As Kevin expected, several early morning exercisers jogged or biked across the bridge. Traffic was brisk, but not heavy. That would change nearer to 8:00, especially on the other side, where traffic was going from the Virginia suburbs into the District. No cars were allowed to park on the bridge at any time, which was probably why Lobec had agreed to the location. There was nowhere for the police to observe the transaction without being obvious.
That left only two ways for Erica to meet them. She could either pull up in a car and leave it for a few seconds while they made the trade, or she could walk. He didn’t like either scenario. Lobec and Bern could easily force themselves into a car with him and Erica. And if she walked, they had to trust Lobec to let them get to the end of the bridge and whatever mode of transportation she had waiting. After the past two days, Kevin trusted Lobec about as much as he’d trust a weasel in a hamster-laden Habitrail.
They reached the center of the bridge and stopped next to a cement pillar. They stood facing traffic, scanning both directions. Kevin looked at his watch. It was 6:57.
From a distance, it was difficult to tell one walker from another, and Lobec and Bern had several false starts when they saw lone women coming toward them. When they realized they were mistaken, they relaxed and began scanning again.
The traffic heading toward Virginia suddenly stopped, blocked by a cab that had come to a halt about 100 yards past them. A single woman got out, looked both directions, and began walking toward them.
Kevin had trouble seeing her face through his dirty contacts. The tall, slender form matched Erica’s height, but her hair did not cascade over her shoulders as Erica’s did. The woman wore a T-shirt and shorts and carried a bag at her side.
Despite his blurred vision, Kevin had no doubt. The distinctive, purposeful stride and long legs gave her away. It was Erica.
On her cab ride from the L’Enfant Plaza Metro station, Erica had been careful to look out for any signs that she was being followed. In fact, for the last day and a half, she’d carried out an almost paranoid observation of her surroundings. If Kevin’s abductors knew what she was about to try, it would certainly fail.
Up ahead, Kevin made no sign that he recognized her. She couldn’t see the two men behind him clearly. One wore sunglasses and a baseball cap and the other’s head was covered by a hood. She guessed that they were the same two that had kidnapped Kevin from the parking lot at Virginia Tech.
Erica didn’t see anyone else, but that only made her more nervous. She knew they had to be around somewhere and thought of all the clichés. A parked car with a man reading a newspaper, a sidewalk vendor, a jogger taking a slow walk to cool down. But as far as she could tell, there was no one else around besides the normal traffic. She didn’t like it.
She walked slowly toward them, trying to detect any unusual movement in her periphery. Footsteps pounded behind her. She clutched the bag close to her chest and whirled around to see a sixty-year-old woman focusing on the ground as she jogged past Erica. Erica tried to calm herself and continued toward the middle of the bridge.
When she was fifty feet from Kevin and his escorts, she moved toward the side of the bridge and held the bag over the railing as she walked. It was a concrete railing about a foot wide and at shoulder level, so Erica had to stay close to the edge with her arm outstretched. Inside the bag was a kayaking pack she’d bought yesterday at an outdoor store. She’d wrapped the pack in a canvas bag to hide the fact that it was waterproof.
Thirty feet away from Kevin, she stopped. She could tell from this distance that she was right about the men’s identities. Barnett and Kaplan. Barnett was in jogging shorts and a cap, and Kaplan’s bulky frame looked at home in the sweatpants and sweatshirt he wore. She could also see that Kevin’s hands were cuffed in front of him. They shoved him and began to walk toward her.
“Don’t come any closer, Barnett, or whatever the hell your name is,” Erica said, shaking the bag. “I’ll drop the notebook in the river.”
“If you must know, Miss Jensen, my name is David Lobec. To my left is Richard Bern. How do I know you that you have what I want in that bag.” Lobec held a pistol to Kevin’s right, out of sight of the passing traffic.
“First, I want to know if Kevin’s all right.”
Lobec nodded for Kevin to speak.
“Except for a couple of bruises,” he said, “I’m fine. Are you okay?”
“Considering the circumstances, I’d rather be doing what I was doing the night my parents died.” She looked at the river, hoping to give an impression of sadness to Lobec and Bern. Then she looked back at Kevin.
His eyes flicked twice to the river. He nodded almost imperceptibly. “I think I know what you mean,” he said.
Good, he got the message. Now they had to find the right time. Maybe they could make it a few yards down the bridge before they attempted her plan.
“Miss Jensen. The contents of the bag?”
Still holding the bag out as far as she could, Erica unwrapped the Kayaking pack inside the bag, out of Lobec’s sight. She withdrew the Adamas Blueprint and flipped a few of the pages to show him the writing.
“And the videotape? You have that as well?” said Lobec.
She replaced the notebook and took out the 8mm videotape. He seemed satisfied. She stuffed it back in the kayaking pack and velcroed it shut. Her arm was again outstretched over the water.
“I suppose you expect me to trust that those are the originals and that no copies have been made.”
“Just like I have to trust you to let us go once you have them. Now let Kevin go or I’ll drop the bag in the water and no one will ever see the Adamas Blueprint again, especially Tarnwell.”
“I don’t care,” Lobec said.
She was taken aback by the statement. Kevin furrowed his brow. By the look on his face, even Bern seemed puzzled.
“I’m serious,” Erica said. “I’m going to drop it.”
“I certainly hope you’re serious,” Lobec said. “Go ahead. Drop it.” Then he turned and shot Richard Bern.
CHAPTER 35
Kevin had been ready to act ever since he realized what Erica was planning. When Lobec said, “Drop it,” Kevin knew that was the time. He twisted and swung his arms at Lobec.
He brought his arms up and into the side of Lobec’s head, which was just above Kevin’s arm level. At the same time, he heard Lobec’s gun fire, but he didn’t let that slow him down. The full force of Kevin’s blow snapped Lobec’s neck sideways and he staggered away.
Kevin ran to the side of the bridge while Lobec was stunned. Erica was already standing on the concrete railing. He shouted, “Go!”
Erica jumped.
Kevin didn’t bother climbing onto the railing. He dove over it, praying that the river was deep enough for him to make the running dive.
As he fell, Kevin could just see Erica entering the water in a perfect pike position. Kevin had no control and spun end over end. He tried to stabilize his trajectory in the two seconds of freefall he had, aiming his feet at the water. Then the soles of his feet slammed into the murky Potomac.
He sank for what seemed like forever despite his attempts to stop. Finally, his direction reversed. The impact had almost knocked the wind out of him, and his lungs were already crying for fresh air. He kicked furiously.
Just when he thought he was never going to breathe again, he caught a glimmer of light and kicked harder. He broke the surface and gasped, the crisp morning air filling his lungs.
Kevin looked around for signs of Erica. He didn’t see her. He took a deep breath, about to dive back under and begin a search when he heard, “Kevin, over here.”