Gabrielle frowned. “Given my situation, did you really think I’d try to lie my way out of this?”
Joe’s narrowed gaze tightened. His voice was whisper soft. “I expect anything at any time, just as everyone else in this room. Underestimating an adversary would be a stupid mistake for those in our line of work, and I assure you I don’t hire stupid people.”
“Excusez-moi,” she murmured in apology.
Joe nodded and continued, “Gotthard turned up some interesting cross-references. Unlike most of the other elite schools in France, the one Gabrielle went to was a private operation, funded by private investors and donations. Many graduates from there went on to have distinguished careers. The school is in a castle that has belonged to a local family for umpteen generations. But there seems to be a high percentage of dropouts. I’ll let him explain further.”
Gotthard thumped his thumb against the laptop. “I wouldn’t have thought much about the dropout rate since these are privileged and spoiled kids who probably don’t finish anything.”
Gabrielle stiffened at the insult. She’d worked her bum off her whole life to prove she was not some indulged child.
“I expected to see them popping up anywhere from news articles to job status to marriage announcements,” Gotthard went on. “Out of the six that disappeared the year Gabrielle was in school, only two have turned up. Both male. The four females are all listed as deceased.”
Gabrielle’s heart pounded. More confirmation that something had happened to Linette. “Why would her father say she was dead if she wasn’t?”
Carlos answered, “He either believes she is buried in that grave or can’t risk telling the truth. Was there anything special or different about Linette-or you-we should know?”
Yes, but the less everyone knew about her the better Gabrielle felt her chances were of getting out of this. “No.”
“So what do you think happened to Linette?” Rae asked.
“I imagined everything over the years, even that her father might have sent her to a convent where she wouldn’t have been able to contact me.” Gabrielle took a breath. Her gaze sought out and didn’t waver from Carlos’s. “But I can’t conceive that he might be a party to something that would have hurt her physically, so he must believe she is dead.”
“Or she did something he considered the same as being dead to him,” Rae suggested.
“Not Linette.” Gabrielle didn’t even try to hide her exasperation. “This fratelli must know something.”
Silence fell over the room suddenly, no exhale of breath, no tapping keys, no rustle of paper.
Carlos could feel the panic seizing Gabrielle in spite of the strong front she was putting up, but could do little about it since he wouldn’t see her again after this meeting.
Once Joe had a plan, they would all head out. Carlos would normally walk away without looking back, no sleep lost over a prisoner. But he’d heard enough to convince him Gabrielle had landed here out of honorable reasons and had no idea just how bad a spot she was in and that her freedom might be nothing more than a memory after today.
He’d argue in Gabrielle’s favor for Joe to keep her in protective custody at a BAD safe house until all of this was over, but she’d have to show Joe she had a value for that concession.
And he doubted she had anything left to barter with.
“Gabrielle?” Carlos waited until her gaze met his and hoped like hell she got his drift. He warned her, “If there’s anything you haven’t shared yet, don’t hold it back from Joe.”
Her violet-blue eyes widened for a flash before a resigned mask settled across her face. He had no idea if she understood or not, but he’d do his best to help her.
“What is this fratelli?” Gabrielle asked carefully.
“In for a penny, in for a pound,” Rae said softly, but her words were clear in the total quiet.
Carlos faced Joe. “Might as well tell her since she isn’t going anywhere until we get to the bottom of all this, and the more she understands, the more she can share.”
Joe appeared to think for a minute, then gave a short nod. “The Fratelli is a ghost group behind the viral deaths last year in India and the U.S., plus a couple other earlier attacks.”
Gabrielle frowned. “I thought the media said India was an anomaly and a pharmaceutical company was behind the U.S. attack?”
“You haven’t hacked quite as deep into intelligence mainframes as you thought,” Hunter pointed out. “The public thinks the same thing you do, which is what they need to think while we search for this group, or paranoia will create chaos and likely play into whatever the Fratelli is planning.”
“What do they want?” Gabrielle asked.
“That’s the million-dollar question,” Joe said. “The only reason I’m willing to discuss any of this with you is because that postcard is the first significant lead we’ve gotten on this group. So the more important question is what are they going to do next, and how did Mandy play into those plans?”
“Mandy was enrolled in the Ecole d’Ascension, too,” Gotthard interjected.
“Really?” Gabrielle whispered with a tremor of unease.
“That’s not all,” Joe added. “Another girl left with Mandy, signed out for a week.”
Gotthard lifted his gaze to Gabrielle along with everyone else.
“I don’t know about another girl,” Gabrielle answered before someone asked her.
“Give us a rundown on the second girl,” Carlos told Gotthard.
“Amelia Fuentes. Family is the third-largest coffee-bean producer in Columbia. The school records show she was heading home and taking Mandy with her, but no one has reported her missing. She’s due back in three days.”
Joe interjected, “I had operations place a call the phone ID service would show as the school calling the Fuentes home and asked if Amelia was available to come to the phone. The housekeeper said Amelia had a change of plans and decided to vacation in Germany for a few days.”
“We need to find out what she knows about Mandy,” Rae pointed out. “In fact, that school seems to be a common denominator.”
“Exactly.” Joe checked his watch, then told Carlos, “That’s why I need your team rolling by tonight.”
“What are you going to do with her?” Carlos said, indicating Gabrielle, who watched in silence.
“Security is on the way to pick her up and take her to holding,” Joe said.
“No.” Gabrielle stood.
Joe faced her, legs apart and arms crossed.
Carlos pressed, “Got something else to tell us?”
“Yes.” Gabrielle’s effort to scramble for a plan showed so clearly it was pitiful, but her eyes brightened all of a sudden. “You’ll need help getting inside the school campus.”
“Not really,” Gotthard answered. “I can access the plans.”
“But, uh-” She lifted a hand to her head, fingers clenching her hair. “You can’t just walk onto the property.”
“I thought you’d figured out that we’re covert operatives,” Rae told her drily.
Gabrielle swung an irritated glare at Rae. “I do understand that much, but I doubt you can recon that property by the time Amelia is due to return. The institution’s security is superior to that of a UN meeting.”
“Guest arriving,” the speaker announced again.
Gabrielle turned wild eyes to the monitor, where a black panel van pulled into the drive. Then she faced Joe with determination in her voice. “Breaking the school’s security systems will take more expertise than deciphering the code on Linette’s card.”
“How would you know?” Hunter asked.
“Because I created software for their security division,” Gabrielle fired right back.
“So you’ll just give the administrative control to us.” Gotthard hefted one shoulder in a negligent shrug.
“You’ll need more than that, like a good reason to be on the property.” She met Carlos’s gaze, the hope for support so strong in her eyes it was all he could do to stand in place.
The door upstairs opened and heavy footsteps entered.
“You can’t just walk on the property,” Gabrielle said in a flurry of panicked words. “The students are chosen to go there. Nothing, not even more money, can change the rule that every student has to wait at least six months to
