Burn: A Novel Read online

  Thank goodness the market was bursting at the seams with people. Cael had no trouble keeping a buffer of several customers between him and Larkin. A gray-haired man in a dark suit was easy to spot in the marketplace, which was teeming with casually dressed locals and tourists. It struck Cael that it was a stupid mistake on Larkin’s part, to dress in a way that made him stand out in a crowd. Either he didn’t care, or he thought he was smarter than everyone else and would spot anyone trying to follow him.

  Maybe Larkin wore the suit because he needed the jacket to hide a weapon. Cael and his people hadn’t been able to get weapons on the ship, hadn’t thought they’d need them for surveillance, but security personnel had weapons—not many, but a few—and Larkin had connections with security through Dean Mills. While they hadn’t seen him with a weapon in his possession, there had been moments when he’d been momentarily out of their sight, so it was possible. And since it was possible, Cael preferred to proceed as if Larkin was armed, especially when he and his people were not.

  Cael would much prefer to do this job without Jenner in the mix, but if Larkin caught sight of him, it would be best if she were with him. They’d been inseparable since day one, a couple everyone was accustomed to seeing together. And considering where they were at the moment, he was doubly glad to have Jenner beside him. Bringing a woman to the market made perfect sense, but alone … alone he would stand out as much as Larkin did.

  Eventually, Larkin moved through the length of the market and into open air. Cael remained beneath the cover of the tarp that shaded and sheltered the market, and spoke to Matt, who would be more easily able to move close without calling attention to himself.

  The kid had already changed clothes—and wigs—a couple of times, and now had longish light brown hair, jeans, and a shirt much like the one Cael wore. The backpack was slung over one shoulder, and in that backpack were the shirts and wigs—as well as the equipment they’d need to hear Larkin’s conversations from a distance. A flip of a switch, and the sound of any conversation could be amplified and recorded. Matt had designed the system himself.

  Beyond Matt, Ryan and Faith were playing tourist. Faith shielded herself behind other people and wielded her digital camera like any enthusiastic visitor, taking pictures of the market, the people—and Larkin, especially as he crossed the street and neared an Asian man who waited beneath a banyan tree. The waiting North Korean, if the information Cael had collected thus far was correct, was obviously annoyed and anxious.

  The North Korean was also wearing a suit. Did that mean he, too, was armed? Wouldn’t it be a lucky break if these two shot each other? Yeah, he should be so lucky.

  Cael took Jenner’s arm and guided her to a position behind a tall display of birds of paradise, among other brightly colored flowers. She’d been oddly cooperative and blessedly silent today, but then he’d warned her, as they’d left the ship, that compliance today was mandatory. If she felt compelled to needle him, it would have to wait until tonight.

  He put a hand to his ear, the ear containing the earbud that gave him access to the rest of the team, and listened. Matt repeated what he heard, though they’d have clearer, more complete audio on the digital recording in his backpack.

  “Kwan,” Matt said.

  Okay, they had a name now.

  On the opposite side of the street, Faith snapped pictures and laughed. It looked as if the colorful market was her subject, but she was in the perfect position to capture the North Korean’s face. Kwan was likely a false name, but it would do, for now.

  “Right to business,” said Matt. He’d adopted a slightly loopy persona, and to anyone watching, it looked as if the long-haired man was singing to himself. He even swayed in time to imaginary music. People in the park actually walked out of their way to avoid getting too close to him. “Kwan is pissed. He’s been waiting. Larkin just handed him something small. I can’t make out what it is.”

  If Faith had gotten a picture from the right angle, maybe they could enlarge the photo and identify whatever had been passed between the two men: a flash drive or microchip, maybe. This could be it, not just a meeting but an actual passing of technology. Why like this? Why not transfer the designs, or whatever information was changing hands, electronically? No money had exchanged hands; Kwan wasn’t standing there with a duffle bag filled with cash, so it was likely Larkin’s payment, at least, had been electronic.

  Matt supplied the answer, keeping the team up to date on the exchange. “Seems Kwan is annoyed that the information had to be passed this way, but the weapon’s designer is apparently old school, and didn’t want his plans sent out over the Internet. Untrustworthy bastard, but lucky for us. Maybe he’s met Faith,” Matt teased.

  Kwan dropped whatever Larkin had handed over into his jacket pocket, then patted it, to make sure it was well seated.

  “Kwan wants to know if it’s complete,” Matt continued. “Larkin says no. Three months, maybe six if there are delays, and the prototype will be ready. The design he’s been given is a good-faith exchange. Any decent scientist should be able to complete … Jesus Christ,” Matt’s voice sobered and dropped a level. “EMP? Did he say EMP?”

  For a second, everything went still. Faith’s smile faded. Ryan went very still. Cael didn’t breathe. And then they all continued on as if they hadn’t heard the words.

  It was Kwan who turned away first. Larkin watched, seeming amused, before he headed for the street, a small brown bag containing his market purchase swinging casually in one hand.

  “Ryan, you two follow Kwan while I call this in,” Cael ordered, keeping his voice low. “Matt, make sure Larkin is headed back to the boat, then get busy. I want the surveillance tapes ready when I get back.”

  Since they’d started tailing Larkin, Cael and the others had been keeping a sharp eye out for Mills, or one of the other security guards. It was unlike Larkin to go out alone, unlike him not to have some sort of backup. Then again, it was likely that none of his people knew Larkin was a traitor. Who in their right minds would think an electromagnetic pulse weapon in the hands of the North Koreans was a good idea?

  So what had Larkin and Mills been talking about the other night? If Mills wasn’t in on the EMP deal, what sort of plans did the two of them have?

  The job done, for now, Cael looked down at Jenner. He was surprised to find that she was watching Larkin as intently as he had been. She hadn’t been able to hear Matt, but she had apparently been paying attention. Her eyes narrowed, and when she realized that he was watching her, she looked up and asked, “What the hell is he up to?”

  JENNER WASN’T STUPID. In her thirty years she’d been up, she’d been down, but she had never been stupid. Larkin was into something dirty. She wasn’t ready to accept without question that Cael and his people were the good guys; they had, after all, kidnapped her and Syd and they hadn’t exactly been nice about it. She’d been handcuffed, ordered around, and manhandled.

  But she hadn’t been hurt; chafed wrists didn’t count. And she’d been watching Cael, seen the split second of shock in his expression as he listened to the deck boy’s running commentary. Then his gaze had hardened, and all she could think was that she was very, very glad she wasn’t Larkin.

  She hadn’t entirely discounted the possibility that she wasn’t caught between the bad guys and the good guys at all, but had gotten herself into a situation with bad guys and badder guys. On the other hand, she was leaning heavily toward coming down on Cael’s side. He wasn’t having clandestine meetings with North Koreans—yes, she’d heard one of the others mention that, and as far as she could tell he and the entire group were merely watching.

  “Are you going to tell me what’s going on, here?” she asked, trying for what seemed like the umpteenth time. Sooner or later she’d wear him down.

  “No.”

  “I could make a scene here and now,” she said softly. “Scream, cry, run like hell.”

  “Remember your friend,” Cael said, and while she was beginning