Finally he settled on CNN, which interspersed inspirational messages from the president with news stories implying the worst had passed. It also had a panel discussion debating whether the presence of police officers had incited any of the protesters and caused more violence than it hindered. Walsh couldn’t believe idiots that spouted that sort of bullshit. It was more popular and easier for CNN to carry that line than it was to look at the deeper issues and what would happen if the police were not in place. It reminded him of the protests in Missouri and how CNN jumped to conclusions about the use of force by a police officer, which were later definitively rebutted by forensic evidence. No one at CNN sounded eager to clear the police officer’s name.
Walsh finally shut off the TV in frustration but felt no closer to sleep. He slipped back up onto the bed and tried to breathe deeply and clear his head. At least he knew Alena was safe. Now he had to keep her that way.
Major Bill Shepherd had used the several twenty-minute breaks during the inquiry board to run out and check on his men, who were either near the front gate or getting their gear ready for another night out on the line. The questioning had gone on much longer than he’d anticipated, but no one had thrown him any curve balls. Once he got a line on the German Ministry of Justice representative, he understood she was trying to create a narrative that relieved the Germans of responsibility more than she was trying to blame the U.S. military. Either way, it was just another day on duty. So he was happy.
He slipped back into his chair as the members of the board of inquiry finished up phone calls and got their notes in order. Shepherd expected the base commander to make some sort of final statement, but it was the FBI agent, Maria Alonso, who surprised him.
The sharply dressed and attractive young woman said, “From my training and experience in police work, it appears that the real failure here was in the civilian police’s ability to control the crowd. I understand the need for the military to protect their base and personnel, but the civilian police should have that responsibility. I’d like to commend you, Major, on your decision to bring up marines, some of whom have had duty at embassies and understand the subtleties of security. Your actions undoubtedly kept the situation from getting out of control.”
The German representative turned in her chair and said, “Are you saying it is my government’s fault?”
The FBI agent remained calm. She even took a moment to flip her hair back over her shoulder. Then she said, “I’m not attempting to assign blame, merely complimenting the major on his actions.”
The German ministry representative said, “And you say the situation didn’t get out of control? There are more than twenty dead German civilians.”
All of the military men at the table were smart enough to stay out of this fight. The FBI agent sharpened her gaze and said, “The people were killed by a terrorist. All of the preliminary forensics indicate it was a single person with a bomb strapped to their chest. Something civilian police would have been in a better position to deal with had there been more police outside who knew what to do. So in that regard, yes, it is the Germans’ fault. I realize history has taught us that you will have a tough time accepting responsibility for something like that. But I can assure you, my report back to Washington will indicate that Major Shepherd and his men are heroes. My only hope is that action like that is not required again.” She looked around the table, then stared at the German ministry representative again. “I assume the German government will provide adequate security from here on out. Is that correct?”
Shepherd had to hide a smile. The base commander was a little more obvious as he leaned back in his seat and said, “I think that just about wraps things up here.”
Ten minutes later, as Major Shepherd was getting ready to leave the building and return to his unit, Agent Alonso stopped him in the hallway. He couldn’t help but say, “Thank you for coming to my defense.”
“No thanks are needed. You did a great job.”
Shepherd thought she was flirting with him, but if he was wrong, it would be terribly embarrassing, so he just smiled and turned back toward the door. The FBI agent caught him by the arm with her hand and said, “There are a few things about it I’d like to discuss with you if you have time.”
Shepherd turned and said, “I am at your disposal. I’m sure we can find an office to sit in close by.”
The FBI agent said, “I was thinking more along the lines of dinner.”
This time Shepherd couldn’t hide his smile.
Walsh went over everything in his head. He wasn’t used to considering people as suspects. So far, Charlie, the homeless vet, was the only person he could think of who would’ve talked, and that would explain how the Russians knew he was going to Alena’s apartment. But he wasn’t even sure that made sense. How would Charlie know where she lived or what her last name was? All Walsh had said was that she was a student at Columbia and lived near the campus.
Outside, the sun was just starting to rise. For most of his life, if he was awake at sunrise, it was for a positive reason. He was usually in a good mood. Either he had been out all night having a great time or he was so excited about something he got up early. He could remember growing up in New Jersey and getting up at dawn the first day after school was out just so he and his buddies could go exploring in some of the Pine Barrens. They often looked for the elusive “Jersey Devil,” always without success. Even in the service he felt like he got the most work done early in the morning.
Today was different. He was dreading the day. He felt like things could only get worse. Even with this beautiful woman lying in the bed next to him, he was losing his hope. If this was a conspiracy, someone had been brilliant in its execution. There was almost no way he could explain how someone else had made the trades on Thomas Brothers’ accounts. And the chaos that had followed had only muddied the waters and hindered any investigation.
He considered what would happen if he turned himself in to the FBI. He thought about Tonya Stratford and her background in banking. Would she be open-minded enough to listen to him? Finally he sighed and sat up in bed. He didn’t want to wake Alena, so he carefully got dressed and decided to go out to find bagels and coffee.
He needed to get his shit together.
20
The streets were quiet at this time of the morning in Times Square on a normal day, but after two days of rioting and terror attacks, the place looked like Baghdad during an air raid. No one was on the street. Derek Walsh immediately found an open deli and grabbed a couple of bagels and some coffee. That was the extent of his original plan when he left the shabby hotel, but his mind kept going over the steps he could take to help himself out of this nightmare. The marines had drilled being self-sufficient and proactive into him. Even if it wasn’t his nature, he knew now was the time to put that training to use. That was why, when he stumbled on an Internet café that had ten desktop computers with Web access for rent on an hourly basis, he didn’t hesitate to step inside and slap down twenty dollars.
The clerk behind the counter was a pretty, twenty-year-old girl with some serious tattoos and more piercings than he could count on her left ear alone. She didn’t care where he looked on the Internet or what he was doing. That was perfect.
There were five other people in the small business: a Finnish couple who were on vacation and trying to find an earlier flight home, a guy who looked like he might be homeless, and two young guys who looked like they’d been out all night partying. Whatever they’d rented a computer for, it certainly wasn’t anything legal. Walsh might not have been a cop, but he wasn’t an idiot, either.