“I need you, son.”
Gerrit slowly shook his head. He watched as a look of abject failure crept into his father’s eyes.
“Then we have nothing further to discuss.” His father stormed away. They never spoke to each other again.
Voices outside the cabin caught Gerrit’s attention. He heard Alena speaking to another woman. The group walked back toward the river, leaving Joe and Gerrit to continue their conversation.
“Your dad came to me after I joined Argonne National Laboratory outside Chicago just before his death. He knew we both were going to be in Seattle for a conference, and he wanted to introduce me to some of his contacts in an investigation he had quietly launched. He didn’t tell me any details but mentioned that they kept hearing about a project called Operation Megiddo. He didn’t know what it represented or who was behind it, but he learned the project had to do with significant breakthroughs in computer technology. A part of it dealt with my field-cyber-security technologies.”
“Megiddo?” Gerrit sounded it out. “Among other references, Megiddo is a place in Israel, a historical location. And you know what it means translated into the Hebrew?”
Joe nodded. “Mountain of Megiddo. Better known as Armageddon. Biblical references tell us that in the end times, Christ will return to defeat the anti-Christ in the battle of Armageddon, although I believe the actual battle will take place near Jerusalem. Satan’s forces will gather at Megiddo before that final confrontation.”
“Interesting choice of the word-Megiddo.” Gerrit grappled with this implication. He didn’t want to get into a theological discussion about eschatology. They had enough to worry about in the here and now. “Did you find out more about Operation Megiddo?”
Joe held up his hand. “Let’s take this one step at a time. It gets very complicated.” His uncle stood and walked toward the window, peering outside for a moment. Finally, he turned to face Gerrit. “Tom-your dad-warned me they had learned that several scientists died under questionable circumstances. But he could not get anyone to tell him the specifics of their deaths or the investigations into these matters. It was like some powerful hand clamped down on these cases. Once each death investigation was closed, the findings became classified as accidental death or death by natural causes. Your dad even mentioned he and your mom received threats. That they were warned to keep their noses out of other people’s business. He felt they might be under surveillance and wanted me to come on board to help.”
“Did you?”
His uncle’s head lowered, an expression of regret painted across the man’s face. “At first, I said I would. Then one day, as I was leaving Argonne, two men in an unmarked vehicle pulled me over. They yanked me out of the car, dragged me into the back of their vehicle, and drove to a commercial high-rise under construction. They took me to the top floor, an unfinished level without walls or railings. We must have been twenty stories high. They grabbed me by the ankles and flipped me over the edge, dangling me in the air while I screamed for help.”
His uncle clearly was reliving that moment. “What happened, Uncle Joe?”
The older man looked up, a look of fear lancing in his eyes. “They let me scream until my voice turned hoarse. I thought they were going to kill me, looking at the ground and knowing I was about to fall to my death. They eventually raised me up to safety, pulled me inside, and threw me on the ground. I can still remember their laughter, like it was some big joke.”
His eyes glistened, and Joe covered his face to hide his shame. Gerrit remained quiet, allowing his uncle to gather himself.
“They said this was just an example of what they’d do next if I helped your folks. Next time-if I didn’t play ball-they’d let me suffer a long time before killing me. Slowly and painfully.” He looked up at Gerrit. “I believed them.”
He came and sat next to Gerrit. “I met your dad in Seattle and told him I wanted nothing to do with his investigation. That I thought he was a fool to continue to poke his nose where it did not belong.”
“And what happened?”
“Your folks and I met in that garage-where they were killed. After we argued, I jumped out of the car and made it to the stairs when the bomb went off. It threw me to the ground. The ringing in my ears was so bad, I couldn’t hear anything for a few minutes. I finally ran back to find… “ He choked back the words and wiped a tear from his eye. “It could have been me that day.”
Flashes of the video came back to Gerrit, remnants of what was left of his parents. His voice grew hoarse. “What did you do?”
“I realized that they intended to kill all of us. I started running. In a way, I’ve been running ever since.”
“So, you never found out who was behind this bombing?”
Joe gave him a rueful smile. “I found out one name.”
Gerrit slowly raised himself from the bed, his whole body suddenly rigid. “Who? Who did this?” His mouth felt dry as he waited for Joe to answer.
“I could never prove it, but I know who was behind it-Richard Kane.”
Chapter 23
Harrogate, England
A rap on the door drew Richard Kane’s attention from a file on his desk. “Come in.”
George Lawton barged in, his face flushed and rigid. “What the bloody hell’s going on, Richard? First, that incident in Vienna. Now, three murders in Seattle? What have you gotten us into?”
Richard pushed away from the desk and ran his fingers through his long hair. “What do you mean?”
Lawton leaned on Richard’s desk, fingers knuckled to support his weight. “You send Gerrit into Adleman’s place-using a cover we set up for you guys-and the next thing I know, Gerrit’s on the run and Adleman’s dead.”
Richard studied the British intelligence officer for a moment. “Things don’t always go as planned.”
“As planned? Nothing’s gone as planned. Gerrit was supposed to go in there and fish around Adleman’s apartment to see what he might turn up. Low-key and quiet. Now, Gerrit may have been blown up in Seattle. Not only that, but the prosecutor he’s shacking with is gunned down and his partner is tortured and killed. Not going as planned? This is not acceptable. What did you unleash?”
Richard bristled. “Don’t know what you’re talking about, George. The thing in Vienna…mishap of the trade. Adleman died. Who knows why?”
Lawton leaned closer. “Who are you trying to kid?”
“Prove otherwise.”
“I don’t have to prove anything. I just have to pass along my suspicions. Those up the chain will have you jerked tomorrow.”
“Don’t think you want to do that, George. After all, they acted on your recommendation. You set up the Vienna cover. Now you have cold feet? How’s that going to look…up your chain?”
Lawton glared back. “And what about Seattle?”
“What about it?” Richard stood and faced his visitor. “Looks like the handiwork of the Russian mob. Bombs, torture, killing a federal prosecutor in her own backyard. You do know that all three were working a case against Russian organized crime. In fact, Gerrit shot and killed one of their leaders. Maybe they were just trying to get even, retaliate for one of their own getting wasted.”
“You think Senator Summers is going to swallow that?”
“As far as I am concerned, this all seems plausible. And, by the way, Adleman’s death has been classified as a heart attack-a ruptured aorta, I believe, is the way they described it.”
“You never cease to amaze me, Kane. The degree by which you manipulate events. So where does that leave you”
“Leave me” Richard’s eyebrows rose. “Are you part of the team or not, George?”
Lawton’s head lowered. He gave a heavy sigh and lowered himself into the chair. “I guess I’m still in. It just feels like we have too many loose ends. What if everything begins to unravel?”
“Who’s going to poke his head into this mess? Gerrit’s probably dead and Senator Summers knows he has to play ball or his backside will be exposed.”