Chapter 2 #2
The streets of Seattle were slowly coming alive with foot traffic.
Normal people are on their way to their normal jobs.
All of them were unaware of the danger that was brewing.
He needed to find the mole and stop them before they handed off the information to Lysander.
He was sure that it was Spartak who orchestrated the whole thing.
His boots pounded the pavement as he ran through different scenarios of how they were going to use the information. Lysander could steal the weapons and sell them, or worse, use them. Or they could just sell the information to any number of governments, including their own, Russia.
He punched the number for his handler in his phone. "We need to meet. Two hours. The underwater dome. And, Monica, I need the truth this time."
He hung up before she even confirmed that she'd be there. He'd have to deal with her ire later. Right now, he had two hours to get his hands on the security footage from last night and make a plan to keep Taylor from taking the fall.
Kam ducked into a small cafe and took the table in the far corner. He was going to need help getting that footage and a place to go with Taylor to keep her safe. Schulz thought that their safe houses were covert, but it would not take much for his contact to find them.
Kam called the one person who could help him. "Maximus. I need a favor."
"You saved my life. You never have to ask.
" Maximus was in a gulag in Russia, forced to hack for Spartak.
When Kam started infiltrating the organization, Maximus taught him the way the operation worked and gave him insider knowledge that allowed Kam to earn Ian's trust. Before he came over to the US, Kam made sure that Maximus had safe passage to the US. "And it's Max now."
"I need your skills and possibly a place to lay low."
Max cleared his throat. "For you, I will do it. Get me what you need, and I will get it done. As always, my place is open to you."
"Thank you, Max. I'll leave it for you."
Kam typed out an email and saved it in the drafts folder of the email address he had set up for Max. Ironically, he had it set up for Max to communicate with him in an emergency.
Now he needed to make it across town. If he started walking, he'd be able to catch the light rail and get to the aquarium before Monica arrived. Kam downed the last of his black coffee and made his way towards the water. He'd need to keep a good pace, but not be too fast that others would notice.
As Kam approached the Line 1 light rail, his phone vibrated. A text from Max.
It's done. You know where to find me.
The train clacked into the station, and Kam got on the last car and sat in the back.
He brought up the drafts section and clicked on the video link.
Right before the video cut out, a man in dark clothes and a baseball hat appeared around the corner heading towards the senator's room.
No way to positively identify them. A dead end.
He'd have Max run backgrounds on all of the Senator's staff. The room was destroyed, but the only thing taken was that file. Why draw attention to the crime? A trained operative would have been in and out, and no one would have known the information was missing.
He clicked open the next file, and it was a list of FBI safe houses in Alaska.
Davin would probably want to keep her close to the field office.
Kam took a screen capture of two potential houses they could use.
He needed to get answers from Monica, and then he would go to Davin and hope that he went along with his plan.
The smell of the ocean intensified as he made his way away from the station toward the boardwalk. The crowds would only grow as the day progressed, which would help him disappear after his meeting. The cargo train along the piers sounded its whistle as it headed toward the crossing.
Kam rounded the building and found an opening in the fence to get him on the back side of the aquarium.
He needed to stay a ghost for today. Someone came out of the door with some trash.
The employee had headphones in and hauled the bag to the dumpster, then went back inside.
Kam closed the gap and caught the door before it shut.
He was inside, at least. Now, he needed to make it to the rendezvous spot before Monica got there.
Just as he had hoped, the earlier hour saw few people inside the aquarium. He made his way through the displays and out the other doors. He would pause every once in a while to make it look like he was any other visitor. He made his way to the next pier and the underwater dome.
Inside, he found a darkened corner so he could watch the people coming in and out of the area. He didn't have to wait long. Monica came into the room and stood along the edge away from the exits. Kam approached her from behind.
"I wanted to be a mermaid and live under the water as a kid," she said as he stepped beside her.
"I grew up on an island, but that sea is not a place you want to find yourself.
It doesn't care who you are. It will swallow you all the same.
" The old tale his grandfather used to tell Kam and his cousins filtered through his mind.
So many souls lost to the cold depths. A raging monster that preyed on the sailors who chose not to respect the waters.
Local fishermen would tell the stories of sea monsters and capsized skiffs.
Kam didn't believe in the notion of sea monsters, but the human kind lurked in the shadows around the globe. He was determined to free Taylor from one of them and, if God would allow it, set himself free too.
"I need to know who tipped you off about the senator's web designer."
"That's not important to the mission."
"Yes, it is. Someone is trying to set up an innocent person. I need to figure out who before it's too late and the information has already passed to Lysander."
"How do you know she is innocent? Everyone has secrets." Monica moved slowly to get a better look at the next section of viewing glass.
Kam kept his face stoic. He didn't trust anyone from the agency. "I will get the files back, but you need to make sure this disappears from the tech's records completely."
"Who is she to you?" If Monica didn't already know the answer to that question, then she wasn't as good as he thought.
Kam leaned toward the glass as if he were watching the fish. "I just don't want to see another person betrayed by their government."
"Is that what you think happened to you?" Monica flicked her hand. "We saved you. Made you realize your full potential."
Was the agency responsible for what happened to him and his men? He had always assumed that they saw an opportunity and took it. This was a web he would need to untangle later.
"Do we have a deal?" Kam asked as he moved past her.
"You have one week to get me the files, then she gets tried as a terrorist, and you go to a place that no one comes back from. And, King," Monica dropped her voice to a lethal whisper. "You go rogue again, I'll personally make sure you get burned."
Kam bit down on his back molars. "If you want the files back, you need to tell me who tipped you off."
"An email between Tina and another staff member was flagged, and when we dug into her background, Tina Miller didn't exist before 5 years ago."
Monica faced him. "Get the files and bring down Lysander. Stick to the mission."
Kam narrowed his eyes. "Once I do this, I'm done. No more games. No more missions."
Monica's jaw twitched. "I'll see what the director has to say, but I make no promises." With that, she walked away.
Kam would be done. One way or another, he'd get his life back. Or he'd create a new one, hopefully with Taylor by his side.