Shadows (Black Raven Book 1) (43 page)

Ragno had provided just enough information for Sebastian to question the look of concerned sincerity that flooded the man’s face. When McCollum gave him his usual firm, friendly handshake, Sebastian wondered whether anything about the man was genuine.

Darkness blanketed the city with a chilly, wintry gloom, penetrated only by headlights from incessant traffic and streetlights. The sidewalk was busy with speed-walking, bundled pedestrians. Snowflakes floated in the moist air. Sebastian followed Bob into the warmly-lit townhome, his mind clicking as fast as the constant keystrokes he heard through his earpiece. Ragno hadn’t yet been able to provide answers, but she was getting closer. Linked to both him and Zeus, she fed them damning information, as the profiles of BY Laboratories, Young, Root, and McCollum began intersecting.

With the luxury of time, he wouldn’t have needed a personal visit to McCollum. He had no time, though, and he was desperate enough to find Spring that he’d do anything for an answer. Anything, he reminded himself, even being calm and playing the ridiculous game of charades that came with doing business with one of D.C.’s elite power brokers.

As McCollum led them through the entry and into the living room of the spacious townhome, with its stark white, modern decorations and its museum quality sculptures and paintings, Sebastian mentally formulated questions for McCollum as Ragno fed him information. Zeus was there as a reality check, a balance to make sure that what happened in McCollum’s office wasn’t to the detriment of the operation or to Black Raven.

Sebastian had called ahead and told the senator that they were going to deliver a status report on the search for Barrows. Nothing more. The senator, wearing a burgundy cardigan over a crisp white dress shirt, led them into his spacious first-floor study. A navy blue tie was neatly knotted and tucked into the cardigan. Crisp navy slacks were pleated with precision. Dark loafers completed his important-man-at-home look. A fire crackled in the study’s oversized fireplace. A black Labrador retriever with gray in her muzzle lifted her head when Zeus and Sebastian entered the study, came over for a good long sniff, and Sebastian petted the dog behind the ears.

“Lucy’s looking good,” Sebastian said, knowing that the senator adored the dog, who had recently had hip surgery.

McCollum nodded. “She’s twelve this year. I’m keeping her in shape with swim therapy. Can you believe that? There’s a vet in Virginia who does physical therapy for dogs. Costs a fucking fortune.” McCollum waved away the aide who lingered in the doorway. “Tom,” he said, “you can shut the door.” As he settled into his leather chair, on the business side of a desk that was a solid, oversized plank of polished mahogany, he said, “Gentlemen. Would you like to remove your jackets and get comfortable?”

Sebastian shook his head, keeping his leather bomber on. “We won’t be here long.”

“At least have a seat. I have to admit,” he paused, as Sebastian and Zeus sat in the large guest chairs that were on the other side of the desk, “with the afternoon’s news that Richard Barrows’ daughter was kidnapped while under Black Raven’s protection, I’d have thought that you’d be too busy to provide me a personal update on the prison break.”

“Well,” Sebastian said, studying Bob’s face, careful to keep his own expression calm and trying hard to do nothing to reveal the roiling urgency that was boiling in his gut, “this isn’t simply an update.”

The senator was too smart to reveal anything in facial features. “Oh?”

Sebastian’s first goal, a strategy he had developed with Zeus and Ragno, as the information started to click, was to test how committed the man was to towing the government’s official line. “When did the National Security Agency start implementing Shadow Technology?”

“Excuse me?” McCollum’s brow furrowed. Whether the puzzlement was real or not, Sebastian had no idea.

“Since September 11, 2001, you’ve been on three committees that had direct oversight on intelligence gathering and the workings of the National Security Agency. The Patriot Act Implementation Committee, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Implementation Committee, and the Committee for the Implementation of the Protect America Act.”

“That’s right, but I’ve been on a hell of a lot of committees in my tenure as a senator. I’m in my third term. Seventeen years here,” he shrugged, “Legislation evolves. Committees come and go-”

“I’m not here to recap your career,” Sebastian interrupted, dropping the pretense of formality. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Zeus settle back to watch the show, his blacker than black eyes studying the senator. “I’m trying like hell to figure out the motivation for someone to have kidnapped Richard Barrows, and now his daughter.”

McCollum sat back in his chair, arched his eyebrows, and shook his head. “And you’re looking to me for the answer?”

“That’s exactly right. I’m here for you to tell me whether Shadow Technology exists,” Sebastian said, “and whether the government has implemented it in their intelligence gathering efforts.”

“You’re talking about the data assimilation program that Richard Barrows claims to have created for the government?”

“Yes. The program that’s encrypted by LID Technology,” Sebastian said as he began rubbing his temple with his right hand. When he saw Zeus’s eyes follow his movement, he dropped his hand.
Fuck
. The pounding of his headache was a reminder of a past mistake that he’d made. He didn’t have time to make a mistake now. “Barrows claims to have developed these programs for the government.”

Zeus leaned forward. “It’s an easy answer, Senator McCollum. Yes, or no.” His tone was smooth, his voice low. As always, Zeus spoke with the quiet authority of a man who expected people to absorb his every word. His posture and expression was one of serious gravity, conveying the silent, underlying message to damn well listen to him or there would be consequences. “Has the government implemented Shadow and LID Technologies?”

McCollum drew a deep breath, and sighed. “Sebastian, Zeus,” he said, his gaze encompassing both. “How long have I known you two? I’d help you out with this, if I could. You know that. But you’re asking about matters that are integral to highly sensitive operations.”

“We’re not seeking the official governmental line,” Sebastian snapped. “And the answer to how long I’ve known you is years. Your family’s company was one of my first clients in Iraq, and it’s been a steady relationship since. Yes, I’m asking for sensitive information. What you tell us will go no further. PRISM is public knowledge. Other data-gathering efforts of the intelligence agencies are public knowledge. We know about the massive volumes of data the Government is collecting on all U.S. citizens under the guise of intelligence surveillance. We know the government has spent two billion dollars on data storage facilities in Utah, and we know there are plans to spend more. The American public may be hoodwinked, but you can’t honestly expect us to believe the government hasn’t come up with a method to assimilate and organize all the data it’s collecting.”

“There’s a limit to what I can discuss,” McCollum said. “Even with you, on intelligence matters and especially on PRISM.”

Ragno, who was listening, said, “Well, now we know he’s pretty damn committed to towing the government line.”

“Okay. I’ll try it this way.” Sebastian reached into the pocket of his leather jacket, pulled out a piece of paper, leaned forward, slapped the paper down in front of the senator, and said, “This message is for the Oval Office, and you’re the person who is to get it there. It means whomever has kidnapped Richard Barrows is within an inch of breaking the encryption codes that protect Shadow Technology. Once he does that, he’ll have access to every piece of information accumulated by the National Security Agency. Banking information. Intelligence on U.S. citizens and foreigners. He’ll be able to do whatever he wants with the information, including manipulating the data. He’ll be capable of paralyzing commerce, with just a few keystrokes.”

McCollum read the three sentences that Skye had written, and gave Sebastian a slow headshake, his clear green eyes not giving a bit of a hint as to his inner thoughts. “I’ve got no idea what this means, and no idea what you’re talking about.” He narrowed his eyes, “Are you buying into Richard Barrows’ conspiracy theories?”

Ragno said, “Sebastian. Zeus. I’ve got it. If I have to, I can prove that the McCollum’s hands are all over the deal. More data’s coming in. It’s a go. Start playing hardball.”

Sebastian glanced at Zeus, who gave him a nod that said go for it, even though the accusations he was ready to lobby were the equivalent of throwing gasoline on a bridge that should never be burned. A clock, positioned next to the fireplace, chimed with six melodic rings. Six p.m.

Fuck. Me. To. Hell.

Spring had been missing for three and a half hours. He grit his jaw, fighting for calmness, when what he really wanted to do was wrap his hands around McCollum’s neck and strangle him to within a centimeter of his life.

“I’ll cut to the chase,” he said with barely leashed anger. “My intel tells me that Zachary Young, Richard Barrows’ partner, attempted to sell Shadows and LID Technology to the person who has kidnapped Richard Barrows.”

As McCollum leaned forward, his desk chair squeaked. He dropped his hands down on his desk. “How do you know this?”

Ragno had narrowed the potential purchasers to five, and the profiles had revealed long conference calls involving Senator McCollum, Young, and Root in the relevant time frame. To complete the goal of finding Richard Barrows and Spring, five potential purchasers were four to many. He needed to know the one, and he needed to know where the one who had prevailed was currently holding Spring. That’s what he needed to get from the goddamn fucking politician, who was sitting across from him and doing a damn good job of acting like an innocent man.

Sebastian leaned forward, closer to the senator’s desk. He imitated the man’s posture and position, placing his palms flat on the plank of smooth wood and giving the man a hard glare as he listened to Ragno’s steady, calm voice, as she fed him information. “Bob,” he said, dropping any formality and using the shorthand version of the senator’s first name, “do you know how many times you’ve hired me in the past thirteen years?”

The senator shook his head.

“Sixty-seven. Mostly in contracts in the Middle East. You’ve hired Black Raven through your oil companies and you’ve also been instrumental in getting us hired through government contracts. You do it because we deliver. Black Raven isn’t good. We’re great. You’ve said it yourself. And the reason why we’re great is, in addition to agents with brawn and guns, we have an entire think tank behind the scenes.

“Today’s battles are won not just though a show of power, but on analyzing data. We’ve recreated the events that took place in the lives of Jennifer Root and Zachary Young for the last three years. Every banking transaction, every trip, every credit card transaction, every e-mail, and every phone call.”

The desk chair squeaked again, and the senator’s shoulders sagged. Slightly. “When Richard Barrows’ oldest daughter told me you were the conduit her father had planned for the Oval Office, I had Ragno profile you as well.”

Sebastian felt better when the senator’s ruddy cheeks became pale. “Are you insinuating that I somehow am involved in what is going on with Richard Barrows?”

“Come on, Bob,” Zeus said, a low note of humor obvious in his quiet tone. “That’s exactly what we’re insinuating. You knew it the moment we called.”

The senator stood. Sebastian and Zeus did so as well.

Ragno’s voice broke in. “Sebastian. Zeus. I’m cross-referencing data on our prior agents, who may have had knowledge of recent transportation procedures used at Last Resort. I’ve got two common elements with our prior agents and the five prospective purchasers. One is Trask Enterprises. Another is a Russian company. Other intel narrows it to Trask, but we still need confirmation from the senator on that.”

“You knew the value of the technology, because you knew the government was implementing it. You, Root, and Young negotiated the deal with Trask Enterprises,” Sebastian said. “Yes or no?”

“I did no such thing.”

Sebastian felt better when he heard the tone of indignation in the senator’s voice. He could smell the pine logs that were burning in the fireplace, could smell Lucy’s dander, and as he leaned across the desk, he could smell the stink of nervousness that was beginning to infuse the air around the senator.

“Bob, here’s where I get to educate you on the difference between me and the law enforcement officials who work for the federal government. You know that lady with a blindfold who holds the scales of justice?”

The senator gave a slow, puzzled nod.

“I don’t give a flying fuck about her, or her concept of justice. I’m hired to do a job, and that’s all I care about. For this job,” Sebastian said, leaning further across the desk, more into the man’s space. “I’m not hired to do one thing that might tarnish your career. My goal is to find Richard Barrows and throw his ass back in jail,” Sebastian said. “Understand?”

The senator nodded, his eyes intense and focused on Sebastian. “I understand that, because I hired you to keep prisoners exactly where they’re supposed to be.”

“You hired me so that you could say just that, to make sure no one looked to you. Ever.” Sebastian said. “The truth is you hired my company to give you somewhere to point your finger, when the prison break occurred, to cover your ass when news leaked of Barrows’ escape, which we all now know was a kidnapping. Let me repeat. My goal is only to find Richard Barrows. Now, that includes his youngest daughter. It also includes finding the sick sons of bitches who killed my agents. For the moment, I’d like to think you weren’t involved in that. I’d like to give you the benefit of the doubt, that you were only the driver of this deal. That you left the details to others. Well, those others are going to pay for what they’ve done,” Sebastian drew a deep breath. “Unlike you, if I meet my goals, I don’t need to point fingers anywhere, and I don’t plan on pointing my finger at you, unless you give me a reason. Do you fucking understand that?”