“Do we have any leads about who was in that cell?”

“We have a few names. The investigation was going pretty well until the general hired Zander to kill Doane’s son. Then the panic started, and they all went underground. There was a Paul Berlitz, a George Cartland, who appeared to be in charge, and a Mohammed Nali. We were gathering other names, but—”

“You haven’t been able to find any of those men you ID’d?”

He shook his head. “Believe me, we’ve tried. For a while, we thought that they’d returned to Tehran. They might have done that, but we can’t take a chance. The minute Doane took off from the safe house where we placed him, the game changed.”

“New jobs, new identity papers? I suppose you checked out the usual sources in Chicago?” He gave her a sour look, and she shrugged. “I had to ask. I understand you haven’t been following your usual modus operandi. Where do you go from here?”

“Locate Doane. Hopefully, capture him and make him tell us where those damn devices are located. Otherwise, kill him and hope he hasn’t already told Cartland where Kevin hid the nukes.”

“Either way, Eve could get caught in the cross fire.”

Venable made no reply.

Catherine’s eyes narrowed on his face. “Why are you being this open with me? You didn’t even make me dig. Yet you’ve evidently been deceptive as hell with Joe Quinn and Jane MacGuire.”

“I hoped I was going to be able to get rid of Doane without everything toxic coming bubbling to the surface. There are a few Homeland Security people whose jobs are on the line if that happens. And if you think I was reckless when we cornered Doane with Eve in the ghost town, you’d be stunned to know what those antiterrorist guys from Homeland Security would have done. Did you know there are drone bases on standby at the border? I got a call the next day from Major Eroldon asking why I hadn’t called him to initiate a drone strike.” He added grimly, “He was partially pacified when the word came out that Doane and Eve were dead. But he was still pissed off that I hadn’t kept him in the loop.”

“A drone strike,” Catherine repeated. “He would have authorized a strike that would have killed Eve without even trying to get her out?”

“National security,” Venable said sourly. “And also job security. A dangerous combination in the hands of bureaucrats.”

“And if Doane was dead, how were they to make sure that no one had access to those bombs?”

“They prefer to think positive and get rid of the initial problem. Haven’t you noticed that’s been the standard operating procedure for the drone program?”

“You didn’t keep them in the loop.” Her gaze was searching his face. “Would you now?”

He didn’t answer.

“Dammit, would you do it?”

“What do you want me to say? The problem still exists. My first reaction is to handle it myself to the best of my ability. Too many cooks in the kitchen are not good. Particularly when the head chef is an arrogant bastard like Eroldon.” He met her gaze. “But if it comes down to needing extra firepower, you can bet I’ll call for help.”

“Great. Just great.”

“Just as I’m asking help from you, Catherine. I kept you out of it before because I needed the chance to keep everything confidential, but I can’t do that any longer. I need all the help I can get. We have to get Doane and get him fast.”

“Screw Doane. We need to get Eve.”

“Catherine.”

“Okay, we have to stop Doane. But I will get Eve away from him before you turn loose those damn drones. What are you doing to track him?”

“Kendra identified the tire prints of the truck Doane used after he landed on the bank of the stream after leaving the cavern. They’re commonly used on off-road vehicles. SSR series.”

“Yes, she told me about it.”

“We’ve begun checking all the cameras in the nearby areas to see if we can spot a vehicle that generally uses that type of tires.”

“Any luck?”

“A sighting on the night of the fire of a tan Toyota 4-Runner with a dented left fender at the Wyoming border. It appeared that the driver was alone, but if Eve was unconscious, she would have been slumped down anyway. We’re checking the cameras in both Colorado and Wyoming.”

“No other reports?”

“No, the Toyota disappeared. We zeroed in on the state borders, but that came up zilch. But we’re still searching.”

“The smart thing would have been for him to get off the road and hole up.”

Venable nodded. “We’re checking every hotel, motel, and bed-and-breakfast in every town in both states. The state troopers have been cooperative.”

“Good. We need them. It’s a pretty flimsy lead to go on.” Catherine opened the door and jumped out. “You can count on me to help find that bastard as long as you don’t close me out on any information you get concerning him or those devices. One might lead to another.”

“I’d be stupid to not let you have ammunition when I want you to take Doane down.”

“Really?” She said gently, “I think you’re already holding back on Quinn. But I want answers, Venable.”

“You’ve had answers.”

“No, you were playing footsie with Lee Zander for five years when you stuck Doane in a damn safe house. Everyone thinks Zander disappeared into the sunset after he was told Doane and Eve were still alive. But it would be unreasonable for you not to have tried to keep him in your pocket when you knew he could be a key player. I think you probably told him everything you told me, then arranged to stay in contact with him. I’d bet you’re sharing information with him about what you’re learning about the search. And Zander might have been lost to everyone else, but not to you. You can pick up your phone and contact him, and I’ll bet you know where he is right now.”

He was silent, then he said, “I can pick up my phone, but that’s no guarantee he’ll answer. Though he might since I’ve been feeding him what little information I have about the movement of any vehicles I’ve been able to find that use those tires. He’s probably not been equally open with me, but I take what I can get.”

“And you told him about that tan Toyota? I don’t think so.”

“Well, I was going to tell him … if I couldn’t locate the car on my own.” He chuckled. “And that’s why I had to keep you a thousand miles distant when Eve disappeared. You’re too sharp, Catherine.”

“I know you. I watched you grow and change from the time you hired me when I was a kid on the streets of Hong Kong. Some of the changes I liked, some made me wary.”

“I feel the same about you.” He smiled. “But you’re always interesting, Catherine.”

“I want you to e-mail me the Zander info. Where he is, what he’s working on.” She started to turn away. “And the file on the cell members who might be contacted by Doane.”

“Okay. No problem. Though there’s not much on record and most of it is undoubtedly phony.”

“Whatever you’ve got.”

“Catherine.”

She looked over her shoulder.

“I believe Kendra found something in Doane’s house in Goldfork. She doesn’t trust me, but she might trust you. Did she say anything about it to you before she left?”

“That mysterious disk that you told everyone Doane was holding?”

“Did she say anything?”

“You’re right, she said she didn’t trust you.”

“Did she find anything?”

“It wouldn’t surprise me. But after the way you practically served Eve up as a sacrifice, I don’t think you’ll get it from her unless you can convince her that you’d never do it again.” She looked him directly in the eye. “And, since you haven’t convinced me, I doubt if you could convince her.” She turned away. “Of course, you could come clean about what you expect to find on that ‘disk,’ and you might have a breakthrough. Think about it, Venable.”

CHAPTER

6

Hyatt Airport Hotel