David Baldacci - The Sixth Man

“Where’d you put the bug?”

“On the underside of the rear windshield wiper mechanism. Nobody ever looks there. Then I just climbed out the garage window. I’m actually getting good at that.”

“So now we wait,” said Sean.

“I don’t think it’ll be for long.” She eyed the device more closely. “Looks like she’s already on the move. Boy, you really did scare her.”

“I had my lawyer hat on. We naturally scare the crap out of everybody.”

CHAPTER

37

AFTER LANDING at LaGuardia and being driven into the city Peter Bunting did not go home to his lovely, socially active wife and his three privileged and accomplished children at their luxurious Fifth Avenue brownstone across from Central Park.

Nor did he return to his office. He had somewhere else to go because he was focused on keeping Edgar Roy alive.

And probably me, too.

He walked fifteen blocks to a rundown six-story building well off the famous boulevards of Manhattan. He took care to avoid being followed, going into lobbies of buildings and exiting by different ways. In the lower level of the six-story building was a pizzeria. In the upper levels were offices for small businesses. On the very top level were two rooms. He took the stairs and knocked.

The man ushered him in and closed the door behind him. Bunting moved through into the next room. The man followed him and closed the door to this room too. He motioned for Bunting to sit on a chair set next to a small table.

Bunting did so, unbuttoning his suit jacket and trying to get comfortable in a chair that was not designed for comfort. The man remained standing.

James Harkes was dressed, as always, in a black two-piece suit, starched white shirt, black straight tie. He would be anonymous among the millions of other men in this city.

“Thank you for meeting with me so quickly,” Bunting began.

“You know that I’m tasked to take care of you, Mr. Bunting,” said Harkes.

“You’ve done a good job so far.”

“So far.”

“The six bodies at the farm? I believe that Roy was framed.”

“And who would want to do that?”

Bunting hesitated before answering. “You’re joking, right?”

“I don’t normally employ humor in my job.”

“I meant there are obviously those who would have a problem with the program.”

“But why frame Roy? Either kill him or coopt him. That’s what I would do.”

Bunting didn’t look confident as he said, “But we can’t use him either. That weakens us.”

“But he may be free one day. Better for our enemies to kill him. Then he can’t come back to work ever.”

Bunting studied him closely. “Foster is talking about taking preemptive action with Edgar Roy. Do you know about that?”

Harkes said nothing.

“Harkes, did you take preemptive action with the lawyer, Ted Bergin?”

Harkes remained silent.

“Why kill him?”

Harkes’s gaze remained fixed on Bunting but he still said nothing.

“Who is authorizing this? Because I’m sure as hell not.”

“I don’t do anything without the requisite approval.”

“Who is it? Foster?”

“I’ll be in touch.”

“Harkes, once you go down that road, there’s no going back.”

“If there’s nothing else, sir?” Harkes opened the door for Bunting to pass through.

“Please don’t do this, Harkes. Edgar Roy is one of a kind. He doesn’t deserve this. He’s innocent. I know that he is.”

“Take care, Mr. Bunting.”

Once he reached the street Bunting started to walk back to his office but then veered away at the last moment. He went inside a bar, found a seat, and had a Bombay Sapphire and tonic. He checked e-mails, made a few phone calls, all routine, just to get his mind off the mess of Edgar Roy. He was caught right in the middle. People were getting killed and there was nothing he could do about it.

Lost in his own problems, he didn’t notice the tall woman who had come in after him. She settled into a chair at a table in the back of the bar, ordered an Arnold Palmer, and watched him closely without ever seeming to.

Kelly Paul patiently waited for Peter Bunting to finish drowning his worries in good gin.

CHAPTER

38

“SHE’S STOPPING,” said Sean, as he stared down at the miniature screen. “Slow down a bit when you come around the next turn.”

Michelle decelerated as they hit the curve. About five hundred yards up ahead they could see the taillights of Dukes’s car wink out.

“Lonely place,” said Michelle.

“What else would it be for a meeting like this?”

“We need to get closer.”

“On foot. Come on.”

A low stone wall provided cover and also allowed them to draw near enough to see who Carla Dukes was meeting in a small clearing that had an old picnic table and rusty charcoal grill.

He was shorter than she was, young and thin.

She walked up and down in front of the man, talking animatedly while he stood still, watching her and nodding from time to time. They could see all this, but they couldn’t hear what was being said.

Sean pulled out his camera, which he’d taken from the truck, and snapped some pictures of the pair. He studied the screen and then showed Michelle. “Recognize him?” he said quietly.

She studied the face. “No. Young and geeky. Not my idea of some super-duper spy.”

“They come in all shapes and sizes these days. In fact the ones that don’t actually look like spies are the most valuable.”

“Then this guy is golden.”

When Dukes drove off, they didn’t pick up the tail again. They followed the man instead. He was the next link in the puzzle chain. And he might just lead them where they needed to go. Since they didn’t have a tracking device on his car they had to stay closer than Michelle would have liked, but the man made no sign that he knew he was being followed.

Several hours later it was apparent where the man was going.

“Bangor,” said Sean, and Michelle nodded.

“Do you think he lives there?” she said.

Sean looked up ahead. “No. His car looks like every other airport rental.”

“Then he’s going to fly out of Bangor.”

“I think so, yeah.”

A bit later they were proved right as the car they were following pulled into the airport on the outskirts of Bangor.

On the way Sean and Michelle had already made their plans. She parked and Sean climbed out of the truck.

He said, “Get back to Martha’s Inn and keep a lookout over Megan. I don’t want her ending up like Bergin or Hilary.”

“Call me when you know where you’re going.”

“Will do.” He pulled his pistol out of his holster and handed it to her. “Take this.”

“You might need it.”

“I don’t have a case for it to take on the plane. And me getting stopped by the cops and losing this guy won’t help us.”

He turned and started off.

“Sean?”

He turned around. “Yeah?”

“Don’t die!”

He smiled. “I’ll do my best.”

Only when he was out of sight did Michelle put the Toyota in gear and drive off. But she was clearly not happy about separating from him again.

CHAPTER

39

DURING HER DRIVE back to Machias, Michelle had gotten a call from Sean at the airport. The man was on a six a.m. flight to Dulles Airport in northern Virginia with a connection in New York City. Sean had booked a ticket on the same flight.