“Sir, this just came in from the New Jersey Police.”
Placing his glasses on, Hall reading the note. ‘Halle-fucking-luiah!’
“Sir?”
“Take this to Director Lopez.”
Hall was back on the phone to Lilburn. “Matt. You were right. A pig farmer called in to New Jersey Police — the cell is heading back this way but they’re a man down.” The Director went into further detail, location, time, the retrieval of one handgun. “I’m sending additional assets, we need to saturate the area and secure the cell before nightfall.”
Director Lopez walked towards the door of the ops room with the note from the New Jersey Police. “Ma’am, I require your signature on this requisition order.” The officer held out pen and paper for the director but she just kept walking, seemingly oblivious to the officer’s request. “Ma’am… Ma’am?” Another man, bent over with his hands resting on a colleague’s desk, watched her appear to snub the request for a signature. Lopez kept on coming and he thought it wise to maneuver himself out of her way, straightening himself up and allowing the director room. There was no thanks for his effort. He looked at her retreating back and muttered to his colleague, “What a bitch!”
Dr. Crawston’s day had seemed very long. Her input into the events had been beneficial to the operation but she had hoped for more involvement. Given the expense of bringing her in from London, she had quietly hoped for a lot more. Evangeline stifled a yawn. She needed some fresh air. Director Lopez caught her attention. The woman wouldn’t let her femininity get in the way of her career. No doubt, she thought, the director was as hard as she looked. Discreetly watching her walking towards the door, she couldn’t help noticing the woman’s total lack of response. Way more than usual she was sure, and way more than anything she had noticed previously. Evangeline felt a twinge of compassion. As Lopez left the room, Evangeline decided to see if she was all right.
As the door to the corridor closed behind Evangeline, she tried to see where the director had gone. A half dozen or so staff wandered the corridor; no one’s hair matched Lopez’s long black length. Oh well, the ladies’ WC seems like a logical place to start.
Evangeline pushed the door open and entered; the door automatically swung shut. She could hear Lopez talking… and after only a few words she knew it wasn’t a casual conversation. The tone was abrupt, angry. Evangeline turned and grabbed the door handle to walk back out the way she had come in; now wasn’t the time. But something stopped her. Something she heard.
“We know you’re heading back towards New York and we know you’re one man down. The drone will spot you anytime from now on… Yes, yes I’ll let you know… Correct, those men are agents… His name is Matt Lilburn.”
Evangeline’s hand flew to her mouth. The conversation Lopez was having abruptly stopped, then started again. She was safe for now.
“I need to know my son is safe. I need to know you haven’t hurt him… He’d better be. If you harm him in any way, I’ll kill you.”
Faltering backwards, Evangeline bumped into a wall. Lopez was implicated in the terrorism plot. She had just given out information to someone, under duress it seemed, but given out information nevertheless. Matt Lilburn’s name was mentioned. Evangeline had to think quickly. Director Hall. Reaching for the door handle she pulled… An arm shot out and forced the door shut with a bang. Evangeline turned. In her face was one upset, angry and totally dangerous woman.
“How much did you hear?”
“I heard enough to know your actions are treasonable.”
“That’s a shame. That’s a real shame.”
Lopez moved with speed and power, grabbing a handful of Evangeline’s hair and whiplashed her arm, held in the other hand, which sent the Englishwoman’s head pole-driving into the nearest wall. Overwhelmed by the violent impact, she moaned. Lopez again grabbed her hair, flinging her into the middle of the room, where she fell awkwardly. Evangeline screamed, more from shock than pain. She knew she had to get to her feet but her opponent was fast. Lopez sent a foot flying at Evangeline’s head, it missed by a fraction of an inch but was followed up with a flurry of kicks. Evangeline tried to block, to no avail so she tried to grab Lopez and pull her down. She twisted to one side and grabbed desperately at the other woman’s foot and yanked as hard as she could. Lopez lost her momentum and was pulled violently down, tripping over the prone Evangeline. Scrambling to her feet Evangeline was horrified to find Lopez had done the same. She knew she would probably lose, but she wasn’t about to give in. Grabbing Lopez by an arm she swung her towards the cubicles. Lopez hung on and both women fell crashing onto the floor next to a toilet bowl.
Luckily for Evangeline, Lopez hit her head on the white porcelain bowl, knocking herself unconscious. Evangeline staggered back out of the cubicle, then fell backwards. Propping herself up on her hand and elbow and breathing hard, she saw the director lying still.
Pulling herself painfully to her feet, her ribs aching, Evangeline looked at herself in the mirror. Slowly her breath came back, and her pulse slowed. Ruffled up… but nothing some water thrown over her face couldn’t cure, and some almighty bruises were already on their way. Turning on the cold tap she cupped her hands. It had been one hell of a day.
“Doctor, I beg you. Please don’t.”
Evangeline spun around. Lopez was standing, propped against the cubicle door, her head low. Without her trademark arrogance, she was almost unrecognisable. She was crying.
“You bitch! Are you actually doing what I think you’re doing?”
Lopez raised her head and closed her eyes. “Yes. They have my son. They have my only child.”
Evangeline stood still. Slowly she moved from seeing the woman standing before her as the stone-faced cow of a director she knew to a mother sacrificing everything for her child. Tentatively she took a few steps forward, then a few more. “But how can I trust anything you say? You’re a traitor to your country.”
Lopez said nothing.
“I can’t let you do this to innocent people. How could you?”
“Are you a mother? No. Then you can’t possibly know. I never raised Robby. I gave him up at birth. I doubt if anyone here knows, I kept it a secret, took extended leave when I was pregnant, spewed my guts out in these toilets when I had morning sickness. I sacrificed him for my country. I sacrificed him once and I won’t do it again. He’s only seven years old. I… I… just can’t.”
It was the pain in her eyes that did it in the end. And it put Evangeline in a position she had never been in before and never wanted to be in again.
“I have to tell Director Hall. I have to; there’s too much at stake.” Evangeline took a step backwards, then turned for the door.
“No… please. I’m begging you!”
Chapter Twenty-six
“Your son is unharmed. He will remain safe unless you do not comply. If you fail me, then you will hear his screams for all eternity.”
“Who was that?”
“Our contact in Homeland Security. An unwilling but cooperative player.”
“You have her son?”
“We do.” The moment was strung out. “I am sorry about your friend.”
Bashir looked at Bomani then back to the road in front of them. “I’m sorry too. I’m sorry he wasn’t stronger. He was my best friend… but I understand what you had to do. I understand the cause is greater than any one of us. I am prepared to die for Allah. It’s become so clear now… so clear.”
“You are a good man. We will succeed, it is written. The high-ranking official in the infidel security informed me they now know the direction we are headed in and it will only be a matter of time before the drone in the sky finds us.”