to the Russian mob as freelance killers out of necessity. The four you killed on Rook Island arrived in this country after Manelli was arrested.”
“They weren't Russian soldiers, Hank. One of them had a distinctly Southern accent. I'll tell you what this is. The FBI is lying, or being fooled. And you can tell Shapiro to tell the Bureau that no matter what they come up with, they can't convince me that Greg sold out a witness.”
“Have you thought about…” Hank started, then reconsidered. “Winter, what if it's true? What if they're right? What if Greg did take money from someone like Manelli for doing a small favor? Someone could use that to blackmail him and make him do something much worse.”
“Not Greg,” Winter said, resolute in his conviction that Greg was being made a patsy in this investigation.
“Nearly a half million dollars…”
“Hank, once when we were in Georgia leaving Glynco, he turned around and drove back ten miles because he found out a clerk had given him change for a twenty instead of the ten he had given her. We were looking at missing a flight because of it. That's the kind of man Greg was.”
“We're not talking about ten dollars. It isn't like you to ignore evidence because it doesn't fit what you think is true.”
“What I think is that somebody is framing him. Maybe it's the FBI.”
“Why?”
“Because they have to explain how this all happened. They have to make people think they're on top of everything, which is as far from the truth as it gets. Think what solving this is worth to careers, what not solving it will cost them. It wouldn't be the first time they put a spin on something to suit their purposes.”
“This is more than public relations. You just got through saying that Greg didn't tell you the truth about his military service.”
Winter was dumbfounded. “I never asked, and it doesn't matter.”
“You know, it isn't smart to be behind a bull when you know he's gonna sit down. There are bound to be some complicated politics in all of this.”
“What are you saying, Hank?”
“Greg didn't have a family to get hurt. You do. If you're right, this is a done deal. You don't understand the politics at work here well enough to know when to get out of the way. Fight the Bureau and the A.G. on this and they might make room for you in the same fire they're looking to roast Nations' reputation over.”
Winter wasn't so naive he doubted that could come to pass.
Hank said, “Sometimes a situation comes along where somebody gets sacrificed. Maybe holding up one bad apple would be a way to save the USMS and maintain the credibility of the entire witness security side. You can see what's a stake for the USMS, Justice, and the FBI.”
“If Greg didn't do it, then somebody else did. If they stop looking at Greg, then whoever's responsible might do the same thing again,” Winter said.
Hank scowled and placed his hands on the file. “Winter, all I know is what Shapiro wanted you to know.”
“Does he believe what the FBI told him?”
“He told me that he thinks the speed at which everything was put to rest is unusual. The Russian military cooperated immediately here; even though identifying those men as theirs makes them look bad and has the potential to create an embarrassing incident when our relationship is delicate. There's a chance they wanted to cooperate with us, since it means clamping down on their Mafia.”
Winter shook his head. “Bull.”
“I'm your friend, Winter. The truth is that there's nothing you can do.”
“What, we all just let this run its course?”
Hank shrugged and put the pages back inside the folder. “The only reason I know about what happened on Rook and Ward Field is because Shapiro thought I needed to know. There's one other thing he asked me to tell you. Sean Devlin slipped away from the marshals who were watching her.”
“I'm sure she had a reason,” his calm tone belying the stab of terror he experienced on hearing the news.
“He didn't say.”
“Is he sure she wasn't grabbed by Manelli's people?” Winter tried to keep his voice even, despite his mounting sense that Sean was in grave danger.
“She slipped surveillance on purpose. She pulled some kind of a ruse with two rooms.”
“Is he going to search for her?”
“I think he's looking for her. I'm sorry about all of this, Winter. You know that.”
“So am I, Hank,” Winter said, standing. “So am I.”
When Winter climbed into his Explorer and slammed the door, two men in a Chrysler sedan three blocks away knew it because a light on the computer screen between them began blinking. The driver waited beside the curb and didn't move into traffic until the Explorer exited the garage and the driver saw it coming toward them.
“You got audio?” the driver asked the second man.
The man with the earphone in place nodded and held a thumb up. “He's growling.”
“Growling, as in like a dog?”
“Yep.”
59
Rush Massey was at the computer with his fingers on the keyboard. As he typed, a pleasant electronic voice spoke the words.
DEAR SIRS COMMA IT HAS BEEN BROUGHT TO MY ATTENTION THAT YOUR BREAKFAST FRUIT BARS CAN CAUSE FIRES IN TOASTERS PERIOD AS AN UNSIGHTED PERSON I BELIEVE I HAVE ENOUGH TO WORRY ABOUT WITHOUT FLAMING DEATH RESULTING FROM MY DEEP AFFECTION FOR YOUR TASTY BREAKFAST PASTRIES PERIOD I HAVE SOME IDEAS FOR FIRE-RETARDANT FOODS PERIOD
Rush heard a snort from behind him. He hadn't smelled Mrs. Holland's perfume and was unaware that the principal had snuck up behind him.
“Rush, you could be a comedy writer.”
“I'm going to be a federal judge so I can sentence the men my daddy catches. And when you're a judge, the blinder the better. Like when you're an umpire.”
Mrs. Holland chuckled and placed her hand on Rush's shoulder affectionately. “Your father is out in the hall waiting to see you.”
Winter led Rush into the auditorium and took seats close to the entrance. “I have something to tell you.”
“Okay.” His son's face remained emotionless. Rush was preparing himself mentally for virtually anything.
“What I am going to tell you is a classified secret, so I have to ask you to keep it between the two of us.”
Rush crossed his heart.
“You know the USMS airplane that crashed Thursday night?”
“Yes.”
“Right.” God give me the strength to do this. “Those WITSEC marshals were taking a witness to Washington to testify.”
“WITSEC like Uncle Greg?”
“Greg was…” Winter's voice broke. He hadn't felt the emotion coming. “On that flight.”
Rush was silent as he absorbed the information.
“He's in heaven, right?”
“I'm sure he is.”
