The Project 02 - The Lance

head. There was a burst of daylight and the sound of the back door slamming shut. Nick got up and ran to the back. He stood on the side and pulled open the door.
    The door opened onto a walled garden. A small fountain trickled under a tree shading a rickety table and two chairs. There was an ashtray on the table. A vase held wilted red flowers. In the far wall was a closed wooden gate.
    Nick ran across the garden and swung the gate open. He glanced into the street on the other side of the wall. Two Armenian priests were walking toward the entrance to the quarter and St. James Cathedral. Another priest in an odd hat and black ankle-length robe walked in the opposite direction. Across the way a stout couple looked at postcards. There were shopkeepers, food vendors, strollers. Everything looked normal. There was no way to identify the assassin.
    He holstered the .45, closed the gate and bolted it. He went back into the shop and closed the rear door. A crowd began to gather in front, drawn by the gunfire.
    Rivka Stern, Nick's Shin Bet watcher, came in through the entrance. She had a Baby Eagle nine mil out and held by her side. Her dark, thick hair was pinned up under a pale yellow scarf. She wore an olive green skirt that came to her knees, sturdy sandals tied with thongs on her lower legs and a loose tan shirt of cotton under a light tan jacket. She had wide hips and full breasts bound close under her shirt. Her skin was dusky with the legacy of the Middle East. Sunglasses hid her eyes.
    " What happened?" Her voice was low, tense.
    " I found Arslanian dead. Someone took a shot at me. I shot back. He got away through the rear."
    Rivka holstered her pistol, took out a phone, dialed, and began talking. Nick looked at what had fallen from Arslanian's hand. It was a flash drive. He dropped it in his jacket pocket.
    He looked at his watch. It was only 2:30 in the morning in Washington, but Harker needed to know about this.
    " Yes, Nick." Her voice was full of sleep. She cleared her throat. "What's happening?" She coughed.
    " Arslanian's dead. Someone put a hit on him before we could meet. The shooter was waiting for me but he missed. He got away."
    " You're sure he was after you as well?"
    " Had to be. Arslanian had only been dead a few minutes. The shop was open to anyone and the killer was still inside. When he missed me he got out fast."
    " Who knew you were going there this morning?"
    " No one except Shin Bet and you."
    " That's a short list."
    There was a brief silence while Harker thought about that.
    "What's your plan?" She coughed.
    " I don't have one. Herzog will think of something. I'm following his lead right now."
    "Y ou'd better watch your step. All right, I'll see what I can uncover at this end."
    " I'll be sending something to you." He fingered the drive in his pocket.
    " Keep me posted." She ended the call.
    Ri vka stood near. He caught her scent, a subtle combination of musk and Judean flowers.
    " Calling your mother?"
    " Yes. Someone knew I was coming. The timing's too much of a coincidence."
    "You could be right . We'll talk it over with Ari."
    P olice showed up and cordoned off the shop. Two more Shin Bet agents arrived. Carter took another look around. He knew the cops would do a better job of finding anything useful than he would. They left to meet with Ari.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

    Elizabeth Harker leaned back in her black leather chair. She took a tissue from a box on the desk and coughed into it. She folded it and dropped it into the wastebasket. She tapped her pen on the desk and thought about Nick.
    Two days on the ground and he was already up to his neck in the madness of the Middle East. It was uncanny how much trouble he drew to himself. She sipped from the cup of coffee she'd brewed and added more sugar. She broke into a fit of coughing, almost spilling the coffee. She waited for it to pass, blotted her lips with a tissue. She excavated an inhaler from her purse and took in a labored breath.
    Elizabeth had been up since Nick's call, running through possibilities. She'd had no reason to think someone would kill Arslanian. She'd had no reason to think someone would try to take Nick off the board. Someone didn't want Arslanian talking to Nick or anyone else.
    H er intuition bugged her, demanding attention. It was something she didn't talk about, intuition. Her male peers would have rolled their eyes if they knew how she operated. Sometimes it made her feel like a modern day Cassandra, warning of