Page 118 of Shadow

“You don’t think he would have killed her, do you?”

Ripley’s lips formed a tight line. “I would like to think he wouldn’t go that far, but I’m not so sure anymore. He’s ruthless in his pursuit of the top job at the CIA, and he’ll do anything to keep his skeletons from coming to light during the vetting process.”

“So use Carrie. She can shine a spotlight on just about anything.”

Ripley chuckled. “I already threatened him with that, and he didn’t seem to be fazed by it at all.”

“Interesting. But you think we have enough information to bring him down?”

Ripley shook his head. “Not even close. Everything is vague. We know what it means, but from a legal standpoint it’s not rock solid. And to take down someone as power hungry as Brian, we have to be rock solid. We’ll come up with a plan, though. There are a lot of skilled people in our corner, baby girl. Even if I don’t have access to all the resources I used to, we’re going to figure this out.”

She scooted closer to him and laid her head in his lap. “OK. This has to be so stressful for you.”

“Me? What about you?”

She shrugged. “I’m just a bystander in all of this. You’re the one actually being hunted. The one who was pushed out of a job you loved.”

“Just remember that I love you more than any job, OK?”

The room phone rang, startling them both. Ripley leaned forward and picked it up off the nightstand.

“Hello?”

“Mr. Ripley, you’re needed down in the lobby.”

He frowned. “What for? It’s nearly two in the morning?”

“I’m not sure, Sir. But the police are here for you. It would be better if you just came down to speak with them instead of making them come upstairs to you.”

Ripley’s mind raced. What on earth could the police want with him? He was extremely careful at Mario’s house, so it couldn’t be that.

“I just got out of the shower, so tell them to give me a few minutes to get dressed.”

The hotel employee relayed his message. “They say they’ll wait.”

He frowned. Something wasn’t right. The police wouldn’t be so patient at two in the morning.

He hung up the phone and jumped into action.

“Olivia, baby. We have to leave here right away. Get dressed. I’m going to call Samuel.”

He dialed his friend, not at all worried about waking him up.

“There are people in the lobby claiming to be the police. How fast can you get dressed and help me find a way out of here with Olivia? Something isn’t right. I don’t think it’s really the police.”

Samuel sounded sleepy when he said hello but sounded much more alert when Ripley briefed him.

“OK. There’s a bar that’s still open. It’s on the second floor. Meet me there, and we’ll sneak into the kitchen and out through the service elevator.”

Olivia was already dressed when he ended the call with Samuel. After pulling on clothes himself, he grabbed one of his laptops, and started typing. When he’d set up the connection he needed, he called Lance Moss.

“Hey Lance, I could use an assist in London. If I had time I would do it myself, but we need to move. Can you use what I just sent you and access the security feeds at this hotel? I’m specifically looking for men in the lobby right now. They’re claiming to be police, but I don’t buy it.”

“On it. I’ll call you when I have something.”

He pocketed his phone, slipped the laptop in a messenger bag he hooked over his shoulder, and reached for Olivia’s hand.

They got off the elevator on the second floor and headed for the bar Samuel had directed them to. He spotted his friend at the bar, and they quickly approached him. Samuel gave a nod to the bartender who turned his back and called for the other employee to join him at the end of the bar. The three slipped into the nearly deserted kitchen and into the service elevator.

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