The 14th Colony (Cotton Malone 11)

The man introduced himself as Nikolai Osin, then Stephanie added, “He’s head of station for the SVR.”

“Officially, I am a trade delegate and know nothing of any SVR.”

“I like that,” Luke said. “We’ll go with it. But would you mind telling me more about Anya Petrova?”

They stood alone in the lit lot, among a deserted heap of cars.

“She is connected to a man who could cause this country many problems. He sent her here for a reason, which is why I advised Stephanie to watch her carefully. Apparently, Petrova did not appreciate that.”

Luke was still trying to figure out how she’d made him. He’d been real careful, but sometimes crap happens. And though his question had not been fully answered, he decided to let it pass and said, “We need to check out that house.”

They drove back south into the Virginia countryside and found the same wrought-iron-topped entrance. At any other time Magellan Billet headquarters could have traced ownership in a matter of minutes, but he knew that was now impossible. Of course, the White House could accomplish the same thing, but that required his reporting in. Stephanie had suggested they wait before making that call and he hadn’t argued. Perhaps they might even learn enough to soften the sting sure to come from Uncle Danny over screwing up the one thing he’d asked him not to do.

The SUV stopped in front of the abandoned dwelling and they climbed out.

“Virginia’s loaded with relics like this,” Stephanie said.

“Such a large place,” Nikolai said.

“And it appears,” she said, “to have been abandoned for a while.”

During the drive Luke learned that Malone might be in trouble and that Cassiopeia had been sent to see about him, which seemed both good and bad. He hoped everything was okay, but their SVR ally had not been able to gather much new information from folks in Siberia. Of course, the $64,000 question that nobody would answer was why someone would shoot down Malone’s plane in the first place. Whoever they were, they possessed surface-to-air missiles, which meant far more was going on here than the Russkies wanted to admit—and far more than Uncle Danny had revealed.

Their driver produced a flashlight with a bright halogen beam. A faint hint of dawn was beginning to form to the east, but it would still be another two hours before the sun rose.

Luke grabbed the light and led the way back inside, which still cast the hollow atmosphere of a mausoleum. “She came straight here and knew exactly where she was going.”

“Any idea what she was after?” Stephanie asked Osin.

“Can I reserve that answer until after we have a look? I’ll try to be as direct as possible.”

Luke doubted that observation. From the few times he’d encountered the SVR, coy would be the most generous word he’d use to describe them. Totally untrustworthy? Liars? Both fit them to a T. But he understood that this was supposed to be sort of a joint operation, one he wanted to be part of, so he kept his comments to himself.

They followed him down the hall and into the study, where the light revealed the gash in the paneled wall.

“She knew how to handle that ax,” he said, pointing to it on the floor.

He was anxious to see what was beyond the opening, so he shone the beam inside. The room was small, maybe ten feet square, lined floor-to-ceiling on three sides with shelves. But unlike the ones out in the study, which sat empty and askew, these were brimming with books. A table sat in the center, on which rested a wooden easel, under glass, that displayed an open volume. A small chandelier dangled from the ceiling, sparkling in the light, its dusty bulbs useless without power.

“Some sort of concealed chamber,” he muttered. “Which sweet Anya knew all about. She busted through exactly where she needed to.”

He stepped inside, followed by Stephanie and Osin. With the flashlight he surveyed the shelves, studying the exposed spines. Most were books, others bound manuscripts, still more were wooden file cases holding loose sheets. He caught a few of the labels. MILITARY COMMAND CORRESPONDENCE. BATTLE OF PRINCETON. SIEGE OF BOSTON. CAPTURE OF TICONDEROGA. He scanned the entire room and read more spines.

One theme rang clear.

“It’s a Revolutionary War library,” he said.

“More than that,” Stephanie added. “These books are late-18th- and early-19th- and 20th-century histories of that time, leading up to the War of 1812.”

He estimated they were looking at several hundred volumes, everything sheathed in a thick coat of dust. Clearly, no one had been here for a long time. Here and there, sections of the shelves were empty, books that had once been there lying askew on the floor, their dust clearly disturbed.

“That’s what I heard,” Luke said. “Lots of thuds. She was raking those off.”

“Tell us, Nikolai,” Stephanie said. “What was she looking for?”

Osin did not reply. Instead, he removed the glass dome that protected the book on the easel and slowly turned the pages. He then closed the book so that its cover could be read.

Gold letters were etched into a black leather binding.

THE

ORIGINAL INSTITUTION

OF THE

GENERAL SOCIETY OF THE

CINCINNATI

AS FORMED BY THE OFFICERS OF THE ARMY OF THE UNITED STATES

AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE

REVOLUTIONARY WAR

WHICH GAVE INDEPENDENCE TO

AMERICA

Stephanie stepped closer and reopened the book, reading from a few of the pages. “It’s a history of the society. Its general proceedings, minutes of meetings, and constitution. The copyright is from 1847.”

“What’s the Cincinnati?” Luke asked her.

She ignored him and restudied the shelves that surrounded them. “This is an archive, one I bet the Society of Cincinnati has no idea still exists.” She paused. “Otherwise it would have bee

n retrieved.” Stephanie faced Osin. “Why is Anya Petrova interested in something like this?”

No reply.

“Earlier, you mentioned Forward Pass,” she tried. “To my knowledge, that operation is still classified. The only way you could know anything about it is from your own records.”

“We know exactly what was done,” Osin said.

Which Luke immediately wanted to know, too.

“Does that mean Aleksandr Zorin knows?” she asked.

“I’m sure he does. And Belchenko knows even more.”

“Including where those missing nukes are located?”

Luke stood silent and allowed the sparring to continue uninterrupted. But had he heard right? “Missing nukes”? He figured Stephanie would clue him in when the time was right.

She turned toward him. “Did Petrova leave here with anything?”

He shook his head. “Not that I saw.”

“Then this was a dead end for her. Nikolai, you said you would be direct. Why did she come here?”

Uncharacteristically, Stephanie’s voice had risen.

“I will answer that after I speak with Moscow. Some things I must discuss in private first.”

“I sent my man to Siberia on your request,” she said. “He went in blind, and now he’s missing.”

“We’ve allowed you to send another asset to investigate.”

“Not good enough. What’s going on?”

“I cannot say. At least for the moment.”

Luke heard concern in the voice, which seemed genuine, and unusual for the SVR.

“I have to report all of this to the president,” she said. “It’ll be his call what to do next.”

“I understand.”

The Russian left the secret room without saying another word.

Luke stared at his former boss. “This is a deep pile of crap, isn’t it?”

She carefully replaced the glass dome atop the book and the easel. Dust gently cascaded off the sides and onto the tabletop, glistening in the light.

“That’d be a good way to describe it,” she whispered.

“Do you know what the Cincinnati is?” he asked again.