Orientals to
that possibility. All Joe needed was another couple of hours. He’d rent a car
the moment they landed and drive like a bat out of hell until her found her.
For Ana, it was a matter of life or death . Joe impatiently thumped his
armrests as the plane smacked the tarmac and roared into Dulles International
Airport. And time- for Ana Kane- was running out.
***
Ana stepped back from the railroad tracks and pressed her
back to the concrete bolster supporting the overpass. She checked the
illuminated numbers on the watch she’d strapped to her wrist. What was it
with men and watches? Ana wondered, thinking back to her father and an
earlier time...
This one meant something critical. So critical that- even in
the heat of a panicked moment- Joe had foisted it upon her, and insisted she
take it and run.
Ana adjusted the elastic watchband another notch so it’d
stay in place, and considered her options.
Just above, traffic whizzed by at record speed. She’d heard
the sound of trailing cars and the heavy drone of semis from several miles
away. It had been a simple task to acclimate herself to the noise and set her
course in that direction. Where there were highways, there was bound to be
civilization. And where there was civilization, there was, she hoped, a greater
chance for survival. An opportunity to finally contact Mark and let him know
she was alright .
Just how, precisely, Ana would finagle that last part, she
wasn’t certain. Clearly, Ana had been a target for quite some time now. All
those odd occurrences in her home over these past few weeks had not been her
imagination at all. Someone had been after her, either out to gaslight her or
put the fear of God in her until...
Until what?
None of this made sense. If abduction was the end, then why
use such contorted means? Why not just lurk in wait at her home and grab her
while she was unattended?
And Joe...
A man she hadn’t seen for over two years. Two and a half
probably, counting that time she and Mark had seen him at the Irish Pub on
Capitol Hill.
Ana shuddered back against the icy
column as a semi whizzed by above, splattering murk and mud. No, Joe was one of
the good guys. He’d just proven that yet again. But then, what was Joe’s
connection to the Chinese men who’d nabbed her? An undercover
operation? But, of course, what else could it be?
Ana had been damned lucky Joe McFadden had been sent as her
assassin rather than some murderous stranger. Or did luck really have anything
to do with it?
Ana traced a thumb over the square watch face, knowing this
gadget housed more than routine mechanisms. A microchip? Something pivotal
regarding Joe’s undercover mission that Ana was meant to take back to Mark at
the DOS? Whatever the reason, Joe McFadden was not the sort of man to act
rashly without cause.
Another
splattering truck provoked a new chill that sent her bones rattling. Two days
on the run. Ana had to find someplace to get inside. Someplace with a hot
shower and a telephone.
Ana’s belly clenched at the thought of Isabel, at the
realization of the danger her baby girl now faced. But no, Ana told herself,
remembering Mark. Mark never in a million years had been slipshod. The moment
Ana’d disappeared- as soon as he’d realized the danger- Mark would have seen to
it that the rest of their family was safe. He’d have taken extra precautions
with Isabel, perhaps even with Maria, as well.
Ana tried to think of whom to call but knew the DOS was a
bad bet. The fact that her Oriental abductors had been able to snatch her right out from
under DOS security meant that something was deadly wrong with their security
system. And if that had been invaded, even telephone communications would be
unsafe- particularly those made on unsecured lines. Of course, if she placed a
call just as a warning, a quick notice to her father or Mark that she was still
alive...
Ana’s heart sunk at the realization that even the
that possibility. All Joe needed was another couple of hours. He’d rent a car
the moment they landed and drive like a bat out of hell until her found her.
For Ana, it was a matter of life or death . Joe impatiently thumped his
armrests as the plane smacked the tarmac and roared into Dulles International
Airport. And time- for Ana Kane- was running out.
***
Ana stepped back from the railroad tracks and pressed her
back to the concrete bolster supporting the overpass. She checked the
illuminated numbers on the watch she’d strapped to her wrist. What was it
with men and watches? Ana wondered, thinking back to her father and an
earlier time...
This one meant something critical. So critical that- even in
the heat of a panicked moment- Joe had foisted it upon her, and insisted she
take it and run.
Ana adjusted the elastic watchband another notch so it’d
stay in place, and considered her options.
Just above, traffic whizzed by at record speed. She’d heard
the sound of trailing cars and the heavy drone of semis from several miles
away. It had been a simple task to acclimate herself to the noise and set her
course in that direction. Where there were highways, there was bound to be
civilization. And where there was civilization, there was, she hoped, a greater
chance for survival. An opportunity to finally contact Mark and let him know
she was alright .
Just how, precisely, Ana would finagle that last part, she
wasn’t certain. Clearly, Ana had been a target for quite some time now. All
those odd occurrences in her home over these past few weeks had not been her
imagination at all. Someone had been after her, either out to gaslight her or
put the fear of God in her until...
Until what?
None of this made sense. If abduction was the end, then why
use such contorted means? Why not just lurk in wait at her home and grab her
while she was unattended?
And Joe...
A man she hadn’t seen for over two years. Two and a half
probably, counting that time she and Mark had seen him at the Irish Pub on
Capitol Hill.
Ana shuddered back against the icy
column as a semi whizzed by above, splattering murk and mud. No, Joe was one of
the good guys. He’d just proven that yet again. But then, what was Joe’s
connection to the Chinese men who’d nabbed her? An undercover
operation? But, of course, what else could it be?
Ana had been damned lucky Joe McFadden had been sent as her
assassin rather than some murderous stranger. Or did luck really have anything
to do with it?
Ana traced a thumb over the square watch face, knowing this
gadget housed more than routine mechanisms. A microchip? Something pivotal
regarding Joe’s undercover mission that Ana was meant to take back to Mark at
the DOS? Whatever the reason, Joe McFadden was not the sort of man to act
rashly without cause.
Another
splattering truck provoked a new chill that sent her bones rattling. Two days
on the run. Ana had to find someplace to get inside. Someplace with a hot
shower and a telephone.
Ana’s belly clenched at the thought of Isabel, at the
realization of the danger her baby girl now faced. But no, Ana told herself,
remembering Mark. Mark never in a million years had been slipshod. The moment
Ana’d disappeared- as soon as he’d realized the danger- Mark would have seen to
it that the rest of their family was safe. He’d have taken extra precautions
with Isabel, perhaps even with Maria, as well.
Ana tried to think of whom to call but knew the DOS was a
bad bet. The fact that her Oriental abductors had been able to snatch her right out from
under DOS security meant that something was deadly wrong with their security
system. And if that had been invaded, even telephone communications would be
unsafe- particularly those made on unsecured lines. Of course, if she placed a
call just as a warning, a quick notice to her father or Mark that she was still
alive...
Ana’s heart sunk at the realization that even the
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