the door, his waddling walk accentuated by the armful of bags he carried. Danny gave her a smile and handed her a cardboard box. She turned it over in her hands.
“Sabre? What is this, a stun gun?”
“Just in case.”
The clothes were deposited on the wagon-wheel table. Andrea picked out a pair of jeans, a tartan blouse and a T-shirt. She took fresh underwear and socks from the packs and returned to the bathroom. Five minutes later she emerged looking and feeling like a changed person.
“They fit okay?” asked Danny.
“The waist’s a bit big, but they’re fine.” She turned to Tansen. “Where can I dump these?” She held her soiled garments in a loose bundle.
“Just put them next to the back door. I’ll toss them on the fire later.”
“What should I do with the rest of the clothes?”
Danny passed her a backpack, the store tags still in place. “Put anything you’re not wearing in here. Clay, there’s one for you too.”
As the Gunn brothers took turns in the bathroom to change into their new gear, Andrea tried booting up her battered MacBook. A crack ran diagonally from corner to corner across the screen. Given how much it had been through, she was amazed the laptop was even in one piece. After a short burst of whirring and several beeps, the screen flashed, then went black.
“Damn it!”
Tansen raised his eyebrows. “No good?”
“It’s toast. A technician could probably duplicate the hard drive, so it doesn’t mean everything’s gone, I just can’t get to it. When I get home…” She stopped herself. “It doesn’t matter. Everything important is in the Cloud.” She straightened her shoulders. “It’s just junk now. No point carrying it around. Do you have a computer I could use?”
“Sorry, I never had much use for one.”
Andrea nodded. “Could I use your phone? I need to let my parents know what’s happened.”
Tansen silently pointed to a wall-mounted phone. She rose and walked over, lifting the cordless handset clear. She looked back at her host. “Is there somewhere I can speak in private?”
“Sure.” Tansen led her to a bedroom. He closed the door as she began to dial the number.
Andrea waited nervously.
What can I tell my parents?
She was scared of choking on the awful words. The soft ringing began in her ear. Her stomach flipped. She allowed the phone to ring ten times before hanging up. A strange mixture of guilt and relief swept over her. She knew she’d have to speak to them, but was glad that the moment had been delayed. She sat on the bed and allowed her chin to drop, her hair hanging down over her face. Sobs racked her chest. Fatigue leached through her body, suddenly, unrelentingly. Andrea realised her eyes were closed, yet didn’t seem to have the strength to open them again. She curled up at the bottom of the bed like a child and let sleep take her.
16
“Mr Carter, I have Magson on line two for you.”
Topcat pressed the reply button on his intercom unit. “Put him through.”
Magson’s voice was raspy from thirty years of a twenty-a-day habit. “Top?”
“I believe the Nevada assignment has been compromised.”
“Compromised?”
“I’ve been unable to contact the team as expected.”
“Unable?”
“Jesus, Magson, are you just going to repeat random words back to me or are you going to get on this?”
“You want a second team on it?” His second-in-command coughed noisily down the phone, causing Carter to swear silently at the handset.
“Yes, I want a second team assigned and on the trail within the hour. Who else have we got in that neck of the woods?”
“We’ve got six in Los Angeles, just back from Pakistan. They’re all old hands. They’ll be good to go.”
“Who?” Carter asked curtly.
“You know them, Top, the Presidents.”
Carter smiled. He did indeed know the team well. He tapped the team name and individual tags into his computer and a set of six profiles appeared on screen. He studied the faces before
“Sabre? What is this, a stun gun?”
“Just in case.”
The clothes were deposited on the wagon-wheel table. Andrea picked out a pair of jeans, a tartan blouse and a T-shirt. She took fresh underwear and socks from the packs and returned to the bathroom. Five minutes later she emerged looking and feeling like a changed person.
“They fit okay?” asked Danny.
“The waist’s a bit big, but they’re fine.” She turned to Tansen. “Where can I dump these?” She held her soiled garments in a loose bundle.
“Just put them next to the back door. I’ll toss them on the fire later.”
“What should I do with the rest of the clothes?”
Danny passed her a backpack, the store tags still in place. “Put anything you’re not wearing in here. Clay, there’s one for you too.”
As the Gunn brothers took turns in the bathroom to change into their new gear, Andrea tried booting up her battered MacBook. A crack ran diagonally from corner to corner across the screen. Given how much it had been through, she was amazed the laptop was even in one piece. After a short burst of whirring and several beeps, the screen flashed, then went black.
“Damn it!”
Tansen raised his eyebrows. “No good?”
“It’s toast. A technician could probably duplicate the hard drive, so it doesn’t mean everything’s gone, I just can’t get to it. When I get home…” She stopped herself. “It doesn’t matter. Everything important is in the Cloud.” She straightened her shoulders. “It’s just junk now. No point carrying it around. Do you have a computer I could use?”
“Sorry, I never had much use for one.”
Andrea nodded. “Could I use your phone? I need to let my parents know what’s happened.”
Tansen silently pointed to a wall-mounted phone. She rose and walked over, lifting the cordless handset clear. She looked back at her host. “Is there somewhere I can speak in private?”
“Sure.” Tansen led her to a bedroom. He closed the door as she began to dial the number.
Andrea waited nervously.
What can I tell my parents?
She was scared of choking on the awful words. The soft ringing began in her ear. Her stomach flipped. She allowed the phone to ring ten times before hanging up. A strange mixture of guilt and relief swept over her. She knew she’d have to speak to them, but was glad that the moment had been delayed. She sat on the bed and allowed her chin to drop, her hair hanging down over her face. Sobs racked her chest. Fatigue leached through her body, suddenly, unrelentingly. Andrea realised her eyes were closed, yet didn’t seem to have the strength to open them again. She curled up at the bottom of the bed like a child and let sleep take her.
16
“Mr Carter, I have Magson on line two for you.”
Topcat pressed the reply button on his intercom unit. “Put him through.”
Magson’s voice was raspy from thirty years of a twenty-a-day habit. “Top?”
“I believe the Nevada assignment has been compromised.”
“Compromised?”
“I’ve been unable to contact the team as expected.”
“Unable?”
“Jesus, Magson, are you just going to repeat random words back to me or are you going to get on this?”
“You want a second team on it?” His second-in-command coughed noisily down the phone, causing Carter to swear silently at the handset.
“Yes, I want a second team assigned and on the trail within the hour. Who else have we got in that neck of the woods?”
“We’ve got six in Los Angeles, just back from Pakistan. They’re all old hands. They’ll be good to go.”
“Who?” Carter asked curtly.
“You know them, Top, the Presidents.”
Carter smiled. He did indeed know the team well. He tapped the team name and individual tags into his computer and a set of six profiles appeared on screen. He studied the faces before
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