BooksBarbecue
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Chapters (86)
  1. Foreword
  2. 1
  3. 2
  4. 3
  5. 4
  6. 5
  7. 6
  8. 7
  9. 8
  10. 9
  11. 10
  12. 11
  13. 12
  14. 13
  15. 14
  16. 15
  17. 16
  18. 17
  19. 18
  20. 19
  21. 20
  22. 21
  23. 22
  24. 23
  25. 24
  26. 25
  27. 26
  28. 27
  29. 28
  30. 29
  31. 30
  32. 31
  33. 32
  34. 33
  35. 34
  36. 35
  37. 36
  38. 37
  39. 38
  40. 39
  41. 40
  42. 41
  43. 42
  44. 43
  45. 44
  46. 45
  47. 46
  48. 47
  49. 48
  50. 49
  51. 50
  52. 51
  53. 52
  54. 53
  55. 54
  56. 55
  57. 56
  58. 57
  59. 58
  60. 59
  61. 60
  62. 61
  63. 62
  64. 63
  65. 64
  66. 65
  67. 66
  68. 67
  69. 68
  70. 69
  71. 70
  72. 71
  73. 72
  74. 73
  75. 74
  76. 75
  77. 76
  78. 77
  79. 78
  80. 79
  81. 80
  82. 81
  83. 82
  84. 83
  85. 84
  86. Afterword

Roth cleared his throat. “You’re good to go, guys.”

“God speed,” the president added.

75

Laurel stood next to Lance but neither said a word. They were in the massive State Department Store, one of the largest stores in Moscow, and directly across Red Square from the Lenin Mausoleum. Behind the Mausoleum was the sheer, red wall of the Kremlin’s outer perimeter.

The walls were equipped with underground sensors to prevent tunneling, motion sensors along the outer face to prevent climbing, and infrared cameras along their length to detect any attempted entrance.

Laurel had disabled all those sensors, which hadn’t been complicated, and also tricked the security system into thinking they were still active, which had been extremely complicated.

Lance could see why Roth liked her so much. She was certainly more than just a pretty face.

It was dark outside and the department store was beginning to shut down for the night.

“You want a cigarette?” Lance said.

Laurel shook her head.

“Take one,” he said. “You’ll blend in better.”

She took a cigarette from the pack and leaned in to let him light it for her.

“I’m sorry I never told you,” she said.

“You don’t have to apologize to me.”

“You’re mad at Roth.”

Lance nodded.

“He had his reasons,” she said.

“Don’t talk to me about Roth’s reasons,” Lance said. “I could tell you things about that man that would make your blood boil.”

“Like what?”

He looked at her, then away again.

“He was trying to protect you,” she said.

“I don’t want to talk about it, Laurel.”

“He cares about you,” she said.

He turned to her. “I don’t see how you’re not more upset about this. He made you get cosmetic surgery, Laurel. Think about that. How sick that is. It’s worse than sick. It’s insane. What did he think? That I’d take one look at you and not remember what he’d done?”

“What he’d done?”

“You know I almost killed him once. I was this close.” He held up his hand to show her the inch between his thumb and forefinger.

“He thinks of you as a son,” Laurel said.

“Please don’t go there.”

“It worked, didn’t it?”

“What worked?”

“You said you wouldn’t have even spoken to him if it wasn’t for me.”

Lance shook his head. “That’s no excuse.”

Just thinking about it made him so angry he wasn’t sure he could go through with the mission. He took the pack from his back and let it fall to the ground.

“What are you doing?”

“I swore a long time ago I’d had it with all this shit.”

“You can’t walk away now.”

“Why not?”

“Because of the virus.”

“Fuck the virus.”

“Lance.”

He began walking across the square. He was done.

“Lance,” Laurel called.