David Baldacci - Stone Cold

“Do you think the president of the United States would actually put his signature down on such an order?” Lesya said with equal incredulity. “Our chain of command was what we worked with. If it came down that chain we had to rely on it being approved from the top. If we couldn’t rely on that, we couldn’t do our jobs.”

“She’s right about that,” Stone said. “Triple Six operated the same way.”

He was examining the letter against the lightbulb. He glanced at Lesya. “There’s a code line next to the watermark.”

She nodded. “That special encoded paper was only available from at least one level above Simpson.”

“Carter Gray?”

“Yes. We knew the orders had really come through Gray. And it was our experience that if they came through Gray, they had come from the top. We didn’t trust Simpson that much. He was a loose cannon.”

“But Gray might have played you for the fall guy too,” Stone pointed out. “The president might not have authorized the killings.”

She shrugged. “There is always that possibility. I am sorry but I did not have the opportunity to go to your White House and ask the president personally if he wanted me to kill two Soviet leaders,” she added in a bristling tone.

“Why didn’t you take this letter to the authorities back then?” Alex said.

“I had no reason to even think of doing so until Rayfield was killed. Even then I didn’t know he’d been murdered by the Americans until much later. Then an attempt was made on my life when Harry was still a child. At that point I knew we had been betrayed. We had to go into hiding. I spent decades finding out the truth, the people responsible. But even so, how could I use this evidence? I was a Russian spy. It was only Rayfield, Simpson and Carter Gray who knew I was a double agent. If I had come in from the cold even with this evidence no one would have believed me. They would have just killed me.” She paused and looked at each of them as they stared back at her in some disbelief. “You think your people would hold back from doing something like that?” She glanced at Stone. “Ask him.”

“I believe you, Lesya,” Stone said. “I know it could have happened exactly that way.”

“Rayfield and I were married in the Soviet Union. I was already carrying Harry. We couldn’t tell anyone we were married, either Soviet or American. We assumed double lives, new names, eventually settled in America. Rayfield spent as much time with us as he could. When Harry was still small Rayfield severed almost all ties with us. Someone was after him. He knew this. His fear was confirmed in Sa˜o Paulo. He was still working for the Americans, his own country. And they killed him.”

“Wasn’t there an investigation?” Alex added.

“What did I care for investigations that went nowhere? I didn’t want the truth covered up. I just wanted revenge.” She took Finn’s hand. “We both did.”

Alex said, “Oliver, can’t we just take this evidence to the authorities now?”

“That’s what I was thinking,” Annabelle added.

Stone shook his head. “We don’t know that the CIA and the president at the time didn’t order those assassinations. If they did, others, who are still in the government, may know too.”

“And we go waltzing in with it,” Alex said slowly.

“And are never seen again,” Lesya said. “Look what happened to my poor husband.”

“And making this public now may start World War Three,” Stone said. “With the state of Russia right now and the tarnished global image of the U.S., I doubt the Russians would take kindly to us having killed two of their leaders even if it did lead to the fall of the Soviet Union.”

“So what’s your plan?” Alex asked.

“We have to get to Carter Gray,” he said. “And I think I know how to do it.”

Stone had just started to lay out his plan when Finn’s phone buzzed. He listened, clicked off and looked at the others. His face had gone very pale. “That was Mandy. David didn’t come back from the store.”

Lesya said quietly, “Carter Gray has taken him. As bait.”

Finn stood. “Then it’s over. I’ll trade myself for my son.”

“The only result of that will be both of you will die,” Stone said. “Gray never allows for leaving witnesses if he can help it.”

“I have to get my son back,” Finn snapped.

“We will get him back, Harry. I promise,” Stone said.

“How?” Lesya exclaimed. “How will you do this if Gray has him? You just said the man does not allow for survivors.”

“We need someone else to trade David for other than you and Harry.”

“Who would that be?” Reuben asked.

“Someone Gray can’t afford to lose.”

Lesya said instantly, “Roger Simpson.”

Finn whirled around to stare at Stone. “And I know just how to get the son of a bitch.”

ROGER SIMPSON WAS SITTING at his desk in his office at the Hart Building working when his computer screen went blank. A second later a picture appeared on it.

Simpson gasped. It was the image of Rayfield Solomon materializing across his screen. How can that be ?

Typed letters next appeared on the bottom of the screen. “I hope you recognize your old friend.”

“What the?” Simpson said, looking around. “What the hell is this?”

“What the hell is this?” a voice said, sending Simpson nearly out of his chair. It was coming from the wireless unit Finn had hidden there when he’d broken into the senator’s office.

“Who are you? Where are you?” Simpson said fearfully.

“What’s important is that there’s a bomb hidden inside your computer.”

“What!” Simpson exclaimed, half rising from his chair.

“And if you try to leave the room it will detonate.”

Simpson immediately sank back down. “But they swept my office for bombs.”

“Unscrew the back of your computer. There’s a screwdriver in your desk drawer, I checked when I was in here.”

“But I-”

“Do it!”

Hands shaking, Simpson retrieved the screwdriver, undid the back cover and stared at the device Finn had put there.

“It’s designed to use the chemical and electronic components in the CPU to cause a chain reaction and then a big boom. By the way, I can also see everything you’re doing, so if you try to disarm the bomb I’ll blow you up. Understood?”

Simpson slowly nodded.

“Don’t just nod, I want to hear you say it. Do you understand?”

“I understand. For God sakes, I understand.”

“A man will come to your office shortly. You will go with him without resistance. If you try to warn anyone I will detonate the bomb and your whole office disappears. Once out of your office, if you try anything, say anything to anyone to try and get away, your wife is dead. Do you understand that?”

“You have Donna?”

“The former Miss Alabama is doing very well right now. That status could change, depending on your level of cooperation. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” Simpson said in a defeated tone.

“Good. Now compose yourself and wait for him to come. I’ll be listening and watching until he does. He’ll explain that he’s taking you to an emergency meeting at Langley to cover a crisis that just came up, one that the chairman of the Intelligence Committee needs to be in on. You will confirm to your staff that this is true. Understood?”

“Yes.”

A few minutes later there was a knock at Simpson’s office door. Shortly after that the pale but composed senator was escorted down the elevator by Stone dressed in a black suit; he was also wearing sunglasses. They got into a car driven by Reuben. As the car pulled away Stone took off his sunglasses and stared at Simpson.