Andrew Britton - The American

However, Matthews also knew that Jackson and the head of Processing played basketball together in Arlington Mills on most Saturday afternoons. He was largely dependent on his knowledge about budding alliances within the prison hierarchy to counteract the effects of his own ineptitude. Matthews was keenly aware of his lowly status at the detention center.

The last of his indecisiveness melted away. He couldn’t afford another poor fitness report in his file.

The smaller visiting agent, the quiet one with the black hair and gray eyes, was already forgotten.

Matthews moved away from the door and down the long hall toward Processing.

“So what exactly is on offer here anyway?”

Harris waited impatiently as North stirred his coffee and counted the seconds.

“I’m waiting…”

“Ms. Harris, we both know that your client is looking at some serious time here. Even if you somehow manage to get the conspiracy charge dropped, we still have him for supplying materials to Al-Qaeda and for assault on a Federal officer.”

“This isn’t news to me, North. What’s your point?”

He took a deep breath and a long sip of coffee before answering. “The assault charge is a lock, okay? I’ll testify myself, if the prosecutor asks. Hell, I’ll probably volunteer my services. But I can deal on the other stuff. You know who the key witness against Elgin is, right?”

She nodded. The impatience began to dissipate, replaced by a mild interest. “Your CI.”

“You got it. He’s pretty sharp, a hell of a lot more reliable than most of the people we’re forced to work with. And I think he’ll make a good witness. That said, his memory could get a little fuzzy if your client decides to cooperate.”

Alex Harris spread her hands out on the table, palms up in a conciliatory gesture. “I think we have something to build on here, but that just isn’t good enough. I need a retraction from your informant, and I need it in writing. That’s the only way that Elgin is going to talk.”

North didn’t respond immediately, but his mind was working away. You might be surprised, lady. Your boy might be talking sooner than you think. His eyes involuntarily moved to the clock mounted on the wall of the lounge. Five minutes had elapsed since they left the interrogation room.

Never before had five minutes felt so long to the young DEA agent.

Ryan was walking away from the desk when a voice reached out behind him. “Sir? Excuse me, sir… What were you doing in here, just now?”

He kept walking, and the voice got a little louder. “ Sir, please answer my question.”

Ryan turned his head to answer but kept moving forward. He wasn’t really concerned; the words were authoritative, but the voice itself was tinged with indecision. It was a woman speaking, and not in the tone typically used by a deputy sheriff hardened from years of guarding prisoners. “I’m a Federal agent. Take it up with Jackson, he’s the one who ordered the call.”

Ryan realized that his last sentence didn’t really make any sense, but it did what he intended. The receptionist was confused as she stared after him with worried eyes. She reached for the phone. She knew about Lieutenant Jackson, had heard in the break room the whispered rumors of his legendary temper. Why bother him without good cause? Besides, the man walking away from her desk was obviously not a prisoner.

What harm could be done?

The receiver was returned to its cradle as the receptionist sat down at her desk and resumed her work.

After three hallways and two turns, Ryan was once again standing outside the door. He was relieved to see that Matthews was gone, but felt a sudden streak of anger, mostly directed at himself, when he realized that the guard had probably locked the door before leaving.

If so, then that was it. He didn’t have time to get through the lock; it was only a matter of minutes before North and the lawyer came back down the hallway, or before Matthews realized what had happened and returned with reinforcements. If only the guard was as stupid as he looked…

And it appeared that he was. Kealey breathed a soft sigh of relief when the knob turned easily in his hand.

He pushed the door open and stepped inside.

“You have to be realistic here,” North continued. He was hunched over the table, staring intently at Alex Harris. “A full retraction in writing is not going to happen, because that translates into immunity on the conspiracy charge and providing aid to a foreign terrorist organization.”

“I thought that’s what you were pedaling,” she said in exasperation. “You just expect me to take your word for it and then get Elgin to hand over his statement? Is that it?”

He stared at her for a long time. Seven minutes had passed. He hoped that Ryan was moving fast. “Ms. Harris, are you aware that the Treasury Department has already frozen your client’s assets?”

Her face changed, and she tried to hide it by lifting her cup and taking a long sip of cold coffee. From the way her cheeks burned, North knew that the news had come as a surprise to her. He decided to tighten the screws.

“There’s no reason you should have known about it, since it wasn’t initiated by the presiding judge. From what I hear, you run a pretty small firm. I don’t imagine that you have a lot of time for pro bono work-”

“So what are you saying?” she asked, cutting him off in midsentence. Her voice followed her temper and began to rise. “That I should file a motion for withdrawal? Hand it off to a court-appointed attorney fresh out of night school? If that was your plan, Agent North, then you’re wasting your time. And mine.”

She stood up and snatched at her briefcase, angrily pushing up on the bridge of her glasses as they slipped down her nose. As she moved to leave the lounge, he called out to her one last time.

“Why are you representing him then?” She stopped in her tracks and turned to face him. “You’re not getting any money out of it, and this is a pretty reckless way to earn a reputation as a defense lawyer, because he’s looking at twenty years any way you cut it.” A lingering pause as North debated whether to ask the next question. The indecision resolved itself quickly, though, as he was genuinely interested in her response. “You have access to his criminal record. You know what he did. As a woman, why would you want anything to do with helping a man like that?”

When she finally smiled at him, North saw a cold, detached intelligence that gave him the answer before she even opened her mouth. “Come on, Agent North. Don’t be so naive. This trial is going to be headline news all the way up until the verdict. For that kind of attention, I think I’m willing to set aside the feminist agenda, at least temporarily. After all, principles can’t buy air time, can they?”

She winked at him, actually winked at him, and then spun on her heel to leave the room. North leaned back in his chair. Well, that was that. Good luck, Ryan. Better you than me, pal.

Especially if you have to deal with her.

When he stepped into the room, Ryan didn’t say a word. He didn’t even look in Elgin’s direction. He shut and locked the door behind him, then checked for a camera in the upper right-hand corner near the ceiling. Seeing nothing but bare walls, he turned to face the prisoner. Elgin was already up and cowering at the far side of the room. His movements were awkward because of the handcuffs and leg irons that bound him, as well as the heavy brace on his left knee that served as a reminder of their last encounter. The smug look was long gone, replaced by a mask of pure terror.

“ What the fuck! What are you doing here, man? Where’s my lawyer at?”

Kealey advanced with startling speed, kicking a metal chair out of the way before reaching the prisoner. His right fist moved in a blur, slamming up into Elgin’s solar plexus. As Elgin slumped and choked for breath, Ryan lifted him up and pinned him against the wall, wrapping his left hand around the man’s windpipe and squeezing hard.