"To tell you the truth, I've been concerned about a mutual acquaintance of ours."

"Addison Black?" she inquired.

"Of course," he responded. "There are a lot of rumors about her. MI-5 isn't that big an operation that we don't hear things, even up north. I heard she was off to the Middle East and still on the mission that brought her to Scotland."

"Quinton, you know I can't discuss another agent's activities," Antonia said, glancing at the door to the general's office.

"Oh, come on, Antonia, for old time's sake. I'm worried about our girl."

"Maybe you should be. I heard there were a few problems up on the Isle of Skye," she said pointedly.

Quinton shook his head sadly. "I received a report about the problems with the weapon I issued to her. I've got no idea what went wrong there, the equipment checked out fine when I had it. Just one of those d.a.m.ned unlucky things," Zimmerman observed. "That's why I came here now. I desperately want to keep tabs on her and make sure she comes through this a.s.signment in one piece." His boyish grin was made even more earnest now.

Antonia vacillated a moment, then in a lowered voice she said, "Israel."

Quinton's eyes opened wide. "It's true then. Has there been any communication from her?"

Antonia bit her lip. "Just a signal from the bio-chip, but we know a few things more than that. We've had a report from someone on the scene."

"What kind of report? Who?" he asked with barely disguised interest.

"All I know is a Mossad agent notified General Blithe about Addison's whereabouts four days ago. You know about Skyler Tidwell?" He nodded. "Well, she's been taken inside the compound where they think Miss Tidwell is being held."

"Taken, eh?" Quinton said, rubbing his chin. "That's very unusual for Addison; she's not an easy woman to defeat. I wonder what her game is?"

"She's the best, Quinton, we all know that, but what can she possibly do? She's just one woman. She may be good, but the word was that she is unarmed and probably injured. What can she do if she's in that type of situation? I'm very frightened for her!" Miss Bakersfield's voice broke and she appeared to have difficulty maintaining her composure.

Agent Zimmerman appeared thoughtful and placed a solicitous hand on her shoulder. "Addison is very resourceful. Don't count her out. Even I could think of a few things I might do in her place."

"You could?" A note of hope returned to Miss Bakersfield's voice. "What would you do? What will she do?" she asked anxiously.

Quinton held out his hand. "Come on, I'll buy you lunch and we'll talk more about this."

Antonia regarded the hand. "All right, you're on." She took her purse from the bottom drawer in her desk and the pair left together.

Addison stretched her muscles and felt satisfaction that, for almost the first time, it seemed she had no pain with full movement. The bullet wound in her side, the gashes on her hands and the various abrasions and lacerations were all healing well. As she prepared for a run through of a few basic calisthenics, she glanced over at Skyler. It appeared Skyler was also feeling the effects of the confinement as she was working on a series of movements.

"What are you doing there?" Addison asked.

"Yoga, nothing really advanced," the blonde replied. It's just a few simple poses I learned as a Physical Education elective course."

The agent laughed. "Right, a few simple positions. You look like a b.l.o.o.d.y pretzel!"

The American laughed and s.h.i.+fted into a fluid series of sun salutes. "Are you calling me twisted?"

"If the shoe fits, wear it," Addison bantered back. "I'll take a few rounds of kickboxing over that stuff anytime." With perfect precision she executed several lightening quick jabs into the air in front of her, followed by a roundhouse kick.

"No doubt about it, you're getting better really quickly." Skyler felt the truth of the words, as Addison had needed her a.s.sistance less and less each day. Not noticing the scientist's dismay, Addison continued her vigorous workout. Skyler made slow sweeping movements that left her facing the door of their room. That reminded her of a question she had wanted to ask the agent for some time.

"Addison, I think I've gotten to know you pretty well over the last few days, but something has been bugging me and well, I'm just going to ask you straight out." The agent raised her eyebrows in question.

"What happened to Shamus' thumb?"

Addison regarded her seriously for such a long time that Skyler was convinced she had offended the woman. Just at that moment though, the agent moved to the sink and splashed cold water onto her face.

Turning to the blonde, Addison asked, "What brought this on?" Before the American could respond, Addison raised her hand. "No, wait, let me hazard a guess. Brodie told you something?"

Skyler shrugged. "Well, yeah. She said you took it as a trophy."

"She would!" Addison scoffed. "As you've probably noted, Shamus isn't the sharpest knife in the drawer. He's useful to Brodie's operation the way that 'muscle' is to all illicit organizations."

The blonde nodded as she glanced at the door. "I can see that."

"I think I could forgive the simpleton for that, but it's his annoying personal habits that caused the loss of that thumb."

Skyler leaned against the wall opposite from the sink and waited for the story.

"Shamus wasn't always Brodie's hired help. Before she sc.r.a.ped him off the bottom of the barrel he was a security guard at a very exclusive girl's school. MI-5 had been tracking a particularly nasty international child p.o.r.nography ring and had discovered, via a very secret computer program, that much of the source material was arising from that school. Because of the international aspects to the case, I was dispatched to end that problem. I went in undercover as a gymnastics teacher and it wasn't difficult to find the source of all the problems."

The agent used the hem of her s.h.i.+rt to mop her brow and face before she continued. "Shamus was using his pa.s.s keys to get into the girl's dormitory rooms, showers and any other place he could think of to install cameras that would catch the girls in a state of undress. I disabled one of his cameras in the girl's showers and then scheduled an extra gymnastics practice for that same day. I knew he would rise to my bait and I wasn't disappointed."

Skyler felt her flesh begin to crawl at the thought of the hulking Shamus spying on the young girls and selling their pictures for profit. "What happened?" she asked.

Addison shrugged. "I found his shower camera in a ventilation register and loosened it enough to block the view of the camera. I knew when the culprit showed up to repair the apparatus that I would have him. Shamus was just pulling the register back into place from the boiler room next door when I gave it a kick from the other side. It crushed his thumb and lacerated the artery in it. The doctors had to amputate, as it wasn't salvageable. The only sore point in the whole thing for me was that it wasn't the b.a.s.t.a.r.d's todger that needed amputating!"

Skyler was curious about one point. "Why isn't he in jail if you caught him red-handed? No pun intended, of course."

The agent smiled a little at that. "That's where I left him, but the posh school decided they didn't want the bad publicity and agreed not to press charges against him if he purged the Internet of the material and agreed never to speak of it to anybody. Through some b.o.l.l.o.c.king red tape procedures the case against him fell and he was freed. I never did find out who put him up to that job, he certainly couldn't have carried it off alone."

Addison returned to her physical activities, now moving into a series of chops and kicks. Her body responded efficiently as she practiced her martial arts manoeuvres. "Shamus is a pervert and not the main problem, but I know who is and soon I'll be able to do what's needed doing for some time. I'm going to see Agnes Brodie dead." A flurry of kicks, punches and chops followed that statement and when she was finished, Addison stood panting with a grim look on her face.

"G.o.d, this thing with Brodie is really personal, isn't it? This goes way beyond her kidnapping me and my mother, doesn't it?" Addison said nothing, but dropped to the mattress that Skyler had moved to while watching Addison move like an apocalyptic dervish.

"You might as well tell me, you know," the American prompted. "I'll just keep bugging you until you talk." Addison had learned firsthand how persistent Skyler could be in prying secrets from the normally taciturn agent, although if the agent were to admit it, she felt a sense of relief having someone to share things with.

"Fine, before you give me a headache by whining about it, I'll tell you." Addison looked away from the blonde as she spoke. "My designation in Special Operations is SO2. I was one of the first agents recruited, but there was one before me. James Easton was a mate of mine. We ran together in the Royal Marines and the Special Air Service as well. He was like a brother to me, concerned and protective even though I could probably kick his a.r.s.e half the time." She gave a wry smile and continued. "When he was recruited to Special Ops, he recommended me. General Blithe was interested in recruiting me but Jimmy confirmed what the general thought."

"About three years ago, Jimmy was sent on a mission to Marrakech. There was a rumor of Turkish opium being funnelled through there and the profits being used to finance terrorist groups. This was the first time the name 'Agnes Brodie' had popped up on the Special Ops radar. It should have been a routine infiltrate and sabotage mission, but something went very wrong. We had no word from Jimmy for over two weeks and then his body was discovered in the desert. He'd been tortured in unimaginable ways and shot in the back of the head execution-style. It wasn't until sometime later we found out Brodie did it. By then she and I had tangled and I had let her off easy. I should have killed her the first time we met," Addison bitterly spat out.

Skyler had listened to the gruesome tale in silence, but could keep quiet no longer.

"Addison, that's horrible but I'm thinking in your trade it would be one of the hazards. I'm sure Jimmy understood the risks and..."

"No!" Addison interrupted. "You don't understand. Just before that mission I came down with a case of chickenpox. Just imagine, a big, bad agent of Her Majesty's government being felled by a childhood illness. Don't you see? The a.s.signment to Marrakech was supposed to be mine. Jimmy went in my place!"

Skyler realized the horrible guilt and anger Addison had been forced to deal with for years and her heart went out to her. She looked into the agent's eyes, now misted with unshed tears.

"You weren't responsible for that, do you hear me? That wasn't your fault. Don't you realize the entire world isn't on your shoulders? You can't save everybody." She pulled the agent to her in a comforting hug. Addison initially resisted the intimacy, but then gave into it and allowed herself to be held.

Not looking into Skyler's eyes, the Brit was able to say, "Jimmy even visited me in hospital before he left. He laughed at my spots and brought me the ugliest puppy from his dog's litter as a get well present. He was the best friend you could ask for and all I could do for him was stand by his wife and daughter as they buried him." She squeezed her eyes shut tightly and used every bit of her considerable will to rein in her emotions. The agent pulled back from Skyler's embrace.

"What Agnes did to Jimmy is not what signed her death warrant though."

Her statement confused the American. "What was then?"

Addison looked directly at Skyler. "She took you." The dark haired woman brought her hand up to Skyler's cheek.

Any reply Skyler might have made to that statement was curtailed by the sound of the door being pulled open from the outside. Shamus' bulk filled the doorway and his tiny eyes darted back and forth looking for any perceived signs of danger as he leveled his AK-47 at the two women on the mattress. A moment pa.s.sed before he stepped aside and allowed Brodie to enter the room.

"I hate to break up this little party but I thought I'd personally bring you your lunch today. The soup is cream of asparagus, Addison. I hear asparagus is supposed to be an aphrodisiac," she said as she leered at the agent.

Addison rolled her eyes. "You know, seeing you bring me lunch is enough to put me off forever!"

"From eating?" Skyler asked, unknowingly playing the straight man.

"From women!" Addison replied. Skyler chuckled as Brodie fumed.

"I should thrash you for that, but it would be a pity to have to waste my valuable time on it...for now," the Irishwoman menaced.

The agent just laughed. "Just like you thrashed me in Scotland, right? Don't try to impress me, Agnes; I go for the brainy types like Skyler here." She turned to the American. "Agnes fell out of her pram and onto her head as a mere child. I think that's what has led to her lower than average intelligence and subsequent life of crime." She regarded Brodie again. "Isn't that how you started? Were you a not so bright child smuggling sweets in her nappy?"

Skyler knew she shouldn't irritate Brodie, but she couldn't help but laugh at Addison's needling of the redhead.

Brodie's jaw worked and her complexion darkened. "f.u.c.k you, Addison! Your little blonde b.i.t.c.h isn't the only smart one here, not by a long shot. You think the doctor and her mother are so smart? I've done something neither one could do. I've completed Project Gemini."

Addison and Skyler weren't laughing now as they gave their complete attention to what Brodie was saying.

"I drove them around the clock and the people in the lab completed the job I gave them. Late last night they synthesized the bacillus. I actually held a sample in my own hands this morning." The American and Brit remained silent, as they understood the gravity of the situation.

"No comeback for that little bit of news, Addison? I'm so shocked!" Brodie laughed as she swept out of the room. Shamus glared at them before slamming the door shut.

Skyler looked to the agent. "My G.o.d, Addison. What are we going to do now? Project Gemini in Brodie's hands? This has catastrophe written all over it."

Addison glared at the closed door. "It's much earlier than I antic.i.p.ated, but I have no choice." She turned to look at Skyler. "I'll have to put my plan into action now."

Chapter 21.

Beginning a thoughtful pacing around the room, Addison clenched her fists. This had happened quicker than she had antic.i.p.ated. The soldier had never once underestimated Brodie or her team, but she had expected her to make a move against Skyler beforehand. Addison acknowledged she couldn't predict Brodie's next move. What she could do, however, was slightly manipulate it. Why should she wait for Brodie to come to them? Taking her off guard before she was ready and prepared to carry out whatever diabolical acts she had devised against Skyler was a more productive course of action. Although the Irish woman never realized it, Addison had been in control of the situation right from the start.

Coming to a halt as she reached a wall, Addison placed her hand upon the cool concrete surface. She took a deep breath and turned to Skyler. The American doctor had been watching her cautiously, not wanting to interrupt Addison's deliberations.

"I hope you are ready for this, Sky, because I'm about to create one h.e.l.l of a war zone."

Skyler swallowed visibly. "What are you going to do?" She watched curiously as Addison loosened the laces on one of her boots. She had a feeling whatever Addison's plan was, she was to play a focal part in it. When Skyler didn't receive an answer she said, "Addison, please, what are you going to do? I'm not sure I'm going to be of any use in a war zone. Apart from the fact that this isn't the most exciting news I've heard!"

Abandoning her boot, Addison looked back to Skyler. She pondered her words carefully, not wanting to alarm Skyler, but to make her understand what she had planned and how the young doctor would fit into it.

"Listen, Sky, we both know what Brodie intends to do, right?"

The blonde paled and nodded. Brodie's intentions had been in the forefront of her mind since she arrived in Israel. "She plans on killing me, slowly and painfully, while you watch in order to make you suffer."

"And I would," Addison admitted. "But I'm about to push her into acting."

"What?" asked Skyler, feeling suddenly very alarmed.

"The tables are about to turn," Addison stated and approached the door. She held her ear to the doorframe and listened carefully. She could hear the pace of heavyset footsteps walking by the door and knew it was Shamus. Addison walked away and stood in front of Skyler. She placed both hands on the American's shoulders. "You trust me, right?"

"I trust you, Addison."

"Good, because we're about to p.i.s.s Brodie off."

"We're about to... WHAT? Why? I don't understand."

Addison stared deeply into Skyler's eyes. "Look, whatever Brodie is going to do, she is planning it right now. That's what her self-righteous bragging was all about. She wanted to scare us. Now, I for one am not going to sit around here and wait for her to make a move. She was never in control of this situation, Skyler. I was... right from the start." The soldier stopped speaking, her head turning to the door at the sound of looming footsteps. They pa.s.sed swiftly and Addison sighed, looking back at Skyler. "First of all we are going to cause a little bit of a ruckus. Then when Brodie is summoned to sort out what's going on, we will royally p.i.s.s her off. This should hopefully be enough to jolt her into action. She decides to carry out her twisted little games and I have her."

"How?"

"Well..." Addison paused. "That part is subject to change...or in other words... I am keeping my options open. It depends on how the situation evolves. I do have an advantage over her she is not aware of, but for the present time, the only fact I can be sure of is that all h.e.l.l is about to break loose. Are you ready for this, Sky?"

Skyler took a deep breath. "Do I really have a choice? As much as I'm not looking forward to it, if this is our only method of escape then I'm willing to take it. The sooner the better and I'm sure you know what you are doing... right?"

"Absolutely," replied Addison. "But you must do exactly as I say... got it?"

"Yes."

Taking a step away from Skyler, Addison looked at the door then back at the American. "I don't want you f.u.c.kING UP AGAIN!"

Skyler jumped at Addison's suddenly raised voice. "What...?"

Addison looked to Skyler earnestly. "OF ALL THE DUMB, STUPID THINGS A PERSON COULD DO!"

"Addison I..."

The soldier grinned. "Are you meaning to tell me that the reason we are here is because you DIDN'T DO AS I SAID?"

Understanding settled in Skyler's mind. She paused warily before saying, "It wasn't my fault."

With a nod and smile, Addison replied. "WASN'T YOUR FAULT? WE WOULDN'T BE IN THIS MESS IF IT WASN'T FOR YOU!"

"I'M SORRY.".

"SORRY? Sorry is no f.u.c.kING GOOD NOW." Addison began pacing the room once again. She walked past Skyler whispering, "Oscar winning performance... you watch this!" Still grinning Addison continued. "G.o.d d.a.m.n STUPID SON OF A ... BY ALL RIGHTS I SHOULD HAVE LEFT YOU HERE. YOU ARE THE d.a.m.n GENIUS. GET YOUR OWN WAY OUT OF THIS PLACE."

Both women moved a step closer to the door. "What kind of WOMAN, let alone a highly trained government agent, would LEAVE A PROTECTEE ALONE ANYWAY?"

Addison nodded, suitably impressed. "DON'T YOU DARE BLAME THIS ON ME! I CAME HERE TO RESCUE YOU FOR PETE'S SAKE."