Cliff Ryder - The Finish Line

During her two years as head of Room 59, Kate couldn't remember an op going so bad so fast.

There was always a chance, of course. Agents got themselves into trouble, getting arrested or injured in other countries, sometimes getting killed while trying to execute their missions, but they had never had what should have been a simple extraction blow up in their face like this. Four Midnight Team members were dead, at least two members of Mercury Security were dead, as well, plus two French police officers dead and three wounded. Besides that, there were reports of at least four civilians injured, two severely. That was something that Kate couldn't stand. It was the one ironclad rule that she had made sure was instilled in every agent. An innocent — a true innocent, not someone who just didn't know what Room 59 was about — should not be harmed unless the operative simply had no choice in the matter. And while she was sure that none of her people would have been responsible, she knew how it was going to look to her superiors.

As if sensing the worst possible time to interrupt her train of thought, Kate's computer chimed. She answered it wearily. "Yes?"

Judy's grim face appeared on the monitor. "We've heard what just happened at the Gare du Nord. The board has convened a special session to decide what, if anything, needs to be done."

Kate barely kept her mouth from dropping open. The board of the International Intelligence Agency was made up of nine people, each from a different country around the world, who provided oversight of Room 59. They selected the missions the agency sent its agents on, and could veto or otherwise modify a mission to their liking but they didn't interfere once a mission was underway. Kate had never heard of an impromptu meeting like this being called, and she immediately smelled a rat.

"I'm sorry to contact you on such short notice, but this was the best time they could meet. I'm taking you in now."

Before Kate could protest, the picture dissolved into the standard virtual reality conference boardroom where they discussed all Room 59 business with their superiors. Usually the boardroom was plush and inviting, with leather swivel chairs and a rich mahogany table that stretched almost the length of the rectangular room. Now, however, it looked dark and forbidding, matching the appearance of the nine silhouettes that materialized to sit in the chairs on both sides of the table. A small national flag floated above each dark form, representing the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Australia and China. Although the U.S., the U.K., China and Russia had permanent seats on the IIA board, the other five positions were held on a rotating schedule. And even though Kate had no idea who was behind the faceless human figures in each seat, she had ascertained enough to get a general feel for how the old guard would react to this breach. It was the new members — Saudi Arabia, Italy and Australia — that she hadn't gotten a handle on yet. At the moment, however, all of the silhouettes appeared more menacing than they ever had before, vague shadows that could destroy everything she had been working for, if they felt she wasn't working in the agency's best interests. That realization brought with it a cold feeling in the pit of her stomach that Kate rarely, if ever, felt — fear.

Steeling her gaze, she remembered what Denny Talbot, the North American Room 59 director, had told her the very first time she had gone before the board when a mission had gone wrong. "Never let 'em see you sweat. Our people are going to make mistakes, but our job is to fix what went wrong as quickly as possible, and get back on track. The examination, recriminations and punishment, if any, will come later." She had gotten through the inquiry that time, and she would get through this one, too.

No time like the present, she thought, reaching for her virtual glasses. She slipped them on, putting her on an equal footing with everyone else. To her left, she saw Judy sitting quietly two seats away, her expression inscrutable.

The black figures hid any trace of gender, but Kate always made sure to address both, just in case. "Ladies and gentlemen, no doubt you have all heard of the incident that occurred in the Gare du Nord train station in Paris at approximately 1035 hours local time. Rather than rehash the details, I will fill you in on what we know. The target has been acquired, and is under guard by one of our operatives at the moment. We are making arrangements to bring both of them in as soon as possible, using every available resource."

As she had figured, the announcement brought a wave of mutters from the board members. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Judy stiffen in her seat, her eyebrows narrowing at the news. Didn't think I'd pull that one out, did you? Kate thought grimly.

The flag above the United States representative glowed in the dim room as the figure below it spoke. "In the interests of security, only the four permanent seats on the board have been made aware of the exact nature of the target's value to certain parties. I apologize for this necessity, but wish to reassure the other members that it was vital that this level of security be maintained. However, given what we know at this time, do you, Director, believe that the sort of force sent to recover this target was necessary, when perhaps a standard operative would have been more successful?" Although Kate didn't know who the U.S. rep was, she knew he was someone new and not familiar with her work.

"As I stated in my mission action reports, all of which should be before you…" the dig was a jab at Judy, who didn't react this time, but remained stoic and unmoving "…you will note that our team encountered unexpected resistance at the primary mission site. Once the target was mobile, I authorized the Midnight Team to continue their pursuit, in the event that this other hostile team was also still trying to reacquire her. As they seem to have disabled the two French operatives who had been at the train station and made contact with the target, it seems obvious to me that a team trained to handle this sort of response was necessary." Sorry, Louis, she thought.

The red-and-gold Chinese flag lit up. "That operational lapse will be dealt with separately. While it is true that the target was recovered, there is some concern from the board, and from your liaison, as well, about your insistence that this Midnight Team continue with the mission when this sort of operation is not what they had been designed for, to our understanding." Several other heads nodded in agreement.

Kate darted another glance at Judy, who might have been carved from marble for all the reaction she displayed. But the Chinese member's words were enough to confirm Kate's suspicions that Judy had gone over her head.

She returned her attention to the members in front of her. "Ladies and gentlemen, every operative in our employ is a clandestine agent first, dedicated to accomplishing their mission at all costs. The members of the Midnight Teams have been trained in urban infiltration as extensively, if not more so, than standard agents. I have every confidence that they can be relied on to do the job we ask of them every single time. Unfortunately, at times their missions may take them into public venues, and incidents like this may occur, despite our best efforts. Regardless, I can tell you that if those men and women hadn't been there, the body count could have been much higher."

"Or a single operative might have found a way to extract the target without leaving such a public — and messy — situation." This observation came from the Saudi Arabia representative. "I mean, it is one thing if a civilian is caught in the cross fire, but we have a full firefight occurring in a very public place with dozens of witnesses, followed by a shoot-out on a hospital roof, and the crash and total destruction of a helicopter. All of this will be investigated by the local authorities, and will require extensive cleanup and media handling. The aftermath may place our entire operation at risk. Our invisibility is what lets us accomplish so much, but not if our activities are splashed across every front page and on every network — as is currently happening."