"Because we just busted Lucy O'Connor," McCaskey told him. "She confessed to giving those men the injections. Within a half hour of the first, she received a call from Admiral Link's office phone."

"Who did Lucy talk to?"

"She doesn't know," McCaskey said. "Only that it was a woman."

"I'm not sure if that means anything," Rodgers said. "Anyone could have used his phone."

"Not without his authorization code," McCaskey said. "We checked. No one in the office has that except Link."

"Were there calls after the second incident?" Rodgers asked.

"No, they were being very careful then," McCaskey said. "The criminal nature of the first action had already been uncovered. The perps would have been much more cautious the next day."

"Would they really have been that cavalier about murder?" Rodgers asked.

"Yeah," McCaskey said. "They had plausible deniability. Lucy could have gone up there and done it for a story."

"Okay. But why do it at all? Does Lucy have any idea?"

"Lucy appears to be suffering from a mild form of narcosis, probably due to something in the barbiturate family," McCaskey said. "I used to see the same speech and slowed reactions in the street."

"Could someone on Orr's staff have been providing her with drugs?" Rodgers asked. "That might have provided them with leverage."

"We checked. She scored those on her own, an old connection. We found the guy through his parole officer."

"What's your guess, then?" Rodgers asked.

"You mean a unified theory?" McCaskey asked.

"As unified as you can be over an open line," Rodgers said.

"Mike, I wish I knew. Someone in the senator's office wanted the first victim dead. Then they killed some random tourist to make it look like the first murder was not related to the big man or his party. Our reporter friend was in it for perks and as a patsy, if necessary. If I said anything beyond that, I would be making pretty big a.s.sumptions."

"Make them," Rodgers said as he ran along Harbor Drive. The wide road bordered the bay. The convention center was just ahead. In the distance he heard the unmistakable ba.s.s thumping of an incoming helicopter.

"Mike, what is homicide or abduction always about? Power. Revenge. Jealousy. Money," McCaskey said. "At the Bureau we used to a.s.sign a team to each of those and follow it back to a source."

"I don't have a team," Rodgers said. "h.e.l.l, when this is over, I may not even have a job."

"I know."

"Darrell-a hunch. Give me something."

McCaskey sighed. "We're talking about a politician who is already wealthy, who has never had a scandal attached to his marriage, who has the respect of his colleagues. If he is behind it, I am guessing it is for power."

"And the admiral?"

"You know him better than I do, Mike," McCaskey replied. "But think about it. He has had control over intelligence. That is real real power. He knows what it tastes like." power. He knows what it tastes like."

The sounds of the chopper and his own hard breathing made it difficult for Rodgers to hear. Since McCaskey had access to the national news and the FBI pipeline, Rodgers asked him to call at once if he heard anything about a ransom demand. Barring that, Rodgers said he would call as soon as he had a lead or even a new idea. The general vowed he would get one if he had to dangle Eric Stone from the open hatch of the Apache.

Which is not the worst idea you have had today, he told himself. a.s.suming he could find the b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Stone had vanished within moments of the report. he told himself. a.s.suming he could find the b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Stone had vanished within moments of the report.

Rodgers could hear the higher-pitched whir of the police helicopters moving along the San Diego Freeway. Two hovered above Lindbergh Field in case the limousine had gone there, and two more from the Harbor Patrol were moving out to sea. Perhaps the kidnappers intended to fly Admiral Link from the area. There were sirens on the Pacific Coast Highway, which paralleled Harbor Drive. Convention security personnel were running here and there, shouting into walkie-talkies and trying to keep order around the convention center itself. They were apparently being told to keep people in the area. Having another four or five thousand attendees in the streets would only complicate rescue efforts.

Rodgers reached the eastern entrance of the convention center as the Marine helicopter landed. He showed one of the security guards his USF ID as well as his Op-Center ID. He was allowed inside. A wide, sunlit, concrete-heavy gallery circled the ma.s.sive convention area. It was thick with refreshment stands, media booths, and USF vendors. People were standing around, just as they were in the hotel lobby, trying to pick up information and voicing theories as to who might be behind this. "d.a.m.n foreigners" was the expression Rodgers seemed to hear most.

It would be ironic if that were the case. International enemies of the USF Party were something Mike Rodgers had not even considered. Or someone seeking revenge for William Wilson, perhaps?

No, Rodgers decided. Rodgers decided. Something like this would have been planned for some time. Something like this would have been planned for some time. The abductors would have had to know Link's schedule, been able to get to the limousine driver and take him out, and had a hideout or escape route ready. The kidnappers would have made dry runs. The abductors would have had to know Link's schedule, been able to get to the limousine driver and take him out, and had a hideout or escape route ready. The kidnappers would have made dry runs.

Rodgers started up the concrete stairs that led to the top of the convention center. He was tired, but years of training with Striker had kept him in top physical condition. The door to the roof was a fire exit. It was unlocked. Rodgers stepped out. The chopper was about fifty yards away. Rodgers waved to the pilot, who acknowledged with a salute. The general ran toward the Apache, ducking into the heavy prop wash.

Suddenly, Rodgers stopped.

The abduction needed a plan, he thought.

Was the answer right in front of him? He looked out at the city from the top of the convention center. Red and blue police lights spotted the main roads and highways. Helicopters were being swallowed in the smoggy inland skies. A great security machine was in motion.

But would it be enough?

With renewed urgency, Rodgers resumed his sprint toward the chopper.

FIFTY-ONE.

Washington, D.C. Wednesday, 7:08 P.M.

Reluctantly, Bob Herbert had moved his laptop operation to the Tank. McCaskey had informed him about the latest developments and he wanted to be directly involved in the operation. Besides, the winds in the parking lot had picked up, and there was an unpleasant chill on his back. And, as the engineers from Andrews put it, they needed someone to test the elevator with a load inside. Everyone else was still using the stairs. The tech boys had been working on the lift for three hours and told him everything seemed to be functioning. None of them had ridden it yet because they did not have the proper security clearance. Most of Op-Center had been fried, but protocol was still protocol.

Before heading downstairs, the intelligence chief phoned Stephen Viens. The surveillance operations officer was still at the NRO. Herbert asked him to see if any of the navy satellites had picked up the limousine in back of Link's hotel. Security recon was pretty thorough in the region because of the naval station, the naval submarine base, and the many inland operations facilities such as Fleet Technical Support Center Pacific and the Intelligence and War-Sim Center in nearby Riverside County. Viens said he would report back if he found anything.

Herbert was happy to test the elevator. It was strange. He had ridden this elevator thousands of times, but this was the first time he paid attention to the sounds, to the little b.u.mps and jolts. Were those mechanical groans of pain or the yawns of waking machinery? He was very aware of the thinness of the air, which was being forced in by a portable, battery-powered pump on the top of the carriage. In a way, the carriage reminded Herbert of how he had been after Beirut: hurt and shut down for a while, then struggling back into service. That was an advantage Herbert had over his Op-Center colleagues. The rebuilding process was miserably familiar territory to him.

The elevator was a little sluggish, but it reached the bottom of the shaft.

Better too slow than fast, Herbert decided. Herbert decided.

He wheeled himself out, reached back inside to send the carriage upstairs, and headed to the Tank. The skeleton team at work throughout Op-Center was sharp and focused. That did not surprise Herbert. In a postcrisis situation, work was an intense, short-term involvement that kept trauma from settling in. It was like an emotional gag reflex. The full impact of what had happened would not hit these people until they put down the armor of responsibility.

Hood was the only other person in the Tank. The reunion was surprisingly relaxed, at least from Herbert's perspective. The intelligence chief had kept Hood up to date and had nothing to add. He plugged the laptop into the dedicated power source in the room and rebooted it. He wanted to be ready if Viens called with information. The map from Homeland Security showed traffic patterns, air lanes, and even possible terrorist targets such as nuclear power plants, electrical grids, dams, transportation centers, and shopping malls. Overlays with different access routes could be added to the image if necessary.

The McCaskeys arrived shortly after Herbert. They brought dinner, which was welcome. It marked the first real break anyone had enjoyed since the attack. In the case of the McCaskeys, it was the first real time-out they had enjoyed since the death of William Wilson. Hood asked about Rodgers. Both McCaskey and Herbert told him what the general was doing.

"I meant, how how is he doing?" Hood asked. is he doing?" Hood asked.

"I think he is kind of in limbo, waiting to see how this all turns out," McCaskey told him.

"It is odd," Maria said. "Mike Rodgers is out in the real world, but you say he is in limbo. We are in a badly wounded facility, yet we are supposedly connected to the world."

"I suppose everything depends on your att.i.tude," Hood replied.

"Knowing you have a job helps," McCaskey said.

"Elected officials and appointees learn to live with flux," Hood said. "I still say it's the inside defines the outside."

"You mean like us," Maria said. "The sh.e.l.l of Op-Center is broken, but we are still functioning."

"Exactly," Hood said.

Herbert did not involve himself in the conversation. He busied himself with taking bites from the roast beef club sandwich the McCaskeys had brought, pulling up a map of San Diego County on his laptop, and jacking his borrowed cell phone into the Tank system. As a rule, pep talks bored the intelligence chief. Herbert was self-driven. Usually because there was a throat he needed to get his hands around. That was all the motivation he needed. This particular conversation had a fringe of wide-eyed sanctimony that made him angry. Maria had her spouse alive and well and at her side. Hood still had an organization to run and a resume that would keep him circulating through government employ as long as he wanted. It was easy for them both to be optimistic.

Maybe you really ought to join Mike out there, Herbert thought. Herbert thought. Start a consultancy of some kind, maybe for private industry. Security in a nonsecure age. Start a consultancy of some kind, maybe for private industry. Security in a nonsecure age. It was something to think about. It was something to think about.

The call from Stephen Viens came before Herbert had to listen to very much more of the chat. He was surprised to hear from the surveillance operations officer so quickly.

"We just got a call from the California Highway Patrol, San Diego Command Center," Viens told the intelligence chief. "They found what they think is your missing limousine."

"What makes them think it's the one?" Herbert asked.

Herbert did not ask why the CHP had called the NRO. The Department of Homeland Security had linked all the nation's highway patrol offices into the NRO's Infrastructure Surveillance System. The ISS gave local law enforcement offices unprecedented access to observe possible terrorist activity through military, weather, and other observation-equipped satellites.

"The limousine was abandoned in a lot off Highway 163, which is just east of San Diego," Viens said. "The original driver was found tied up in the trunk. He said he was. .h.i.t on the head in the hotel parking lot, and that's all he remembers. The kidnappers obviously switched vehicles. The CHP wants the NRO to look through the back-image log, see if they caught a parked vehicle in the area."

"How long will that take?"

"Not very," Viens said.

"What do you mean?"

"The satellites that watch Naval Base Coronado and the inland flight training center do not overlap," Viens said. "They follow Highway 15 east. It looks like the limousine pulled over in a blind spot. They are double-checking now."

And who would know that better than a former head of naval intelligence? Herbert asked himself. Herbert asked himself.

"It is possible that the Interceptor-Three border patrol satellite picked something up, but that may be a little too far south to have seen this activity. The FBI monitors that one and is looking into it."

"I'll let Mike know," Herbert said. "Thanks, Stephen."

Herbert updated the others while he punched in Rodgers's number.

"Why would the admiral organize his own abduction?" Maria asked.

"That's the key, isn't?" Herbert said.

Rodgers picked up the phone. The general said he was just about to board the Apache but waited while Herbert briefed him. Rodgers listened without comment. With the sound of the helicopter pounding in the background, Herbert was not even sure Rodgers could hear.

"Did you get all that, Mike?" the intelligence chief asked when he was finished.

"I did," Rodgers said.

"Any thoughts?"

"Yeah. I think we've been had," Rodgers said. "Big time."

"In what way?"

"I'll let you know when I've checked something out," Rodgers told him. "I've got to run. I'll call you as soon as I can."

"Go get 'em," Herbert said and hung up. He lowered the phone and looked at the others.

"Go get who?" McCaskey asked.

"Mike didn't say," Herbert said. "He told me he'll call in thirty minutes or so. The only thing I know for sure is it's ironic."

"What is?" Hood asked.

Herbert replied, "That the man who is in the best position to put this one away doesn't really work for us anymore."

FIFTY-TWO.

San Diego, California Wednesday, 4:29 P.M.

The news of the abduction shocked Kat Lockley. It also concerned her. Senator Orr would never have organized that, and she could not imagine who would. Someone from the outside, perhaps. Maybe Rodgers?

That was not important right now. What mattered was the senator and his safety. After talking with Stone, Kat jabbed the elevator call b.u.t.ton. While she waited to take the carriage to the penthouse, she phoned the senator and told him what had happened. She asked him to stay in his room and said she would be there in a minute or two. Senator Orr agreed, at least until security could be organized for him to go downstairs. He felt it was important to talk to his people as soon as possible, to let them know that he was all right and the convention would go on. Kat said she would see to that. Her second call was to Pat Simc.o.x, head of security. She wanted to make sure he stayed at his post outside the senator's room and did not join the detail searching for Admiral Link. Simc.o.x said he had no intention of leaving. He told her not to worry. If this were a plot against the USF, no one would get through to the senator.

She believed him. The truck driver turned security man was tough.

The elevator arrived, and guests streamed out. There were concerned looks and questions for Kat. She told them the senator was all right, then excused herself and entered. On the way up, she was joined by Kendra Peterson.

"Eric called to tell me what happened," Kendra said. "I just spoke with the senator. He said you suggested he stay put."

"I did. Is there a problem with that?"

"No," Kendra insisted. "I think that's a good idea."

"Good."