He said, “What the hell are you talking about? No help? Creed’s running all over the damn building talking about how he saved an operator’s life the other night. But he ‘can’t say who’ because it’s all ‘classified.’”
Sweetwater bent over and picked up the brochure. He said, “Hey, this is Chris!”
Jennifer said, “What are you talking about?”
I said, “Okay, so Creed helped me a little. Can you shut these guys down? They fucking tried to kill us the other night.”
“Because you broke in and starting shooting the place up?”
Now focused on Sweetwater, I said, “No, damn it. Because we broke in and stole their test results.”
Jennifer took the brochure and held it in front of my face, pointing at a man in the picture, saying, “Sweetwater thinks this is the guy named Chris, and I’ll tell you, from my brief contact with him, it bears a startling resemblance.”
Kurt said, “Send what you have. I’ll sort it out. In the meantime, get the hell out of there before you get arrested. That’s the last thing I need.”
I mumbled, “Will do, sir,” and hung up, staring at the brochure. I looked at Sweetwater and said, “You sure?”
He said, “Yeah. Of course I am.”
Jennifer said, “He wasn’t a foreign agent. He was a disgruntled employee. I think he either quit or got fired after the crash of the UAV and he was trying to get some payback. I’ll bet he was going to blackmail them.”
I thought about that, then said, “I’m going to Walmart for a scanner. Jennifer, get us some plane tickets for tomorrow. Sweetwater, type up an affidavit about Chris. Where you met him, how he contacted you, all that shit.”
We’d sent all the stuff we had right from the room. I’d donated the scanner to A. J. Sweetwater and the Historical and Preservation Society, and we’d flown out at five in the morning. Truthfully, I’d figured he’d be out in the desert next to Chris in a matter of hours. Getting the check was a nice surprise.
Jennifer said, “So we get the money from Sweetwater, but hear nothing from the Taskforce. What’s up with that?”
I felt my phone vibrate, looked at the number and said, “Speak of the devil.”
She said, “It’s Kurt?”
I held up my finger and said, “Hey, sir, I was wondering if you’d ever call.”
“Well, it took a little clandestine investigation. More time than I thought. But it looks like you guys were right on the money. The UAV technology they’ve been selling is a complete bust. It’s not even as good as the earlier stealth stuff.”
“What about the bodies?”
“They’re working it now. It’s all coming out. Not our issue, but the SECDEF sends his thanks.”
There was one word in his sentence that really made me perk up. “Good to hear, but what do you mean our issue.”
He said, “I got the Oversight Council to sign off on using your company for infiltration purposes. They were impressed with the mission, although I didn’t mention all the shooting that went on. I’m setting up a cover development trip to Angkor Wat in Cambodia, but it will depend on Jennifer.”
“What’s that mean? We’re a team. She comes regardless.”
Jennifer’s head perked up at my words, looking at me quizzically. Kurt said, “Did Jennifer really make the connection on this thing? Or did you give her credit?”
I said, “She did it. All her.”
Jennifer mouthed, “What’s he saying?”
Kurt said, “That’s what I figured. You got one month. She makes it through A-and-S, and she goes on the trip.”
I hung up, having a hard time believing I’d actually heard the words. Jennifer said, “What’s wrong? What did he say?”
“He said we’re going to Angkor Wat. By way of Boone, North Carolina.”
“What’s that mean?”
I gave her a grim smile. “You got your shot at Selection. End of the month.”
She sat down, her eyes unfocused, running through the ramifications. After a second they returned to me.
She said, “Can we go shoot today?”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Brad Taylor, Lieutenant Colonel (ret.), is a twenty-one-year veteran of the U.S. Army Infantry and Special Forces, including eight years with the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment — Delta, popularly known as Delta Force. Taylor retired in 2010 after serving more than two decades and participating in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, as well as classified operations around the globe. His final military post was as Assistant Professor of Military Science at the Citadel. His first five Pike Logan thrillers were New York Times bestsellers. He lives in Charleston, South Carolina.