Free the Second Horseman (2006) by Kyle Mills Page B

knows is that someone broke him out of prison, and the only face he has is Catherine's."
    "But he was told what we wanted from him. He can use that --"
    "She never got the chance. He kept changing the subject. Figured we wouldn't put as much effort into finding him if he didn't have any information."
    Hamdi tightened his grip on the handset but didn't speak, just breathing into the phone. It was becoming harder and harder not to look back fondly on the cold war. In retrospect, it had been nothing but a game. Two opponents, playing for insignificant pieces, neither daring to make a meaningful advance. Errors -- even serious ones -- rarely cost more than brief embarrassment or the loss of secrets with no long-term significance. But now the world had changed. The U . S . government, still accustomed to the glacially paced, low-stakes competition with the Soviet Union, was struggling to adapt to a completely new enemy. An enemy that could appear from nowhere and kill thousands -- perhaps millions -- for no rational reason at all. It was a difficult transition and one that wasn't moving fast enough to avert disaster.
    "Are you going to be able to find him?"
    "I think so. I hope so."
    "You hope so?" Hamdi said. "You hope so?"
    "I'm not going to make promises about something I can't control, Edwin."
    Hamdi didn't immediately respond. He was becoming increasingly concerned about Scanlon's attitude toward this little thief. He didn't seem to be treating him as th e n ecessary -- and ultimately temporary -- evil he was.
    "And if you do find him?"
    "I don't understand the question, Edwin."
    "I think you understand it quite well."
    "What do you want me to say? That I'll take him out back and shoot him? Unless you've come up with an alternative you haven't told me about, we're stuck with him."
    Hamdi nodded silently. "Then perhaps it's time for you to be a little more forceful in the way you convince him what is and isn't in his best interest."

    Chapter ELEVEN
    The maid shook her head disapprovingly as Brandon stood there in a towel, dripping all over the carpet and telling his sad story about going to the pool and forgetting his key. Or maybe she was shaking her head at his atrocious Spanish. It was hard to be sure. After a little begging and a few of his best embarrassed grins, she finally used her passkey to let him into a room he'd chosen based solely on the fact that no one had answered his knock.
    "Gracias!" he said, ducking into the room and pushing the door closed before the maid could peek inside.
    He latched the chain and pressed his back against the wall after confirming that no one was in the bathroom or asleep in the unmade bed. Maybe his luck was changing.
    He powered up the laptop sitting on the desk and then began rifling through the open suitcase next to it, hoping the roo m w asn't occupied by a couple of five-foot - tall, middle-aged women.
    It turned out it was a somewhat taller middle-aged man. Brandon slipped on a very roomy pair of plaid shorts and a golf shirt that would be perfectly complemented by the collection of black socks and brown dress shoes that were his only choices. On the bright side, the loafers were actually the right size.
    He heard someone talking outside and froze, but they just passed by. If there was one thing in life that drove him nuts, it was relying on luck instead of planning. But how the hell could he plan for getting thrown out of prison by Betty Crocker's much hotter sister? Sometimes you just had no choice but to improvise.
    The overall effect of the clothes wasn't as bad as he expected. Except the socks. He took them off and slid the loafers back on. With a little luck, people would think he was going for a baggy, neo-preppy thing. Luck. There it was again.
    After another nervous glance at the door, he sat down in front of the laptop. There was no password and he made a quick inventory of its contents. All business stuff -- no credit card numbers or anything else he could use. But it