Burning Bright (Peter Ash #2)(116)

“Quite an operation,” said Peter.

Sally nodded her head, acknowledging the compliment. “We’re like a research park,” she said, “although the rules are a bit more rigorous. Nondisclosure agreements and all that. But a significantly higher level of security.” She smiled. “The penalties for violating your nondisclosure are quite strict.”

“But you killed eleven people today, or maybe twelve, I don’t know about Chip. Are you outside the law? What about congressional oversight?”

She smiled. “Our ties to Uncle Sam are mostly theoretical. My superior cares only about results. If we don’t make headlines, we do what we please. Besides, I control all communications with the outside, so who’s going to know?”

“And your funding doesn’t actually come from the government,” said Peter. “Which gives you more independence. You’ve been running off private money for years.”

She looked at him. “You’re smarter than you look,” she said. “Yes, we’re a public-private partnership with an emphasis on the private. I report to an intelligence officer stationed in Silicon Valley, and he’s pretty hands-off. After all, we pay his salary, too.”

She was enjoying herself, Peter could tell. She probably didn’t get to tell this story often.

Peter glanced at Oliver. He was eating his salad.

“What about the other researchers, the ones you had to ship out of here so they didn’t see all the killing. What’s in it for them?”

Sally sipped her wine. The light was fading. “The chance to do cutting-edge work, with limited oversight. Our grants are generous. Classified patents provide downstream revenue for both our group and our researchers. We’re actually quite profitable. We have twenty times more qualified applicants than we can accept. Our security team is well paid, too. Everyone is here of their own free will.”

“Except Sasha,” said Peter.

“Oh, no,” she said. “Especially Sasha.”

At the sound of Sally speaking his name, the Yeti looked up from his notebook with the startled look of a child told to stop reading at dinner. Sally blew him a kiss. The Yeti smiled at her, then went back to his notebook.

“He’s not a prisoner,” said Sally. “He got back on that floatplane yesterday, didn’t he?”

“Wait,” said June. It was the first time she’d spoken at the table. “What was he doing on that plane?”

“He was bait,” said Peter gently.

Sally smiled kindly at June. “I needed you to come home, Junebug. Making your dad appear to be involved seemed like the best way to accomplish that. I was in the back of the plane the whole time. I told him it was a chance to confront the man who had threatened his daughter, which was quite true. It was the only way I could get him on that plane. He really doesn’t like to leave the valley.” She finished her wine and set down the glass. “But in case that wasn’t enough of a pull for you, I added a push. I had another man in play. He burned your house down. And it worked. Because here you are.”

June’s face darkened. Peter made the patting motion again.

Sally stood up and began to walk around the tables, lighting the kerosene lanterns as she talked.

“You need to understand your dad’s situation. His mental state was delicate even before his wife and daughter abandoned him. His work was all he had left. It consumed him. He was incapable of coping alone. So I stepped in.” She lit a few more lanterns hanging from tree branches. “You can see how much better he is, despite his challenges. He’s a brilliant man, you know. He’s got decades of future technological advancements floating around in his head. He’s a vital asset to this nation.”

“What about my mom?” said June. “The goons who tried to kidnap me?”

“I’m very sorry about that,” Sally said, sitting back down beside Peter, her white shirt glowing brightly in the lantern light. “One of our subcontractors seriously overstepped.” She nodded at the form under the tarp. “It’s not his first time, I’m afraid. We’ll terminate our agreement after a suitable debriefing.”

“But you’re the one who wanted the algorithm,” said Peter.

“Yes,” said Sally. “We still do. Very badly.”

“So the orders were yours.”

“Yes,” said Sally. “We can’t always play by the rules. But neither do our enemies.” She ticked them off on her fingers. “The Chinese, the Russians, the Islamists. Not to mention every wacko with an Internet connection.” She looked down the table at June. “It’s time to get serious here. I want that algorithm. So who am I talking to, Junebug? You? Or your watchdog here, all chained up?”

“You’re talking to me,” said June. “He doesn’t know anything. He’s just hired protection.”

“June, I’m sorry.” Peter cupped his cuffed hands around his mouth. “Hey, Lewis,” he called loudly, his voice carrying well. The fifty meters to the outcrop wasn’t too far. “If I raise my hands, shoot the woman in the white shirt. Then start on everyone else. Now show them we’re serious.”

A lantern hanging from a tree branch exploded, scattering glass. The still-glowing mantle fell, igniting the fuel in a broad splash of blue flame on the undergrowth. The crack of the shot followed an instant later. Then another tree-hung lantern shattered in place, the sound of the shot arriving as fuel began to burn merrily from the broken top of the still-hanging ruin.