exit?”
I thought about it for a second. “I don’t know. But if we try that,” I glanced over my shoulder as we hustled toward the rear of the building, no sign yet of anyone entering the building, “there’s a good chance that an alarm would go off.”
“We don’t need that to happen on top of everything else.” James shook his head.
“Right here. He’ll never come back this far.”
“You’re sure?”
“Won’t happen.”
We were quiet, the only noise that I could hear was that of the air-conditioning system and our heavy breathing.
Then came the footsteps, slapping on the tile floor. More than one person. And laughter. A woman’s high- pitched giggle.
In a whisper James said, “Sarah’s with him.”
I considered the possibilities. Conroy had forgotten something from his office and Sarah had been with him when he remembered. Or maybe they had a room here. Maybe one of the offices I hadn’t seen yet. A love nest. At this level of money and power, anything was possible.
Their muffled conversation echoed as they entered the work area. And then as if someone flipped a switch, their voices were crystal clear.
“So I had the one kid in here tonight.” Conroy’s voice. “That smoke detector they put in my office went off for no reason. Scared the crap out of me. Thing must have had a short in it or something. It wasn’t his fault, but I chewed his ass out anyway. This whole project has got me on edge.”
I waited for a response, but no one else spoke. Maybe he was on his cell phone, telling someone else the story.
He started again. “If DOD hadn’t demanded the system be updated, we wouldn’t have to worry about these bozos. They’re idiots. The other kid runs into the parking lot thinking he’s got a bomb in his hands? What was with that?”
Then the female voice. “They’ll be out of here in two days. And when this all comes down, they’ll be part of the confusion. They won’t have a clue, but they’ll be up to their necks in this. Trust me. This will work.”
James frowned, looking at me as we pressed our backs to the wall. He shook his head back and forth, and I knew exactly what he was getting at. Conroy wasn’t with Sarah. The woman’s voice belonged to his wife, Carol Conroy.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
“I have a bad feeling about those two.”
“If you hadn’t had Feng put the GPS unit under their truck, nothing would have happened.”
The room was cool, but there was a cold sweat on my forehead. I wiped it with my hand, and listened intently to the movement of the voices. I was guessing they were now in Conroy’s office with the door open. Maybe only twenty feet from where we stood, but around the corner and inside the office. We could still make out the conversation, but it was more distant now.
“He didn’t trust them.”
“He didn’t trust me either. Trying to put a GPS on my car in the middle of Miami.” She laughed again. “He almost got caught.”
“Yeah. And what were you doing with the kid? At some dive like the Red Derby?”
“Setting him up, Sandy. I told you. When it all shakes out, you’re going to be very pleased. Just get the codes, get the passwords, and get out of the way.”
“Setting him up?”
“I don’t know how to say this any other way. Get out of the way and just do your job. Understood? After everything you’ve done, I don’t think I have to explain myself to you.”
Silence. I figured they walked out of hearing range. Then Conroy spoke up. “You’ve got it all worked out with Chen and his group?”
“Honey, stay out of the way.”
“Your dad is not going to go down easy.”
“My father isn’t going to know what hit him.”
“Carol, tell me there won’t be anymore like Ralph Walters or Tony Quatman.”
Everything was still, and I wiped my brow again. Em just stood there, bathed in the eerie security lights, and James was chewing on his bottom lip.
“There’s over seventy-five million dollars at stake here, Sandy. I’m not promising anything.”
I saw James whip his head around and stare in my direction. Almost as if he thought I knew about the money. I’d never in my life heard figures like that being tossed around. $75,000,000?
“Babe, I’ve got this feeling that the two kids-” He paused, and I knew he was talking about James and me. “Those two punks are keeping an eye on me.”
“You’re imagining things.” She was quick with the comeback. Almost too quick.
“Am I?”
“They’re not bright enough to keep an eye on anybody. And after what happened to them tonight, I don’t think they’re going to give us any trouble.”
“What happened?”
“There was a little warning.”
“Oh, man. What kind of warning?”
“Trust me, they’re going to go about their business very quietly from this point on. They’ll finish the installation, and we won’t hear from them again. When the entire plan unfolds, they’ll appear to be right in the thick of it. Just drop it, okay? All I want you to worry about is getting those damned codes. I trust you haven’t told anyone anything they didn’t need to know?”
“For your eyes only kind of stuff, yeah. Feng is the only one, and since he’s our main contact-”
“And sweet little Sarah? She’s none the wiser?”
Now the voices were traveling, more and more distant and muffled as if they were headed for the exit.
“She knows there’s a bonus and that I’m taking her away from all of this.”
“You were a fool to ever get involved.”
“We’ve been through this-”
“I know. But I’m not going to forget that it happened. I will never forgive you for that. Never. Regardless, your Sarah will be the easiest one to take a fall. I wish I could-I wish we could be here to see it.”
I was straining to hear their words.
“The damndest part of this is we’re ready to start making the software, and we can have it installed within two weeks. Two weeks, Carol. If it wasn’t for Jason Riley and the government watchdogs, we never would have had to put in this useless security system. By the time they actually activate it, we won’t even need it.”
“We never needed it. But the two boys play right into our strategy. I told you, don’t worry about it.”
Just before we lost their conversation altogether I heard Conroy say, “If Sarah is the easiest one to take down, who’s the second easiest to take a fall?”
Carol Conroy’s harsh laugh rolled down the hallway.
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
W e waited a good two minutes. If they were still in the building there was no sign of it. “I think we can give the all-clear sign.”
“Jesus.”
