Lobec nodded for Kevin to speak.
“Except for a couple of bruises,” he said, “I’m fine. Are you okay?”
“Considering the circumstances, I’d rather be doing what I was doing the night my parents died.” She looked at the river, hoping to give an impression of sadness to Lobec and Bern. Then she looked back at Kevin.
His eyes flicked twice to the river. He nodded almost imperceptibly. “I think I know what you mean,” he said.
Good, he got the message. Now they had to find the right time. Maybe they could make it a few yards down the bridge before they attempted her plan.
“Miss Jensen. The contents of the bag?”
Still holding the bag out as far as she could, Erica unwrapped the Kayaking pack inside the bag, out of Lobec’s sight. She withdrew the Adamas Blueprint and flipped a few of the pages to show him the writing.
“And the videotape? You have that as well?” said Lobec.
She replaced the notebook and took out the 8mm videotape. He seemed satisfied. She stuffed it back in the kayaking pack and velcroed it shut. Her arm was again outstretched over the water.
“I suppose you expect me to trust that those are the originals and that no copies have been made.”
“Just like I have to trust you to let us go once you have them. Now let Kevin go or I’ll drop the bag in the water and no one will ever see the Adamas Blueprint again, especially Tarnwell.”
“I don’t care,” Lobec said.
She was taken aback by the statement. Kevin furrowed his brow. By the look on his face, even Bern seemed puzzled.
“I’m serious,” Erica said. “I’m going to drop it.”
“I certainly hope you’re serious,” Lobec said. “Go ahead. Drop it.” Then he turned and shot Richard Bern.
CHAPTER 35
Kevin had been ready to act ever since he realized what Erica was planning. When Lobec said, “Drop it,” Kevin knew that was the time. He twisted and swung his arms at Lobec.
He brought his arms up and into the side of Lobec’s head, which was just above Kevin’s arm level. At the same time, he heard Lobec’s gun fire, but he didn’t let that slow him down. The full force of Kevin’s blow snapped Lobec’s neck sideways and he staggered away.
Kevin ran to the side of the bridge while Lobec was stunned. Erica was already standing on the concrete railing. He shouted, “Go!”
Erica jumped.
Kevin didn’t bother climbing onto the railing. He dove over it, praying that the river was deep enough for him to make the running dive.
As he fell, Kevin could just see Erica entering the water in a perfect pike position. Kevin had no control and spun end over end. He tried to stabilize his trajectory in the two seconds of freefall he had, aiming his feet at the water. Then the soles of his feet slammed into the murky Potomac.
He sank for what seemed like forever despite his attempts to stop. Finally, his direction reversed. The impact had almost knocked the wind out of him, and his lungs were already crying for fresh air. He kicked furiously.
Just when he thought he was never going to breathe again, he caught a glimmer of light and kicked harder. He broke the surface and gasped, the crisp morning air filling his lungs.
Kevin looked around for signs of Erica. He didn’t see her. He took a deep breath, about to dive back under and begin a search when he heard, “Kevin, over here.”
He spun around. The impact of water must have jarred his contacts loose because all he saw was an indistinct blur of a head bobbing in the water. She had already swum twenty yards to the next bridge pylon. She waved for him to swim in her direction and disappeared behind it. He tried to swim freestyle, but the shackles on his hands made that impossible. The best he could manage was a lame breaststroke.
Kevin paddled as quickly as he could to get past the next pylon and under the bridge. As he came around the pylon, he looked for Erica’s face, but instead he saw a large object come into view. It bobbed on the surface of the water next to the concrete wall of the pylon. On top of the bobbing object, a figure moved. As he got closer, he saw letters painted on its side. He squinted.
“There’s a ladder on the left,” Erica called from the deck. “Hurry. They could be here any minute.”
Kevin sputtered through the water. “I’m swimming as fast as I can. The handcuffs aren’t helping.”
He gripped the top rung of the ladder with both hands and lifted his feet to the bottom rung. Erica grabbed his hands and pulled, heaving him up so that he lay on the deck with his feet dangling over the back. From this position Kevin was able to sit up. Although he couldn’t make out any details, the boat looked to be about a 16- footer.
“What can I do?” he said, trying to catch his breath.
“Here. Untie this mooring while I start her up.”
“Show me where it is.,” he said, rubbing his eyelids. “I think I lost my contacts in the jump.”
Erica escorted him to the tie-down. He got to work while she cranked the engine. Unfortunately, Erica must not have been in the Boy Scouts like he had. Instead of a slip knot, she had used a granny, and the constant tug of the river had tightened the bond.
“Do you have a knife?” he said.
The engine roared to life. “No!” she yelled over the sound of the motor. “I didn’t think to…Wait a minute. Yes!” She went over to a bag under the cowling. “Your Swiss army knife. I picked it up with the other stuff in the lab.”
She handed it to him, and he quickly sliced through the nylon cord. Free from the restraint,
“Clear!” Kevin yelled.
Erica gunned the engine, and the boat shot forward, its bow rising high above the water’s surface. Within seconds, they were cruising South on the Potomac at 25 knots.
“Where are we going?” Kevin said.
“Bayshore marina. That’s where I rented this. The truck’s parked there. I bought you some dry clothes. They’re in the bag. So’s your gun.”
“Good thinking. How far?”
“The marina’s about fifteen minutes from here. We should have plenty of time to get to the Capitol.”
The Capitol. Their meeting with Congressman Sutter. Kevin looked at his watch. It was 7:15. She was right. They still had time. The meeting wasn’t until 8:00.
“Jumping off the bridge,” he said, shaking his head. “I’m impressed.”
“I’m just glad you understood the reference to my diving meet. I didn’t want Lobec to even get a hint that we’d try that.”
“When did you get the idea?” Something itched in his left eye. He rubbed his eyelid to dislodge it.
“Two days ago, when I got the phone call. I didn’t have much time to think. When I lived here six years ago, I biked to work every day. I came from the Virginia side, over the Arlington Bridge, and around the Mall. I always saw boats on the river. I didn’t know if it was deep enough to jump until yesterday when I checked the navigation charts at the marina. They said it’s up to ninety feet deep in the middle. It was a chance.”
“I’ll take jumping into a river over getting shot any day.” There was definitely something caught in Kevin’s left eye. He tried harder to work it out.
To the left, a white rounded shape rose above some trees. He’d never been to DC before, but Kevin recognized the Jefferson Memorial’s domed top from photographs. An engine roared above them. Kevin looked up to see a jet. He wasn’t sure, but it looked like it had just taken off. It banked to the left and headed up the Potomac.
“National Airport,” Erica said, pointing to her right.
“All I can see are blinking lights.”
