Page 98 of Concluded
Of course not.It was far too obvious a place for them to hide out—and not really suitable for the next step in the plan.Which they wouldn’t be able to attempt until Dee had recovered.
“I’ve been thinking about this.”Achilles used a spoon to chase some rice around his plate.“And I know where we need to go.”
“Where?”asked pretty much everyone all at once.
He sighed.“Bureau HQ.Assuming nobody’s taken it over, that is.”He waved hands to silence the questions.“It has plenty of space.There might be useful supplies there.And dammit, that’sourbuilding.”In a way, it had been much more his home than this condo had been, and for longer.
“I agree,” said Abe.“For the reasons you state.Also, some places are… charged.There’s something special about them.I don’t know if that location was always that way or if having HQ there made it that way—or maybe that schmuck Townsend did something to it.Anyway, it’s good for what we have in mind.”
The validation was nice, and nobody argued with the idea, so apparently they were set.
Mazur, who was very young, cleared her throat.“Um… how are we getting there?”
Shit.Nobody had a phone or a credit card.Achilles had left his car—which wouldn’t fit all of them anyway—at HQ.It was too far to walk, especially for John and Dee.The two of them also wouldn’t be able to manage public transport, even assuming there was a way to get to HQ by bus; Achilles had no clue whether there was.And Dee was in no condition to wish them all there.
Achilles started to laugh.He was aware there was an edge of hysteria to it, but the situation was so damnedidiotic.They’d come so far, literally and figuratively, and now they were stalled by a few impassible miles of Los Angeles.
Abe put a gentle hand on Achilles’ shoulder.“Are there shops nearby, boychik?”
“Um… yeah.There’s a strip mall about a quarter mile north of here.”
“And you have a little cash?”
Achilles had a couple thousand bucks, in fact, squirreled away in a safe, along with his passport and a few other important papers.He fetched the money and distributed some to each person.Even Dee, who was still asleep.
Abe and Lu set off.For lack of anything better to do, Achilles started cleaning up the kitchen and his colleagues joined in right away: emptying and scrubbing the fridge, washing and putting away dishes, wiping everything down.Some of them tackled the rest of the place, which had gotten dusty while he was gone.Maybe all of them knew the exercise was pointless—Achilles would probably never be able to return here—but it kept them busy, gave a sense of accomplishment, and settled their nerves.
They were just finishing up when Abe and Lu returned, both of them grinning broadly and clutching large plastic bags.They dumped the contents onto the coffee table.
“Cell phones?”asked Pandya.
“Yep,” said Lu.“One for each of us.We found a phone store.It was a challenge at first since all we had was cash and they want credit cards.But Abe could sweet-talk candy from a baby.He worked it out.”
Not the least bit modest about it, Abe gave a theatrical bow.“On our way back, I made my first call.Charles was very relieved to hear from us.”
Achilles breathed a little easier knowing that the chief was still alive and well.“What does he want us to do?”
Abe gave him a steady look.“He believes in your plan.He will contact as many remaining agents as possible, and we’ll meet at HQ.”
The chief believed in him.So did everyone currently in the room, including Dee, who squeezed Achilles’ hand.And if they could believe, then Achilles could damn well believe in himself.
“Let’s do this,” he said.
Without any need for discussion, Abe ordered a small fleet of Lyfts.
* * *
From the parking lot,HQ looked dark and a little sinister.Haunted, even.There wasn’t any sign of life, which Achilles reminded himself was a good thing.He didn’t know what they’d have done if it were occupied—especially if it were occupied by the enemy.
“Do you suppose they have this place under surveillance?”Mazur asked as they made their way en masse to the front door.Dee was shuffling along, slowly but on his own power.John, looking apprehensive, was supported by Kurt and Des.
“Maybe,” Kurt replied.“But they’d have a hell of a time getting in.It’s like a fortress.”
That may have been true, but Abe got them through the big front doors with no problem.He was good with locks, and Charles had given him instructions.
Every sound they made echoed in the vast lobby, where the lights burned dimly over empty acres of white marble.Achilles felt an odd stab in the chest when he glanced at the vacant reception desk.He’d passed through here hundreds of times—thousands, maybe—and that desk hadalwaysbeen staffed by somebody, no matter what day or time.Sometimes it was a new recruit, and other times it was a more seasoned agent temporarily sidelined by an injury.He’d manned it himself a few times while recovering.Nobody liked working the desk, but although it was boring, it was also a good place to share gossip.Now, it sat abandoned.
John spoke quietly.“This… this is not where I was held.”He looked around in confusion and maybe a little relief.
