“Damn it.” The Governor stood next to his car in the parking ramp underneath the condos. The cellular phone in his hand showed he had no connectivity to the tower network. He couldn’t get a call through. He stared at the screen and walked towards the garage door to see if he could pick up a signal. One bar flickered, there then gone again. “Come on.” He walked out the door to escape the reinforced concrete and earth that kept him from getting a signal. Drops of rain flung through the air by the wind, peppering his face and arms. Finally the signal was strong enough. He dialed and waited.
“Yes.”
“Vadim, it’s me. I’m just calling to check in, see if there’s anything you need. What do we have, seven hours to go?”
“Six hours and thirty-three minutes. Is something wrong, my friend? You sound funny, not yourself.”
The Governor took a deep breath and cleared his throat. “No, everything is fine. I’m standing outside in this beautiful Minnesota summer weather and I’m a little nervous or anxious, I guess. I just wanted to make sure everything was still on track.”
“There’s nothing to be nervous about. This rain won’t bother anything. Everything is in place. Soon you and I will be very rich men.”
The Governor closed his eyes. Soon he would be a rich man. It was something he had dreamed of all of his life. No more dealing with architects, coordinating builders’ schedules, or dealing with the worries of homebuyers spending beyond what they could afford. Soon he would be a rich man. “You’re right, Vadim. But still, I’ll be nervous until it is done.”
“My friend, you do your part and my men and I will do ours. Do not call me again, until tomorrow.”
The Governor closed his cell phone and put it in his pocket. He knew what he had to do next. Time was counting down and he and Vadim had scripted the job down to the end. He put on his caving gear and entered the tunnels.
Jack and Ross burst out of the condo tower doors onto the street. Ross had the roll of plans tucked under his good arm. Lightning flashed across the sky, followed immediately by thunder which reverberated through the air. Strong winds swept the rain through the air. “Better stick those under your jacket, Junior. Don’t want them getting all wet.”
Ross struggled getting the plans inside his windbreaker with his good arm. He grimaced as the end of the roll bumped his hand sticking out of the sling, which forced his arm back in a direction that hurt.
“Let me help you.” Jack grabbed the roll, pulled back the jacket, and pushed them against Ross’ right side. “Clamp down on that.” Jack snapped up the jacket, sealing the plans inside.
“Where’s your car?” Ross asked.
“I ran over here from Nicollet Island. I’m parked back by the hotel still. Where’s yours?”
“This way.” Ross ran across the street like an escapee in a straight jacket. His right arm held the plans against his chest under his windbreaker while his left arm, still in a sling, moved with his body. The loose sleeve of his windbreaker flew forward and back against the rhythm of his run.
Jack followed, splashing through the puddles in the street as they were too wide to avoid. His shoes and socks were still wet and were getting wetter. He followed Ross to a beat up Chevy pick-up where Ross stopped and waited for him.
“I forgot La Reina is out of commission,” Jack said.
“The keys are in my pocket. You drive.” Ross turned to offer the right pocket of his jacket to Jack.
“You sure?”
“Come on, let’s go. I need to keep the plans dry.”
Jack got the keys, unlocked the door, and got in. He reached across the seat, pulled up the lock, and opened the passenger door for Ross.
“Where’s your family?”
“They’re safe at the office across the river. I told them to get a vet ASAP to check out the dog, who’s quarantined for now in the SAC’s office. The kids aren’t too happy about being separated from the dog.” Jack shifted the truck into drive. “Hold on.”
The Federal Reserve was straight ahead of them, across the river. Jack pulled out from behind the SWAT team’s van and headed for the Hennepin Avenue Bridge. “Where are the wipers?” They could barely see where they were going.
“Turn the second knob on the right.”
The wipers cleared some of the water off the windshield, but left streaks of water across much of their field of view. “Remind me to get you some new wiper blades.”
“You think this is it?” Ross asked. “You think he’s got a plan to rob the Federal Reserve?”
“Why else would he have plans for the building?”
At the Federal Reserve, Jack pulled the truck up over the curb onto the sidewalk and parked near the covered walkway leading up to the door. “Go,” was all he said to Ross.
“What do you mean?”
“Go talk to these guys and get them ready to save themselves from being robbed.”
“What about you?” Ross asked.
“I gotta’ go see a guy about a condo.”
Ross just looked at him with a question on his face.
Jack reached across Ross’ chest and opened the truck’s passenger door for him. “Go.”
The valet parking sign was on the sidewalk in front of the building between giant searchlights parked at the curb that swept the sky. Raindrops sparkled in the bright lights and sizzled when they hit the giant lenses pointed above the city. Jack pulled the rusted truck into position, got out, and handed the keys to a young man holding a large umbrella, wearing khaki shorts and a blue polo shirt with the development company’s logo over his heart. “I won’t be long. Be careful with her, she’s not mine.”
He walked past the elevator doors and the sign that announced the Independence Day party on the fourth floor and opened the door into the stairwell. It was empty. He went up taking two stairs at a time, leaving wet footprints on the stair treads.
The image of the Governor and his dog walking across the Stone Arch Bridge a few days ago as a dead man floated in the river played through his mind. Patty said he was a prick. More worried about the police and their tape around the crime scene than anything else. He had a party going on tonight. What was he worried about, the party being disrupted, or the police being so close to the Fed just up the river while he was making plans to rob it?
Jack reached the fourth floor and exited the stairwell. He stopped to catch his breath and get a look at what he’d be facing. He double-checked that his gun was still tucked in place against his lower back.
He was definitely underdressed. Couples strolled around the room. The men were in tuxes, the women in cocktail dresses. It was summer and everyone was showing off their tans. Waiters and waitresses in black outfits were working the room, handing out food and drinks. A hostess at the door spied him and watched him without trying to be obvious. She was twenty-something, beautiful, tan, and dressed in a low cut outfit that was slightly elegant without overshadowing the people attending the party. Jack smiled and approached her directly and spoke quickly.
“Hello, miss. I’m looking for Mr. Tyler. I hope I’m not too late. We really had our hearts set on one of the units here. My wife said, I don’t care what you look like. You get up there and get that unit for us.” Jack leaned forward on the podium the hostess was posted behind and looked into the room. “Is he here? If I don’t close the deal my wife will kill me.”
“I think he’s here. But, he might have run home. He said something about getting a call from his security company that his alarm was going off.”
Jack looked around the room some more. “The lightning probably set it off.”
“That’s what he said. I can call him for you. He’d be happy to talk to you about the units here. There are some great ones.”
Jack scooted around her. “Thanks. I’ll look around and track him down. If I can’t find him I’ll be back.”
After a quick walk through the suite to confirm that the Governor wasn’t there, Jack found a position where he could keep an eye on the door into the suite and most of the living room. He called the FBI dispatch on his mobile phone.
“Hi, Jack. Heard you guys are getting close to the Governor tonight.”
“We’re on his trail, but haven’t found him yet. Sorry you have to work the holiday.”
“Over forty, not married, nothing better to do tonight. All’s quiet, maybe I’ll do some knitting.”
“Put the knitting needles down. I’ve got some work for you to do.” Jack listed out the things he needed. First, she was to check with the security company and find out what number they had called. Then she would call the cell phone company and find out if the Governor was currently on the network. If he was, they had to pinpoint where he was. If not, they needed to monitor and let them know when he came on. She needed to get an agent to stake out the condos, and last, she needed to call Sure Thing and his crew in. They could help if the Governor was using his phone. “Give me a call when you hear back from the cell phone carrier.”
“Thanks, Jack. Just so you know, I might not get your sweater knitted by Christmas now.”
Jack laughed. “Talk to you soon.” He put the phone back in his pocket and looked around the room. The Governor wasn’t here and he probably wasn’t coming back after the warning he got from the security company. Jack left his phone number with the hostess and headed back to the Federal Reserve to join Ross.