who is this person?"
I do not have enough information to determine who is responsible.
"You said the technology used to create the video has a unique signature in common with the drone Nick destroyed."
That is correct.
"Can you perform a search for similar technology used in other applications?"
Yes.
"Good. Please do so. If we can find more examples, we might be able to trace them to the person responsible."
Processing.
"It doesn't make sense," Nick said. "I understand why someone might want Cotter out of the way. But why pick a fight with us?"
"And send a drone to attack us?" Elizabeth said.
"It feels personal," Selena said.
"Personal?" Nick looked at her. "Why do you think it's personal?"
"I don't know, it just does. Whoever it is must see us as a threat and thought we'd come looking for Cotter."
"They were right about that."
The light on Nick's phone for the line from Langley lit up. Nick answered.
"Nick, this is DCI Hood. We've identified the traitor who sent the plans for Black Dolphin to North Korea. He was an aide to General Samson of the Joint Chiefs."