The Lost Key

“With pleasure, sir.”

Zachery turned to Mike. “Mike, once Nicholas decodes the files, you will share with Interpol and Scotland Yard what the link is between the fifteen men Mr. Pearce was conversing with, and start rounding them up for questioning. And find out everything you can about Shepherd and this co

“Yes, sir.”

Zachery flicked off the screen. “People, we’re an inch from figuring out what this weapon is, and why Havelock’s been buying up polonium. The Brits claim not to know; let’s see if they’re being truthful with us. If they’re involved, they very likely have a line on Adam Pearce. Find him, find Sophie Pearce. The two are clearly tied together.”

Gray handed Nicholas the laptop. “Everything I hadn’t already sent you has been loaded, plus a few extras you might need along the way. I’ll be linked to you in real time.”

“Brilliant. Thank you.”

“One more thing,” Zachery said. “There’s a full-scale international alert for Manfred Havelock. He’s gone to ground. He was in Berlin as of last night, but his jet took off very early in the morning, and they didn’t file a flight plan. Gray is going to keep looking for him; he did such a great job finding the Fox when she snuck off to France, I’m sure he’ll find this guy.”

He leaned on the table, suddenly serious. “You two listen to me. You be careful. We have multiple agencies involved. You’re going to be on foreign soil, and this time, Nicholas, you work for the FBI, you represent the United States, so there will be no rogue Bond crap. I regret taking all the fun out of your life, but no bombing, no shooting, no kidnapping of thieves. You hear me?”

The corner of Nicholas’s mouth kicked up. “Roger that, sir. Who is our contact on the ground in London?”

“Who else? Your old boss, Hamish Penderley. Now, go find Sophie Pearce. Find her alive, and her brother, and recover this weapon, whatever it may be, and don’t kill any more people, unless it’s absolutely necessary, or so help me God, don’t bother coming back.”

49

6:00 a.m.

Per standard operating procedure, Nicholas and Mike had small go bags stashed in their desks—a change of clothes, a spare weapon, ammunition, two disposable cell phones, and a tablet computer. Nicholas had also included a bevy of computer cords and other tools of the trade he felt might be necessary.

Mike looked at the clean jeans, the clean blouse, the clean underwear, and couldn’t wait to wash and change in the plane lavatory. No one had said a word about her wearing Nicholas’s white shirt. Things were so tense, so focused, maybe no one had noticed.

They grabbed their bags and their Glocks and Gray met them in the hallway. He handed them some papers.

“Here are your official papers allowing you to operate on foreign soil, so there’ll be no ru

Mike clapped him on the shoulder. “You always think of everything. Thanks, Gray. Listen, why don’t you go take a twenty-minute catnap? We’ll be in touch as soon as we’re up and ru

He smiled. “I look that bedraggled, eh? Smell a little ripe?”

“No, nothing like that. You’re going to make Nicholas think FBI agents don’t ever sleep.”

“What did you say? We’re allowed to sleep?” And Gray laughed. “I wish you’d told me sooner. You two be careful.” He tapped his temple. “I’ll be ready for you when you’re in the air. Twenty minutes will do me fine.”

Ben was waiting for them in the garage by the Crown Vic. “I’m going to drive you to the airport. There’s more, and Zachery needed to get you guys on the plane as soon as possible.”

When Ben eased into traffic, he said, “Now, about the brain implant. I’ve been doing some research. Havelock’s company is the only one I could find that’s close to having patents in this area. He’s really advanced. I mean, this stuff is space-age. There’s nothing like it on the market. The composite material alone being biological in nature is groundbreaking stuff. If Havelock is behind this, he could have eyes on the ground everywhere.”

Nicholas said. “Do you think our MI Five friend, Alex Shepherd, has one?”

“It’s possible, depending on who he’s working for now, what with Mr. Stanford murdered. Like you said, Nicholas, he’s supposed to be on our side, but he certainly hasn’t acted like it. Is he now one of Havelock’s soldiers? Was he all along? I mean, taking Sophie, what’s that all about? I’m hoping when you talk to MI Five, Mike, they can tell you what’s going on now. At the very least, they might know enough to help you guys guard your backs. In any case, we need all the information we can get on those implants.”

“Let me guess,” Nicholas said. “You want me to break into the computers of Havelock’s company.”

“You’re quick, Sir Nick. I didn’t want to mention it in Zachery’s office, but that’s it exactly. If this brain implant is what we think it is, a live feed which can be sent anywhere in the world undetected, maybe there’s a program on his computers to control it. And at the very least, we can find out who he has in the field, and what they’re looking at, specifically.”

“I’ll do my best, Ben, and don’t call me sir. No luck on the German in a coma?”

Ben met his eyes in the rearview mirror. “He had the gall to die an hour ago.”

“I see.” Another man dead at his hands. But he felt not a lick of remorse. Both of those men would have happily dispatched him and Mike, after they’d murdered Allie McGee to get to Adam Pearce.

Mike said. “Yeah, and here I was hoping we’d have a chance to interrogate him. Since neither of the Germans had implants, they were only hired muscle sent over to do a job, probably didn’t know squat. I wonder why Havelock sent some operatives into the field with the brain implants, and some without.”

“That’s a question we need to address,” Ben said. “Were the second set of thugs under Havelock’s orders or someone else’s? We haven’t considered there might be more players in the game.”

Nicholas said, “It’s a good point, Ben, especially if there’s been a leak about what’s in the submarine. Very high stakes, evidently. What we do know is that Adam Pearce is the staked goat in the middle. Everyone would want him.”

Mike said, “Ben, did you see something that made you think there are multiple people with the implants?”

“No, but I have a gut feeling about this.”

“Good enough for me,” Mike said. “We’ll be on our guard, then.” She looked back over the seat at Nicholas. “With any luck, Mr. Computer Whiz here will be able to get into Havelock’s files and we’ll know.”

Ben nodded. “You two be careful.”

And he pulled through the gates at Teterboro.

—

TEN MINUTES LATER, they were wheels up.

Their pilot, who’d flown three different FBI directors, came over the intercom. “Dan Breaker, at your service. We’ll be on the ground in London in five hours. Agent Caine. I’ve turned on the secure communications system. Feel free to plug in. Hit the green button if you need anything. There’s food and drink in the galley, help yourselves. I’m going to be hauling ass across the Atlantic. This lovely beast will do four hundred eighty knots, and it’s windy up here, we have a great tailwind of almost eighty knots. My copilot, Tom Strauss, and I, we’re going to see if we can break a record getting across the pond.”

Mike pressed the green button. “Does the director know you two are speed demons?”

A ghostly laugh from the overhead. “Yep. Who do you think bought us this beautiful baby?”

They didn’t waste any time. Mike headed for the lavatory to clean up and change, and Nicholas opened the loaded laptop Gray had given him and inserted an earwig into his right ear. “Gray, are you awake?”