“So now we have a possible link with Lopez and the scientist who recently died.”
“Not only the one who died, but the one with expert knowledge of the virus.” Hall held out his hand for the file, Lilburn handed it over.
“Did he really die of… what was it? A heart attack? Or maybe it wasn’t a natural death.”
“So you’ll pull Lopez in?”
Hall sat back in his chair and puffed on his pipe. The tobacco had stopped burning. He took a second match and relit the pipe. “No. No… don’t think I will. We have her on twenty-four-hour physical and electronic surveillance; whatever she does, whatever she says, is all recorded. I’ll leave that in place. No, what I intend to do is have you take the lead. For the moment I want your investigation to be separate; you do what you have to. I want hard evidence that Lopez is what you say she is. Let’s give the bitch some rope and see what she does with it.” Hall smiled. To Lilburn it was as if Hall had just drawn up a game plan in his head, one he was confident of winning.
“I’ll have to renege on that offer of R&R — instead I’d like you on this right away. Anything you want or require, contact me directly, no one else is to know. Are we clear on that?”
“Yes, sir, loud and clear.”
“A couple of things before you go. For the time being your involvement in this new operation is strictly between you and me, no one else. I realize Dr. Crawston has some involvement so if you would convey to her the secrecy required in this matter. Her flight leaves tomorrow from JFK — see my secretary for flight times.” Hall stood up and extended a hand. The meeting was over.
Chapter Thirty-four
Matt Lilburn returned to the Twenty Horse Inn driving a Jeep Wrangler, duly signed for in front of a particularly pedantic car pool manager at Homeland Security. Lilburn was left in no doubt that the officer wanted the vehicle back in perfect condition. He refrained from retaliating, preferring to smile at the pot-bellied buffoon. As soon as he handed back the clipboard with his signature emblazoned on the vehicle loan papers, Lilburn eased himself into the driver’s seat, turned on the ignition, adjusted the rear-vision mirror and held up his hand to wave. Which lasted all of about one second before he clenched all his fingers into a fist, bar his middle finger, which stuck straight up. As Lilburn planted his foot to the floor the tires spun, sending up a plume of smoke. The horrified manager watched the Jeep Wrangler doing a burn-out while being flipped the bird by its driver.
It was just after lunchtime when the Jeep edged into the parking bay outside his motel unit. The refrigerator inside the unit would be bare, so he walked down to number fifteen, looking for Evangeline. There were a few things to discuss with her about Lopez. With less than a day left before she flew back to London, he needed to make the most of her expertise. He knocked on the door.
“Why, hello, stranger.”
“Stranger be blowed.”
“Later, big boy. So how did your meeting with Director Hall go?”
“He was concerned at what we had to say, so much so I’ve been asked to investigate. Hall already has Lopez on twenty-four-hour surveillance, so it looks as if we were just confirming his suspicions.”
“It must be hard for him to accept a colleague has betrayed him.”
“Yeah. He’s worked with her for a few years. I don’t think that they were ever bosom buddies, but nevertheless…”
“Would you like a cup of tea? Sometimes I need a good cuppa — it must be a heritage thing.” Evangeline rummaged in the wicker basket on top of her kitchen top. “I do have one of America’s finest tea bags.”
“Try me. Black, no sugar.”
Lilburn sat at the breakfast bar while Evangeline made tea. He wasn’t exactly salivating at the thought. He stared at his cup for a short time before taking a sip. “Interesting…” He put the cup down and pushed it to one side. “I’ll take you to JFK tomorrow.”
“Now that’s very sweet of you, but quite unnecessary. You’ll have more than enough to do with your investigation.”
“What say you come with me to visit Lopez, then tomorrow we leave a few hours early and visit Plum Island on the way to JFK? I have a couple of leads I need to look into and I’d appreciate your input.”
“That sounds just perfect as long as…”
“Yeah?”
“As long as you keep this evening free…”
“That’s the building.”
Lilburn looked through the driver’s side window and across the road to a tall block of apartments. Less than one half mile south was Homeland. “So you reckon those bunch of flowers will do the trick?”
“Think like a woman for a change — you could achieve wonders!”
Lilburn waited for Evangeline before crossing the road together. He glanced around the other buildings in the vicinity, wondering which harbored the surveillance teams. Having been on more stakeouts than he liked to remember, he was more than happy to be the one being watched. “Smile for the cameras, sweetheart, they’ll be clicking their little shutters off right now.”
Evangeline led the way. Inside a lift took them up two levels to a well-lit hallway.
“You locked and loaded?” asked Lilburn.
Evangeline took in a deep breath and knocked.
Door peep-holes had always intrigued Lilburn. You never knew when the person behind the door was looking through. Do you smile? For how long? Do you look away, perhaps move to the side so you can’t be seen or stare straight at it? Thankfully the sound of a chain could be heard then shortly after the door opened. Evangeline held the flowers in front of her and greeted Lopez.
“Hello, Suzanna. Matt and I thought you might like these.”
“They’re beautiful.” Suzanna kissed her on the cheek. “Thank you, Special Agent Lilburn, thank you so much. Come in.” Lopez shut the door once they had entered the apartment. “I love the quaint pink color and… You know what? I don’t have the faintest idea what they are. Matt, do you know?”
Informality from a congenial Lopez wasn’t what Lilburn had anticipated. Neither was the question. Evangeline came to the rescue. “They’re peonies. Did you know the peony is the traditional floral symbol of China, and known as the emperor of flowers?”
“Really! You’re quite something aren’t you? Is there anything you don’t know?”
Before Evangeline had a chance to react to the hidden barb, Lopez had bustled ahead into the kitchen. “Let me put these in water.”
Evangeline acted as if she hadn’t heard. “Cut the bottom of the stems off, just a little. It will help them take up the nutrients in the water.”
Good girl, thought Lilburn. He wasn’t here to interrogate, he was here to watch the game. The game where subtle nuances of speech and body language could be as productive as sitting in a confessional; while it might not be admissible in court, it could provide an understanding, a lead.
“How are you holding up?” asked Lilburn.
Lopez placed the vase of flowers on the dining room table, centering the arrangement. “Call me Suzanna, Matt. We all know my career is over. No point in being formal anymore now is there.” She gave an awkward smile then looked to the table top. Lilburn could see her biting her lip. “Please sit down. Coffee?”
Placing two cups of freshly made espresso on the table in front of her guests, Lopez reached for a packet of cigarettes and her coffee. Opening the sliding door off the dining area she stepped out onto a small balcony with a wrought iron balustrade. Apart from a small round wooden outdoor table, upon which she placed her coffee cup, the space was empty. She lit a cigarette and stared out over the surrounding buildings. “You know, one of the reasons I rented this place was because I could see Homeland from here. I would watch people on the street below going about their day, totally oblivious to what went on in those buildings.” She drew in hard on the cigarette and held the smoke before releasing it in a heavy exhale. She turned to her guests sitting at the table just inside the door. “I’d like to see that photo of us.”