Khoury stormed down the hall in a hail of fury, followed immediately by Saad and Dr. Abo.  The doctor had no trouble remembering who sat in that particular seat aboard Saad’s jet, and therefore who had drawn the pictures of the needle.

The girl’s name was Eshe from Zambia—the one who’d always appeared to be watching her from the moment they left.

Together, they reached her room halfway down the hall, unlocking the door from the outside and forcefully swinging it open, sending it slamming against the inside wall.  With one step inside, it was clear they had a problem.

The room was empty.

***

In the darkness, Joe Rickards and Mona Baraka descended concrete exterior stairs until they reached the bottom floor outside the hotel’s north wing.

Together they rounded the corner and crossed a wide strip of grass toward the parking lot, where multiple rows of cars gleamed beneath the lot’s bright overhead lamps.  Weaving between them, Mona led the way to her car until slowing to a stop when two men climbed out of a silver SUV and stood next to her sedan.  Both wore dark clothing and were clearly waiting for her.

She gasped beneath her breath and stepped back as the two men approached.

“Stop right there,” barked Rickards, stepping in front of Mona.

Both men ignored him, remaining focused on her.

“Mona Baraka?”

Rickards took a defensive position and reached one hand behind his back.

It was a bluff.  He had no weapon.  But the movement, along with the tone in his voice, was enough to slow the men’s advance, causing them to finally look at him.

“You’re an American,” said one of them, almost curiously.  “We are here to talk to her.”

“Then talk.”

The men continued looking him over.  “This is not your affair.”

“I’m nosey.” Rickards shrugged.

“We’re not here to hurt anyone,” the second man said.  “We just need her to come answer some questions.  We are ENP.”

Mona turned to Rickards and shook her head.

“If you’re the police, let’s see some identification.”

Khouri’s man, named Badawi, took a small step forward, smiling at Joe.  “In Egypt, we are not required to show it.”

“Then I’m not required to believe it.”

Badawi, the older of the two men, frowned.  “I do not know who you are, but you should know that Americans are not immune from our laws.”

“And you should know that I work for the United States government, and Ms. Baraka is currently under diplomatic protection.”

A brief look of surprise passed over the men’s faces before quickly disappearing. Each man inched another step closer.

“I told you to stay where you are.”

Badawi’s eyes glanced around the darkened parking lot before returning to him.  “Perhaps you should both come with us.”

“There’s even less chance of that happening.”