The Demon Crown: A Sigma Force Novel (Sigma Force Novels) by James Rollins

Author:James Rollins [Rollins, James]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2017-12-04T16:00:00+00:00

22

May 8, 8:55 A.M. EDT

Washington, D.C.

Now what . . . ?

Painter rode up the security elevator from Sigma command toward the first floor of the Smithsonian Castle. He had been summoned from the bowels beneath the museum by its curator, Simon Wright. Painter didn’t have time to waste, but the Keeper of the Castle had insisted Painter would want to see this for himself.

If nothing else, I get to stretch my legs.

He had been buried underground all night, taking a brief hour-long catnap around 5 A.M. He had been coordinating with various agencies around the globe. As soon as he put out one fire, another started.

As the elevator doors opened into a security vestibule manned by an armed guard behind a desk, Painter’s phone chimed in his hand. He glanced down and recognized the number. He nodded to the guard, who stood straighter, silently acknowledging Sigma’s director. The room was additionally safeguarded by electronic surveillance and countermeasures. Even the door into this small chamber required a special black keycard with a holographic ∑ embossed on it.

Painter lifted his phone and stepped aside. He held off exiting the private vestibule. “Kat, how is Dr. Delgado doing?”

“She seems to have shaken off the worst of the sedative.”

Painter pictured the attempted kidnapping of the Librarian of Congress from the streets of Tallinn. Though the woman had been saved, the reported attack at the Estonian National Library raised all manner of concerns.

Kat continued, “Thanks for expediting a medical team to the tarmac. Monk was worried about her blood pressure, but she seems to have shaken off the drug’s effects. She insists that she’s good to keep going.”

“I’m not surprised. The woman didn’t strike me as a shrinking violet.”

“Oh, she’s about as purple as a violet, but out of anger. I think I learned a few new Spanish curse words.” Kat sighed. “I also heard Director Tamm is in surgery. His condition remains critical. If it wasn’t for him and his daughter’s help . . .”

Her words trailed off, wrought with guilt. Painter knew that particular misery all too well. “Then let’s make sure we put their hard work and sacrifice to good use. When are you scheduled to depart for Gdansk?”

“We’ll be wheels-up in five minutes. But I wanted to touch base one more time before we left. To see if you or Jason had made any headway as to who attacked us and how they knew we were in Tallinn.”

Painter heard the frustration in Kat’s voice. Her expertise was in intelligence gathering. Out in the field, she was cut off from her resources and clearly chomping at the bit to take control.

“Jason is still chasing some leads. The kid’s good. You concentrate on learning what you can in Gdansk about where James Smithson acquired that artifact. We need some answers. Hawaii is becoming more chaotic by the minute.”

“What’s the status?”

“The death count is now over two hundred. But more and more people are flooding hospitals and medical centers, hauling in patients in a half-comatose state.

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