The Hostage (Presidential Agent 2)

Maybe that. Okay, certainly that. But really, it's Howard Kennedy.

What the hell is he doing here? It's no coincidence. Or is it?

I don't know-have no way of knowing-and that disturbs me.

And why is he absolutely unable to believe that I have no intention of flipping him to the FBI? Goddammit, by now he should know he can trust me. Which of course makes me unable to trust him…

"The entrance is way down on the left," Kennedy said. "And it looks like there's a line of people ahead of you."

"Probably people applying for visas," Castillo replied. "There's supposed to be an employee entrance on the right. Just drop me anywhere along here."

A moment later the Mercedes pulled to the curb. Charley saw the man in the front jump out to open the door for him. He turned to Kennedy and offered his hand.

"Thanks, Howard," he said.

"I have every confidence you're not going to tell the legal attache how you got here."

"Oh, goddammit, Howard! I told you, there's no FBI here."

"So you said."

"Fuck you, Howard."

"Hey, Charley, I'm just pulling your chain."

"No, you're not."

"Let's try to have a drink and/or dinner," Kennedy said.

"Yeah. Give me a call."

He got out of the Mercedes and walked quickly across the street. There was a gap wide enough to walk through between the wedges of the concrete barrier. Once through that, he could see a gate, with a guard shack and a revolving barrier, in the steel picket fence.

There were three men in the guard shack, wearing police-style uniforms with embroidered patches of some security service on the sleeves. What looked like Smith amp; Wesson.357 Magnum revolvers hung in open holsters from Sam Browne belts.

He extended the leather folder holding his Secret Service credentials to one of the guards.

"I'm here to see Mr. Santini," he said in English.

"This gate is for embassy personnel only," the security guard said, more than a little arrogantly, and pointed to the far side of the embassy.

You sonofabitch, you didn't even look at my credentials!

An Argentine rent-a-cop is denying a Secret Service agent access to an American embassy? No fucking way!

"You get on that goddamn telephone and tell the Marine guard that a United States Secret Service officer is here at the gate," Castillo snapped, in Spanish.

Looking a little surprised at the fluent Spanish, as well as the tone, the guard gestured for Castillo to show him his credentials again. Another security guard picked up the telephone.

Castillo turned his back on them.

That little display of anger was uncalled for. What the hell is the matter with me?

But on the other hand, I think that would have been the reaction of a bona fide Secret Service agent. Maybe not Joel, but Tom McGuire certainly would not put up with any crap from a rent-a-cop.

He saw the Mercedes had not moved.

Trying to see if I'm really going in, are you, Howard?