Curt Foster sat in the office at the rear of his house, watching the blips move across Google Maps. He answered with two words, “Things happening?”

“They’ve made contact,” Ethel said. “You following me?”

“Yes, I’ve got you at the Finch home. Player number two is a few blocks away. Looks like a gas station.”

“What about Pete?”

“We’re on a landline. I’ll put you both on speaker.” He paused a few seconds. “Okay. Go ahead.” His voice now had a hollow echo.

“Pete, what’s your status?” Ethel asked.

“Player number one appears to have bailed and is looping back to DC.”

“Or some other destination,” Ethel said. “Keep monitoring. I’m about to get segmented directions to a rendezvous site. My own phone might be monitored until they text me the final leg. Then they may shut me down.”

“I don’t like it, Ethel,” Pete complained. “You’re being lured into a trap with no immediate backup.”

“Let’s hold that concern in reserve till I have a better idea of where this is going down.”

“It’s your call,” Pete reluctantly agreed.

“How’s your weather?” Curt asked.

“Rain and low visibility,” Ethel said. “I wouldn’t want to fly in it.”

“We love it, don’t we, Pete?” Curt said. “Makes it harder for the enemy to shoot us down.”

Ethel couldn’t help but laugh. “You two geezers. For this mission you’re both grounded. Just be vigilant and be ready to follow my instructions.”

***

Douglas Gray breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Ethel’s car parked in the driveway. Then he carefully scanned the surrounding area for any sign of Ed O’Hara. The guy had been a pain in the ass to work with. On the New York counterfeiting case, O’Hara was always giving him the menial duties and calling him the “new boy,” as if daring Douglas to take it as a racial slur. Ironically, Trevor Norwood had been the one to admit Douglas into the fold. Although he and O’Hara were tight, Norwood didn’t hesitate to tell O’Hara to knock off the hazing. Norwood brought Douglas fully into the team and fully into the operation. Douglas had appreciated what the man had done for him, and if O’Hara had betrayed them, Douglas wanted to settle the score. That meant being ahead of Ethel Crestwater.

He was thinking about the sly old woman when he saw her return to the carport. He used his binoculars. She not only carried the same leather pouch from earlier but also a large model of an SUV. What the hell was she up to?