Chapter 42
Inside Node 3, Susan caught herself pacing frantically. She wished she’d exposed Hale when she’d had
the chance.
Hale sat at
his terminal. “Stress is a killer, Sue. Something
you want to get off your chest?”
Susan forced herself to sit. She had thought Strathmore would be off the phone by now and return to speak to her, but he was nowhere to be seen. Susan tried to keep calm. She gazed at her computer
screen. The tracer
was still running–for the second time. It was immaterial now. Susan knew whose address it would return: GHALE@crypto.nsa.gov
Susan gazed up toward Strathmore’s workstation and knew she couldn’t
wait any longer. It was
time to interrupt the commander’s phone call. She stood and
headed for the door.
Hale seemed suddenly uneasy,
apparently noticing Susan’s odd behavior.
He strode quickly
across the room and beat her to
the door. He folded his arms and blocked
her exit.
“Tell me what’s going on,” he demanded. “There’s something going on here today. What is
it?”“Let
me out,” Susan said as
evenly as possible, feeling a
sudden twinge of
danger.
“Come on,” Hale pressed. “Strathmore practically fired Chartrukian for doing his job. What’s
going on inside
TRANSLTR? We don’t have any diagnostics that run eighteen hours. That’s bullshit, and you know
it. Tell me what’s going on.”
Susan’s
eyes narrowed.
You
know damn
well what’s going on! “Back off,
Greg,” she
demanded. “I need to use the bathroom.”
Hale smirked. He waited a long moment and
then stepped
aside. “Sorry Sue. Just flirting.”
Susan pushed by him and left Node 3. As she passed the glass wall, she sensed Hale’s eyes boring
into her from
the other
side.
Reluctantly, she circled toward the bathrooms. She would have to make a detour before
visiting the Commander. Greg Hale
could suspect nothing.
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