Net Force - Tom Clancy [44]
CyberNation?
A new VR abode. Supposed to be a whole country online.
Interesting. Is this something we need to worry about?
Someday, maybe, but I dont think it has anything to do with our current problems. CyberNation didnt erase the Commander, and I dont think its them doing rascals on the net.
So about our problem ?
Well. If this guy uses the same setup hes been using, we should be on him like ketchup on fries pretty quick.
But you dont think hell use the same setup?
Nah. I wouldnt-and this guy is almost as good as I am.
Michaels laughed.
Hey, its hard to be humble when youre great, Gridley said. He looked at his watch. Oops. Better shove off. I have a VR staff meeting in half an hour. Probably take me twice that long to get there using this thing. He waved at the green bateau, then pointed at the bayou with a side-ways nod. Fortunately, I cleverly left my car just around that next bend.
Michaels cast off the rope as Gridley climbed down into the bateau and started the outboard motor.
Bye-bye, you-all! Gridley yelled.
Alex watched the young computer genius head toward the nearer shore. A red Viper convertible was parked at a small dock. As Michaels continued to watch, Gridley pulled the boat to the dock and tied it to a piling. He climbed out of the craft, turned and waved at the houseboat, then headed for the car.
Tuesday, September 21st, 11:50 a.m. Kiev
The terrorists meeting was supposed to begin at 1130 hours, but Howard had allowed twenty minutes more for late arrivals. That extra allotment of time was now up. There were eighteen men and three women inside the warehouse, and while none of them had openly carried weapons, several had worn long coats, and at least three had arrived bearing what appeared to be cased musical instruments-a cello, a double bass and some kind of large-belled horn, probably a tuba, to judge from the shapes.
Howard would be very surprised if those cases contained anything a musician would use onstage. More likely, inside the cases would be pistols, assault rifles and a rocket launcher, maybe even a few grenades or other explosives. Since this was the staging area for the attack on the embassy, there was a distinct possibility there were other armaments already hidden inside when the terrorists arrived.
The terrorists were in an office on the second floor of a small, and apparently otherwise unoccupied, two-story warehouse. No one was on the ground level, save for a guard at the buildings south entrance. Howards recon team, led by Fernandez, had done a quick scout when theyd arrived, and discovered that same guard just inside the big metal roll-up door on the south side of the building. While the stealthiest of the recon team could have easily slipped into the warehouse at another entrance and installed surveillance gear in the building itself, Howard chose not to risk it. Maybe these yahoos had set up some alarms of their own, and he didnt want to be tripping one of those and scaring them off.
Instead, hed had his teams put cams, motion sensors and parabolics outside the building, along with digital radio and IR scanners. Each of the arrivees was photographed as they entered the warehouse, and vidcaps should clear enough to ID anyone who somehow escaped.
Not that escape was going to be real likely.
It was tempting to have his troops kick in the upstairs door, toss a few flashbang grenades inside, and then blast anybody not blind and bleeding from the ears stupid enough to go for a gun, but-no. Instead, he had his troops deployed around the warehouse, watching all possible modes of egress. He would prefer not to do any shooting outside; however, he was prepared for such an eventuality.
There was still just the one guard watching the only unlocked entrance to the building.
Sarge.
Sir.
Do you suppose somebody in this unit of tripfoots might manage to take out the guard without raising the dead? This was a rhetorical question. Howard already knew who had the assignment.
Why, yes, sir, I believe that might be possible.
Then make it so,