strode toward the door. “Agent Vaziri, would you do me the honor of showing me how to get out of this…pit?” He hoped she might provide more information out of earshot of her supervisor.
She gave him a smile. “Certainly, Colonel.”
Attmire’s shoulders lowered, and he walked over and extended his right hand. “No hard feelings?”
Jack wanted to grab that hand and twist it until he could get this guy to tell him the truth. Instead, he ignored Attmire and grabbed the door handle. Still locked. His gaze drilled a hole into Jason.
Attmire look up at the ceiling and nodded. A second later Jack heard the door click.
Chapter 15
February 23
J ason waited until Shakeela and Colonel Thompson reached the elevators, then he emerged from the conference room and hurried down the hall to another locked facility. He used a key card to open the door and entered the security command center.
“That did not go well, Attmire.” A man stood in the semidarkness, images from the various monitors illuminating his features. He stood about six feet, slim and well built, his face chiseled by age and the stress of the job.
“Sir, I didn’t want to give Thompson any more information than we absolutely needed to.”
“I expected you to play a better hand. The colonel trumped you.”
“I don’t know how he figured out about our operation in Europe. Shakeela must have let it slip.”
“One thing I detest is people who cast blame on others. Your face gave it away. That, and the fact you pulled Agent Vaziri all the way from France for this meeting unnecessarily. A really bad call, wouldn’t you say?”
Jason forced his face to convey acquiescence, but inside he seethed. He still did not understand how Thompson guessed about their operation—and the location. Right now, he must try to make himself look better. The man in front of him was not someone he wanted as an enemy.
“Where do you want me to take this, sir?” He waited for a reply from a man they called The Handler, the moniker earned from the way the guy managed assets, agents, and the Agency through years of conflict with the enemy—inside and outside the organization. Jason knew little of the man, other than the fear and respect he garnered. Agents and supervisors who disappointed The Handler found themselves drummed out of the Agency or serving at outposts only the devil frequented.
“I want you to do your job, Attmire. Try to get Shakeela back inside and focus on Hassan. He is our primary target. We need to know who he sees, where he goes, everything you can give us on this man. Don’t lose him. Understood?”
Jason nodded. “And Stuart Martin?”
“Leave him to me. He is not your concern.”
“Agent Vaziri already linked the two together. She will want to know more about this target and his connection to Hassan.”
“Handle it, Jason. Tell her Martin is no longer her concern. Is that clear?”
Again, Jason nodded. So Stuart Martin would be handled by others in the Agency. Or was there more about this guy he didn’t know? Was Martin one of them? Puzzled, Jason backed out of the room while The Handler closely followed Thompson and Shakeela on the surveillance monitors as the two left the building.
Jason had spent his whole career in the dark, trying to figure out connections he could never quite tie together. Now he guessed there was a connection between Martin and the man he just left in that dark room.
Not knowing made him nervous. It was the unknown that might blow up in his face some day. He must try to find out more, in spite of the orders he’d just been given. He must protect himself.
The Handler waited until Attmire left the room before dialing a number on an encrypted phone. “They just got through meeting with Jack Thompson. The colonel was less than forthcoming.”
“Did he give up anything?”
“Nothing that we didn’t already know. I’m not sure how much he knows. Maybe nothing…but I can’t be sure.”
“We must be
She gave him a smile. “Certainly, Colonel.”
Attmire’s shoulders lowered, and he walked over and extended his right hand. “No hard feelings?”
Jack wanted to grab that hand and twist it until he could get this guy to tell him the truth. Instead, he ignored Attmire and grabbed the door handle. Still locked. His gaze drilled a hole into Jason.
Attmire look up at the ceiling and nodded. A second later Jack heard the door click.
Chapter 15
February 23
J ason waited until Shakeela and Colonel Thompson reached the elevators, then he emerged from the conference room and hurried down the hall to another locked facility. He used a key card to open the door and entered the security command center.
“That did not go well, Attmire.” A man stood in the semidarkness, images from the various monitors illuminating his features. He stood about six feet, slim and well built, his face chiseled by age and the stress of the job.
“Sir, I didn’t want to give Thompson any more information than we absolutely needed to.”
“I expected you to play a better hand. The colonel trumped you.”
“I don’t know how he figured out about our operation in Europe. Shakeela must have let it slip.”
“One thing I detest is people who cast blame on others. Your face gave it away. That, and the fact you pulled Agent Vaziri all the way from France for this meeting unnecessarily. A really bad call, wouldn’t you say?”
Jason forced his face to convey acquiescence, but inside he seethed. He still did not understand how Thompson guessed about their operation—and the location. Right now, he must try to make himself look better. The man in front of him was not someone he wanted as an enemy.
“Where do you want me to take this, sir?” He waited for a reply from a man they called The Handler, the moniker earned from the way the guy managed assets, agents, and the Agency through years of conflict with the enemy—inside and outside the organization. Jason knew little of the man, other than the fear and respect he garnered. Agents and supervisors who disappointed The Handler found themselves drummed out of the Agency or serving at outposts only the devil frequented.
“I want you to do your job, Attmire. Try to get Shakeela back inside and focus on Hassan. He is our primary target. We need to know who he sees, where he goes, everything you can give us on this man. Don’t lose him. Understood?”
Jason nodded. “And Stuart Martin?”
“Leave him to me. He is not your concern.”
“Agent Vaziri already linked the two together. She will want to know more about this target and his connection to Hassan.”
“Handle it, Jason. Tell her Martin is no longer her concern. Is that clear?”
Again, Jason nodded. So Stuart Martin would be handled by others in the Agency. Or was there more about this guy he didn’t know? Was Martin one of them? Puzzled, Jason backed out of the room while The Handler closely followed Thompson and Shakeela on the surveillance monitors as the two left the building.
Jason had spent his whole career in the dark, trying to figure out connections he could never quite tie together. Now he guessed there was a connection between Martin and the man he just left in that dark room.
Not knowing made him nervous. It was the unknown that might blow up in his face some day. He must try to find out more, in spite of the orders he’d just been given. He must protect himself.
The Handler waited until Attmire left the room before dialing a number on an encrypted phone. “They just got through meeting with Jack Thompson. The colonel was less than forthcoming.”
“Did he give up anything?”
“Nothing that we didn’t already know. I’m not sure how much he knows. Maybe nothing…but I can’t be sure.”
“We must be
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