Death Echo

phone chimed softly.
    A text message appeared on the screen: TARGET ON MOVE. INTERCEPT TOMORROW. NEW COORDINATES TO FOLLOW .

62
    DAY FIVE
NORTH OF DISCOVERY PASSAGE
5:11 P.M.
    I t took Harrow an hour to cover each bullet point that had been passed down the chain of command to him. In that time, Mac remembered all over again why he didn’t miss bureaucracies. The sheen of impatience in Emma’s eyes told him that she felt the same way.
    Finally the repetition of the obvious irritated even Harrow. He waved them off and stalked back toward Summer Solstice .
    Silently Mac untied the dinghy and stepped aboard. He was carrying a waterproof, spun-metal case that was no bigger than his palm. Inside, nested in foam, were several impressive bugs.
    Harrow reluctantly had agreed that Mac could put them in place. The fact that everyone hadn’t scrambled for the Zodiac when Emma and Mac left told him that at least one of the bugs was already live. Probably all of them were.
    â€œFirewall it,” Mac said.
    Emma gunned the inflatable away from the dock. In seconds they were flying, little more than the engine’s prop in the water.
    â€œThey’ll catch up,” she said over the engine. “That Zodiac they have goes like stink.”
    â€œMake ’em work for it.”
    The meter on the chart plotter’s electronic screen quickly climbed to thirty knots.
    â€œYou’re really pissed,” Emma said, reading Mac better than either of them expected.
    â€œI thought Harrow or one of his hires pulled the trigger on Tommy.”
    â€œDoubt it,” Emma said. “Tommy made a better puppet than we do.”
    â€œYeah. Damn it.”
    â€œThis fast enough for you?” she asked.
    All Mac said was, “Why didn’t you question Harrow about any Russian involvement? The SR-1 Vektor isn’t something everyone uses. Other guns are more available, cheaper, and more reliable—unless you know how to tape the safety in the off position.”
    â€œOne, Harrow wouldn’t have told us. Two, the dumber he thinks we are, the more room we’ll have to maneuver.”
    â€œThey’ll throw us away faster than a used condom.”
    â€œYou think?” she asked sarcastically.
    She swerved the dinghy around some rocks, instinctively using a gentle touch at high speed.
    â€œDid you believe Harrow?” Mac asked.
    Emma thought for a moment. “He’s a gamer by nature and training. He could have told the truth, but only if he thinks we’ll believe it’s a lie.”
    â€œI hate spooks.”
    â€œMe included?”
    â€œYou’re an ex-spook. Hate has nothing to do with how I feel about you.”
    In that moment, Emma did something she’d never been able to do in the past. She took Mac at his word.
    â€œSame goes,” she said. “Tim is different. If he doesn’t think he has better cards than you do, he won’t play the game.”
    â€œWhat about you?” Mac asked, looking over his shoulder.
    The Zodiac was behind them, hauling at least three passengers at high speed.
    â€œI like to keep paranoids like Tim comfortable,” Emma said. “That’s when he gets sloppy.”
    â€œHow did he get sloppy with you?”
    â€œBy banging one of his office staff on the side, but only after he was convinced that I trusted him completely. He forgot that I had access to his expense accounts and travel vouchers, as well as hers. The second time they spent a weekend in adjoining rooms at the same hotel, I went to confront Tim on the subject. He was busy at the time.”
    â€œPolishing his desk.”
    â€œOh yeah.”
    â€œHarrow’s an idiot to screw around on a woman like you.”
    â€œThanks.” She smiled widely. “In truth, he didn’t get nearly as much out of me in bed as you did. And vice versa.”
    Mac ran his knuckles lightly over her cheekbone. “It was really good. Especially the vice versa.”
    They skipped along through tidal races and down channels, retracing their earlier track. This time she didn’t see any other boats.
    The whirlpool was gone, too.
    Mac glanced over his shoulder several times. The dinghy and the Zodiac were both blazing over the water, but Harrow’s boat had more muscle. It was slowly closing in. No surprise there. The Agency could afford to play with really expensive toys, both human and machine.
    â€œYou know what bothers me most about this