Read Online The Edge of Armageddon by David Leadbeater - Free Book Online

as he could through the still-closed restaurant, clipping a chair and table as he went. The men’s restroom was small, consisting of only two urinals and a toilet. He checked under the bowl.
    “Nothing here,” he said.
    Stress crisscrossed Beauregard’s face. He tapped the buttons of his watch. “Time’s up.”
    The hovering waitress jumped as the telephone rang. Drake held out a hand to her. “Take your time. Please, take your time.”
    He thought she might bolt, but inner resolve sent her toward the receiver. At that moment Alicia came out of the female restroom, a fraught expression on her face. “It’s not there. We don’t have it!”
    Drake flinched as if he'd been struck. He stared around. Could there be another restroom in this tiny restaurant? An employee’s stall perhaps? They would have to check again, but the waitress was already speaking on the phone. Her eyes flickered toward Drake and she told the caller to hold.
    “It’s a man called Marsh. For you.”
    Drake frowned. “Did he ask for me by name?”
    “An Englishman, he said.” The waitress shrugged. “That’s all he said.”
    Beau lingered at his side. “And since you are easily confused, my friend, that is you.”
    “Cheers.”
    Drake reached out for the phone, one hand rubbing the side of his face as a rush of weariness and tension washed over him. How could they fail now? They had defeated all the odds and yet Marsh might still somehow be playing them.
    “Yes?”
    “Marsh here. Now tell me, what did you find?”
    Drake opened his mouth, then closed it quickly. What was the right answer? Maybe Marsh was expecting the word “nothing”. Maybe . . .
    He paused, wavering from reply to reply.
    “Tell me what you found or I will give the order to kill two New Yorkers within the next minute.”
    Drake opened his mouth. Dammit! “We found—”
    Then Mai came sprinting out of the women’s rest room, slipping on the wet tiles and falling onto her side. In her hand was clasped a small white envelope. Beau was next to her in a split-second, retrieving the envelope and handing it to Drake. Mai languished on the floor, panting hard.
    Alicia stared open-mouthed at her. “Where did you find that, Sprite?”
    “You did what they call a ‘boy look’, Taz. And that shouldn’t surprise anyone, since you’re three-quarters male anyway.”
    Alicia fumed in silence.
    Drake was coughing as he tore open the envelope. “We . . . found . . . a . . . a bloody USB stick, Marsh. Shit, man, what is this?”
    “Well done. Well done. I’m a little disappointed but, hey, maybe next time. Now just take a good look at the USB. This is your final verification and, as before, you may want to pass it on to someone with a bigger brain than yourselves or the NYPD.”
    “Is it the inside of the . . . cake?” Drake was aware of the waitress still standing nearby.
    Marsh laughed loudly. “Oh good, oh very good. Let’s not let the cat out of the bag, eh? Yes, it is. Now listen, I will give you ten minutes to send the USB’s contents to your betters, and then we start again.”
    “No, no we don’t.” Drake waved toward Mai, who carried a small backpack in which they had stashed a tiny laptop. The Japanese woman dragged herself off the ground and came over.
    “We won’t chase our tails all over this city, Marsh.”
    “Umm, yes you will. Because I say so. Now, time is ticking. Let’s get that laptop booted up and enjoy what happens next, shall we? Five, four . . .”
    Drake smashed a fist into a table as the line went quiet. Anger boiled his blood. “Listen, Marsh—”
    The restaurant’s front window exploded as the front fender of a van smashed through into the eating area. Glass shattered and tore slices from the air. Woodwork, plastic and mortar burst into the room. The van didn’t stop, crashing down onto its tires and roaring like death’s apprentice as it tore through the small room.

CHAPTER TEN
     
     
    Julian Marsh felt a sharp pain in his