Page 103 of The Dark Time
The girls were long gone. In the lobby, the security men turned away, pretending they didn’t see a thing.
Outside in the heat, a passing cop stopped and opened the Rover’sdoor so they could lift the glassy-eyed old man into the car. He even offered to load the wheelchair in the back. “Obrigado,” Lewis said, smiling. “Muito gentil.”
The sky was blue, but a line of clouds gathered on the horizon. Peter drove directly to Santos Dumont airport and pulled into the FBO facility, giving the guard at the gate a false name. The guard saluted and pointed them toward the VIP apron, where a plain white jet, newer than the others waiting there, stood apart from the rest.
As the Rover came to a stop, the cabin door opened and Faraday, wearing a cast on his injured lower leg, leaned out to deploy the integrated steps. Peter handed up his duffel and the alligator valise. Manny slung Gary over one shoulder and carried him up the steps into the aircraft. Lewis set the rest of their gear on the tarmac, then got back in the Range Rover and drove it toward the parking area, where the rental company would pick it up later.
The line of clouds was closer now. On the sun-blasted pavement, the tropical heat was thick with humidity. Peter handed up the remaining equipment to Faraday, who said, “Mr. Wilkinson’s lawyer is on the phone with the FBI director right now. A team will meet us at Leesburg FBO when we land.”
They still didn’t know how Gary Bevel had slipped the noose in Mexico City. They didn’t have a complete list of his US and overseas contacts, either. “Just tell me this asshole won’t end up at some Club Fed,” Peter said. “We don’t want him to spread his bullshit to a whole new audience.”
Faraday shook his head. “Nobody wants that. The feds are going to suck every last shred of intel out of him, learn about all the other freaky groups he knows, then lock him in a very deep hole and throw away the key.”
Peter didn’t particularly trust the feds not to screw this up. If Bevel was to be believed, he had allies everywhere. And if somegrandstanding subcommittee chair called for congressional hearings and people started to cover their asses rather than do the right thing, the situation could go south in a hurry. Regardless, the feds were the only ones in a position to actually act on what they learned. And Peter still believed in the rule of law, even if it didn’t always work as well as he’d like.
And when it didn’t?
Peter would continue to live by the code of conduct he’d set for himself many years ago. No matter how screwed up things got, that code was his North Star. Take care of the people you love. Protect the people who can’t protect themselves. Do the right thing, even when it hurts. Because liars and cheats are always temporary. Integrity is the only thing that lasts.
Faraday ducked back into the cabin and the engines began to wind up.
Now Peter could see the slanting gray shadow of rain falling from the approaching line of clouds. As the squall blew toward them, the land darkened below. The clouds grew closer, the flash of lightning followed quickly by the rumble of thunder. Soon he could see the heavy droplets advancing down the runway, splashing off the wet pavement as the water accumulated faster than it could drain away.
He turned back toward the parking area and watched as Lewis jogged across the tarmac, loose and lean in the tropical heat.
He arrived ahead of the squall, his timing excellent as always. Halfway up the airplane steps, he turned to Peter, who remained on the ground in the rising wind, watching the storm come. “Let’s go, brother. We want to beat this storm, we gotta get moving.”
“On my way.” Peter took one last look at the darkness sweeping toward them, then headed for the jet.
