The Sentinel (Jack Reacher #25)(78)

‘All right,’ Rutherford said. ‘All done. Two copies, as requested.’

Rutherford had stacked the pair of cloned servers on the bed, next to his laptop. Reacher picked them up and carried them back to room eighteen. He put one in the closet. And took the other one outside. He held it flat against his chest with his right hand, kept his left arm slightly forward, and angled his body away from the courtyard. It wouldn’t have fooled anyone up close, but no one behind him or at a distance would have realized he was carrying anything. He had plenty of time before Wallwork was due to arrive but he wanted to be already set up in room fourteen when the agent got there. He wanted to give the impression he had driven to the motel specially from some undisclosed distant location. Not that he was staying four rooms away. He didn’t have any reason to distrust Wallwork. But he had learned years ago that caution is the key to a long and healthy life.

Reacher set the server down on the desk and sat in the armchair. He had the drapes open and the light off. He waited, and he watched the courtyard. Ten minutes passed. No vehicles arrived. No vehicles left. No one moved between rooms. Another five minutes ticked away. Then the courtyard was filled with light. A car pulled in. It slowed in the centre of the space as if the driver was getting to grips with the layout. Then it speeded up and headed directly for room fourteen. It swung to the left when it was a couple of car lengths short, reversed, and stopped with its trunk three feet from the wall.

Reacher opened the door before Wallwork had the chance to knock. He stood aside to let the agent enter, then pulled the drapes and turned on the light.

‘Is that it?’ Wallwork stepped over to the desk and leaned down to look at the server.

Reacher nodded.

‘Thank you, Major,’ Wallwork said. ‘You’ve done us a solid and we appreciate it. You have my number. If there’s ever a way I can return the favour, don’t hesitate. Also, apologies for yesterday. Hiding my identity. I didn’t want to mislead you. But in the circumstances I didn’t have a choice. I hope you understand.’

‘No apology necessary,’ Reacher said. ‘Your partner is in the field. Protecting her comes first, second, and third. But your thanks should go to Rusty Rutherford. It’s down to him that the records exist at all.’

‘That’s good to know.’ Wallwork picked up the server and started to move. ‘Please pass on our gratitude if you see him. Me, I need to get back on the road. Time’s not on our side with this thing.’

Reacher stepped between Wallwork and the door. ‘Two questions before you go.’

‘OK. Make them quick.’

‘Klostermann. The guy I met at the Spy House this morning. Agent Fisher said she’d have him checked out again. Is there any word on that?’

‘She told me. We’re on it. Nothing yet. What else?’

‘The server. I guess you’re going to take it to a field office. Probably Nashville. Where a bunch of pointy heads will descend on it, looking for whatever secret it holds.’

‘You guess right.’

‘How long will that take?’

‘To get to Nashville?’

‘To find the secret.’

‘How long’s a piece of string? It’s impossible to say. There could be thousands of documents to search through. It’ll be like looking for a needle in a haystack. Only not a needle. Looking for something, but not knowing what. Just hoping we recognize it when we see it.’

‘So you’re not likely to get it done in, say, thirty-seven hours or so?’

‘I don’t know. It could take two seconds. It could take two months. We won’t know till we try. That’s not your problem, Major. But it is why I have to get going.’

‘It’s not Major. It’s just Reacher. And it is my problem. A little bit. But mostly it’s Rutherford’s problem.’

‘How do you figure?’

‘Agent Fisher told me her cell was restricted to surveillance until roughly lunchtime the day after tomorrow. Then they’re expecting reinforcements. A big hitter from Moscow. Now, if you haven’t figured out who their agent inside Oak Ridge is by then, you won’t have been able to arrest him. The Russians won’t know you have the server, either, so they’ll think they still have a chance to get it themselves and protect their guy. So they’ll come after Rutherford again. And Fisher might not be able to keep him safe because of the new arrival.’

Wallwork shrugged. ‘All true, I guess. Tough break for Rutherford. Specially after he helped us. Any chance you could convince him to leave town?’

‘I doubt it. I already tried. He refused. And I can’t blame him. He’s done nothing wrong. In fact, he’s done everything right. He shouldn’t be driven out of his home.’

‘I agree. But we have limited options here. Could you stay awhile? Keep an eye on him?’

‘For a while. Not for ever.’

‘It won’t take us for ever to figure out who the agent is.’

‘You said it could take two months. I rarely stay in one place two days.’

‘I’m sorry, Reacher. We’re dealing with the unknown here. The unknowable, in fact. I’d like to help Rutherford. I really would. But I’ve got to think about the bigger picture. I don’t know what else we can do.’

‘I know what I can do.’