by Alex Siegel
Marina rubbed her eyes. The red cement walls of Golden Palace Discount Furniture were as uninteresting as ever. She had been on more boring stakeouts, but not by much.
She and Katie were sitting in the front seats of a red Mazda. Tinted windows and the angle of the sun made the Spears hard to see inside the car, so Marina could just lay back and relax. Katie had kept quiet, and Marina was glad about that. Some people, women in particular, felt compelled to chatter during stakeouts, as if silence was unacceptable. Marina wasn't one of those people.
Her phone rang. The caller ID showed Hanley's code number, and she answered it quickly.
"Yes?"
"I just heard something interesting, ma'am," Hanley said.
Marina put the phone in speaker mode so Katie could hear. "What?"
"The SAS guys believe the mystery girl is a carrier for some kind of plague. According to them, the disease is dormant now, but it will be contagious soon. Their mission is to kill her before that happens."
"Why all the secrecy?"
"The British government invented the disease as a biological weapon," Hanley said, "and the girl was accidently infected. It's a national embarrassment."
"I can see how that story would motivate the SAS to go to extraordinary lengths."
"Do you think it's true?"
"Let's ask the authority on truth. Hold on." Marina used the conference call capability of her phone to add Wesley to the conversation without dropping Hanley.
"Hello?" Wesley answered in his sweet voice.
Marina asked Hanley to repeat the story.
"It's all lies," Wesley said. "There is no plague. Somebody fooled those men."
Marina nodded. "That's what I suspected. It's just like what happened to those news witnesses."
"Yes."
A yellow truck rolled into the parking lot behind the furniture building. The words "Guaranteed Parcel Delivery Service" were printed on the side in blue letters. The truck parked in front of one of the doors, and two soldiers immediately came out. They went to the back of the truck and opened it while a driver in a blue uniform joined them.
"Something is going on," Marina said. "Hanley, I want you to listen. Katie, call Min Ho and give him the license plate of that truck."
Cardboard boxes were quickly unloaded from the delivery truck, and they were carried into the building. Some plastic grocery bags were also brought inside.
"They're talking about supplies," Hanley said. "Food and equipment."
"I guess it's not safe for the soldiers to shop for themselves. Katie, follow that truck. Maybe it will make more deliveries."
Marina got out of the car. Katie was already in the driver's seat and she started the engine. As soon as Marina was clear, Katie left.
The unloading process finished after just a few minutes. The driver returned to the cab of his truck and drove off in a cloud of diesel smoke. Marina frowned. Katie would have to really hurry to catch up.
Marina realized she was still on a phone call. "Thanks Wesley. I'll call again if I have more questions."
"No problem," Wesley said. "Thank you for doing such a great job."
"Don't thank me until we succeed." She hung up and called Ipo.
"Ma'am?" Ipo said.
"Break time is over," Marina said. "I want you and Yang back here now."
"Yes, ma'am."
* * *
"Sir," the console operator in charge of intelligence called out. "We have new information."
Vulture walked over. "What?"
"That last tip about the girl came from Special Agent Joshua Harp, FBI. He manages the San Francisco division."
Vulture raised his eyebrows. "A very important man. Why would he know anything about a relatively minor case of child abuse?"
"It does seem strange, sir." The operator shrugged.
"And highly suspicious. I think the enemy is toying with us. Send a SAS team to have a frank conversation with Mr. Harp."
"You want them to interrogate a senior federal agent?"
"Exactly, but we'll need to get him out of the FBI office so our people can snatch him." Vulture paused to think. "Send the following email to him...."
* * *
A green SUV drove up to Marina and parked. Ipo and Yang stepped out.
The legionnaires had changed into civilian clothes. Ipo had a brown business jacket and slacks but no tie. The jacket didn't quite fit his enormous chest, but that problem wasn't unusual for him. Yang was wearing a black windbreaker over a yellow T-shirt. He walked with a confidence that suggested he was already getting accustomed to his new role.
Marina gave them a quick debriefing.
"So, these SAS guys were fed a bunch of bullshit," Ipo said. "That's unfortunate. Interrogating them would probably be a waste of time."
"They have to know at least where their orders are coming from."
"If it turns out to be a satellite radio, that doesn't help us much, ma'am. It looks like this lead could be a dead end."
She frowned. "It's annoying when our adversary is competent. I suppose we have no choice but to continue to watch and see what happens."
Chapter Eight
"God-damned, mother fucking traffic," Katie muttered.
The streets of San Francisco were clogged with slow moving cars, and keeping up with the yellow delivery truck was testing her ability to fit through tight spaces. The truck kept making unexpected turns. More than once, she had been afraid she had lost it.
The truck was about a hundred feet ahead of her now, and the cars in between were packed solid. The vehicular mass was crawling along Highway 101 above the Presidio. The land had once been a large, famous Army base, and many historic buildings still stood. She saw several white barracks with red tile roofs from her elevated position on the overpass. Soldiers had once practiced marching on the open, green fields.
The pace of traffic picked up when she reached the Golden Gate Bridge, but the three lanes in both directions were still hardly enough. At least she didn't have to pay a toll. Only southbound traffic had to stop at the tollbooth, and the line was ridiculously long.
Katie stole a glance at the San Francisco Bay. The bridge was 250 feet above the sparkling blue water, and even when seen from inside a car, the view was breathtaking. She could just see Alcatraz through the haze.
A near collision with another car forced her to refocus on the road. The yellow delivery truck was still ahead of her. She clenched her jaw and continued to follow.
* * *
Hanley glanced up at the sun. He wished he had brought sunscreen, but there was nothing he could do about it now. Abandoning his post wasn't acceptable. He kept his face down so only the exposed back of his neck would burn.
His palms were pressed against an air duct, and he could hear just about everything that happened in the building. The ductwork collected the sound and brought it to him with marvelous clarity. He could even hear the heartbeats of the soldiers below.
Hanley heard a ringing noise followed by footsteps.
"Sir?" a man said.
The next voice was distorted and had an underlying electronic buzz. It was clearly coming through a communication system that was using a lot of digital compression.
"We have another assignment for you," the voice said. "Drive to the intersection of Golden Gate Avenue and Polk Street in San Francisco. A man in a blue suit will be standing on the northeast street corner. Snatch him and interrogate him. He will claim to be a United States federal agent. He intentionally furnished false information to the police about the girl, and we want to know why. Determine his true motives by any means necessary."
Hanley furrowed his brow. That address was the U.S. District Court, the U.S. Attorney's Office, the FBI office, and the home of other notable government institutions.
"Yes, sir," the first man said. "Where should we interrogate him?"
"There are beaches along the Marin Headlands which are often empty," the electronic voice said, "and there are plenty of hiking
trails in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Take your pick. The target will be in position in thirty minutes."
"We'll hurry, sir. Out."
Hanley immediately called Marina.
"Yes?" the commander said.
He reported what he had heard.
"The federal agent must be Joshua Harp," she said. "He's the contact I used to plant the fake story."
"He's about to be abducted."
"If I warn him and the abduction fails, the enemy might realize we have them bugged. But I can't let him get hurt either. Damn! This is what happens when civilians get too involved. Stay in position. I'll figure this out. Bye."
Hanley put away his phone. The back of his neck felt hot, and he glanced at the sun again with annoyance. I'll definitely have a sunburn tomorrow, he thought.
* * *
Marina took a last bite out of her hamburger while she contemplated her best course of action. She had taken a break from the stakeout to eat a quick lunch at a local burger shop. The place was called "Irish Luck Sandwiches," but she hardly felt lucky for having eaten here. The fries were greasy, the burgers were dry, and the buns were mushy. The people behind the counter couldn't possibly be less interested in their jobs. Still, food was food, and the location was convenient. As long as she didn't get sick, she couldn't complain too much. It didn't seem right that God's special warriors were burdened with mundane problems such as hunger. We should be exempt, she thought. We should be indestructible.
She got up and threw the remains of her meal into a garbage can. She went outside. The weather in Oakland was cool and misty, and a chilling breeze was blowing from the west. She rubbed her arms.
Her phone rang, and Ipo's code number showed on the display.
Marina answered, "Yes?"
"An SAS team is driving off, ma'am," Ipo said.
"They're going to abduct Special Agent Harp. Have Yang pick me up in the car. Make sure he has a tracker, and tell him to hurry. We have to rescue Harp."
"Yes, ma'am. Hanley and I will be the only ones left here."
"I know. Our resources are getting spread thin." She hung up.
Marina walked over to the sidewalk to wait for her ride. She had changed into civilian clothes so she wouldn't attract attention. There was a blue warehouse across the street, and trucks were coming and going. Puffs of smoke shot from the exhaust pipes.
She searched the contact list in her phone until she found the number of Joshua Harp. All the contacts were coded using a scheme only she knew. The encryption was simple enough to perform in her head, and an expert could've cracked it, but it offered an extra measure of safety.
"Hello?" a man answered in a deep voice.
"This is Ms. Pointu. You're about to walk down to the street corner. Why?"
Harp paused. "How did you know?"
"Just tell me why."
"I got an email from a source. He wants to give me some important information, but he won't do it in the office."
"It's a trick," Marina said. "Some men are going to abduct you. They'll torture you for information about the fake tip you gave to the police. They want to know about me."
Yang pulled up in a green SUV. She climbed in on the passenger side, and he handed her a device that would allow them to follow a tracking signal. He drove off at high speed as soon as the door was closed.
"Thanks for warning me," Harp said. "I'll bring down a squad of agents to arrest them."
"Don't," Marina said. "Allow yourself to be taken. I'll be right behind you."
"Why?"
"Because I want to have a conversation with these people, and this seems like a good opportunity. They'll take you to an isolated location suitable for an interrogation, but they'll be the ones who get interrogated."
"That's crazy," he said. "I won't let myself get kidnapped."
"As long as you don't resist, you should be safe enough."
"That's not the point."
The tracking device showed a live map of Oakland, and a crosshairs marked the enemy position. Marina directed Yang to take the next right.
"I understand your reluctance," she said to Harp. "If you refuse to participate, I won't hold it against you, but this is very important. I'm not making this request lightly."
"You're making a lot of requests of me lately."
Marina sighed. "I know, and I'm not happy about it, but circumstances are what they are. You'll be rewarded. I promise. You know my word has always been good in the past."
"I'd feel better if you told me what was going on."
"That's unfortunately impossible."
Yang drove onto Interstate 880 and picked up speed. Traffic moved briskly along the wide, elevated highway.
"Then let's talk about my reward instead," Harp said.
"What do you want?" Marina said. "I hope you're not going to ask for money. That would be disappointing."
"Of course not. I'm an honest cop. I only care about stopping crime."
"Then I'll give you the bust of a lifetime. It will be a highlight of your career."
"It has to be a real criminal," Harp said. "I won't put innocent people in jail just to make myself famous."
"Of course, but I'll need some time to arrange it. Do we have an agreement?"
"I suppose so."
"Great. I'll see you in a little while." She hung up.
Yang glanced at Marina. "What's going on, ma'am?"
She summarized the situation for him.
He stared at the road thoughtfully as they cruised down the highway. They had almost caught up to the black Humvee containing the SAS team. Marina could see the car about a quarter-mile ahead, exactly where the tracker in her lap said it would be.
"Why can't you just tell Harp the truth?" Yang said.
"I think I've already explained this. We're God's dirty laundry, and He doesn't like us being aired in public. If Harp knew the truth, it would probably end badly for him."
"We would kill him?"
"One way or another, he would die," Marina said. "The secrets of the Gray Spear Society are toxic to ordinary people."
He frowned.
Eventually, they reached downtown San Francisco. As they approached the Phillip Burton Federal Building, Yang slowed down. The building was a twenty-one floor, gray monstrosity which occupied an entire city block. It was one of the most imposing buildings in San Francisco, and it was the center of federal law enforcement in Northern California.
Marina saw Joshua Harp standing on a street corner. He had blond hair with a prominent bald spot on top. His blue suit was clean, pressed, and perfectly tailored to fit his tall body.
The black Humvee approached slowly. Two men dressed in long, green overcoats hopped out while the car was still rolling forward. They ran to Harp and grabbed him by the arms on both sides. A few tense words were exchanged. Harp was shoved into the Humvee, the men entered after him, and the car sped off. The entire abduction had taken ten seconds.
"Slick," Marina said.
"I can't believe that happened in broad daylight in front of a federal court building," Yang said.
"The best crimes are the ones you never expect. Just stay with them."
* * *
Katie was looking through a pair of binoculars at the Liberty Ship Marina in Sausalito. It was a beautiful little harbor on the San Francisco Bay. Yachts of all sizes were neatly parked in berths along a wooden dock. The waters were quiet, and Katie wanted to be on one of those gorgeous yachts instead of sitting in a car.
The yellow delivery truck was parked close to the dock. Men wearing old-fashioned, white naval uniforms were taking boxes out of the truck and loading them onto a red speedboat.
Katie called Marina on the phone.
"What's going on?" the commander said.
"I'm at the marina in Sausalito. Packages are being delivered to a boat, and I have to make a choice. Do I stick with the truck or follow the boat?"
"Hmm. The boat sounds more interesting."
"I thought so too, ma'am," Ka
tie said. "What's your status?"
"I'll tell you later. Make sure you don't lose that boat."
"Yes, ma'am. Bye."
Katie got out of the car. A bright sun was shining down from a clear blue sky. Seagulls circled overhead.
She quietly walked past the men in the uniforms. Up close, she could see they weren't real naval officers, but the white shirts and blue pants did look spiffy. Epaulets were decorated with gold stripes.
Katie continued along the dock, looking for somebody who might give her a ride. She wanted to get out on the water ahead of the red speedboat.
She spotted a young man in a small, private fishing boat. He was wearing a green shirt, khaki shorts, and a cap with fishing lures hooked into the fabric. With his bronzed skin and firm muscles, he was quite handsome.
"Hi!" Katie gave him her brightest smile. "I need a ride."
He turned to her. "You're not dressed for fishing."
"That's because I don't want to fish. I just need transportation."
"I'm not a taxi."
"You charge by the hour, right?" Katie said.
"Sure." He shrugged. "A hundred dollars an hour, minimum three hours."
She pulled a cash roll out of her pocket, peeled off three bills, and handed them over. "There you go, and a little more if you don't ask any questions." She gave him two more Benjamin Franklins.
He stared at the money. "OK. Where are we going?"
She climbed onto the boat, and the light craft swayed beneath her. "Out into the Bay for now."
He started the loud engine. The fishing boat had several seats, and she chose the lowest, most central one.
Katie vaguely recalled that this part of the San Francisco Bay was actually called Richardson Bay. Belvedere Island was on the other side. The sheltered waters were less choppy than parts closer to the Golden Gate.
After the boat went out a few hundred yards, she said, "What's your name?"
"Jerry."
"Glad to meet you. Stop here. This is far enough."
Jerry killed the engine. The sudden silence was a relief to Katie's ears.
She watched the red speedboat closely, but it hadn't moved yet.
"What are you doing?" he said.
"None of your business," she said. "I told you not to ask questions."
