by Bob Blink
Jake had explained this to Tony, but that had been the Tony that had been a couple of days in the future. He'd have to convince this earlier version.
"I already told you that we know what happened the next two days. There was no danger. At most, they monitored us quietly in preparations for whatever actions they had in mind. My guess is that the sister, and most likely Paul, if Susan is correct, aren't even in New York. They would have wanted to be safe somewhere, and wait until Jeff and his people report back what they find. We watched him until midday Tuesday without any interaction. Only if their Back-Tracker had some reason to loop back, and now notes that there is only one watcher when there were two before, should they become concerned. I can't see that happening. My Back-Track was a loop inside of their own, and they should be unaware that it happened. Also, any action they elect to take will be apparent as a change. We adjust immediately if that happens."
"I'm not certain that I agree," Tony objected. "Before there were two of us. That alone might have given them reason to hesitate. Perhaps they worried there were more of us and they were attempting to find out. With just you out there, they might elect to act sooner. Also, last time around you were wearing the disguise, as thin as it was, they might not have gotten a good enough look to realize you are the Bob Trask they had learned about. We are assuming they know about him, aren't we?"
"I think we must assume as much," Jake agreed.
"Okay, now you want to wash the dye out of your hair and do away with the glasses in order to ensure they make the connection. If they have someone taking photos with a long-range lens, you will be captured on film and they will know they have you. If they have any thoughts that you are the counterpart Back-Tracker, they will be eager to do away with you."
"That's one of the things that will be your responsibility. I'm expecting you to use your skills to keep a watch on whoever they have deployed to watch me and tail me, so we know if they are planning something and can react appropriately. With what you observe, and my awareness of any changes from before, we'll be certain to know something is being planned."
"I don't like it. I think you might be over simplifying things."
"I believe they aren't ready to do anything this soon, however, we will handle the monitoring differently. We don't need to watch Rineri with the same intentions as before. Then we were trying to see what he might do, and hoped he might lead us to any others who were involved in the previous events. That meant staying on him all the time. This time all we need is for them to spot me, so they can plan an action. We can make this more a game of now you see me, now you don't. We'll be selective about where we let Rineri lead me, and only allow me to be spotted at times we are certain are safe. Those times will be in locations where any attempts against me would have almost no chance of success, forcing them to plan something different. That will throw them off guard a bit, and make any planning more difficult. Hopefully you will be able to spot some of those he has watching, and ensure that no one tails me back to the rental. We need to keep our base secure."
"I still think it would be better to reverse our roles," Tony complained.
"They don't know you, which is good because we want an ace in the hole, but because they don't know you they would be less likely to take action. They would probably believe you were just another agent or some local help hired to watch Rineri. We want to lure them out where we have a shot at grabbing them. That makes me the preferred bait."
"That's another thing. How do we hope to grab them if one of them is their Back-Tracker. If you try to arrest one of them, they'll simply initiate one of your loops, making it never happen and being wise to our plan."
"That's why we simply hope to make them aware so they can start planning, and hopefully reveal themselves to you as you lurk in the shadows," Jake said. "Unlike before, we will be cutting the surveillance off much earlier than the last time through this. By Monday noon, we will have disappeared. Rineri won't know where I have gone, which will hopefully confuse them and make them wonder what I learned."
"That's when we go back to Washington?" Tony asked.
Jake nodded.
"We have to do a couple of things. First, we will be in Washington on Tuesday when Susan calls us with the news of what she has discovered. She'll be sending Lester and Solly to Boston to check out the sister and be warning us that Jeff might have escaped also."
"That's when you'll tell her what the new plan is?"
"Correct! But also, we'll arrange for Laney to come to New York to support me. He'll probably be followed, so we'll need to deal with any tails he picks up. I'm sure they will buy Laney going north to help out. I've worked with Jim in that role many times, and it would explain why I might have disappeared. They'll believe I'm getting ready to make a move."
"Once Jim gets to New York, it'll be two people watching Rineri, supposedly unaware that he has people watching us," Tony agreed. "And that's when you'll allow me to be with Jim, not you?"
"That's correct," Jake said. "With you appropriately dressed, and with Jim in tow, they'll be duped more easily into assuming that you are me. They will have seen me tailing Jeff for a couple of days and won't be as intent on the details as before. That's why we have to get you some clothes that look like what I've been wearing while we are in Washington."
"And you are hoping we can pick up something that would quickly disable any potential Back-Trackers in their group as well?" Tony asked.
Jake nodded.
"I assume you can come up with something."
"The problem is going to be speed and range," Tony explained. "Anything that fires a drug is limited range, and the drugs probably won't work fast enough to disable your Back-Tracker before he can trigger an escape. A Taser-like device is short range, and we may not have the opportunity."
"That means I might need to simply resort to an old fashion rifle and shoot from where I'm hiding," Jake said. "We may not be able to take whoever it is alive, at least the first time."
"The first time?"
"Once we know who and where their Back-Tracker is, even if I've had to shoot him or her, I can loop back and when we do it again, I can be positioned in the right place to bring them down easily and safely."
"I'd suggest once you have dealt with this person, you let it stay that way. Don't give them another chance by looping around their demise," Tony suggested.
"We can discuss it afterwards," Jake promised. "But once we have their Back-Tracker, either dead or disabled, this all becomes far easier."
Before going to bed that night, Jake washed his hair clean of the dye, returning it to its normal color and style. The next morning he drove across the East River in his rental, with Tony following along somewhere behind. Even knowing he was back there, Jake couldn't spot him. He decided that if he couldn't see Tony, no one else would link him to his spying either. Of course, as yet he hadn't shown up near Rineri's house in Astoria to attract attention.
The morning was another of those tedious days that Jake hated about Back-Tracking. He was reliving the events he'd already seen from before, trailing Rineri as he moved from place to place, talking to a variety of individuals for reasons known only to him. Jake tried to see if anything Rineri did looked fake, as if he was just going through the motions to fool any followers, but he was either a consummate actor, or he had real business to conduct. Jake made no attempts to try to spot Tony. He assumed he was out there somewhere. At least he hoped he was. Despite what he had told Tony, Jake felt unusually exposed as he followed the Mob suspect around that day.
"They were watching alright," Tony informed Jake when they met back at the rental.
"They didn't follow me back here?" Jake asked.
"Only part way, then they dropped off when traffic became light. I was about to warn you to go someplace else just before they did so."
"Why would they do that?" Jake asked.
"They couldn't continue without being concerned you might spot them," Tony explained. "I bet tonight they will
scout the area you were in looking for your vehicle, which fortunately will be out of sight in the underground parking, but tomorrow when you head home, they will have several vehicles already waiting here in the area. You would be less suspicious of a car that was on the road when you entered the area, than of one who had followed you for some distance."
"You are certain whoever you spotted was there to see if someone was following Rineri?"
"Positive," Tony said. "Some of them were very good, and I may have even missed some. I saw two spotters with cameras and long lenses. Those were what gave them away. Expecting to find someone, made it far easier to spot them. When we were both following Rineri together, my attention must have been focused on him, otherwise I might have seen them that time."
"Do you think they were able to get sufficient photos to identify me?" Jake asked.
"If they have anything on Bob Trask, then they'll know that it's you," Tony said. "You don't think we can simply skip the monitoring tomorrow? It would certainly reduce the risk if they try something. If they figure out who you are tonight, they might adjust their plans from the last time, and make a move against you in the morning."
Jake shook his head.
"If they lead me somewhere different than the last time, I'll break off. That would be a warning something has changed. Assuming tomorrow's schedule is a repeat, then I think it might be useful if I can drag one of their watchers with me when I break off rather than simply disappear. If he sees me heading back toward Washington, it will reinforce our plan to link up with Jim."
"If someone tries to follow you all the way, we'll have to make certain you lose him," Tony warned.
"With you following as before, that shouldn't be a problem. Once we get to Washington, we'll leave the rental near Norm's place. They'll assume I went back to meet with them, but we'll stay at Bess' place."
"And the next day you'll ride back to New York with Laney," Tony finished the thought. "If they plant a tracker in the rental, or something more interesting, you won't be using the car anyway."
Jake nodded.
The next day it went just as planned. After making himself seen as he followed Rineri around through the same list of places he recalled from before, Jake broke off just after lunch, climbing into the rental and heading out of New York. Tony kept him informed via their special spy radios that he was being followed, and once it would be clear to anyone that he was headed back toward Washington, Jake was able to take advantage of the heavy workday traffic to shake his tail. Making several on and off the freeway maneuvers as directed by the hidden Tony, they confirmed he was no longer being followed. They planted the car as discussed, and then Tony drove them to Bess's place where they could acquire the items they would need for the rest of the plan.
Chapter 31
Tuesday Morning, May 17
"You knew about this for a couple of days?" Susan asked incredulously.
Jake and Tony had let her make her report about what she had learned from the visit to East Coast Pharmaceuticals after linking Natalie to the company where Anne worked. Jake had wanted to be certain that nothing changed in her report. If he was correct that no additional Back-Tracking had been conducted by the other side, Susan, who hadn't known about their change in agenda, should make the identical report. Much to his relief that had been the case. After she was done, he informed her that Jeff had not, and would not disappear just yet. That had led to a complete summary of what they had been doing.
"You gave us this same report the last time I looped through today," Jake explained. "We went off to check on Jeff Rineri, and when we found him obviously present, with a 'girlfriend' he had picked up the night before we got to thinking what might be the reason. Why would they leave him exposed? They had clearly disappeared well before you showed up at the drug company. Because we'd both been watching him, and therefore would both have been seen by anyone they had put in place, I looped back so we could do everything differently. We couldn't inform you without risking significant disturbances in the timeline. We discovered that people were indeed watching for us."
"And they know that Bob Trask was in New York," Susan complained. "We were trying to keep your presence as hidden as possible."
"We need something to draw out their Back-Tracker," Jake disagreed. "If they have any suspicions that Trask is the guy, then they might make a play for him."
"And if you get killed, then where are we?" Norm asked.
"When we go back, it'll be Tony made up to look like me who will be exposed," Jake explained. "If anything happens, I'll be able to unravel it. They have only seen one person up to now."
"You hope they have only seen one of you," Susan said.
"Susan, are you doubting my ability now?" Tony asked.
"I suppose not," she agreed. She was aware how capable the covert agent was.
"You said go back?" Jim Laney asked. "Where are you now?"
"We are here in Washington," Jake replied. "There were a few things we needed, and we want to bring you back to help with this."
Jake explained what he had in mind.
"You believe having followed you part way back to Washington, and seeing you and Jim heading north together, they will more readily accept the fact it is you who is watching Rineri," Susan said.
"Not to mention we'll have another gun to help out if needed," Tony added.
"How do you want to work this?" Susan said finally, resigned to Jake's plan.
"Jim and I will leave from Headquarters this afternoon. I'll have to sneak in, but that shouldn't be hard to do unobserved. We'll go in his car, and I'm certain we'll be tailed. Tony will wait a mile or so away along the route we plan on taking. He'll be able to spot a tail, which will confirm they are paying close attention to what we are doing. If we are tailed, as expected, we will be able to lose him somewhere along the way, but by then he will have confirmed the two of us are heading back to New York. That will be their clue to set whatever plan they have in motion."
"So Tony and I have our asses exposed," Jim said. He was thinking how Clarissa would react when she learned of his agreeing to something like this. "How are you going to know who their Back-Tracker is? Unless you can disable and kill him immediately, once they realize it's a trap, they will loop back, and the whole thing is a bust."
"I'm not exactly certain," Jake admitted. "My guess is it is the Paul Marin character, but it could be the sister. I'm almost certain it's one of the two, and I'm hoping something in their approach will make it clearer who. Any question, I will have to be ready to loop back immediately so we can have another try at it, or perhaps abort the whole thing."
"It seems like a long shot to me," Norm protested. "Too much can go wrong, and they will be alerted that we are onto them."
"They already know we are aware the three of them are involved in the attacks, and that they have a Back-Tracker. I don't think we risk giving much away, and while the chances are fifty-fifty or less, we might just get lucky for a change."
"Jim?" Susan asked. "You are the one he's asking to be a target."
Jim shrugged. "I don't like the idea, but it won't be the first time, and Tony has already volunteered. He's likely to be the primary target, so I'll at least get a warning and might be able to find cover when they shoot him."
"I'd feel better about this if Jake were to be hiding somewhere well away from the action. That would ensure he could correct any problems."
"I need to be close. I'm most likely to spot my counterpart, and I'll be providing cover for Jim and Tony."
"Are you certain you can quickly disable this Back-Tracker?" Norm asked.
"We are taking some things that could do it, if we can get close enough. In truth, I believe we will have to shoot whoever it is. Maybe not kill, but disable to the point they can't Back-Track."
"I'd rather you just kill the bastard," Jim said in an uncharacteristic bit of animosity.
"Put it in action," Susan said finally, "but I reserve the right to call you any time up until t
he morning to cancel all this. Maybe we'll learn something that will make it unnecessary."
It was a few minutes after four in the afternoon when Jim and Jake drove out of the Headquarters parking lot. Jim was at the wheel, and Jake was riding shotgun.
"You're very lucky Clarissa is out of town," Jim said. "She would not have good thoughts toward you if she knew what we are planning on doing."
"Karin's going to have some unkind things to say when she learns as well," Jake admitted.
It seemed to Jake it had been a very long time since he'd seen his wife and daughter, but he consoled himself with the realization it wouldn't have seemed quite so long to them. They would not have been aware of the loops he had made, and therefore would not have counted as many effective days. Even so, he'd have to send a note via their secret web site soon and hope the end of this mess wouldn't be too much farther in the future.
"You have a tail as expected," Tony's voice warned Jake over the radio as they drove out of the city. Jake had the phone on a headset so he could speak without holding the unit to his face which would reveal he was communicating with someone. He told Jim what he'd just been told.
"Did he tell you what to look for?" Jim asked, his eyes scanning all of the mirrors.
"No, and we shouldn't look. We are to be blindly ignorant of any followers. We let Tony be our eyes. We don't want to give away the fact we know about them."
"I didn't even spot Tony along the way," Jim said, "and I know what he is driving. How are we going to work this?"
"We'll see how far this guy intends to follow us," Jake said. "Maybe he'll simply verify we are headed back toward New York and drop away. If he plans to follow us all the way, Tony will get rid of him without it being obvious we have help."
