by Laura Scott
At least going with everyone else kept them ahead of the dark-haired Asian.
The only plan she’d been able to come up with was to use the wheelchair service, the way she had in Chicago. She’d asked the flight attendant to assist with getting access. The flight attendant had agreed to get the chair, but she would not let them off the plane before the others.
“Are you sure about this?” Jarek asked, looking nervous now that they’d actually landed in Washington, DC.
She wasn’t at all sure, but since the ploy had worked once before, she could only hope it would work again.
Besides, what else could they do? It wasn’t as if they had firsthand knowledge of how the Reagan International Airport was laid out. She prayed the Asian behind them didn’t know anything about the place either.
Ironic how airports were supposed to feel safe. As she and Jarek stepped off the plane and onto the jetway where a smiling man stood behind a wheelchair, she felt extremely vulnerable, expecting the Asian to show up at any moment.
“If you don’t mind, we’re in a bit of a hurry,” Jarek said, playing his role. “We’re meeting our daughter.”
“Not a problem.” The cheerful attendant obligingly turned Hana’s chair and headed up the jetway ramp, easily passing those weary travelers lugging their carry-on bags.
Jarek walked quickly beside them, and she found it amazing that people actually moved to the side to make room for her. For them.
This could actually work!
The attendant automatically headed toward the baggage claim area. As they headed for the elevator, Jarek said, “Does this elevator take us to the taxi stand?”
“Yes, sir, the taxi stand is located just off the baggage claim area,” the attendant said. He pushed the button to summon the elevator.
The elevator seemed to take forever, but finally the door opened. They had to wait until another man in a wheelchair and his companion came out before they could get in.
Her attendant spun her around to back her chair into the elevator. Jarek came in, too, but just as the door was closing, someone waved a hand through the opening, causing the doors to pop open.
The dark-haired Asian was standing there, a smug grin on his features. Without saying a word, he crowded onto the elevator with them, the door sliding shut behind him.
Hana’s mouth went dry, and she wanted to cry out, but she couldn’t move.
The regime had caught up to her!
Chapter Nineteen
January 19 – 10:40 p.m. – Washington, DC
Jarek caught a glimpse of the way the Asian’s fingers were curled into fists, his knuckles bruised as if being in a fight, and knew Hana had been right to be paranoid.
They were stuck on an elevator with a cold-blooded killer!
The attendant behind Hana’s wheelchair was completely oblivious to what was going on right under his nose. “Are you planning to see the monuments while you’re here?”
Jarek played along, pretending he didn’t know they were about to be kidnapped or attacked. The Asian wasn’t saying anything anyway, he just stood silently as if waiting for the best moment to strike. He forced enthusiasm into his tone. “Oh yes, I’ve always wanted to see the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument.”
“Those are the most popular,” the attendant said. “But be sure to check out the others. Lots to do and see in DC.”
The idle chitchat was as difficult to tolerate as nails raking across a chalkboard. There was a ding as the elevator reached the level where the baggage claim was located.
Jarek knew he had to do something to get them out of this. But faking a heart attack wasn’t going to work this time.
The elevator doors opened. The Asian stepped through, then politely put his hand in the opening so they could get out, no doubt hoping to grab Hana’s wheelchair from the attendant.
Jarek went first, then purposefully stumbled and fell against the Asian, using his body weight to knock him off balance. The move seemed to take the guy by surprise, and they fell to the ground, a tangle of arms and legs.
“Run, Hana!” Jarek shouted to Hana as the Asian roughly shoved him aside. Jarek grabbed onto him, holding on with every bit of strength he possessed, hoping to give Hana enough time to get away.
But did she leave? No. Out of nowhere, the footrest of the wheelchair came down on the Asian’s head with a loud thwack! The man groaned and went limp.
“Hurry!” Hana grabbed Jarek’s hand, helping him to his feet. The attendant stood gaping in shock as the formerly wheelchair-bound Hana ran with Jarek toward the glass sliding doors leading outside.
The attendant finally found his voice. “Hey! Call security. They assaulted this guy!”
Out in the chilly air, Jarek looked wildly around the unfamiliar surroundings. They needed to get out of here before anyone caught them! Glancing to the right, he thought he saw a dark-haired man walking toward them from the right. The taxi line was incredibly long, so he took Hana’s hand and ran down the sidewalk to the left past the line of taxis waiting for their turn to pick up a fare.
At the very end of the line, he leaned down and rapped sharply at the taxi window. “We need to get out of here, right away!”
The driver peered up at them. “I’m supposed to wait for my turn.”
Jarek pulled out what was left of his cash and shoved a fifty-dollar bill at him. “Now, please? We need to go right now!”
The guy took the money and shrugged. “Okay, get in.”
Jarek let Hana get in first, then quickly slid in behind her. “If you don’t mind, we’re going to crouch down back here, just so you don’t get into any trouble for jumping the line.” And to stay out of view of the possible dark-haired man.
“Works for me.” The taxi driver nosed out of the line and into the long flow of traffic as Jarek crouched behind the passenger seat. Hana was curled in a ball behind the driver.
His heart was hammering so loudly he could barely think. Reaching over, he took Hana’s hand in his. “We got away,” he whispered.
Hana nodded. “Because of you, Jarek.”
He hadn’t been the one to bonk the wheelchair leg over the Asian’s head, but knocking him down had given Hana the time to jump into action.
Despite their grim situation, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of satisfaction.
He and Hana made a great team.
* * *
January 19 – 11:01 p.m. – Mitchellville, MD
After Sun had filled Mack in on her conversation with Jordan, he’d forced the sleep from his eyes and went back to work on the sat computer.
They had a few possible leads, the Russian Mikhail Yahontov, some man named Kirill, and the possible bomb being hidden somewhere in the National Mall area outside the Capitol.
Flimsy leads at best, but better than nothing.
Yet so far, the lead on Mikhail was a bust. No answer on the other end of the number he’d found in Igor’s phone, which made triangulation impossible. And he hadn’t been able to find anything on Kirill either.
And the way Sun hovered over his shoulder wasn’t helping. The only way he could think of staying awake was to kiss her.
For real, letting her know in no uncertain terms how he felt about her.
“Why don’t we try something else?” she suggested, her voice dangerously close to his ear. Her citrus scent was driving him crazy. “Is there any way you can pull up the specs on all the structures encompassed within the National Mall? Maybe seeing blueprints or something like that will help us figure out where the bomb might be located.”
He glanced over his shoulder, capturing her gaze. “You think it’s already in place?”
She looked surprised. “Well, yeah. Why wouldn’t it be? The inauguration starts in less than twelve hours, no way they can move a bomb in now. I’m thinking it’s been in place for several days at least, maybe longer.”
He let out a weary sigh. “Okay, then I need to call Tramall. He should be able to get me the blueprint
s.”
“And here I thought you’d want to challenge your hacking skills,” Sun teased.
“I would, except that we don’t have time for that,” he argued. He was secretly touched by her faith in his skills, but they needed to move quickly. “Maybe we should head back to DC now, before traffic gets crazy. By the time we get there, we’ll likely have the blueprints.”
Sun straightened, finally moving away from him, and nodded. “Get in touch with him now, then we’ll hit the road.”
His boss answered immediately, as if he’d been waiting for Mack to check in. “What’s going on? Have you found anything?”
Hello to you, too, he thought sourly. “I need you to get me the blueprints for every structure encompassed within the National Mall, especially those closest to the Capitol.”
“Why? Is that where the bomb is?”
Mack knew lack of sleep was making him cranky. “We don’t know, but the word national was picked up in some Russian chatter about the event. It’s one of the few leads we have.”
Tramall was silent for a long moment. “I’d hoped you’d have more by now. This isn’t enough to take to the president.”
Mack ground his teeth together in an effort to hold on to his temper. “We’ve chased several leads and have been attacked at least four times in the past twenty-four hours. Frankly, we’re lucky to be alive. We’re doing our best with little to no help from the NSA, or the FBI for that matter.”
“I’m sorry to hear you’ve been under attack,” Tramall quickly backpedaled. “I’ll get you the blueprints for all those structures right away. Is there anything else?”
“Not unless you have information on a Mikhail Yahontov or a man named Kirill.” Doubtful, since he’d already checked the NSA database without success.
“No. Neither one is on our watch list.”
Of course not. “Get the me the blueprints, we’re heading back to DC.”
“Okay. Keep me posted if you find something.” Tramall disconnected from the call.
“Sounds like you don’t like him much,” Sun said.
Mack grimaced and began packing up the sat computer. “He’s okay, just your typical government leader, impatiently wanting results from the safety of his office without getting his hands dirty.”
“One of the reasons I like working for Security Specialists, Inc. And Yates has gotten involved in the past as needed. I have no reason to think he won’t do the same now. Or will, once we have something solid to go on.” Sun drew on her thin winter jacket and headed for the door.
Mack could understand the allure, although he had credentials to help open doors and get work done, whereas she didn’t.
Yet Sun also had more freedom to do the job without restrictions.
He settled in the passenger seat and opened the computer. He’d keep digging for information about Mikhail Yahontov and Kirill. After all, how many Russians out there with that name could there be?
Probably more than he wanted to know.
* * *
January 19 – 11:19 p.m. – Washington, DC
Hana couldn’t believe they’d managed to escape the North Korean in the elevator. If not for Jarek’s quick thinking, she believed they’d already be dead.
Or maybe they’d be captured and used as bait to get to Sun.
She needed to find their daughter!
“Which hotel?” the taxi driver asked.
“How about the Hyatt Place?” Hana suggested.
The driver eyed her in the rearview mirror. “Lady, do you have a reservation? If not, I wouldn’t bother. The place is booked because of the inauguration tomorrow.”
Hana went still. Of course, she knew about the inauguration. After all, it was why she’d asked for Jarek’s help to come to DC. To find Sun, yes, and to help prevent the attack she knew was about to take place.
And now that they were here, what could they do? No matter which hotel they tried, they likely wouldn’t find anything available.
“We do have a reservation, but I don’t want to wait. Would you mind dropping us off at the Lincoln Memorial?” Jarek suggested.
“It’s not open this late,” the driver said with a frown. “And there’s bound to be barricades up since that’s along the parade route.”
Hana could tell he was growing suspicious. “I understand it’s not open, and you can drop us off anywhere, we’ll walk the rest of the way. We’re meeting up with our daughter, she’s the one who made our reservations at the Hyatt and will be joining us very soon.”
There was a brief pause before the driver shrugged. “Okay. I’ll get as close as possible.”
“Thank you.” Reaching over, she clutched Jarek’s hand. What would they do once they reached the Lincoln Memorial? Where would they go? Where could they stay?
And more importantly, how could they find Sun before noon tomorrow and before the regime caught up to them?
* * *
January 20 – 12:05 a.m. – Washington, DC
Sun was grateful they’d made good time getting back to the city. Another plus was that Jordan had kept their previous hotel room, so they didn’t have to find yet another place to stay.
“Got the blueprints,” Mack said. “Took him long enough.”
“It’s late. I’m sure he had to jump through some hoops to get them.” She glanced at Mack wondering why he’d grown sour on his NSA job.
It occurred to her that she really didn’t know much about what Mack had been up to over the past five years. Other than hacking, based on his outstanding skills in that arena. Yet since he’d dropped unexpectedly back into her life, they hadn’t had much time to talk about personal stuff.
Which was probably fine, except that he’d kissed her.
Twice.
She pulled into the hotel parking lot and shut off the SUV. “Okay, let’s take a look at those blueprints. I guess that’s about all we can do until Jordan comes through with our security clearances.”
Mack nodded and carried the computer inside. Their previous keys worked, and as they entered the room, Sun felt as if they’d been gone for weeks rather than hours.
So much had happened, the constant danger overwhelming, yet they still didn’t have any way of knowing if the bomb was truly hidden somewhere within the facilities of the National Mall or somewhere else entirely. And what about the North Korean threat? So far she hadn’t seen anyone who might have been from the regime, but that could change at any moment. For now, she had to concentrate on the nuke.
The idea of searching the blueprints of every structure located in the National Mall area was daunting. And possibly a waste of time.
What they needed was a better idea of the potential trajectory of this bomb. It would help them narrow their search area.
Mack dropped into the chair in front of the computer. She crossed over to join him. “Before getting started on the blueprints, check out the specs of the old Davy Crockett.”
He frowned. “Why?”
“The National Mall area is huge. This thing could be fired from just about anywhere. But we know the target is the area in front of the Capitol. We need to narrow our search by understanding how close this thing needs to be.”
“Good idea.” He began working the keyboard.
Less than twelve hours. And she knew that the crowd would build around the Capitol starting bright and early. Sunrise was roughly seven fifteen to seven thirty in the morning.
Finding anything once the crowds had gathered would be impossible.
* * *
January 20 – 12:26 a.m. – Washington, DC
“This is as close as I can get,” the taxi driver informed them. “You can see the lights from the monument over there.” He gestured toward the windshield.
“Thank you.” Jarek paid the man with money he’d borrowed from Hana, grimacing at his lack of funds. Hana waited until they were out of the taxi, then put her hand on his arm.
“It’s fine. I have plenty of money, Jarek. But I’m not sure what good it w
ill do. We’ll never find a place to stay anywhere in this area.”
“I know.” The adrenaline that had fueled him getting out of the airport with Hana had drained away, leaving pure exhaustion in its place. “Maybe we can catch the subway.”
“I don’t think it runs all night in DC.”
He bit back a groan. The subway ran twenty-four seven in Chicago, it had never occurred to him that it wouldn’t run all night here. “Let’s walk,” he suggested. “We’ll find another cab and see if we can find a hotel far enough away from the city with available rooms.”
Hana nodded and huddled close to his side. He put his arm around her slim shoulders, trying to shelter her from the wind.
“Any idea on how to find Sun?” he asked as they walked.
“I can try to leave another message with the secure answering service we only use in case of emergency, but she hasn’t responded to the first one,” Hana admitted. “I called from the airport in South Bend.”
He didn’t want to consider the possibility that Sun couldn’t respond because she was injured or worse. He needed to have faith, but it wasn’t easy. Then he caught a glimpse of a hotel. “This way,” he urged. “The hotel may not have rooms, but they’ll have a way to get a taxi.”
Hana pushed money at him, which he reluctantly placed in his pocket. Taking money from her felt wrong, but these were extraordinary times.
Together, they’d find Sun and warn her of the danger.
He desperately wanted the chance to meet his daughter.
* * *
January 20 – 12:44 a.m. – Washington, DC
He woke to his phone vibrating beneath his pillow. Easing silently out of bed, he took the phone and padded into the kitchen. Muttering a vicious curse under his breath, he swallowed hard and answered, “Yes?”
“Your fee has just tripled.”
The deep Russian voice sent a shiver of fear down his spine, but he fought hard not to let his voice show any emotion. “And why exactly would you call me at this hour demanding I triple your fee?”
