as the doors opened. 'I don't mean to rush you, but things are about to heat up around here.'
She saw the guards lying on the ground with Giordino standing over them, nonchalantly sweeping the barrel of an assault rifle from one head to the other. Then her gaze turned to the idle helicopter and she knew any hope of her security guards intercepting Pitt and his partner had flown away on the night air. Seeking a final desperate avenue, her eyes blazed at Pitt. 'You can't pilot a helicopter.'
'Sorry to disappoint you,' Pitt answered in a patient tone. 'Both Al and I can fly this bird.'
Giordino glanced at Flidais, took in her elegant gown and smiled nastily. 'I see you found Rita. You pick her up at a party?'
'A party of two downing expensive vintage champagne. Her name is Flidais. She's coming with us. Keep an eye on her.'
'Both eyes,' Giordino said icily.
Pitt glanced briefly at Flidais as he entered the helicopter. The glare had gone out of the eyes. The calm and lack of fear had altered to trepidation.
He briefly glanced at the helicopter before he moved swiftly into the cockpit and sat in the pilot's seat. It was an McDonnell-Douglas Explorer model with twin Pratt & Whitney turboshaft engines built by MD Helicopters of Mesa, Arizona. He was pleased to see that it was a rotor craft with an antitorque system that eliminated the tail rotor.
He checked to be sure the fuel shutoff valve was on and took the cyclic and collective friction off. Then, with the pedals and throttles moving smoothly, the circuit breakers in and the mixture to full rich, he turned the master switch on. Next came the ignition, and both engines began turning over, eventually reaching idling rpms. Finally, Pitt made certain all warning lights were out.
He leaned out the side window and shouted to Giordino over the whine of the twin turbines. 'Jump aboard!'
Giordino was not as polite as Pitt. He literally lifted Flidais off her feet and flung her inside the rotor craft. Then he climbed in and closed the big sliding door. The interior was stylish and elegant with four large leather seats with burled-walnut consoles, one containing a compact office system with computer, fax and a satellite television phone. The console between the opposite seats held a bar with crystal decanters and glasses.
The Lowenhardts sat with seat belts buckled, staring mutely at Flidais who was still sprawled on the floor where Giordino had thrown her. Giordino reached under her arms, pulled her erect and dropped her into a seat, buckling her seat belt. He handed the assault rifle to Claus Lowenhardt.
'If she lifts her little finger, shoot her.'
Having no love for his former female captors, Claus relished the opportunity.
'Our agents will be waiting for you when we land in Managua,' Flidais said scornfully.
'That's comforting to know.'
Giordino turned quickly, entered the cockpit and dropped into the copilot's seat. Pitt glanced at the elevator doors and saw them close. Alerted by the woman in the suite, security guards were waiting for it to descend before they could swarm up to the roof. He reached down and pulled up on the collective, lifting the helicopter into the air. Then he pushed the cyclic forward, the nose dipped and the MD Explorer leaped from the roof of the building. Pitt quickly brought the aircraft up to its top speed of one hundred and eighty-four miles an hour, soaring over the Odyssey facility toward the airstrip stretching between the volcanic mountains. As soon as he reached the slopes of the Madera volcano, he banked the Explorer around the peak and brought it down less than thirty feet above the trees before crossing over the shore above the waters of the lake.
'Not heading for Managua, I hope,' said Giordino, putting on his earphones. 'Her Royal Highness said her flunkies will be waiting for us.'
'I wouldn't be surprised,' Pitt said with a wide grin. 'That's why we're heading west out over the Pacific before cutting south to San Jose, Costa Rica.'
'Do we have enough fuel?'
'Once we take her to cruising speed, we should make it with a couple of gallons to spare.'
Pitt skimmed the surface, staying out of contact with Odyssey's radar systems, before crossing over the spit of land on the west side of the lake. Ten miles out to sea, he turned south and slowly increased altitude as Giordino locked in a course for San Jose. For the rest of the flight, Giordino kept a wary eye on the fuel gauges.
There was a light overcast, not thick enough for rain but just enough to blot out the stars. Pitt was tired, more worn-out than he could ever remember. He turned over the controls to Giordino and slouched in his seat, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. There was still one more job to do before he could allow himself the luxury of sleep. He pulled the satellite phone from a waterproof bag and dialed Sandecker's private line.
The admiral's voice came through the earpiece almost immediately. 'Yes!'
'We're out,' Pitt said wearily.
'About time.'
'There was little need for an extended tour.'
'Where are you now?'
'In a stolen helicopter on our way to San Jose, Costa Rica.'
Sandecker paused to take it in. 'You didn't feel you had to snoop around the facility during the daylight hours?'
'We had a break,' said Pitt, fighting to keep from nodding off.
'You collected the data we need?' Sandecker asked impatiently.
'We have everything,' replied Pitt. 'Through the use of scientists he took as hostages, Specter has perfected fuel cell technology by using nitrogen instead of hydrogen. The Red Chinese are cranking out millions of electrical heat-generating units, which will be distributed and ready for sale when they open the tunnels and the freeze hits the U.S. coast and Europe this winter.'
'Are you telling me this crazy scheme is all for the sale of fuel cells?' Sandecker said incredulously.
'You're talking hundreds of billions of dollars, not to mention the power that will come from owning the monopoly. No matter how you slice it, the world economy will be in Specter's pocket when the first snow starts to fall.'
'You're certain Specter has perfected the technology when the best minds in the world have yet to make a breakthrough,' Sandecker persisted.
'Specter
'They're with you?' Sandecker said with growing anticipation.
'Sitting just behind me along with the woman who murdered Renee Ford.'
Sandecker looked like a batter who had hit a home run with his eyes shut. 'You have her too?'
'Charter a plane for us in San Jose and we'll set her in your lap by this time tomorrow.'
'I'll put Rudi right on it,' said Sandecker, pleasure and excitement evident in his voice. 'Come to the office with your party as soon as you land.'
There was no reply.
'Dirk, are you still there?'
Pitt had dozed off and was blissfully unaware that he had broken the connection.
40
The Air Canada jet bumped through a thick cloud whose soft white curves showed the first orange tint from the setting sun. As the plane began its slow descent toward Guadeloupe, Summer gazed through her window and watched the deep, dark blue-purple water below turn to light blue and then turquoise as the aircraft flew over the reefs and lagoons. Sitting next to her in the aisle seat, Dirk studied a chart of the waters around the Isles des Saintes, a group of islands to the south of Guadeloupe.
She stared with growing curiosity as the two main islands of Basse-Terre and Grande-Terre merged together in the shape of a butterfly. Basse-Terre formed the western wing and was blanketed with thickly forested
