Paul pushed his glasses back up on his nose with one finger. He brought the drive close to his face for examination. “What’s loaded on here?”

“The cyberwarfare specialists at the CIA came up with a diagnostic program that can sniff out all kinds of nasty malware, worms, bots, and what have you inside of a computer system, no matter how complex. I’ve been tasked with making sure that the USB in your hands gets installed into a computer that has access to the Dalfan mainframe. Naturally, I thought of you.”

“I’m still a little bit confused. No offense, but why would the CIA give this assignment to you and not to one of their SAD operatives?”

If Paul’s question stung, Rhodes didn’t show it.

“One of the advantages of my position on the Marin Aerospace board is that I’m kept in the loop on major developments, and when it seems appropriate, I keep our government informed, especially on matters that affect national security. When the Dalfan venture was first proposed, I let Langley know.”

“So you’re spying on your own company?”

“No. I’m helping my government win the war on terror and defend against all known enemies, foreign and domestic, including the Chinese.”

Paul frowned. “Isn’t that a conflict of interest? Secretly telling the government insider information about what your own guys are doing?”

Rhodes shook his head. “Not at all. Whatever is good for my country is good for my company. But even if it were a conflict of interest, I’m a patriot, and I put my country first.” He glanced at the American flag lapel pin on Paul’s department store suit. “And I know you’re a patriot, too.”

Paul sat back, processing. “You left the Agency, what, twenty years ago?”

Rhodes smiled. “We never really leave, do we? I mean, I don’t take a paycheck from them anymore, that’s for sure. But whenever duty calls, men like us always answer.”

Paul turned to Rhodes, trying to read the man’s face. He and the senator had a history from years before. He thought Rhodes was many things, but he was always a patriot. He was born into it. Rhodes was a third-generation Yalie, a blue-blooded Yankee for sure. Rhodes’s grandfather served with the OSS, the CIA’s wartime predecessor, and Rhodes’s father was a deputy director under Bill Casey, Reagan’s CIA chief.

“So all of the other stuff about the audit and letter of intent really is just a cover,” Paul said.

“Not at all. Like I said, every bit of it is true. This is a real deal that my company is pursuing and we need Hendley Associates’ services to make it happen.”

“That’s the real reason why you fired that other auditing firm at the last minute?”