“I’ll get you down! Everything’s going to be okay! I just need hang up now, okay? Remember, I love you, Jen.”
“I love you, too, Dan,” she said tearfully. “Tell Alex I love her. Tell her I love her more than anything.”
“Time is ticking, Morgan,” Novokoff cut in. “And you are making promises that you can’t keep. Oh, and look, the police are getting ready to go inside the building. We can’t have that.”
“What the hell am I going to do about that?” Morgan asked.
“You’re a resourceful man, Mr. Morgan. Keep them out or she dies.”
Novokoff hung up. Morgan looked at a group of policemen, who were opening the gate to the construction site with a wire cutter. He had to move fast. He hastily pocketed the detonator and stealthily drew his gun from its ankle holster. Then he scanned the crowd until he found a young woman, standing near the police cordon. She must have been no older than twenty-seven, tall and curly-haired. She was apparently alone there, dressed in an elegant black coat. Morgan jostled his way to her, keeping his gun low and out of sight. He brought his gun to her neck and pulled her aside quickly, so that he had her against the fence, with no policemen behind him, as she let out her first scream.
“Stand back!” Morgan yelled to the policemen, who had turned immediately and now had their guns on him. “Everyone, back!”
“Let her go!” said the nearest policeman, who was young. Morgan saw that his bravado was a cover for a deep nervousness. He would be the most dangerous one there.
“There’s nowhere to go, buddy,” said another policeman. He was older, with a face weathered by experience, a real, old-school Boston cop, clearly in charge, though Morgan couldn’t make out his rank.
At that moment, the alarm in the hotel across the street went off. Shepard, you genius. The hotel would be evacuated, and the only one left inside would be the sniper.
“Cobra, I’m guessing you’ve heard the alarm by now,” said Shepard. “I’m running an infrared satellite sweep on the location. Once enough people are out of their rooms, we should be able to locate the shooter.” Morgan couldn’t answer him, but at that moment, he could kiss the little geek.
“Back, all of you,” said Morgan, calmly as he edged to the gate to the construction site. “What’s your name?” he said quietly to his hostage.
“L-lisa,” she said, in a trembling voice.
“Listen, Lisa, you’re doing great,” he said, still moving slowly along the sidewalk. The four policemen backed to make way for him, and the crowd contracted back in fear, all the while being pushed tighter by the curious people in the back. One of the policemen had his radio out, calling for backup. Morgan had to handle this carefully. “Just move as I move and do everything I say, and everything’s going to be all right. Okay, Lisa?”
“Please let me go,” she said. Her voice was trembling, but she was composed. She had been a good choice.
“What the hell are you doing out there, Cobra?” asked Shepard, exasperated, into the comm.
“Drop the gun,” said the more experienced cop. “Nobody has to die here today.”
“Nobody will, if you just stay the hell back,” said Morgan. Lisa whimpered quietly.
“We need to get through that gate to help that woman up there,” said the cop.
“You can’t help her,” said Morgan. He had reached the gate into the construction site now.
“Why not?”
“He said she was his wife!” said the policeman who had blocked Morgan’s way earlier.
“Is that true?” said the older cop. “Did you do that to her? Is that why you don’t want us in there?”
“Cobra, what the hell is going on?” Shepard repeated.
“No,” said Morgan. “It’s because I’m the only one who can save her.” Then, quietly, he said, “How is that jammer coming along, Shepard?” He looked up at the windows of the buildings around him. Novokoff might be up there somewhere. Morgan knew he’d be watching. But once the jammer was in place, there’d be nothing he could do, and Morgan could run and save Jenny.
“Almost there,” he replied. “I hope you know what the hell you’re doing.”
“Who are you talking to?” asked the older policeman.
“You need to stay back,” said Morgan.
“You said you can save her,” said the policeman. “Let us help. Who are you talking to?”
“You can’t help,” said Morgan. He looked up at the crane again. Thirty stories. He’d have just over five minutes to get up there and defuse the bomb. “There’s nothing you can do, except stay out of my way.”