he had bought into Bob’s story. Maybe from the very beginning, when he’d found the letter in his SUV. But he felt full-blown paranoia swelling in his chest, speeding his heart rate, as if he’d been injected with some crazy, reality-bending drug.
He noticed Bob had left behind his tray. It held a bag of cold fries, his beverage, and the small Bible he’d been reading.
Bob could have left behind the book by mistake, but Anthony doubted it.
He carefully placed his own tray on top of Bob’s. He carried both trays toward the north exit, away from the pale stranger.
At a trash can near the doors, using his body to block anyone behind from watching, he grabbed the book and emptied the contents of both trays into the trash. Without looking behind him, he pocketed the Bible and went out through the glass double doors.
On the landing, he reached inside his pocket and clicked off the digital recorder.
Heart thundering, he took the stairs to the parking lot.
12
Cutty had been watching the Judas conversing discreetly with a tall, well-built black man when the Judas abruptly turned away and walked out. He shuffled past where Cutty sat, but he did not look at him. He didn’t need to—what had happened was obvious.
Cutty had been made.
It happened sometimes. The Judas had once been a leader in their division, after all, and had been trained to recognize a tail.
It didn’t particularly bother Cutty. The thick fumes of junk food had begun to nauseate him, and he was ready to get out of there, drive far away, and grab a hot shower to cleanse the stink from his pores.
The Judas navigated through the crowd and went toward the restrooms. Cutty had briefly reconnoitered the restrooms earlier, and found there was no exit that way. He would return to the Judas after he finished appraising the black man.
The man was looking around the room. For an instant, he and Cutty made eye contact.
Cutty felt a tremor in his stomach. Although he’d never before seen this man, intuition told him that there was something about this guy, something unusual and intriguing, and worth a closer look.
He watched the guy stack two plastic trays and take them to a trash can near the north exit. The guy dumped the contents of the trays and left through the doors. He didn’t look back.
Cutty spoke into the radio transmitter affixed to his shirt collar.
“Valdez, there’s a person of interest coming down the north stairwell. Black man, about six feet tall, in his early thirties, in a dark windbreaker, jeans, and a baseball cap. Don’t stop him, but see what he’s driving and get his plates.”
He waited for Valdez’s response, hoping that she understood his directions. After a few seconds, her voice crackled in his earpiece.
“Okay.”
He would have to assume that she had comprehended his orders. He didn’t have time to baby-sit her.
He dumped his bottled water in a wastebasket and left the dining area for the lobby, using his broad shoulders like a wedge to force through the knotted crowd. A couple of times he had to give guys taller than him a hard shove. They turned and looked down at him as if to say something rude, but when they saw the expression on his face they shut their mouths like meek little lambs.
You didn’t have to be tall to be intimidating. It was all about presence.
He shoved open the door to the men’s
He noticed Bob had left behind his tray. It held a bag of cold fries, his beverage, and the small Bible he’d been reading.
Bob could have left behind the book by mistake, but Anthony doubted it.
He carefully placed his own tray on top of Bob’s. He carried both trays toward the north exit, away from the pale stranger.
At a trash can near the doors, using his body to block anyone behind from watching, he grabbed the book and emptied the contents of both trays into the trash. Without looking behind him, he pocketed the Bible and went out through the glass double doors.
On the landing, he reached inside his pocket and clicked off the digital recorder.
Heart thundering, he took the stairs to the parking lot.
12
Cutty had been watching the Judas conversing discreetly with a tall, well-built black man when the Judas abruptly turned away and walked out. He shuffled past where Cutty sat, but he did not look at him. He didn’t need to—what had happened was obvious.
Cutty had been made.
It happened sometimes. The Judas had once been a leader in their division, after all, and had been trained to recognize a tail.
It didn’t particularly bother Cutty. The thick fumes of junk food had begun to nauseate him, and he was ready to get out of there, drive far away, and grab a hot shower to cleanse the stink from his pores.
The Judas navigated through the crowd and went toward the restrooms. Cutty had briefly reconnoitered the restrooms earlier, and found there was no exit that way. He would return to the Judas after he finished appraising the black man.
The man was looking around the room. For an instant, he and Cutty made eye contact.
Cutty felt a tremor in his stomach. Although he’d never before seen this man, intuition told him that there was something about this guy, something unusual and intriguing, and worth a closer look.
He watched the guy stack two plastic trays and take them to a trash can near the north exit. The guy dumped the contents of the trays and left through the doors. He didn’t look back.
Cutty spoke into the radio transmitter affixed to his shirt collar.
“Valdez, there’s a person of interest coming down the north stairwell. Black man, about six feet tall, in his early thirties, in a dark windbreaker, jeans, and a baseball cap. Don’t stop him, but see what he’s driving and get his plates.”
He waited for Valdez’s response, hoping that she understood his directions. After a few seconds, her voice crackled in his earpiece.
“Okay.”
He would have to assume that she had comprehended his orders. He didn’t have time to baby-sit her.
He dumped his bottled water in a wastebasket and left the dining area for the lobby, using his broad shoulders like a wedge to force through the knotted crowd. A couple of times he had to give guys taller than him a hard shove. They turned and looked down at him as if to say something rude, but when they saw the expression on his face they shut their mouths like meek little lambs.
You didn’t have to be tall to be intimidating. It was all about presence.
He shoved open the door to the men’s
Similar Books
