disinterest, opened the door as if he had all the time in the world. Lefty impatiently brushed past without further conversation and handed Gerrit’s bag to the butler as if to a meaningless servant.
Gerrit followed his guide up a curved stairway to the second floor, a tiled corridor softened by a carpeted maroon runner. They paused before an ornately carved oak door with brass doorknobs. Lefty rapped twice before barging in to the room. “Mr. Kane, your guest has arrived.”
Motioning Gerrit forward, Lefty slowly backed out of the room and closed the door behind him. At first, Gerrit saw no one in the room. Then, a figure emerged from an interior doorway to the left and walked toward him. The man appeared to be in his sixties, with long ivory-white hair swept back to his shoulders and a sharply chiseled face that must have caught the eye of more than one woman.
As the man drew closer, his eyes-darkly dangerous-seemed to peer at Gerrit as if searching for information. Those eyes reminded Gerrit of a predator-cold, expressionless, and calculating.
The man extended a hand. “Welcome to London, Mr. O’Rourke. My name’s Richard Kane.” A Texas drawl seemed to fit the man’s air of independence, a laid-back drawl that invited others to let down their guards. The man’s voice reminded Gerrit of watching old television clips of President Lyndon Johnson speaking to the American people during the Vietnam conflict. Words of familiarity no one trusted.
Gerrit shook his hand, expecting to feel the ice-cold touch of a reptile. Instead, Kane’s grasp seemed warm and strong.
He motioned Gerrit toward a chair near the only desk in the room, an expansive, simple desk carved from cherry wood, its reddish gleam polished to a shine. Not one piece of paper cluttered the desktop. Kane rounded it and sat down, learning forward with both elbows planted on the wooden surface, hands clasped together.
He studied Gerrit for a moment. “How was your flight…Mr. Gerrity?” It was the first smile Kane cracked.
“Long and tiring. Senator Summers sends his regards.”
Kane’s smile widened. “Make sure you still have your valuables after that man shakes your hand. Sneaky as all get-out.”
“I wouldn’t know, Mr. Kane. It was the first time I met him.”
“And what did the good senator tell you about all this?”
“Matter of national security and you’d explain everything.”
Kane shook his head, strands of white hair falling into his face, only to be pushed back into place. “Senator Summers always wants to play it safe. The ol’ boy gives himself plausible deniability in case something goes wrong. Are you one of those guys who wants to play it safe?”
Gerrit met his stare without blinking. “I don’t know what we’re talking about. Anyone who knows me can tell you I like to get the job done. Whatever it takes.”
“That’s what I’ve heard. But I like to size up a man face-to-face. Helps me to determine if he’s got true grit. Ya know what I mean?”
Shifting in his chair, Gerrit leaned forward. “No offense, Mr. Kane, but I’m really tired. Tired of all this down- home, ya’ll come by bull. I got a senator who won’t give me spit. A spook who hands me falsified credentials with my mug plastered on them-a felony, I might add. And I fly over two continents to meet with a man who wants to know if I’ve got true grit?”
Gerrit felt himself heat up. “How’s this for grit?” he said, trying to calm down. “Based upon that nebulous meeting in D.C., I’m ordered to use those fake documents to pass through security on a trip that might have something to do with national security. Nobody tells me squat about who sanctioned this operation. Now, I’m not an attorney, but I’m smart enough to know that if this operation is illegal-my goose is cooked. I could face ten years in federal prison and be fined $250,000 just for what I did back there at Dulles. And that’s just for starters. Not to mention, my career in law enforcement would be toast. Is that enough grit?”
“Good enough. Look, why don’t you get a little shut-eye. I know you have a lot of questions and I intend answering every one of them. In good time. First thing in the morning, we’ll catch a chopper and head up the coast to a place where we operate. It is safe to talk there.”
The door opened behind Gerrit. He turned and saw Lefty holding the door.
“Show Mr. O’Rourke to his room. Give him whatever he needs.” Kane turned toward Gerrit. “Have a good sleep, partner. Tomorrow, I promise…all your questions will be answered.”
Gerrit walked toward the door as Lefty led the way. Somehow, he didn’t believe Kane. He sensed the man never revealed everything. Just enough to get his way.
Tomorrow, Gerrit had better get some answers or he was history.
Chapter 9
Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England
A black Agusta A-109 helicopter lifted off the heliport a few miles from the outskirts of Harrogate after dropping off its passengers. Gerrit gripped his bag, watching the sleek chopper climb higher against a sheet-metal gray sky. Storm clouds threatened in the west.
Richard Kane, flanked by Lefty and another man, waited at the edge of the landing site. Once Kane saw Gerrit walking toward them, he wheeled around, making long strides toward what appeared to be a small yet pretentious stone castle-Kane’s headquarters.
A white gravel path wound between closely shorn lawns, neatly clipped grass looking like huge putting greens one after another, and beds of bushes and what promised to be flowering plants by next spring. Now, a harsh winter severed most of the leaves, leaving dead stems and freshly turned soil. Their destination, a gray limestone mansion replete with stone turrets at each of the four corners of the building.
Great location for snipers. Gerrit looked for signs of increased security. As he drew closer, a dark pod under one of the eaves caught his attention. A surveillance camera. Once he spotted that one, others were easier to pick out. Based on their locations on this side of the building, he surmised there was no way to approach this building without discovery.
Near a grove of trees to his far right, Gerrit saw a dark rectangular box-an unattended ground sensor-its blackened antenna sticking up like a slender finger near the trunk of one tree. He hadn’t seen these since his days overseas, only those in the military had been cruder. They used them around their home base to warn of intruders approaching the camp. He imagined there might be a dozen of these sensors strategically peppered across the estate. They were walking into a well-monitored fortress.
He had yet to see weapons, but he suspected there might be at least one pointed at him this very second from one of those four turrets. Or from one of the many darkened windows overlooking the grounds.
They neared a U-shaped building, wrapped around a courtyard replete with bare rose bushes and low-kept hedges struggling to keep their green. Lefty dashed ahead and opened a ponderous wooden door. Kane and the others passed through before the ex-boxer slammed it closed.
The quiet serenity of the estate outside changed once they entered the building. A sense of urgency seemed to fill the air as they walked across the main floor. Many of the rooms had been turned into small business centers, desks sat back-to-back, manned by men and women in conservative business attire. Hardly anyone looked up as Kane and his entourage swept upstairs.
Gerrit and the others came to an office that overlooked the same grounds they covered from the helicopter. Large, paned-glass windows allowed dreary illumination from outside to creep into this massive room. Floor-to- ceiling shelves, each bearing rows of leather-bound books, crafted into the walls on all fours sides, except where doorways and a fireplace demanded their space. A desk stood in the center of the room, surrounded by several club chairs and a sofa. A fire crackled in the hearth-built from Blu Venato d?Italia marble-and warmth from the flames fought the cold trying to creep in from outside.
After settling himself at the desk, Kane waved the others away and motioned Gerrit to take one of the chairs.
“Now, let’s get down to business. Not to be melodramatic, but I sincerely believe our country’s future security is at stake. I-and the people I represent-intend to meet that challenge head-on. We could use your help.”
“I’m a local cop. What can I offer?”
For a moment, Kane seemed to be pondering Gerrit’s question. “I’ve read your file, Gerrit. You’re much more
