The Deadly Alchemist by R.J. Patterson

Author:R.J. Patterson [Patterson, R.J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-01-26T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER

TWENTY-EIGHT

SILVER SPRING, MARYLAND

Robert Besserman rested both of his arms on the top of the chain link fence as he watched a pack of young boys racing up and down a soccer field. After a few minutes, one of the boys scored on a shot that went into the upper corner of the goal, resulting in a wild celebration. It was tame compared to the way the kid’s father reacted, breaking out into a dance in front of one of the other parents that resulted in a brief shoving match before cooler heads prevailed.

“Is our next Landon Donovan in there somewhere?” Mallory Kauffman asked, joining Besserman along the fence.

“Who?”

“Oh, I forgot. You still think soccer is a communist sport.”

“You do realize that communist governments used to place spies on their teams to pass messages to agents in foreign countries when they played abroad?”

“Still doesn’t make it a communist sport. Besides, we’ve done the same thing with tennis players and golfers. It’d blow people’s minds if they found out that Chris Evert worked for the CIA.”

“Whoever told you that was pulling your leg,” Besserman said. “She never worked for the agency.”

“You sure about that?”

Besserman grunted. “I’m not sure about much these days, except for maybe the fact that I feel safer discussing sensitive information out here than I do in my own office.”

“Does this have something to do with who gave you those files on Jenkins?”

“It’s hard for me to believe that courier just disappeared—but it feels like I don’t even have control of my own agency. The very people I’m supposed to be able to trust the most have me paranoid. Right now, you’re still the only person I fully trust at the agency.”

“So, what’s so important that you invited me to drive all the way up here to a little boy’s soccer game?”

“I did a little digging on Jenkins, the kind requiring some outside help,” Besserman said. “It wasn’t easy, but I have a better handle on who I’m working with.”

“And?”

“And I think he’s our mole.”

“What makes you so certain Jenkins is passing secrets to The Alliance?”

The crowd around them erupted as a boy on the opposing team scored, resulting in a taunting response from some of the dads irked by the other father’s dance. More shoving ensued between the parents as the coaches hustled across the field to settle everyone down.

“You see those folks fighting over there?” Besserman asked, continuing without waiting for a reply. “They all think they’re right. Only a handful of them know what’s happening is wrong. But the ones who believe they’re in the right, they’re going to keep fighting until someone with more authority threatens a punishment that will exact control over them.”

One of the coaches was pointing angrily at the parents, scowling as he shouted at them. Within seconds, the conflict abated.

“See?” Besserman asked. “Once that coach stepped in, order was restored. But up until that moment, everyone acted like their behavior was acceptable and they had a right to it, maybe even thought it was a duty.

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