anymore. I mean, I know it’s her, but the picture is grainy and her face is in shadow, so I can’t really tell if she’s aged.”
“Well, even if it did look that way, that kind of thing can be manipulated too. But the real question here is why someone in Afghanistan, conceivably a terrorist, would have the picture in the first place.”
Again he was struck by her consideration. She wasn’t asking about his marriage. Or even about Evangeline’s death. She was focusing on the photo and the mission. Of course, that would have been part of her training. At Langley, subtlety was always the key. Still, he couldn’t shake the sense that it was something more. That she was trying to spare him the pain of reliving all the details.
“That’s the question I’ve been asking since we found the damn thing. My team thinks there’s a possibility the whole thing was a setup. A way to lure us in.”
“You think it’s Shrum?” The idea clearly surprised her.
“I don’t think we can rule it out. But there’s nothing in the intel we have on him to indicate he’s in bed with anyone in the Middle East. And nothing that ties him directly to terrorists.”
“Beyond aiding and abetting the drug trade,” Sydney added. “Although, believe me, if Shrum wants something badly enough, he’ll go to any lengths to obtain it. But that said, I’d have to agree with you. I don’t see Shrum being connected to something that big. Although clearly, somebody has got a bead on him. If they’re close enough to get pictures.”
Avery nodded his agreement. “There’s a group we’ve been tracking for a few years now. They call themselves the Consortium. We don’t really know that much about them. But we think they’re a highly organized network of arms dealers playing for the highest of stakes. We believe they were behind the assassination attempt in Manhattan and the bombings. As well as a couple other attempts to attack the city. We also linked them to the terrorist camp in Afghanistan.”
“So you think they wanted you to find the hard drive.”
“Maybe. Or maybe there’s something bigger at play here and we really uncovered it. But either way, I’d bet my life that the Consortium is involved. They’ve got a hard-on for A-Tac. We’ve been a pretty big thorn in their side for a while now.”
“And so you think they planted the photo to get you out here.”
“It wouldn’t surprise me if they were trying to keep us distracted. When they’ve got something big on the burner, they tend to try to use smoke screens to pull us off the scent.”
“Well, I’d certainly say that this counts as a distraction. Which is obviously why Langley didn’t want your team to come.”
“Exactly. But even if it is meant as a distraction, that doesn’t mean there’s not something legitimate going on. For all I know, they’re using the photo to try to tip me off to something Shrum is doing.”
“Distract you while helping you find your wife?”
“When you put it like that, it sounds crazy. Hell, I don’t know.” He ran a hand across the top of his head, helplessness cascading through him. It wasn’t an emotion he was comfortable with. “Truth is, my gut tells me this is just some kind of macabre joke. A way to throw me off my game. But then I start thinking what if it’s not—what if, for whatever reason, the tip is real?”
“Then like I said before, you have to find out. It’s as simple as that.” Sydney was quiet for a moment, staring down at her hands, and then she lifted her eyes, her gaze colliding with his. “It was Evangeline you were talking about earlier. When we were talking about true love.”
“It was.”
“You loved her very much.” Her voice was soft, almost wistful, and the tone surprised him.
“I did. Evangeline was an amazing woman. In the beginning, I couldn’t even believe she was interested in me. In fact, I don’t think she was at first. Shrum was the one with all the charm. And he was the
“Well, even if it did look that way, that kind of thing can be manipulated too. But the real question here is why someone in Afghanistan, conceivably a terrorist, would have the picture in the first place.”
Again he was struck by her consideration. She wasn’t asking about his marriage. Or even about Evangeline’s death. She was focusing on the photo and the mission. Of course, that would have been part of her training. At Langley, subtlety was always the key. Still, he couldn’t shake the sense that it was something more. That she was trying to spare him the pain of reliving all the details.
“That’s the question I’ve been asking since we found the damn thing. My team thinks there’s a possibility the whole thing was a setup. A way to lure us in.”
“You think it’s Shrum?” The idea clearly surprised her.
“I don’t think we can rule it out. But there’s nothing in the intel we have on him to indicate he’s in bed with anyone in the Middle East. And nothing that ties him directly to terrorists.”
“Beyond aiding and abetting the drug trade,” Sydney added. “Although, believe me, if Shrum wants something badly enough, he’ll go to any lengths to obtain it. But that said, I’d have to agree with you. I don’t see Shrum being connected to something that big. Although clearly, somebody has got a bead on him. If they’re close enough to get pictures.”
Avery nodded his agreement. “There’s a group we’ve been tracking for a few years now. They call themselves the Consortium. We don’t really know that much about them. But we think they’re a highly organized network of arms dealers playing for the highest of stakes. We believe they were behind the assassination attempt in Manhattan and the bombings. As well as a couple other attempts to attack the city. We also linked them to the terrorist camp in Afghanistan.”
“So you think they wanted you to find the hard drive.”
“Maybe. Or maybe there’s something bigger at play here and we really uncovered it. But either way, I’d bet my life that the Consortium is involved. They’ve got a hard-on for A-Tac. We’ve been a pretty big thorn in their side for a while now.”
“And so you think they planted the photo to get you out here.”
“It wouldn’t surprise me if they were trying to keep us distracted. When they’ve got something big on the burner, they tend to try to use smoke screens to pull us off the scent.”
“Well, I’d certainly say that this counts as a distraction. Which is obviously why Langley didn’t want your team to come.”
“Exactly. But even if it is meant as a distraction, that doesn’t mean there’s not something legitimate going on. For all I know, they’re using the photo to try to tip me off to something Shrum is doing.”
“Distract you while helping you find your wife?”
“When you put it like that, it sounds crazy. Hell, I don’t know.” He ran a hand across the top of his head, helplessness cascading through him. It wasn’t an emotion he was comfortable with. “Truth is, my gut tells me this is just some kind of macabre joke. A way to throw me off my game. But then I start thinking what if it’s not—what if, for whatever reason, the tip is real?”
“Then like I said before, you have to find out. It’s as simple as that.” Sydney was quiet for a moment, staring down at her hands, and then she lifted her eyes, her gaze colliding with his. “It was Evangeline you were talking about earlier. When we were talking about true love.”
“It was.”
“You loved her very much.” Her voice was soft, almost wistful, and the tone surprised him.
“I did. Evangeline was an amazing woman. In the beginning, I couldn’t even believe she was interested in me. In fact, I don’t think she was at first. Shrum was the one with all the charm. And he was the
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