“Where is he?”
“Last I heard they were still in the basement.”
Sinclair nodded. “I’ll lock the doors. Now run along and make sure nobody is left in the building.”
“Should I make an announcement?”
“No. Call the department heads. Keep it quiet. If the American operative is still in the building, he’ll be buried under the rubble with it, eliminating another problem for me.”
“Yes, sir.”
Sinclair closed the door and locked it so he wouldn’t be bothered again.
“What’s happening?” Karelin asked.
Sinclair ignored him. “I need a decision, President Young. Do you want to see your wife again? Do you want to save face, maybe even retain your position of power? If you do, say so right now, and I’ll make it all happen.”
Young took a deep breath and turned to face Sinclair. “I’m rejecting your offer. If my wife truly is alive and was involved in the White House explosion, she’s betrayed both me and her country—and I don’t want anything to do with her.”
Sinclair clucked his tongue, shaking his head. “That’s a shame, Mr. President. We could’ve been a great team. But next time I see you, if you’re still alive, you’ll probably be speaking Russian.”
“Right now, I have some choice French words for you,” Young said. “And I won’t be begging for your pardon either when I say them.”
Their conversation came to an abrupt end when the sound of gunshots echoed in the corridor just outside the room.
“Why is there shooting outside?” Karelin asked.
“It’s nothing to concern yourself with,” Sinclair said. “You’re coming with me.”
Young scowled. “You’re just going to leave me here?”
Sinclair nodded. “I have no use for you anymore. How do you Americans say it, ‘You’ve made your bed. Now lie in it’?”
The fighting outside the door grew louder and more furious.
CHAPTER 31
HAWK AND ALEX WAITED UNTIL the initial burst of bullets stopped. The door started to close when Hawk released his last smoke bomb, rolling it out into the hallway. The shooting restarted, forcing Hawk and Alex to stay hidden. Just as the two doors were about to meet, Hawk pressed the button, reopening them.
He stayed low, dashing to the right. Alex, who’d been on the opposite side of the elevator, followed after. They took cover behind what appeared to be a receptionist’s desk.
“You still there, Mia?” Hawk asked after activating his microphone on his coms.
“What do you need?” she asked.
“Keep the elevator doors open, and I need you to tell me how to get to Young.”
“You might need some help,” she said. “There are four Secret Service men and four Russian security officers locked in a room a few meters down the hallway on your right. I saw a man lock up their weapons in a closet at the back.”
“Roger that,” Hawk said.
He crept down the corridor with Alex, and then they came to the room she’d directed them to. Once he opened the door, he found the men inside, just as she described. They were gagged and bound to chairs with ropes. Hawk explained the situation as he and Alex hustled around to each man, freeing them. Then Hawk repeated himself in Russian.
“We have seven minutes to retrieve our respective presidents and get out of here before a missile strikes this compound,” Hawk said. “Does everyone understand?”
Heads bobbed, conveying that they realized the urgency of the situation.
Upon fetching all of their weapons, Hawk had the U.S. and Russian agents split up to attack the Obsidian guards. Meanwhile, he and Alex circumvented the main area, utilizing a back hallway that Mia had found to get them to Young unimpeded.
“Mia, we’re almost there,” Hawk said. “Are you ready?”
“Just give me the signal,” she said.
They eased around the corner but jumped back when an unarmed man came hustling straight toward their position. Hawk pushed Alex back toward a doorway nook in the shadows and waited for the stranger to pass. Once he was gone, Hawk gestured to Alex to continue.
A few seconds later, they were standing outside the door.
“We’re here,” Hawk said.
“I’m opening the doors now,” Mia said.
Fifteen seconds passed, and nothing happened.
Hawk checked his watch. Only five minutes remained before impact.
“What’s going on? Why isn’t anything happening?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” she said. “I’m doing the same thing I did every other time.”
Alex pointed at the facial recognition box. “This entrance requires facial recognition. Do you think that could be it?”
“Maybe,” Mia said. “I don’t know. I just know that whatever I was doing before isn’t working now.”
Hawk stepped back and surveyed the area. The opaque glass prevented him from seeing whatever was taking place inside. He could make out at least two silhouetted figures moving around the room, but nothing more.
“Think this glass is bulletproof?” Hawk asked.
Alex shrugged. “There’s only way to find out.”
He stepped back and fired a shot at the glass. It spidered, and then he kicked at it with his foot. As he did, a bullet came from inside the room.
Hawk jumped back, avoiding getting hit. Almost all the glass burst out and spread across the floor. He peered around the edge and saw Sinclair wielding a gun.
“Hold tight,” Hawk said, easing back and then looking at Alex. “Sinclair’s armed.”
Hawk trained his weapon in front of him and moved around the now open door. He locked eyes with Sinclair as he jammed the nozzle of his pistol into Young’s head.
“That’s far enough,” Sinclair said. “You make another move, and I’m going to put a bullet in your president’s head.”
Hawk didn’t flinch. “You’ll do no such thing. If I see your trigger finger even twitch, you’ll be dead before you can fire. This is the end of the line, Sinclair.”
“You must be the infamous Brady Hawk,” Sinclair said.
Hawk wasn’t in the mood for flattery and didn’t budge.
“I managed to co-opt your boss, but I underestimated you,” Sinclair said. “I should’ve had my men deal more severely with you when you first appeared on our radar.”
“We all have regrets,” Hawk said, refusing to inquire about Sinclair’s revelation regarding Blunt. “Now, just
