Her mind raced. If the hotel is in lockdown right now, why would the housekeeper be cleaning rooms? Wouldn’t she know about it?
June went to the suite door and peeked out the peephole. No one there. She went back to the bedroom and grabbed some clothes to put on. She looked at the tight dress she had planned on wearing for dinner later that evening. She picked it off the hangar, held it up to the light. Shook her head.
Yeah, that would be smart. Terrorists might attack the building, a bomb might go off, who knows what might happen, and I want to play dress-up. That’s levelheaded thinking.
Hanging the dress back up, June grabbed the closest pieces of clothes and put them on, a pair of sweatpants and a blue halter-neck top, before heading back to the door, her curiosity getting the best of her. She tossed back the security hasp, flipped the dead bolt, and slowly opened the door. Peeking her head out the door, she looked down the hallway in one direction. Empty. She looked in the other direction.
June froze.
A man dressed in a tight black outfit was huddled at the far end of the corridor, inspecting one of the doors. He used a key card to let himself in, taking care to shut the door silently behind him. June pulled her head back into the room and slid the deadbolt back into place.
On her tiptoes, she ran back to the bedroom. She searched through what Jack had left behind, finding the emergency panic phone Leopold had given them the day before. She dialed the number.
A male voice answered. She recognized it right away.
“Leopold, there’s…”
“No names!”
June gritted her teeth. “Shit. This is Chicken Little. Or whoever. But there’s someone on the floor with me.”
Leopold paused. “The housekeeper?”
June struggled to hear him. There was a clattering, rumbling noise in the background.
“No,” she said. “A man dressed up in a black outfit. I just saw him go into one of the rooms.”
“What’d he look like?”
“Middle aged. Male. Wearing a tight black outfit, something like scuba divers wear. I only got a peek.”
“Was he armed?”
“Maybe. Like I said, I only got a peek.”
More noise on the line. “Stay put,” Leopold said. “Lock yourself in the room. Find a place to hide.”
“Where are you?”
“Checking out a lead. We’re down in the basements. Just stay where you are. A Secret Service agent should be with you any second.”
“There’s no way I can get out of here?”
“Not as long as you’re in lockdown.” Leopold hung up.
June swore and tossed the phone down. Composing herself, she checked and double-checked the door locks before retreating to the bathroom. She could feel adrenaline flowing through her system, making her muscles ache for something to do. She took the edge off with a few push-ups. Then a few more.
Years of Krav Maga training had conditioned her body to withstand punishment, but dealing with the physical stuff was the easy part. Mentally, June knew she would drive herself crazy if she stayed put for much longer. There was someone outside, someone who probably meant her harm, and she was supposed to wait in her room to be rescued like some damsel in distress?
She glanced toward the door, feeling her pulse quicken. Not gonna happen.
Chapter 48
LEOPOLD SLIPPED THE cell phone back into his pocket and turned his attention back to the ventilation system. The main unit housing had been removed, exposing the internal circuits. Harper stood behind him with three other agents nearby. The bulky diesel generators were running at load, forcing everybody to shout.
“We have another situation,” Leopold said, turning to Harper. “It looks like Doctor Kato might have company upstairs.”
“Smith hasn’t checked in,” Harper said. “He should be with her by now.”
Leopold swore. “Is Melendez secure?”
She nodded.
“Then get Jerome up there. My radio won’t work through all this concrete. You’ll need to send someone to find him.”
Harper waved one of the agents over. “Lock down the elevators. I don’t want anyone without official clearance getting upstairs. Then go track down Mr. Blake’s associate and go check this out. Find Smith.”
The agent nodded and left the basement.
“I need light over here,” Leopold said.
Another agent approached with a flashlight.
“Anything?” Harper asked.
“This compartment isn’t sealed. I need you to get it open.”
The agent nodded. “Here.” He handed over a screwdriver, fitted with a special head.
Leopold set to work. “You have any idea how sarin gas works?”
The agent shook his head.