Situation Room Read online

  “Is it late or is it early?” Jameson teased.

  “Did I wake you?”

  “No. I’m in the living room.”

  “At two in the morning? Why?”

  “I was looking through photo albums. I can’t believe how much Spence has changed.”

  “Mm. Had a good time with the boys?”

  “When did they start educating us?”

  “Oh, probably the moment they were born.”

  “True. I thought I was going to detention tonight.”

  “Oh no.”

  “Apparently, I need to learn my superheroes. It’s serious business, Candace. I wouldn’t be surprised if they drill you when you get here.”

  “I’ll take that under advisement. Should I grab some comics for the flight home tomorrow?”

  “Probably—or an encyclopedia or something. I’ll bet they have one. We might need it.”

  Candace laughed.

  “How are you holding up?” Jameson asked.

  “Keeping your fortune cookies in stand-by.”

  “That good?”

  “Let’s just say there’s no easy answer.”

  “You’ll figure it out. You always do.”

  “I wish that were true,” Candace said. “I’ll make a decision and I’ll live with that. That’s the best I can hope to do, I’m afraid.”

  “Anything I can do?” Jameson asked.

  “You’re doing it.”

  “Mm. If it helps, Cooper told me that superheroes aren’t superheroes because of their powers.”

  “Oh?”

  “They’re superheroes because they always try to make things better, even if it gets messy. Spencer explained they’re just like his Nana.”

  Candace wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. “If only they knew.”

  “They do know. They see what you can’t afford to see. We all see it. Follow your gut, Candace. It’s never steered you wrong before. Whatever you do, it’ll be the best decision you could make.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Just telling you the truth.” Jameson heard Candace sigh. “Go back to work. “If you need to stay there longer—”

  “I’ll see you this afternoon. Remember, we have plans tomorrow. You, me and Cooper.”

  “How could I forget that? I’ll see you.”

  “You will. I love you, Jameson.”

  “I love you too. Don’t forget that.”

  “Never.”

  ***

  “Jesus,” Claire mumbled.

  “Are you in?”

  “Yeah, but I don’t know what the hell I’m into. Christ, El, this place is a maze. There’s got to be miles of tunnels down here.”

  “Typical.”

  “Yeah, I know. These are updated.”

  “I’m not surprised,” Eleana replied. “Any signs of life?”

  “Yeah. A few carts. Lights.” Claire kept walking. “No people. Not yet. They’ve been here recently. There’s some oil on the ground. Definitely from a vehicle. There is another way in and out of this place.”

  “Probably more than one,” Eleana said. “Look for any sign of a chamber. The Nazi’s built their tunnels to house manufacturing.”

  Claire came to a crossroads. “Three options, El, right, left, or forward.”

  “Which way leads toward the water?” Eleana asked.

  “Left,” Claire said.

  “Go left.”

  Claire continued down the left tunnel. The sound of voices in the distance caught her attention. “Good call.”

  “Do you see something?”

  “More like I hear something. Can’t make out the words. “Let’s hope there’s some place to duck and cover.”

  “Be careful.”

  Claire remained silent, tuning into the voices in the distance. “They’re not speaking Russian.”

  “What?”

  “It’s not Russian,” Claire said. “It’s Finnish.”

  Eleana groaned. Not good. “I can’t help you there, Claire.”

  “Yeah. Great. Why the hell would they be talking Finnish?”

  “I don’t know. Finland and Germany have a storied history.”

  “Yeah, I don’t need a history lesson. I need a translator.”

  “Can you get closer without being seen?”

  “That’s the idea. See if you can discern anything,” Claire said. She moved forward. The voices were approaching. She was relieved to see a door in the wall ahead. “Think I found a spot. Fuck. What they hell needs to be locked down here?” she complained. “Damn.” Claire looked ahead to where the voices were closing in on her. She reached into her pocket, retrieved a small tool, and went to work on the lock. She sighed with relief when it clicked. “I’m in.”

  “Where?”

  “I don’t know yet. Dark in here. Three voices, I think. Maybe four. No…”

  Eleana strained to listen to the background.

  “Finnish,” Claire muttered. “Why not French or German? Can you get Alex? Fast?” Claire asked.

  “I’ll try.”

  Alex picked up Eleana’s call immediately. “What’s wrong?”

  “Claire’s fine.”

  “You?”

  “I’m at a safe distance. She’s inside. There are people, Alex. They’re speaking Finnish. Neither of us—”

  “Get her to repeat it.”

  “Can you translate?” Eleana asked.

  “It’s not a strength,” Alex confessed. “But I can probably get the major points.”

  Eleana address Claire. “I’ve got Alex. Repeat what you can hear.”

  “Jesus. She speaks Finnish too?”

  Alex heard Claire and laughed. “Not well.”

  “Enough,” Eleana said. “She’s got a better shot than you and me put together.”

  “Figures. Okay, here goes—”

  ***

  “Profiles? Ae you sure he said profiles?” Claire questioned.

  “He said profiles,” Alex told Eleana.

  “She’s sure,” Eleana told Claire.

  Claire opened the door and looked down the long tube. “I need another minute.”

  “There could be more people down there,” Eleana reminded her.

  “No kidding.” Claire looked to her left. The light from the door that was ajar gave the hint of a jacket hanging on a hook. She closed the door and turned on the flashlight of her cell phone. “Light, light, light. More light.” A switch hid behind a few jugs of liquid cleaner that sat on a shelf. “Ah, light!”

  “What do you see?”

  “Mostly, cleaning supplies. Hold on. What the—”

  “What is it?”

  “B-Helix is an American company, right?”

  Eleana froze.

  “El?”

  “It is,” Alex chimed.

  “Was that Alex?”

  “Yeah. Can you hear her?”

  “Not well.”

  “What about B-Helix?” Alex asked. Eleana repeated the question to Claire.

  “Well, this closet—there’s another door. Three jackets on a rack. They all have the B-Helix logo.”

  Alex heard Claire’s answer. She pinched the bridge of her nose.

  “Alex?” Eleana urged a reply.

  “Tell Claire to see what’s behind that other door.”

  “Claire, can you open that door?”

  “Can I open the door—that’s never the question. It wants a code. Fuck.”

  “Can you bypass it?” Eleana asked.

  “I don’t know. Maybe. I don’t want to trip any alarms. I need to go to Plan B.”

  “Which is?”

  “Find someone with a key card.”

  “Claire—”

  “El, that’s the choice, okay?”

  “I don’t like it,” Eleana said. “Are you even armed?”

  “Of course, I’m armed.” Claire retrieved one of the jackets and put in on. Can’t hurt.

  ***

  Candace was surprised when Alex called. “Joshua is here
with me.”

  “Good. Am I on the speaker.”

  “You are.”

  “Tate.”

  “Alex, where’s Claire?”

  “Inside some maze of tunnels than runs under Rosgarten Gate. Tate, why would B-Helix have a presence in Kaliningrad?”

  “I don’t know. What makes you think they do?” he asked.

  “Claire found some things that suggests B-Helix is part of whatever is going on down there.”

  “B-Helix is a DNA test provider,” Candace said.

  “Yes, but they have international partners—everywhere,” Tate said.

  “Russia?” Candace asked.

  “Not on the books,” Tate replied.

  “What about Finland?” Alex asked.

  “I think so, why?”

  “The only people Claire’s heard down there were speaking Finnish,” Alex said.

  Tate groaned.

  “What does that mean?” Candace asked.

  “It could mean nothing,” Alex said. “It’s not like Finland is far from Kaliningrad.”

  “I doubt that’s the reason,” Candace said.

  “Claire’s going to try to go deeper. Tate, I’m stuck on the line here for a bit. I’d like to keep it open to Candace. Better if you hear this in real time,” Alex said. “Can you—”

  “I’ll call Jonathan,” Tate said.

  “Thanks.”

  “Alex, what does your brother have to do with this?” Candace asked.

  “Specifically, nothing. Some years ago, when I was overseeing Carecom, we acquired a company called Myogen.”

  “I recall.”

  “That caused a lot of splintering, people peeled off and started new bioengineering companies. One of those was B-Helix.”

  “I see.”

  “Jonathan will have a better idea than any of us about why B-Helix might be invested in the Russians or how Finland comes into play.”

  “Alex, we are running out of time.”

  “I know. Claire will get something, Candace. She will.”

  “I’m not sure I want to know,” Candace confessed.

  “Can’t say that I blame you.”

  ***

  Claire eyed a woman in a similar jacket about ten yards in the distance. “Ask Alex how to say hello in Finnish.”

  “Hei,” Eleana said.

  “Hey? That’s it? Hey?”

  “You’d better hope that’s all you need.”

  “Ask her how to say, would you like to see the closet?”

  Eleana chuckled. “Be careful.”

  Claire walked purposely toward the woman until the woman turned her back. “Hey,” Claire greeted the woman.

  “I don’t believe I’ve seen you here,” the woman replied in Russian.

  Thank God. “No. I’m usually in Bucharest,” Claire replied confidently.

  The woman nodded.

  “I seem to have lost my way,” Claire said. “I’ve only been here twice. I’m supposed to check on the latest shipment from Dyula.”

  The woman nodded. “Cataloguing. It’s easy to lose your way,” she said.

  Claire followed the woman for another thirty to forty yards before they reached another door. To her surprise, the woman swiped her card and opened the door.

  “Try not to lose your way back. Take a right down the first tunnel, and then the next left. Faster than making your way to King’s Gate.”

  “Got it. Thank you.” She let the door close and looked into the room. “I’m in. Where I’m in, I don’t know.”

  ***

  “She’s in,” Alex said. “I put you on speaker. You’ll be able to hear Eleana.”

  “What do you see?” Eleana asked.

  “Shelves. Lots of them. Lots of—it kind of looks like binders. Thick binders, but binders.” Claire moved closer and studied a shelf. “The inscriptions were in Cyrillic. Georgia,” she said.

  “As in the country,” Eleana asked.

  Claire opened the binder. “What the hell?”

  “Claire, what is it?”

  “Jesus Christ.”

  “What is it?”

  “If I’m not mistaken, it’s a book full of samples.”

  “Samples of what?” Alex asked. Eleana repeated the question.

  “El,” Claire paused as she flipped through the book.

  “What? Claire?”

  “Catalogue room,” Claire muttered.

  “Claire!”

  “What?” Claire snapped.

  “What is in the binder?” Eleana asked.

  “It’s a catalogue all right—of people’s DNA,” she said.

  Alex felt sick. “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah,” Claire replied. “Complete with profile. And, this isn’t from the country of Georgia. Bradley Michaels. Age thirty-five. 33 Sloan Road, Browndale, Georgia. Jesus. There’s got to be thousands of these in here.”

  “Eleana?” Claire asked.

  “Alex, it looks like DNA profiles.”

  “From?” Alex asked.

  “Everywhere.”

  “Tell Claire to keep looking. See if there’s anything else. I’ll call you right back. Did you hear that?” she asked Candace.

  “I did. I don’t know what it means.”

  “Nothing good,” Alex said. “That information alone—without all the DNA samples could wreak havoc. With it? Candace, the ability to weaponize that—it’s endless. You can gain access to people’s personal finances; you can even frame them for a crime. It’s not innocuous.”

  “This is what Biocon has been transporting,” Candace said. “The DNA they collect from Europeans?”

  “Not just Biocon,” Alex said. “B-Helix too. Look, I know that we collect as much of this as we can.”

  “What?” Candace asked.

  “Candace, come on. The military has been collecting DNA for decades, and not just from military personnel.”

  Candace shook her head.

  “This is worse,” Alex continued. “People gave this freely. They signed on the dotted line and the fine print gives over your rights to your DNA. It’s right there in the print. People don’t pay attention. You give license to a company to have access to information about far more than where your ancestors lived. They have a medical profile, they have your date of birth, your address, your profession—the opportunities are endless and frankly, have wider reach than any bomb I know about.”

  “What do you suggest?” Candace said.

  Alex sighed. “I don’t suggest you make any moves in Ukraine. That’s pointless.”

  “We can’t leave it,” Candace said.

  Tate walked back into the room. “What’s going on?”

  “Tate, the place is full of DNA profiles—from everywhere,” Alex explained.

  “Anything else?”

  “I don’t know yet. I need to call Eleana back. What did Jonathan say?”

  “Only that Biocon and B-Helix both receive funding from Illumina.”

  “In Finland,” Alex said.

  “Bingo. I suggest you call Eleana back. We’ll wait for your call,” he said.

  “I’ll make it quick.”

  “Do,” Candace chimed. She looked at Tate. “What now?”

  “You won’t like it.”

  ***

  “There’s nothing else, El. Nothing that I have time to look at. This place is massive. There are computers everywhere. “No one in the room, though. It literally looks like a giant catalogue.”

  “Probably where they decide what to do with the information,” Eleana said.

  “Safe bet,” Claire agreed.

  “Tell Claire to get out of there. Take some photos and go. We have what we need for now.”

  “Alex says to get out of there.”

  “Not empty-handed.”

  “Claire—”

  “Trust me. I’ll see you on the other side,” Claire promised. “I didn’t come all this way to leave with nothing.”

  ***

  Candace tried to process the info
rmation Tate gave her. “You’re telling me that we have warehouses full of DNA.”

  “Why does that surprise you?”

  “It doesn’t. It disgusts me.”

  “This started well before you, Candace.”

  “That doesn’t make it okay, Joshua.” Candace scratched her brow and shook her head. “God Damnit!”

  Tate remained silent. Candace possessed morals and integrity. She wasn’t naïve. She preferred to believe the best about people, and about government.

  “What now?”

  “I would imagine that Alex will have a similar recommendation.”

  “Which is?”

  “We disclose only that we have some idea what is in Kaliningrad—not that we have seen it. We also create a false narrative. That one of our assets in Ukraine provided information that whatever was moved, has been moved completely.”

  “That won’t work.”

  “It will if we have it moved.”

  “How do you propose we do that?” Candace asked.

  “Do you want that answer?”

  “No, but I need the answer.”

  “Claire.”

  “Claire?”

  “Yes. She’s on the inside with Gregorovich. He’s testing her. We’ll let her leak Rollins’ plan to him. They’ll clear out and shut off that supply line by morning,” Tate said. “Believe me.”

  “And, Claire?”

  “This is what Claire and Alex are best at doing. Let them do it, Candace.”

  Candace nodded. “I want details, Joshua. I want to know what Claire is doing and I want to know what the response is—everything. I mean it. If I say we pull the plug, you and Alex pull it. Understood?”

  “Loud and clear, Madame President.”

  “Get the ball rolling. Get the Chiefs here at six as planned.”

  Tate nodded.

  “I hope you’re right—for all our sakes.”

  ***

  6:00 A.M.

  THE SITUATION ROOM

  Candace strode into the room confidently and took her seat. She let her eyes meet each of her advisers and end with Joshua Tate. “Joshua and I spent the night in this room. I will spare you the number of calls that were made. Where do we stand with this proposal?” she asked the room.

  This was test time. Joshua and Alex had mapped out the first steps of their plan. Claire called Gregorovich with the tip that the United States was about to take covert action in Ukraine. Joshua informed Candace that, as expected, movement had begun. He expected that the small factory building on the border of Ukraine would be empty within hours. That information should have reached her military leaders.