“He was caught sending messages from an encrypted phone. We don’t know who he was texting or what he was saying, but he knew the rules. No communications from the Fortress. That’s why people work three months out of the year.”
“You had him killed? For messaging an outside number?”
“He also met with Allie hours before we caught him.”
That stuns me. I lean back and stare at her, feeling like someone kicked me in the chest. “I don’t believe that.”
“It’s true. Lady’s listening systems were disabled by some convenient glitch in the short period they were talking. We don’t know what they said, but based on Allie’s movements that day, they were definitely in the same room.”
“Coincidence.”
“You know that’s unlikely.”
I stare at my hands. I feel sick at the thought of my wife betraying me. And yet… “We don’t know anything for sure.”
“That’s true. All I can say is that young man messaged people outside of the safe zone against explicit orders and met with your wife briefly during a freak surveillance failure.”
I shove my chair back and stand. My head’s a swirling mess, and I need to start moving before these emotions threaten to overwhelm me. “Compile a report. Figure out who that young man was talking to. I’ll handle the Medved fallout later.”
“I’ll see what I can do.” I move to walk past her, but Lucy stops me. She touches my arm lightly. “You don’t know Allie’s doing anything wrong.”
I don’t look down. “Do you believe she’s innocent?”
Lucy doesn’t answer. For all her faults, my second-in-command won’t ever lie to me.
Not even to make me feel better.
The doorto the west wing opens after I punch in the code. The gyros hidden in the wall pull the massive metal barrier down likesomething from a sci-fi movie. Warm air rushes out, and I smile to myself.
“You’re like a lizard, I swear.” I step into the room. The smells are all so familiar. Antiseptic, cologne, and last night’s dinner. There’s a thick carpet on the floor. The walls are hung with old photographs and decorated with wood paneling. The main space is dominated by a couch, an old laminate table, an ancient television, and a massive hospital-style bed surrounded by beeping equipment.
The man in the bed glances at me. He’s got thick glasses, his gray hair fuzzy and unkempt, a deep frown on his pale and scarred face. His hands shake as he lowers a book. “And you’re like a bad dream I can’t seem to shake.”
“More like the answer to all your prayers.”
Elias Thorne laughs softly. His voice is a rasp, like wind through the trees, and his once-massive frame is a withered husk of his former perfect health. He puts the book down as I walk over and lower myself into an old folding chair.
The entire room is a perfect recreation of his boyhood New Jersey home, right down to the seating arrangement. It wasn’t easy making this room look exactly how he remembered, but he’s much happier in here ever since we made it happen.
“You haven’t been down here in a few days. Busy out there in the real world?”
“I wouldn’t call the Fortressthe real world, but we’ve had some issues.”
“Medved.” Elias’s face twitches at the name. He touches his chest, right on top of an old puckered scar, one of dozensriddling his weakened body. The machines around him beep as his heart rate increases. “Still bothering you, isn’t he?”
“Don’t worry about him.”
“He’s kicking at my operations still too. Even after all this time.”
“None of that matters, Elias. You only have to rest up.”
He waves a hand ruefully. “I know, I know. I’ll be healed and ready to leave soon, don’t you worry. I bet you can’t wait to get rid of me.”
“Can’t wait to watch you walk out of here.” I smile at him and pretend like that’s true, but we both know he’s never leaving this room.
We make small talk. He tells me some news he heard. Despite his health, Elias remains sharp as ever and he’s still managing to hold his empire together from a distance, even though he hasn’t been seen in public in years.
“By the way, I heard a rumor recently. Apparently, there’s a woman living in the Fortress? And a baby?”
