he went on: “You asked why they didn’t kill her. I assume even he wouldn’t risk killing a fellow agent,” he said bitterly.
Connolly’s face was clouded in anger when he said: “He chose her because she’s your…ah…protégée?”
Holder laughed mirthlessly. “People seem to think we’re Nick and Nora, without the marriage certificate.”
They sat for a few minutes in silence, then Connolly nailed Holder with a look. “Where do we go from here?” he asked.
“We?”
Holder’s friend tipped his head in mute agreement. Then he got up and started for Kate’s door. “Come on. Let’s see if she’s awake.”
WHILE the men were talking in the hall, Kate had indeed been awake. Injured or not, she had an instinct for danger, and that instinct had kicked in when the figure had appeared in the doorway. When she’d recognized Holder, she’d relaxed for a few minutes when they went out, but she knew a confrontation was coming. She was feeling better after the meds and a little sleep, but her head still hurt, and her side jolted her with pain when she moved the wrong way.
No matter. I have to pull myself together.
“I’m awake,” she announced as they walked through the door.
The men exchanged looks before taking up positions on either side of the bed. Kate felt hemmed in by their presence.
“So, Kath… Kate. Have you remembered something?” Holder asked.
She eyed him suspiciously. “Yes. But first, I want some answers from you, Holder.” His lips turned downward as a frown twisted his face. “Tell me what you know about the so-called break-in,” she insisted.
He narrowed his eyes and asked: “What do you mean by that?”
“There was no break-in, as you very well know,” she spit out.
“How would I …?”
“No games! When you got there, the door hadn’t been forced. Right?”
Holder tossed a glance at Connolly, and she followed his eyes. “Oh, he knows about it too?” she asked.
Connolly returned Holder’s glance, then looked down at Kate with a small nod of agreement.
“And?” she asked.
“And what?” Holder said.
“God damn it, would you stop! Who are they?” she shouted, even though it hurt to speak so loudly. “What did they want in that apartment? I didn’t…I don’t have anything!”
“Kate, I don’t know who they are,” Holder exclaimed. “I’m hoping you’ll remember something so we can work it out!” Connolly shot a quick warning look Holder’s way but stayed silent, as did Kate. After a long moment, Holder relented. “Okay. Say we start with the premise that they are Company people. What could they want from you?”
Once again Connolly shot his friend a disapproving look. His communication was not lost on Holder, who twisted his head one way, then the other, before exhaling almost imperceptibly. “Kate?” he asked quietly.
“Yeah?” she responded guardedly.
“When you were in Germany, did you hear about the mess the Company got into with the Contras in Nicaragua and Iran?”
She stared. “What…?”
“Just answer me!”
“Yes!”
“Good. Inside the Company some of us thought we should never have gotten involved in the first place. Others thought it was a good idea.”
“What side were you on?” she asked.
He groaned. “I’m not stupid! I wanted to stay out of it! I made my opinions known, but the powers that be didn’t pay attention to me. It was a disaster from the beginning. When everything started to fall apart, things got nasty inside the Company.”
Kate was laboriously sifting through what she knew about this debacle that people were calling the Iran-Contra affair. Yes, she’d heard rumors about the hostages and Iran and that yahoo from the NSC, Oliver North. But since she hadn’t been directly involved, she didn’t know much more than the average citizen. Later in Leipzig she hadn’t put credence in government-controlled media reports. Now her mind was calculating when it had gone public. Two years ago?
“One person really pushing involvement was Adam Jackson. Ever met him?” Holder inquired.
She started to shake her head but thought better of it. Shaking her head hurt too much. “No.”
“Lucky you. When it all fell apart, Jackson was on the hot seat. We tried to get him kicked out, but he pulled in his markers and was sent to Bogota as station chief. But I’m sure he’s still got people up here, working for him.”
Kate looked sharply at Holder, who traded looks with Connolly again. “You’re thinking the guys who attacked me were his men? But why? What were they looking for, damn it?” Suddenly a word catapulted into her brain, chipped off the black boulder of her unprocessed memories. “Papers! The men kept asking where the papers were. But I don’t have any papers!”
Holder sucked in a breath and snapped his fingers. “Yes, you do, Kate! From the briefing yesterday morning. The manila envelope with your instructions!”
She stared at him blankly.
“The briefing at 8:00 AM? The one you were late for?” he reminded her.
How could I forget that? I hate this not remembering!
“Right!” she responded. “You gave me the envelope.” She stopped, frowning. “But I don’t remember happened next!” The holes in her memory were still huge.
“You went to the library. I called you there a few hours later.”
The crater shrank as Kate remembered. “Yes!” she said excitedly. “I went to the library and saw Toni. After that, to your office.”
“Where did you leave the envelope?”
“On the table in the library with….”
“On the table? Where anyone could see it?” Holder shouted at her.
“Hey! It’s the library at the Agency! And Toni was there!” she shouted back.
He glared at her but said: “Go on. What happened after we met?”
It was coming back to her. She explained that she’d returned to the library, but left almost immediately for the shooting range.
“Please don’t tell me you left the papers on the table!” he moaned.
“No! I gave them to Toni and asked her to put them in her….” She stopped abruptly, her brows raised in alarm. Reaching out her
