Sounded like feds. H-A-L. Last few letters of 'Marshal,' as in
reflective yellow letters on the back of a windbreaker:
U.S. Marshal. Of course, if it was him coming to collect Dr. Morrison,
this was the kind of thing he'd do. Disguising your kidnap team as
cops or firemen or federal agents was clever. Who stops a fireman on
the way to a fire? Or a cop on his way to an accident?
Unless, of course, they were real feds.
'Got it. Discom.'
Ventura called the leader of the two men watching the gate into the
compound.
'Let them pass, but see if you can get an ear on the guard at the gate
if he lets them in.'
'Copy.'
Ventura broke the connection, walked to where Morrison lay sleeping.
'Wake up. Dr. Morrison.'
'Huh? What--?'
'Listen carefully. My people report that there are two cars that look
like they belong to the feds on their way here.'
The phone vibrated yet again.
'Go.'
'Our shotgun mike picked up the exchange. Guys in the car say they are
U.S. Marshals, come to serve a federal arrest warrant. They asked
where they could find Morrison.
The guard told them, and let them pass.'
'Got it. Pull back to Rendezvous A, call the other teams and tell
them.'
'Copy.'
Ventura made another call.
'Mercury falling,' he said.
'Copy. We'll be there.'
'Discom.'
Ventura looked at Morrison.
'These guys convinced the gate guard they were U.S. Marshals. They've
come to collect you.'
Morrison shook his head.
'No way. They can't know I had anything to do with this. I covered
myself.'
'Convince me.'
'Nobody actually took anything from the computer files; it only looks
like they did. I got into the HAARP
system from a Mac store in San Francisco, using a floor demo model
connected to the net. I had a password, but I banged on the door a few
times to make it look good before I used it. I damaged a few files on
the way in. It was a crowded Saturday morning, nobody noticed me, I
didn't speak to anybody in the shop. Even if somebody could backtrack
it through the store's server, it ends there--I was just another
customer browsing the hardware and I used voxax to light the system. No
hands, so no prints, no DNA. Nobody could possibly connect it to
me.'
'All right. So if they aren't real feds, then they must be from the
