Page 101 of Smoke and Shadows

“He didn’t take it, so no damage done.”

“No. Damage. Done?” Marissa said incredulously. “Are you so arrogant to think that when you fail to manipulate people’s lives, you can just brush it off like some failed business deal? You insulted Viktor. You need to apologize.”

“I will not!”

“Then we have nothing more to say to each other,” Marissa said.

“Wait. Let’s meet for lunch. I’m in DC.”

“Why are you in DC?”

“I’m meeting Senator Goodman’s aide on port security concerns.”

“You’re at the U.S. Capitol complex?” Marissa frowned. Unease slithered up her spine.

“Yes.”

“When was this meeting set up?”

“For someone uninterested in the business—”

“Dad, answer the question!”

“Yesterday. I received my summons yesterday.”

“And did you verify the request?”

“My assistant told me . . . what’s wrong?”

“It’s probably nothing,” Marissa tried to reassure her father. “Do you have a direct line to Senator Goodman’s office?”

“I think so.”

“Do me a favor and verify your meeting.”

“But—”

“Just do it, Dad. Call me back immediately, okay?”

After getting reassurance from her father he’d call back, she pondered whether to reschedule the meeting with Senator Robinson. She didn’t have much to report yet, and besides it would be best if they waited for the results from Viktor’s end.

“Positive ID on the guy.He’s in apartment 5A,” Nathan told Viktor and Edmunds as he got into the parked car in front of the PeachTree apartments. “Heat signature indicates one person inside. Surrounding apartments are empty.”

The streets in and around the complex were empty because it was mid-morning on a work day. This was advantageous for their op and there would be less chance of casualties in case SK nerve gas was released.

“Chatter is indicating an imminent attack,” Viktor said. “We need to move in now and seize whatever is in there. The last canister had a GPS device. If the tracker is in there we could locate the weapons sooner.”

Viktor called the datacenter.

“Tim. We’re going in. Keep visuals on the complex and let us know if you spot any hostiles.”

“Copy that, boss.”

Viktor got out of the car and regarded the two Guardians with him. “Ready?”

Both men nodded solemnly. They already had on their Kevlar vests. Nathan pulled out the battering ram from the trunk. The apartment was a corner unit, so they had no choice but to approach from one direction. Arriving at the door, Nathan scooted to the other side of the portal, battering ram at the ready. Viktor gave the signal that he was going in low, which meant Edmunds was going in high. Stark hauled the siege device back and propelled it forward, releasing the piston that enhanced the momentum.

The door crashed open and there was a surprised yell. The bald man from the surveillance footage dove toward a weapon, but Viktor immediately called his attention. “Drop it!”

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