Free Black Rose by Alex Lukeman Page A

unlikely, a real stretch. Vysotsky crossed off idealism as a possibility. These were not idealistic men.
    That left money. Neither man had any particular problems with money. Kamarov's uncle was one of the hated oligarchs and his favorite nephew lacked for nothing. Vishinski was well off by Russian standards, even by Western ones. Their positions entitled them to many perks and benefits.
    Even so , Vysotsky thought, for some there is never enough..
    He decided to dig into the finances of the two men. He'd have to be careful. If they discovered what he was doing, the hammer would fall. It was the nature of life in the circles of Russian power. It had always been that way, since the days of the czars.
    Alexei drained the rest of the vodka. Then he took out a lighter and set fire to the list he had just made. He dropped the burning paper in an ashtray and watched it curl and blacken.
    He poured another glass. As he sipped, he had an uneasy thought. What would happen if the disease got loose? Gutenberg must know what he had and only a madman would unleash such a terrible weapon. One of the reasons the Korean lab had been raided was to take that potential out of the hands of North Korea's unstable leader. At least, that's what Vysotsky had been told. The plague was safer in Russian hands. If it added to the Federation's arsenal of bio-weapons, so much the better.
    He put the thought aside. Time to begin looking for the traitor.

CHAPTER 18
     
     
    Lights on the corners of Krivi's laboratory buildings cast a bright glare into the night, reflecting from the harsh white of the snow covering the grounds. There was no moon. The sky was filled with dark, unseen cloud and the scent of a coming storm lay heavy in the night air.
    Nick and the others had parked a quarter of a mile away. They were dressed in black and armed with the MP-5s and pistols. The C-4 and detonators were in a pack Nick would carry once they got out of the car.
    "Those lights are a problem," Nick said.
    "Once we're a little closer, I can take care of that," Ronnie said.
    "You got something in your bag of tricks?" Lamont asked.
    Ronnie held up an odd looking device shaped like a radar gun.
    "This puts out a focused EMP burst. It's simple, point and shoot. Aim at the light, and out she goes. No sound to bother anyone."
    "One of Langley's toys?"
    "Yup. You know, we should have our own shop for stuff like this. Harker could set it up where we practice urban targets. There's plenty of room."
    The metal building across from Project headquarters was used to practice live fire against electronic targets that popped out of rooms and mock buildings and alleys at random places and intervals. The shooter had to make an instant decision. Friend or foe? It was easy to mistake a toaster or a baby for a bomb, a beer bottle for a gun. There were a lot of dead, fake civilians in that building, though there were a lot fewer than when the range had first been set up.
    "'ll talk to Harker about it," Nick said. "Steph would appreciate another techie type to talk to."
    He unfolded a set of plans for the ground floor of the lab and spread it out across his lap and clicked on a small flashlight. In the back seat, Lamont and Selena leaned over to look.
    "This wing at the far end still looks like the best bet for entry," Nick said. He moved the light over the page.
    "No windows, so no one sees us from inside. There's one exit door, on the far side away from the main entrance. Cameras on the corners. With Ronnie's gadget we can take out the cameras and the lights without knocking out the lights up front. If we're lucky, no one will notice. On the other hand, the guards will be at a monitoring station. If they're paying attention, they'll come looking to see what's up when the cameras go out."
    "Rules of engagement?" Selena asked.
    "It's a hard call. They may not know what's going on in there. Take them out but try not to kill them. If they start shooting, all bets are off."
    "What if the samples