Page 91 of Sinner's Salvation

“The Breznik Family has extensive business interests in the United States and around the world. You’re going to have to be more specific about thethis.”

“You’re part of a criminal organization with ties to terrorists.”

“No, we’re not,” Mason said matter-of-factly.

“Well, I guess we’ll find out,” the man said. “Get these two over to our headquarters for questioning,” he shouted.

A couple of minutes later, the lobby was almost completely silent.

The State Department wasn’t going to be able to help her, not now. They would have made a good defense. She needed a better offence.

What she needed was a bunch of people no one could anticipate, who Homeland couldn’t just throw in jail.

And she knew just where to find them. About forty-eight stories up.

Anna ran back up the stairs until she got to the level of the guest rooms the Chinese were staying in and knocked on the door.

When it opened, she said, “I need your help.”

Chapter Eleven

Anna hurried throughYvgeny’s tunnel system until she reached the hidden door they’d all used to enter the system near the Grand Central subway station platform. She exited the tunnel and hurried through the dark subway until she reached the edge of the platform.

It was crowded with people, all of them draped in cameras, umbrellas, hats, and bags. Their conversations weren’t in English, but in Mandarin.

As soon as she reached the edge of the platform, a group of the tourists posed near the edge while another member of their group took pictures. While that was happening, two shorter tourists stepped back and held their hands out, hauling her up onto the platform with no fanfare at all.

One of them slipped a subway ticket into her hand, while the other gave her a floppy hat identical to the one she wore, a light rain jacket, and a large camera with a long, telescoping lens attached to it.

Anna quickly donned her disguise, then bowed slightly and thanked them in Mandarin.

When the train arrived a few seconds later, she boarded it along with the crowd of tourists, using the camera to scan for law enforcement, Homeland Security agents, or the Italians.

There were a half-dozen police officers scanning the crowd, but wearing the same outer clothing as several other people in the mass of tourists, and with the camera shielding her face, effectively made her invisible.

The two women who’d taken her under their wing, excitedly told her about their next destination, a tour of the High Line, then the warehouse district.

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