The Narrows

distance, for whom the burden became too much. Agents like Janet Newcomb, who put her gun in her mouth, and Jon Fenton, who drove into a bridge abutment, and Terry McCaleb, who literally gave his heart to the job. Rachel remembered them all and above all she remembered Bob Backus, the ultimate morph, the agent who was both hunter and prey.
    "That was Brass Doran on the phone," Alpert said. "She said to say hello." "She's back at Quantico?"
    "Yes, she's agoraphobic about that place. Never wants to leave. She's heading up things on that end for us. Now, Agent Walling, I know you know the score. We've got a delicate situation here. We're glad you are here but you are here strictly as an observer and possibly a witness."
    She didn't like him being so formal with her. It was a way of keeping her outside the circle.
    "A witness?" she asked.
    "You might be able to give us some ideas. You knew this guy. Most of us were on the street chasing bank robbers when the whole thing with Backus went down. I came into the unit right after your thing went down. After OPR went through the place. Cherie here is one of the few still around from then."
    "My thing?"
    "You know what I mean. You and Backus going at St."
    "Can I go look at the excavation now? I'd like to see what you've got."
    "Well, Cherie will take you out in a second. We don't have a lot to look at but today's carcass."
    Spoken like a true morph, Rachel thought. She glanced at Dei and their eyes met in confirmation.
    "But there is something I want to talk about first."
    Rachel knew what was coming but let Alpert have his say. He moved toward the front of the RV and pointed vthrough the windshield out into the desert. Rachel followed his line but couldn't see anything but the mountain ridge.
    "Well, you can't really see it from this angle," Alpert said, "but out there lying on the ground we've got a great big sign. It says in big letters, filming-no flyovers, no noise. That's for anybody up there who might get curious about all these tents and vehicles. Pretty good idea, huh? They think it's a movie set. Helps keep them away from us."
    "And your point?"
    "My point? My point is we have thrown a real thick blanket over all of this. Nobody knows and we want to keep it that way."
    "And you are suggesting I am a media leak?"
    "No, I am not suggesting that. I am giving you the same talk I give everybody that comes out here. I don't want this in the media. I want to control it this time. Is that understood?"
    More like bureau command or the Office of Professional Responsibility wants to control it this time, she thought. The Backus revelations almost decimated the ranks and reputation of the Behavioral Sciences unit last time, not to mention the colossal public relations fiasco it was for the bureau as a whole. Now with the failings of 9/11 and the bureau's competition with Homeland Security for budget dollars as well as headlines, media focus on a mad killer agent was not what bureau command or the OPR had in mind. Especially when the general public had been led to believe that the mad killer agent was long since dead.
    "I understand," Rachel said coolly. "You won't have to worry about me. Can I go out now?"
    "One other thing."
    He hesitated for a moment. Whatever it was, it was delicate. "Not everyone involved in this investigation is aware of the connection to Robert Backus. It's 'need to know' and I want to keep it that way."
    "What do you mean? The people working out there don't know it was Backus who did this? They should be-"
    "Agent Walling, this is not your investigation. Don't try to make it yours. You were brought here to observe and help, leave it at that. We don't know for sure it was Backus and until we do-"
    "Right. His fingerprints were only all over the GPS and his MO all over everything else."
    Alpert glanced at Dei, throwing her a look of annoyance.
    "Cherie should not have told you about the prints and as far as the MO goes, there is nothing known about that for sure."
    "Just because she shouldn't have told me doesn't mean it isn't true. You're not going to be able to cover this up, Agent Alpert."
    Alpert laughed in frustration.
    "Who said anything about a cover-up? Look, all we're doing right now is controlling information. There is a right time for revealing data. That is all I am telling you. Your presence alone here will be revealing enough, okay? I just don't want you deciding what to reveal and who to reveal it to. That's my job. Understood?"
    Rachel