"I realize this is unconventional, to say the least," Monty said, "but this is also an exceptional mission."

"But-"

Monty lifted his hand. "Let me finish. Jaclyn is not new to the organization."

"Sleeper?" one of the men asked.

"No. Her name is Jaclyn Harding. ETF op Phantom." Some looked puzzled. Others gasped. Only two didn't react.

One was Reno, their computer whiz. During Operation Face a year earlier, his photo-manipulation skills had helped them identify the mercenary Jack Norris as their rogue operative Phantom. The other op who took the revelation in stride was Chase. While the rest turned to stare at Jaclyn, Chase absentmindedly caressed her coffee cup.

"Jaclyn Harding died in Israel," Allegro said.

"She doesn't look like Harding," Domino added. "I worked a couple of jobs with her. This is not Harding."

"I knew her pretty well, too," one of the male ops said. "This can't be her. I mean, we were present at Harding's memorial service." Monty remembered the two had been in the same hand-to-hand combat cla.s.ses, and Jaclyn always won.

Chase spoke up for the first time, her eyes still on her cup. "It's Harding."

"What?" someone asked.

"It's Harding. Different face, same person." More gasps. Reno said nothing, but he nodded in agreement.

"Disappeared ten years and two months ago. Probably faked her death and got a new face. Ended up taking jobs from whoever could afford her services. No one better at not asking for credentials than sc.u.m who want someone offed or scared." Chase sat back in her chair and looked at Jaclyn. "How am I doing so far...Jack?"

"Predictably accurate," Jaclyn replied wryly.

"Did you know about this?" Domino asked Monty.

He looked around the room. All eyes were on him. "We found out a year ago."

"And why were we not told?" Fetch asked.

"Why is she still alive, for that matter?" Allegro asked.

* 44 *

"For reasons that do not concern you," Grant replied.

"How is that fair? We all know what the consequences for treason are," Domino said.

"We have made this one exception," Grant replied.

"But-"

"End of discussion," Monty said forcefully.

"I'd rather chew my arm off than be here, which means my reasons are thoroughly selfish," Jaclyn said.

"No surprise there," Chase added.

Jaclyn seemed to ignore the jab. "I didn't show up to chew the fat or discuss my past."

"Why the h.e.l.l are you here?" Domino asked.

Monty held up his hand. "And this brings us to Operation Phoenix."

"Oh, can I? Can I?" Allegro started waving her hand. "I wanna tell them."

Monty sighed heavily. "Allegro, let's hear what you have."

"Okay, guys. I received this phone call early yesterday." Allegro set her cell phone on the table. "Caller ID said unknown caller. I answered without saying anything. When a man with a heavy Hungarian accent came on and said, 'You have something of mine, and I have something of yours,' I started recording. It picks up from there."

Allegro: Who is this? How did you get this number?

Male voice: From your a.s.sociate's cell phone. The blonde who called you twice as she was breaking into my lab?

Allegro, after a slight hesitation: You've got a lot of nerve, a.s.shole. You'll pay for what you did to her.

Male voice: You're more than a.s.sociates, yes? I a.s.sure you, your friend is very much alive, and currently my guest. That's why I'm calling.

Allegro: What did you just say?

Male voice: Your friend will be returned safely to you, as soon as you transfer the money you stole from me into my new bank account.

* 45 *

Allegro: I want proof you have her. Put her on the phone. Now.

Male voice: Very well. But I'm afraid she's very...tired. She may not be entirely coherent.

Another brief silence, then Agent Lynx's voice rang through the room. Instantly recognizable, though from the cadence and slurring of her words she'd obviously been drugged.

Lynx: Why are you...(groan) Why are you doing this? What's...

Monty watched Jaclyn as Ca.s.sady's voice played back. A spectrum of emotions raced across her face, from fear and anger to love and impatience, as she started to pace.

Lynx: What is this place? (groan) What do you want?

A brief silence.

Lynx: My head hurts...my mouth is so dry...

Male voice: I will call you back in a few days with the account information.

Allegro: We don't have your money. Interpol does.

Male voice: How you acquire it is not my concern.

The line went dead.

Allegro pressed the Stop b.u.t.ton and the room remained silent for several seconds.

"So crazy-a.s.s scientist has Ca.s.sady. She's not dead."

"What do we have to go on?" Domino asked Monty.

"Reno will give us an update."

Reno, a brute of a man with slick black hair, looked like he hadn't slept in a long while. "After the explosion that presumably killed Lynx, we sent the material we had of Rozsa's-his home hard drive and the data from his lab office-to Interpol. But I guess it slipped my mind to delete the copies I made like I was supposed to." Many of the ops laughed, knowing Reno's tendency to meticulously catalogue every bit of information that crossed his desk. "Anyway, I started going through it once Allegro got the call.

* 46 *

Most is encrypted, and Rozsa deleted a lot of files, so it's going to take time to recover everything. But I did find he had another active Grand Cayman bank account we knew nothing about, which logged a deposit of fifty thousand a week ago. The money was immediately transferred to still another account I've yet to access, but I was able to track the IP of whoever sent him the money. It's an address in Manhattan."

Monty recapped. "So Rozsa has a US a.s.sociate who's providing him the resources to stay hidden. Hopefully that contact can put us on the right track."

"So what does any of this have to do with Harding?" Allegro asked.Monty could feel his blood pressure rising. "I was about to get to that when you interrupted."

"Can't wait to hear this one," Allegro replied.

"This mission goes to Chase and Phantom." Several of the ops immediately reacted with "What?" or "Why?"

Monty ignored them. "They will be working together with all the a.s.sistance they can get from us to bring Ca.s.sady back alive."

"What is Harding's involvement in all this?" Domino asked.

"Ca.s.s is my girlfriend," Jaclyn replied.

"She's what?"

"We've been together about a year."

"You're kidding me," Allegro said. "This is like a bad soap opera."

Domino turned to Jaclyn. "Monty, Joanne, David, Ca.s.sady, Reno, and who knows who else, all knew about you. Why the h.e.l.l have the rest of us been kept in the dark?" Jaclyn shrugged. "If it was up to me no one but Ca.s.s would know."

"Of course," Chase said, without looking at Jaclyn. "Why bother with a triviality such as friendship?"

"Harding is going after her with or without us," Monty told the group. "I'd much rather have her on our side. No one wants Ca.s.sady back here and safe more than she."

* 47 *

He stood and looked from Chase to Jaclyn. "Operation Phoenix is yours." When Jaclyn met his eyes, he added, "Your code name and number are effective as of now. Your flight to New York leaves in two-and-a-half hours."

New York 8:30 p.m.

As soon as Mike exited the room, Heather put on a robe and poured herself a Diet c.o.ke from the well-stocked bar. Dario waited until she settled comfortably into an armchair facing the mirror before he spoke. "Thank you, Amber."

She knew his voice-a soothing tenor, with a hint of an accent-almost as well as she knew her own. After nearly two years as her sole, once- or twice-a-week client, she was also well familiar with what turned him on, yet she still had no idea what he looked like. Dario took extraordinary precautions to safeguard his privacy, perhaps because his face was too recognizable.

Ordinarily, clients who visited Direct Connect's Manhattan brownstone were admitted through the rear entrance by Ma.s.simo, the brooding hulk employed to protect the girls. But Dario had a special arrangement with the agency. Ma.s.simo would prop open the rear door when Dario's cab arrived and wait in the front until he had entered and was upstairs. Dario also had exclusive use of the second-floor watcher's room on those nights.

Direct Connect had other voyeurs among their regulars, so the owner had renovated one suite to enable optimal, discreet viewing of the bedroom through a two-way mirror. As part of her arrangement with Dario, Heather was never to open the door to the watcher's room while he was there, and she was to linger so he could chat with her through a two-way intercom after the john had departed.

"Was tonight to your satisfaction?" Heather asked.

"You are always a pleasure to work with."

"I'm glad you think so." Heather did her best to sound seductive.

* 48 *

"You are very good at what you do."

"Thank you."

"I have a rather personal question, if you don't mind." This is new, Heather thought. His usual repertoire rarely contained more than sycophantic compliments, thank you, and see you next week.

"I doubt I am the first or last to ask you, but what are your reasons for doing this? I would prefer an honest answer rather than the generic I love to please."

"So I'm not the first to pique your curiosity."

"But you are the first I don't expect a cliche from."

"Why is that?" she asked.

"You are different. Please answer why you have chosen this avenue."

"If I had better options, I would have chosen differently."

"And the choices we make when we haven't better options, do they define us?" he asked.

What did her choices really say about her? Was her self-worth of much lesser importance than her brother's health and her own ambitions? She refused to give up her fashion career, though it barely covered her own expenses. She needed another six grand a month for Adam's medical bills, and she got that much working an average of one or two nights a week, thanks to Dario's largesse.

Sure, she could have gotten the money working a second full-time job somewhere and maintained her self-esteem, but the long hours would eventually take their toll and she'd have no time to work on her own designs. Some would say her dignity had fallen victim to her needs, but for Heather it was a matter of priorities.

"You choose to watch," Heather finally replied. "Like me, you have your reasons. Actions merely reflect our current needs or circ.u.mstances. I want to believe our dreams are what define us."

"Like I said, you are different." The silence that followed was so prolonged Heather thought Dario had departed. She was about to take her robe off and get dressed when the voice came back, startling her. "Does it bother you? What you do here, for me?"

"I can't deny it took some getting used to."

* 49 *

"And now?"