“I don’t need to tell you the repercussions of this, Stone, especially after your press conference regarding the Semtex raid yesterday. This is getting wall-to-wall coverage on every major network.”

“I’m on it, Mr. President.”

“Call me, I’ll make sure you’re put through. I need to be one-hundred percent sure.”

“Understood.”

The president never said good-bye in the conventional sense. When the conversation was over, he just hung up. Well, this conversation was over.

Stone punched the intercom button. “Heidi, put me through to Kevin Ramsland at Quantico’s materials lab right away. If he’s not in his office, have him paged and hold the line until they find him. See if you can reach Director Lansing, but Ramsland’s call takes priority.”

Stone frowned. Larry Gifford worked in the Sacramento field office. His frown deepened when he realized Nathan also remained in the area. Though seldom used, his son’s phone number was one of twenty-five speed-dial presets.

Just before he dialed Nathan’s number, Heidi’s voice came through the intercom. “I have Kevin Ramsland on line one.”

Stone punched the line and picked up the handset. “Special Agent Ramsland, thank you for taking my call.”

“No problem, Senator.”

“My man Leaf Watson needs a bomb-residue analysis ASAP. Can you see to it personally?”

“Yes, absolutely. I’ve already called down to the lab. We’re just waiting for the trace to arrive.”

“How long will it take once you have it?”

“For the best result, we’ll need to detonate a small sample and compare it to the trace from Sacramento. It shouldn’t take more than an hour once we have it. Can you get someone to fly the samples out here personally? That would save a bunch of time.”

“I’ll make it happen.”

“Who did this, Senator?”

“I’m not one-hundred percent sure, but I’ve got a pretty good idea.”

“I’m beyond angry.”

“Channel the anger, Mr. Ramsland. Stay focused. I’ll call you back about the courier.”

“We’re ready over here.”

Stone hit the intercom button. “Any luck reaching Lansing?”

“He’s on the phone,” Heidi answered. “His secretary promised a callback within fifteen minutes.”

“Okay, that’s good. Call Leaf back. Ask him to get a copy of any security video taken from the Sacramento field office. Tell him to have a sample of the Semtex recovered at Freedom’s Echo and a sample of the bomb residue from the Sacramento field office flown over to Quantico by an FBI courier right away. First available flight. I want those Semtex samples flown directly into Quantico’s airfield within five hours. I don’t care if the courier has to be strapped into the backseat of a California Air National Guard Strike Eagle if that’s what it takes.”

Chapter 13

Chapter  13