Pierce raised his glass. “The third group that came to mind is religious fundamentalists. People who believe that death is the doorway to God.”
Score three for Pierce. “Huh.”
They settled back into their chairs to mull over the implications in shared silence.
Felix was only a few sips into it when his burner cell began vibrating. He pulled it from his pocket, glanced at the display, then showed it to Pierce before answering. “Hello, Tory.”
“Good afternoon.” Tory’s phone voice was unmistakable. No accent per se, more like a sophisticated software program dialed to the Soldier setting. Cool, clean, and devoid of emotion.
“I’m with Pierce. Okay if I put you on speaker?”
“No problem.”
“Hold on a sec.” Felix gestured toward the yacht’s sky lounge where it would be easier to hear. They took their glasses inside and sat at a small table. “Okay, go ahead.”
“I’ve run into an issue with two replacements. David’s and Aria’s.”
“What kind of issue?”
“Interference.”
Felix closed his eyes. He’d been dreading a call like this.
“Pierce here, and I’m confused. I thought you’d already replaced David?”
“I did, but the switch was detected. There was a freak coincidence with a man I’ve since identified as the replacement’s college roommate. He showed up in the wrong place at the wrong time and caught David impersonating his friend.”
Felix voiced his frustration. “We know that. During the videoconference, you told us you solved that problem.”
“I thought I had. I sent him over a cliff on a motorcycle. His survival was a million to one.”
“But he beat the odds?”
“He did.”
“And then he resurfaced?”
“He did that, too. When I was replacing Aria. In Virginia.”
“In Virginia!” Felix felt his bowels turning to water. They’d been discovered. And they were being hunted.
“It’s not as bad as it seems,” Tory hastened to say.
“We’re all ears,” Felix said. “Please tell us why.”
“Not knowing that the motorcycle man had survived, I used the same con for Aria’s replacement. The CIA recruitment ploy I told you about. Apparently, the survivor anticipated that repeat performance and set up a surveillance op at the hotel or restaurant or mortuary. I’m not sure which.”
“Mortuary?” Pierce asked.
Felix held up a hand. The others didn’t know the details of Tory’s disposal tactics, and he figured it was best to keep it that way. “Wait a minute, Tory. You’re saying this guy found Aria’s replacement through the replacement process itself, not some other leak?”
“I am. I’ve given it a lot of thought and I’m confident that’s the only explanation.”
“So he doesn’t know about us?”
“There’s no way that he could.”
Felix desperately hoped that Tory was right.
Pierce chimed back in. “So who is this survivor?”
“Zachary Chase was the college roommate of David’s replacement. His Social Security records show employment with the State Department.”
“He’s a diplomat?”
Tory paused a beat. “After seeing him operate, I think he’s a spook. The CIA runs its operatives through the payrolls of other government agencies.”
“Let me get this straight,” Pierce said. “While a CIA agent is pursuing you, you’re doing a CIA recruitment con?”
“Ex-CIA agent. He separated around the time I recruited David’s replacement, which I did near where Chase lives. Given their shared history, and Chase’s availability, it’s natural that they would hook up. And since the replacement thought he was interviewing for the CIA, and his buddy was CIA, it’s natural that they’d talk. It’s all an unfortunate coincidence brought about by shared geography.”
Felix liked the sound of that, in that it had nothing to do with the Immortals as a group. It was bad luck. With any operation of size, you were bound to get a bit of that. “So where does that leave our operation?”
“We’ve lost some time, but I think that’s it. Obviously, I won’t use the CIA con again, and Chase has no other leads, so I’m convinced that he won’t get any further.”
“But he’s seen your face,” Pierce said.
“He might as well have seen a ghost. My photo isn’t any more available for matching than yours.”
Felix looked at Pierce, who gave a satisfied nod. “So what’s next?”
“I have to start over with two replacements, and work without my favored con. But I’ll have things back on track soon.”
Felix felt his digestion returning to normal. He took a healthy swallow of wine while Tory suffered in silence. “Please call Aria and David to let them know. They should hear about this from you directly.”
“Will do.”
“I also want regular updates.”
“Okay. Speaking of updates, is there anything you want to tell me?”
Tory had never used that phrase before, or spoken with a challenging tone. Had he heard about the murders? Felix looked at Pierce, who shook his head. “No.”
“Nothing I need to know to do my job?”
“Don’t you think I’d tell you if there were?”
“I’m monitoring all of you, as you know. That’s part of my job. It’s integral to the satisfaction guarantee. Among other measures, I’ve set up Google alerts for all the new identities.” He paused there.
Felix knew what was coming, but held his tongue.
“I know Ries is dead. He’s the second member of your group to meet with a fatal accident in a month. What’s going on, Felix?”
Felix looked at Pierce. The Eos investor was clearly running calculations parallel to Felix’s own—but at a faster pace. Pierce raised three fingers, then rubbed thumb to forefingers.
Felix returned a nod. “We’re actually down three. Camilla also passed. Given the increased attention, we’re prepared to double your annual maintenance payment. We’ll make it an even million dollars for every year you keep all eyes off us. But this raise only applies if you complete your initial assignment in a timely manner and without further interference.”
Tory had the tact not to ask for detail about Camilla, but he didn’t signal satisfaction either.
Felix pressed forward. “Can you do that? Can you guarantee me that I’ll never get another call like this one?”
This time, Tory did not hesitate. “I can.”
“Good. Get it done.”
39
Capillary Action
SLICED FROM THE STUMP of a giant sequoia, the round table in Aria’s library boasted nine matching chairs. Three were empty as the Immortals convened their emergency meeting. Those vacancies were the reason they had assembled.
Attempts at the usual pleasantries had been made as people arrived and mingled, but the beverages imbibed had been nonalcoholic, and the conversations were notably stilted. Weather reports and stock portfolio performances didn’t cut it when people feared the Grim Reaper and were searching each other for scythes.
Once the last Immortal arrived, Pierce held up a preemptive finger. “Before we get started, I would like to make one request.”
Conversations halted and all eyes turned his way.
“I don’t know how to put this delicately, so I won’t endeavor to do so. If something should happen to David and Allison, the rest of us will lose our Eos supply. I was hoping that some arrangement could be made.”
The room remained silent, but only for a second.
“We worked that out long ago,” Lisa said, surprising everyone. “David and I selected two reputable compounding pharmacies, and gave each of them half the recipe, so to speak. Neither knows about the other. Neither knows what they have or why. But they know how to make their ingredient if asked.”