Agent Murphy pushed through the door first. There was a short stairwell ascending in front of them. The younger agent then held the door open for everyone else. As Ethan got to the top of the stairs and looked at the motorcade waiting for them, he glanced back to see Agent Harper was the last person to exit the building.
The motorcade was comprised of three black SUVs. Agents in stereotypical black suits and sunglasses stood outside each vehicle and opened the doors.
“The three of you will be in the middle vehicle with me,” Murphy said. “Harper, take the rear. Agent?” Murphy said, looking at the younger agent.
“Agent Michael Fritz, ma’am.”
“Agent Fritz, ride in the front car and coordinate plans with the other vehicles. I take it you have a safe house you’re taking us to?”
“Yes, ma’am. The Special Agent in Charge approved access to one we’ve never used. Once we’ve driven for approximately ten minutes, the vehicles will separate and go in different directions, just in case of a tail.”
“Okay,” Ethan heard Murphy say as he entered the SUV and sat beside Blayne. Kira had already flung herself into the rear seat, sitting in the middle.
“Don’t want company?” Blayne asked.
“Nope. I want to see what’s happening in front of us,” Kira said.
She leaned in toward Ethan. “Did you pick up your cell?”
Ethan turned his head to ensure none of the agents were paying attention. “Yeah, I grabbed it when we were being ushered out of there. I figured it’s already wiped clean, so I might as well trade it in for a new one.”
“We’ll talk later,” Kira said, sitting back as Agent Murphy climbed into the SUV. Another agent ensured all the doors were shut before heading to the driver’s side and entering the idling vehicle.
“Buckle up,” Agent Murphy yelled from the front.
Ethan made sure his seatbelt was securely tightened before grasping Blayne’s hand.
* * * *
Dr. Hennigan
Dr. Hennigan looked down at her watch and realized their convoy should be at the FBI facility within a few minutes. She mentally prepared herself to breach the building. According to the schematics they’d pulled up, their best entry point was a side door leading down to the subbasement. The subbasement meant they’d have a lot of ground to cover before they found Dorothy, but that couldn’t be helped. A frontal approach was pointless because the front doors were thick, bulletproof suckers. The only genuinely vulnerable entry point was the side door. The door was supposed to be bombproof, but the morons who built the building hadn’t used reinforced hinges. Her team should be able to take out the hinges using a simple, targeted blast.
“Dr. Hennigan, please respond.”
Hennigan reached up and pushed the send button on her communication device. “Yes, Ms. Wilson.”
“There’s a situation on the ground at the Emerald City.”
“What kind of situation?”
“It looks like a gathering of Munchkins have come to the Emerald City to free Dorothy.”
“Plainly, please,” Dr. Hennigan said, trying not to sound too irritated.
“There is a protest of Ethan Bond fans at the Emerald City.”
“Fuck!” Hennigan cursed. She pulled out a small tablet from a pocket and connected it to the SUV’s Wi-Fi. “I’ve connected to the Wi-Fi. Please send information to my tablet.”
Within seconds, Dr. Hennigan received the live feed of the protest outside the Houston FBI field office.What the hell is going on?From the overhead images, all she could see was a mass of people swarming the front.
“Can you get a better view of our infiltration point?” A few seconds went by as the camera they had in the sky sent to the side of the building and zoomed closer to the location. “Can you get a clearer image?” Dr. Hennigan asked. All she could see was a bunch of trees.
“Sorry… Those trees prevent us from seeing anything else there.”
Fuck!She was about to switch over the tablet when the first black SUV left. “Ms. Wilson, are you seeing this convoy leaving?”
“Yes, I am.”
