She took a few steps uphill but then turned and started running toward Smith again. Whoever had planted that bomb would know they were there, and he wasn’t in any condition to defend himself alone.

37

37

Tokyo
Japan

Takahashi followed Akio Himura through the heavy doors that led to the most secure part of the building. Officially Japan didn’t have any significant intelligence capability, and the existence of this facility—ostensibly a division of the government’s accounting office—was one of Japan’s most closely guarded secrets.

The walls were lined with two-way mirrors, and Takahashi knew they were being watched from all sides by Himura’s elite security. At the first sign of a breach, the multiple automatic doors they’d come through would lock down, trapping them and anyone else trying to gain access.

The encrypted text message had come during their pointless meeting with the prime minister but Takahashi had been unable to act on it, instead sitting obediently through another twenty excruciating minutes. With no helicopter available, he and Himura had been forced to go by car, spending almost another hour in Tokyo’s heavy afternoon traffic.

They stopped in front of a white door with a visible carbon fiber weave and Himura raised his arms above his head. Takahashi did the same, submitting to the highly advanced body scan that would search not only for weapons but also for digital storage devices, cameras, and even pens—anything that could be used to record what transpired inside.

A green light flashed and the door slid open.

“Report,” Himura said as they entered the inner sanctum of his intelligence apparatus. It was surprisingly unremarkable. No larger than twenty meters square with stark white walls and three stainless steel desks containing only computer terminals. Behind those terminals were men who seemed far too young to be working at this level of responsibility. The technical expertise necessary, though, eluded earlier generations.

“Two unknown people contacted Eric Fujiyama at the file site,” the man closest to them said without looking up from his screen. Takahashi bristled a bit at his brusque demeanor but then reminded himself that the intelligence business was very different from the military. These were not people who snapped to attention when a superior entered the room.

“Do we have any idea who they are?” Himura asked, walking up behind the man.

“We’ve accessed an American satellite, but the angle isn’t optimal. A blonde woman and a man with dark hair. The man stayed at the car while the woman went to the knoll with Fujiyama. She seemed to break her shovel and started down again while Fujiyama kept digging. She was halfway back to the clearing when the mine went off.”

“Was she injured?” Himura asked.

“Not as near as I can tell.”

“Russell and Smith,” Takahashi said quietly. Himura nodded.