Hawk threw his hands in the air. “I give up. Alex, he’s your brother.”
“Half brother,” she said sternly.
“Pardon me if I’m not up on the latest pop culture craze taking America by storm,” Samuels said. “That isn’t my job. I’m paid to help keep this country safe by rooting out threats. That’s my job—and that’s what I’m good at.”
Hawk buried his head in his hands before glancing up at Samuels. “Well, Mr. I’m-Good-at-My-Job, do you think you can help me out and see through the blinds in this room across the way or help Alex hack the security feed in the building next door? We’re running out of time, and there’s nothing more I hate than being unprepared.”
“Now you’re speaking my language,” Samuels said as he leaned forward and pressed his face to the telescope. “I’m always prepared.”
“What do you see?” Hawk asked.
“I’m good at gathering information that isn’t supposed to be leaked. That’s a far cry from the ability to see through window blinds.”
Hawk rubbed his forehead. “Still closed?”
“I’m afraid so,” Samuels said as he backed away from the lens.
“Maybe you can give me a hand,” Alex said. “I can’t seem to find an override on this security system.”
“Sibling cooperation—it warms my heart,” Hawk said as he cracked a smile.
“You do realize there are two of us and only one of you, right?” Alex said.
“I think I could take both of you.”
“Don’t be so modest,” Samuels said as he sat down in front of Alex’s computer. “You’d think you could take three or four of us if there were that many.”
Hawk shook his head. “We haven’t even completed two missions together and you already know me so well, Samuels. You’re going to fit right in on this team.”
“Well, this team is going to find itself in a heap of trouble if we can’t get eyes inside that room,” Alex said as she pointed at the building across the street. “Blunt and the president—”
“Acting president,” Samuels interjected.
Alex gave him a sideways glance before continuing. “Blunt and the acting president are counting on us to deliver, and we can’t let them down.”
“Aside from X-ray vision, what do you suggest?” Hawk asked.
“I need to physically go to the building to gain access to the mainframe,” Alex said. “They’ve got a damn good firewall, which I could hack, but not in time.”
“I’ll do it,” Samuels said.
“Oh, Samuels,” Hawk said with a dismissive wave. “Don’t bother yourself with it. I’ll hustle over there to get it done for Alex.”
“No, no. Please allow me,” Samuels responded. “I’ve seen your marksmanship scores. You’re a better shot than I am.”
Hawk eyed him cautiously. “I was hoping you could help me shoot.”
“I’ll make it quick,” Samuels said before he hustled out of the room and exited the apartment space they’d rented for the assignment.
“I’m quickly learning that you can’t tell him anything,” Alex said.
“Guess it runs in the family genes,” Hawk said as he leaned back into the telescopic lens.
“Anything?”
“The blinds are all still pulled. And quite frankly, I’m starting to get a little nervous about this.”
“Ditto for me,” Alex said. “What’s weird is the fact that from everything I can see, the security feed is functioning. It’s almost as if they took it down for some reason.”
“Software update?”
“That was how I initially planned to get into the system. That’s why it’s going to take much more now.”
“I’m hoping things move more quickly once Samuels gets you online and someone opens those damn blinds,” Hawk said. “Who knows how long before we get another shot like this.”
Ten minutes later, Samuels hailed Hawk and Alex on the coms. “Okay, guys. I’m in.”
“Already?” Alex asked, mouth agape.
“The acting president didn’t assign me to this team because of my winsome good looks,” Samuels said.
Hawk chuckled. “No, he certainly didn’t.”
Alex typed furiously for the next minute until she threw her hands in the air and made the announcement Samuels and Hawk were waiting to hear.
“I’m in,” she said.
“On my way back now,” Samuels said.
Hawk walked across the room and stooped behind Alex, studying her screen over her shoulder. “Are you running facial recognition?”
“Just started it, but I know from our files that those two right there were in the dossier Blunt left us on the plane,” she said as she pointed at the monitor.
“Are you sure?” Hawk asked.
“Positive.”
The image on the screen flashed before everything came back into focus.
Hawk squinted. “What was that?”
“I think it was the camera adjusting to the light.”
Hawk rushed back over to the window and looked through the lens again. “The blinds are open.”
He didn’t waste any time in running through a rapid checklist for his sniper rifle. Taking out another box of ammunition, he sighted in his weapon.
“Think you’re going to need all of that?” Alex asked, gesturing toward the bullets. “There are only six of them in the room.”
“I’m saving those for Petrov.”
Alex sighed. “It’s a strange feeling to hear you say that about my mother, yet I’m in complete agreement with you. She needs to be taken down, and I’d rather you do it than anyone else.”
Samuels burst into the room, slamming the door behind him. “Have we verified everyone’s identities yet?”
Alex’s computer beeped. “We’ve verified one.”
“That program needs to speed up,” Samuels said. “According to the schedule we took off Polat’s flash drive, the meeting is only supposed to last ten more minutes.”
Hawk grunted. “You ever been in one of those meetings? They always last longer than you think.”
Alex’s machine beeped two more times, then a third. “Just waiting on confirmation of two more faces. But so far, so good.”
The seconds ticked past, far too quickly for Hawk’s taste. “Alex, talk to me. We need to make a move soon. We’re going to miss our chance if they all get up and exit the room. And that could happen at any minute.”
“I can’t make the program work any faster,” she said. “It’s not like I can tap into a bigger processer from this location.”
“And we’re not firing a shot until we receive confirmation
