“We have nothing,” Greystone growled.
“That’s not true,” Caroline said. “We know where they work, so we can ambush them there and bring them to the Black Site.”
“They won’t talk,” Hawk said. “They’ll die before they tell us anything.”
Greystone snapped photos of the dead men before they returned to their vehicles. Seething, he said nothing as he drove back to the Black site.
Once there, they debriefed around the conference room table. When he finished, Caroline said, “I’m going back to the Bureau, and I’m gonna tear that restroom apart. If I can’t find the bomb, I’m going to the Justice Department to do the same thing over there.” She regarded everyone in the room. “They have access to six buildings. Who’s going to the other four?”
After she got her volunteers, she said, “Partner up and go through the building floor by floor. Look for a bathroom or some other room that’s off limits. Get into the basement if you can. I’m confident the bombs are being built somewhere in those buildings.” She flicked her gaze to Greystone. “You’re with me.”
“When are you doing this?” Jericho asked.
“Now,” she replied. “We’ve run out of time.”
CAROLINE
Caroline was furious.If they didn’t find the bombs in the next few days, the President would launch Plan B. That meant Plan A had failed. That meanttheyhad failed.
Not on my watch.
After confirming she and Grey had their FBI badges, they headed out. In the hangar, she climbed into her SUV. Once he got in beside her, she backed out. While the door was closing, she opened the sunroof, let the early morning air swirl around her.
Before driving away, she clasped his hand. “We’ve run into multiple roadblocks in all of our cases. This one is no different. Yes, the pressure is there and time is almost out, and, yes, we feel completely defeated, but we aren’t giving up. Maybe the terrorists are hoping we will, maybe they think they’re smarter, more cunning, or that their hatred will win.”
In the dark car, he glanced over. “We’ll find those bombs.”
She drove to DC, made her way over to the Hoover building. After she garage parked nearby, they hurried inside and through security.
The second the elevator doors shut, he hauled her close. “We got this.”
She stared into his eyes, the energy swirling around them. “The terrorists got away, they’re watching us, and there’s a chance we’re going to die, but I refuse to back down. No way in hell are we running scared.”
They came together in a torrent of wild energy, his kiss hijacking her mind. But their few seconds of bliss ended when the doors slid open on the fifth floor. They strode down the quiet hallway, stopping in front of the restroom. As she expected, the door was locked. Grey keyed their way in. Like their first visit, nothing was disturbed.
She walked into each stall, felt along the tile wall near the floor behind each toilet.
Nothing.
After staring at every inch of wall, she studied the concrete floor. Coming up emptyagain,she raked her hands through her hair.
“Let’s say this is a red herring, and there’s nothing going on in here,” she said. “Why go to all this trouble to keep employees out? And what are they doing in here? Why lead us to these buildings that turn into a dead end?”
Her questions were met with thundering silence. Grey’s brows were furrowed, the muscles in his cheeks ticking over and over. Then, he started pacing in the small space. She started tracking his every move, hoping it would trigger a thought that could lead them somewhere. She walked over to the sink, set her hands on the vanity, and stared at herself in the mirror.
Think, Caroline. Why did they close off these rooms? Is the answer in the walls?She stared at the reflection of the ceiling.Up there?
A smudge on the edge of the mirror caught her attention. Then, another on the other side.
Those are thumb prints.
“Whoa,” she blurted as she studied each of the mirrors over the sinks.
She grasped both sides of the mirror. It moved. Excitement pounded through her as she tried pulling it away from the wall. It didn’t budge, so she lifted it, then pulled, and the mirror detached.
Sitting inside the gaping, drilled-out section of wall behind the mirror appeared to be an explosive device that, at first glance, looked like it was a foot high, by a foot wide, by a foot deep.
“Jesus,” he muttered. “You found it.”
He took the mirror from her, leaned it against the wall.
She breathed deep, releasing some of the stress that had been building over the past two months. “We sure as hell did.”
They removed the other three mirrors and found three identical devices.
“We hit the mother lode.” He lit up the space with his phone’s flashlight. “There’s a timer.”
Her stomach dropped. “No,” she murmured. “Tell me it’s not set.”
He pivoted toward her. The second his gaze met hers, she knew. Those bombs had been set to blow. She needed to know how long they had, but the words got stuck in her throat.
