by David Archer
“Somebody wants me dead,” Noah said in his gruff whisper. “I don’t know why he didn’t finish the job.”
“Okay, well, let’s get you out of those clothes. The EMTs think you might have a few broken bones in there somewhere, so we’re taking you down to x-ray.”
She helped Noah sit up and he cooperated as she helped him out of his shirt and slacks. When he was down to his underwear, she handed him the hospital johnny and helped him slip his arms into it, then tied it behind his back.
“Okay, lay back down. One of the orderlies will be here in a few minutes to take you to x-ray.” She turned around and slipped out of the curtained area, and Noah could hear the police officer asking if he and another officer could step inside. She stuck her head back in and asked, “Do you feel up to speaking to some policemen?”
Noah nodded slightly, then just said, “Yes, please send them in.”
She held the curtain opened as two men entered. One was a uniform officer, but the other was in plainclothes.
“Thanks for agreeing to speak to us,” said the one in the suit. “I’m Detective Gravois and this is Sergeant Gallagher. We’re kind of curious about what happened back at the hotel. Think you can fill us in?”
“I can give you some basics,” Noah said, “but first, do you have my wallet?”
Gravois nodded his head. “Yes,” he said. “Wyatt Wilson, right?”
Noah tried to grin. “Yes and no,” he said. “Do you have access to a magnetic strip reader? Check out the one on the back of my driver’s license and you’ll understand a lot more. I’m a federal agent, working undercover. Do you happen to know anything about the people who were in the room with me?”
“Were there people with you when the bomb went off? We found signs of other people, but no one else was there when we arrived.”
“Yes, there were three others. Two men and a woman.”
Gravois turned to the Sergeant. “The lieutenant has Mr. Wilson’s wallet. Give him a call and have him check that strip, would you?”
“You got it,” Sergeant Gallagher said, and then he turned and went through the curtain again.
Gravois turned back to Noah. “Undercover fed would make sense, considering the firepower we found in your room. You’re asking about others, so I’m guessing you were part of a team?”
“Yes, made up of myself and the other three I mentioned. Two of them were staying in room two oh eight, next door to mine. I’d appreciate it if you could have their things gathered up, but don’t let anybody tinker with the big suitcase. It’s highly classified equipment.”
“I’ll see what I can do. Meanwhile, what can you tell me about what happened?”
“My agency sent me here to try to capture a known terrorist and arms dealer who has been seen in the area. It looks like I was getting close, because he apparently decided it was time to try to get rid of me.”
Gravois chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment. “Would he have taken those other people? And if he did, why would he leave you behind?”
“The answer to the first question would have to be yes, but I have no idea how to answer the second. I would have expected him to kill me while he had the chance. I vaguely remember seeing several men rush into the room shortly after the blast, and—I think I remember seeing the woman dragged away. I think I must’ve blacked out after that, that’s all I can remember. I suppose it’s possible they thought I was dead already.”
The detective switched to the other cheek. “Maybe. I think it’s likely the others were taken because this guy thinks he can use them for leverage against you, or against your agency, anyway. Any idea what he might try to get from your people in exchange for them?”
Noah considered being honest for a moment, telling Gravois that the only thing Nicolaich Andropov could conceivably want would be a broken Noah Wolf. Trying to explain it would be too difficult, though, he decided.
“I’m not sure,” he said. “Somebody way above my pay grade would have to figure that out.”
“You said some of your equipment was classified. I take it you can’t give me a name on this terrorist?”
“I’m afraid not, Sir. This entire mission is highly classified.”
An orderly walked in at that moment, and looked at the detective. “Excuse me, I’m supposed to take this patient to x-ray.”
Gravois nodded and stepped back. “Don’t let me stop you,” he said. “Mr. Wilson, I’ll be waiting when you get back here. Something tells me we’re not quite finished yet.”
The orderly grabbed hold of the end of the gurney and began pushing Noah through the curtain and down the hall. They got into an elevator and rode up to the second floor, then got out and followed another hall for about a hundred yards. Noah saw the sign that said “Radiology” as the orderly turned him and pushed him through the door below it.
The orderly helped Noah slide onto the x-ray platform, and the next fifteen minutes were spent taking various pictures of different parts of his body. He managed to lie on his right side when he was asked to, but turning onto it caused considerable pain in his hip. Noah didn’t complain, just gritted his teeth and put the pain out of his mind.
When they were finished, Noah managed to get back onto the gurney by himself and the orderly retraced his route. True to his word, Gravois was sitting in a chair only a few feet from the curtain that the orderly pushed Noah behind. As soon as he was situated, Gravois returned with Sergeant Gallagher beside him.
“State Department says we’re not to hold you,” Gravois said. “I don’t know how I’m supposed to close this file, but I suppose that’s for somebody above my own pay grade to figure out.” He handed Noah a business card. “That’s got my cell number written on the back. I’ll make sure all your things are secured and not tampered with. You call me when you get out of here and I’ll meet with you to see that you get it all back.”
“I appreciate it, Detective,” Noah said.
“No problem,” Gravois replied. “State didn’t say anything about getting in touch with you or anything. Would you like me to put an officer here to watch over you? If your arms dealer figures out you survived, he might come back and try to finish the job after all.”
“I suppose that’s possible, but I have my doubts. Whatever he’s up to, I don’t think he’s going to risk exposing himself just to get me. Listen, I had a Glock pistol…”
Gravois grinned and nodded. “Yep, it was bagged and tagged. I’ll see that it comes back to you with all the rest. I don’t think you have anywhere under that gown to hide a handgun, anyway.”
Noah raised one eyebrow. “Very good point,” he said. “I think…”
He was interrupted by the arrival of a doctor, a thin older man of Middle Eastern descent. Gravois shook Noah’s hand and said goodbye, and then he and Sergeant Gallagher turned to make their departure.
“Detective,” Noah said quickly, “do me a favor and stick around for a few minutes, would you?”
Gravois grinned and nodded, and then stepped through the curtain.
“Hello,” the doctor said with hardly any accent at all. “I am Doctor Patel. I’ve been going over your x-rays with our x-ray technician, and he tells me that you have some minor fractures in two of your ribs and on the far right edge of your pelvis. None of them seem to be very serious, but they may cause you some discomfort. If you like, I can give you a prescription for the pain…”
Noah shook his head. “That won’t be necessary. How soon can I leave?”
The doctor’s eyebrows rose. “I was going to suggest that you might wish to stay overnight, just so that we can keep an eye on you. You suffered primary and secondary blast injury trauma. It is possible that you may have internal injuries that won’t show up on x-ray.”
“I actually don’t feel that bad, Doctor,” Noah said. “I’ll promise that if you let me go, I’ll come back if I start to feel like anything’s wrong. Would that be good enough?”
The doctor let out a sigh. “I suppose it w
ill,” he said. “If you wish to go, you may do so. Let me complete your release documents, and the nurse will bring them to you to sign. Do remember, however, you could have some serious internal injuries. Do not hesitate to return if you feel the need. Any sudden increase in pain, any sudden pains or sensations in your head, they should be warning signs. Do not ignore them.”
The doctor walked out of the exam area and Gravois stuck his head back in. “Need a lift?”
“I will in a few minutes. Give me a minute to get my clothes on and sign whatever paperwork they got for me, and I’ll be ready to go.”
“No sweat. I’ll be waiting out here, the chairs are more comfortable than standing around.”
Noah winced as he sat up and then slid off the gurney. The nurse had laid his clothing on a stool nearby and he was just putting his pants on when she came in again.
“Well, heck,” she said. “I must be losing my touch. Here we’ve got a good-looking guy who really ought to stay with us for a couple of days, and he can’t wait to get away. Time for me to go back to the hairdresser and get rid of this gray.” She held out a clipboard and pointed at a signature line. “Sign right there, Bud, or you’re not going anyplace.”
Noah signed where she indicated and handed it back. “Sorry about taking off so soon,” he said. “Got work to do. And you don’t have enough gray in your hair to worry about, but I’m engaged.”
The nurse grinned. “Is that the excuse you use with all the women who think you’re hot? Doctor says to remind you to come back if you have any problems at all.” She winked at him and was gone.
Noah managed to get his shirt on and then sat on the stool to put on his socks, which was when he noticed that he didn’t have any shoes. He’d heard about explosions snatching people right out of their footwear, and decided there must be some truth to it. He opened the curtain and spotted Gravois sitting in the waiting area.
The detective got up and walked toward him. “You got a bit of a limp there,” he said. “You sure you don’t want to stick around here a while?”
“Quite sure,” Noah said. “There’s a nurse back there who seems to think of me as cougar bait. I need to get out there and find my people. Incidentally, any idea where my phone might’ve gone?”
“Everything that was in the room has been bagged and tagged, but after Gallagher talked to State, we had it all put away in a separate locker. We never made it to the second room, so anything that was in there is still waiting for you.”
The detective’s car was parked in a special slot near the door that was reserved for police, and he opened the front passenger door for Noah before going around to get behind the wheel. “I’ll take you to our storage warehouse first, if you want, so you can change clothes and look for your phone.”
Noah nodded. “That would be appreciated. I hope my shoes are there.”
“They probably are—like I said, everything got bagged and tagged. The lieutenant still has your wallet, but he’ll meet us there.”
“Good, I’m gonna need it.”
TWENTY-ONE
Detective Gravois drove directly to the police evidence repository, a large warehouse-like building divided into hundreds of storage lockers. A sergeant at the front desk of the building escorted them back to the locker where all of the gathered evidence from Noah’s room had been hastily stashed away on orders from the State Department. He opened the space and then left Noah and the detective alone.
“I hope you don’t embarrass too easily,” Noah said. “That’s my suitcase, and I’m going to change clothes real quick.”
“Never been in a police locker room, have you? Go ahead, won’t bother me.”
Noah laid the suitcase on the floor and popped it open, then stripped down to his underwear again. Ten minutes later he was dressed in jeans and a blue polo shirt, with a pair of sneakers on his feet. He stuffed his scorched and torn clothing into a trash bag that was lying on the floor, then began looking through the rest of the items.
A box marked “Devices, Electronic” caught his eye and he pulled the top off. Neil’s computer was inside, along with the radio receiver Captain Hayes had given him and both his and Neil’s cell phones. He picked up his phone and pressed the power button, and nodded when it came to life. The screen on it was cracked but it was still functional. He quickly scrolled through the menu to find the speed down button for Doc Parker, but then decided to wait until he was alone before calling in.
The phone buzzed suddenly and he saw the icon for voicemails appear, followed instantly by another for text messages. He slipped the phone into his pocket and continued looking through boxes. He found his pistol in the second box, still in its holster, and slipped it onto the back of his belt.
That prompted him to look for his lightweight jacket, and he found it in a box marked “Closet” and slipped it on. He turned to face Gravois.
“Obviously, I don’t have any way to take all the stuff with me at the moment. Can it stay here for a day or so?”
The detective nodded. “That won’t be any problem. Even when we return evidence to civilians, we give them a couple of weeks to come and get it. It’ll all be safe here for now.”
“Thank you,” Noah said. “Now, if we can track down the Lieutenant with my wallet…”
“That would be me,” said a short, chubby man as he rounded the corner into the unit. “You’re Wilson? I’m Lieutenant Steve Lasher.” He held up a plastic Ziploc bag with Noah’s wallet inside and waggled it. “I gather you wanted to get your hands on this?”
Noah shrugged. “Since it’s got my ID and credit cards in it, I thought it might come in handy.”
Lasher laughed and tossed the bag to Noah. “So, what kind of fed are you? I called the number that came up on the strip reader and found myself talking to some stuffed shirt at the State Department, then I got transferred to the NSA. No, wait, let me guess: you could tell me, but then you’d have to kill me, right?”
Noah put a grin on his face. “That could be a lot closer to the truth than you want to think about,” he said. “No, actually I’m part of a new counter-terrorism task force. My team is supposed to track down particular individuals who turn up on our radar. This time, it looks like one of them tracked us down instead.”
Lasher nodded. “Nobody told us to stay out of the investigations into your missing people, so I’ve got the word out. We managed to get photos of them from the hotel’s security cameras and sent them out to every patrol officer. If one of them turns up, we’ll know about it. We’re checking every hospital, morgue, you name it.”
Noah looked at him. “I appreciate it,” he said. He was still looking through boxes and suddenly froze. Sarah’s purse was in a box marked “Personals,” and he flipped it open. He dug around for a moment and came up with the keys to the Chrysler, then looked up at Lasher. “There was a small Beretta automatic in this purse. Any idea where it ended up?”
Lasher pointed to the duffel bag that Moose used for carrying guns. “All the firearms except yours went into that bag,” he said. “Should be there.”
Noah knelt down and unzipped the bag. Almost all of the guns, including Moose’s Glock and Sarah’s Beretta, were present. Even the air rifle they had bought was in the bag. The only thing missing was Neil’s little machine pistol. He picked up the Beretta and shoved it into his pocket.
“I’m going to leave most of this here at the moment,” he said as he picked up his suitcase. “Detective, could I trouble you for a ride back to the hotel? I can get a cab, if you prefer.”
Gravois started to speak but Lasher cut him off. “I’ll drive you,” he said. “I got a private message I’m supposed to give you, anyway, from somebody named Parker.”
Noah shook Gravois’ hand and followed Lasher out of the building to his car. He tossed his suitcase into the back seat and climbed into the front passenger side. “What’s the message?” he asked.
“I got a call just a bit ago from a guy named Parker, sounded like an old fellow. He wants
you to call somebody named Donnie Franco as soon as you can. I guess he talked to the doctors at the hospital and found out you got banged up good, because he said he don’t want you going solo on whatever’s going on. He says Donnie Franco will help you get things done. Kinda weird, he kept saying it like that, Donnie Franco, Donnie Franco.”
Noah nodded. “I’ll be calling Parker in a bit, and I know who Donnie Franco is. I appreciate the message, though.”
Lasher glanced over at him. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure, go ahead. I’ll answer you if I can.”
“These people that are missing,” Lasher said. “On the hotel security cameras, you all look like you were pretty close. You think there’s any chance you’re going to find them alive?”
“At least one of them,” Noah said. “One or two may be dead already, though I doubt it. There wouldn’t be any point in taking them along if they planned to kill them right away, it would’ve been easier just to put them down right there in the room. The man who took them will be planning on trying to use them to draw me out into a trap. I’ve just got to figure out how to turn it into a trap for him, instead.”
Lasher shook his head. “Can’t say I envy you,” he said, “but if there’s anything we can do, just let us know.” He reached into his shirt pocket and produced a card like the one Gravois had already given Noah.
* * * * *
Some kind of noise was there, just under the threshold of being annoying. It had been there for a while, he knew, slowly worming its way through his eardrum and demanding his return to consciousness. The realization that he could hear reminded him that he could see, and he struggled for a moment to open his eyes. His entire body was in pain, and even his eyelids protested at being forced to move.
His eyes were open but he still couldn’t see. He tried to move, and suddenly realized that his hands were bound together behind his back and he seemed to be tied to a post or something. He struggled for a moment but it only intensified the pain he was already feeling, so he stopped after only a few seconds.
