“Frank, I’m as angry as you are. He was your grandson, but he was also my employee.”

“There’s a big difference.”

“Damn it, Frank. I know that. Your grandson isn’t the only casualty. I’ve got twenty-four additional unhappy letters to sign.”

“Look, I’m sorry. I haven’t been sleeping well. I’m… I’m so damned angry, I just want to kill someone.”

“I wish I could bring him back, unwind the clock, and start over. I’d do a lot of things differently.”

“Let me be clear, Ethan, I don’t blame you for any of this.”

“Maybe bringing McBride aboard wasn’t such a good idea. He complicates things.”

“Why? He’s under your control, isn’t he? He found my grandson.”

“Yes, but he also killed the Bridgestones’ kid brother. That was an unexpected twist with unexpected consequences.”

Frank tried to keep his voice calm. “He did exactly what I asked of him. You’d have a dozen dead SWAT agents if he hadn’t been there. I asked him to back you guys up and that’s what he did, to the letter.”

“You know I’m grateful for that. But the problem’s different now. It’s bigger, more public. What am I saying? Public? It’s worldwide news. And there’s over three hundred pounds of Semtex still missing.”

Ortega pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to keep the conversation on track. “All the more reason to have McBride on their trail, then.”

“It was that damned tunnel. If they’d shown it to James, he would’ve told us. As far as we knew, the Bridgestones had no way to get the Semtex out of there. Or themselves, for that matter. We had that compound under constant surveillance. This whole thing would be over if it wasn’t for that damned tunnel. Hell, I don’t know. Maybe I should’ve anticipated something like this. Maybe I should’ve had choppers orbiting just over the ridgeline. I could’ve—”

“It’s not your fault, Ethan. I don’t mean to interrupt, but let’s stay on track. Do we keep McBride aboard?”

“At this point, I suppose we don’t have much choice. It’s all I can do to contain him. If he finds the brothers before we do, that’s great. But I don’t see that happening.”

“What’s he doing now?” Frank asked.

“He checked Ernie Bridgestone’s visitation logs from Fort Leavenworth before going out there. He spoke to Ernie’s former shrink, then came back and made contact with Amber Sheldon in Fresno, but she doesn’t know where Bridgestone is.”

Frank paused. When he spoke, there was a hard edge to his voice. “What did Sheldon tell him? Did she—”

“Frank, I don’t know. McBride’s been tight-lipped. He spotted a couple of my agents watching her, but he doesn’t know for sure they’re mine.”