The Last Chamber (14 page)

“I’m listening,” Sean crossed a leg over his knee and leaned back.

“These men have a secret meeting place, much like the Bildeburg group,
with the exception that they meet in the same place every time and the
Bildeburg group always changes the location, annually.”

Sean’s interest was piqued. But he wanted to know something more
specific. “You said these men and Lindsey are all wealthy, and they have lots
of businesses. Anything I might have heard of?”

She nodded slowly, accompanying it with a sly grin. “Most of their
network is small to medium-sized organizations. Some are even at the local
level. But there is one that stands out far above all the rest. Father believes
that this umbrella company feeds into most of the others, providing them an in
house way of laundering money and increasing their distribution channels.” She
paused for dramatic effect, but Sean didn’t bite. He waited patiently for her
to finish.

“Have you ever heard of Biosure?” she asked, crossing one leg over the
other and resting both hands on a knee.

“Yeah. They’re one of the top producers of different kinds of
pharmaceuticals or something like that.”

“True,” she confirmed. “But they are also the largest provider of
influenza immunizations in the entire world. Biosure distributes sixty-five
percent of the world’s flu shots to more than thirty-four countries.”

Sean uncrossed his legs. His mind had started working on what Lindsey
was up to in conjunction with the information Adriana’s father had provided.

He rubbed his face while he verbalized what he was thinking. “It’s flu
season right now. That would mean Biosure will be shipping out tons of the
stuff as we speak.” He couldn’t quite connect the dots on what all of it meant,
though.

“What do you think he’s planning?” Adriana wondered aloud.

He wasn’t sure. There was something missing from the equation, and it
was driving him nuts that he couldn’t figure it out.

“We have to think about what it is that Lindsey is looking for,” he
said after a moment of silent contemplation.

“The tree of life,” she shrugged. “A source of immortality. But how
does that figure in?”

The lights went on in Sean’s mind. He stood up and went over to the
sliding door that led onto a small balcony then paced back and forth in front
of it. He stopped in the middle and looked over at her.

“What if this thing that is hidden in the ark, this tree, what if it
can heal anything? Sickness, disease, anything.”

Adriana uncrossed her legs then re-crossed the other leg over top. “A
cure for everything,” she realized.

Sean pointed a finger at her. “Exactly. We need to find out what is in
those flu shots.”

“I doubt my father can do that, but I can see.”

“Don’t bother,” Sean stopped her. “I have someone that might be able
to do a little snooping around for us. Did your father say where Biosure’s main
distribution facilities are?”

She confirmed with a nod. “He said they have one in Utah, Los Angeles,
Atlanta, and Chicago.”

“Atlanta?”

“That’s what he told me.”

Sean’s grin grew wider. “I think I know just the person for the job.”

Cartersville, Georgia

The phone rang on the old wooden desk next to the cabin window. A
floppy-eared, reddish brown hound started bellowing loudly on the floor. The
dog did it every single time the phone rang. His owners knew it was the
animal’s instinct to alert the log home’s inhabitants that they were receiving
a call. But it was an annoying instinct.

A bearded man in a flannel shirt and a fleece North Face vest burst
through the front door, rushing across the room to the phone.

He spoke in a commanding tone to the animal over its howling and the
annoying ringing. “Calm down, boy. I hear it, ya crazy dog.”

The canine must have understood because he silenced almost immediately
and sank back down to the floor with his chin on big front paws.

“Hello,” Joe McElroy put the phone up to his ear, his breath coming
quickly. The strong southern accent was still evident, though, even with the
heavy breathing.

Joe had been outside helping his wife get the leaves out of the
landscaping when the phone rang.

“Mac? You sound a little out of breath. Everything okay?” Sean’s voice
came through the earpiece in an almost mocking tone.

“Hey, buddy! Are you okay?” Joe’s face lit up instantly at the sound
of Sean’s voice. “The explosion in Cairo has been all over the news. I knew you
were going to be in that vicinity, and I wondered if you were nearby.”

The other end of the line was silent for a few seconds before Sean
spoke up again. “We were the targets of that bombing, Mac.”

“Targets?” Joe’s eyes squinted, sending crow’s feet across the upper
parts of his cheeks. “What do you mean you were the targets?”

“The Order of Golden Dawn tried to eliminated us.”

Joe let the words sink in as he considered what Sean was implying. He
could hear his wife raking leaves outside the front door. Satisfied she would
be occupied for several minutes, he continued his conversation.

“Is everyone okay? Adriana? Tommy?” he was clearly concerned.

Joe had been friends with Sean for a long time. He had become a park
ranger near the town of Cartersville, but had helped Sean and Tommy find the
first golden chamber, and took a bullet to the shoulder in the process. His arm
was no longer in a sling, but it wasn’t the same as it had been before. There
had been some nerve damage, and that was something that would take time and new
medical practices to heal.

“Adriana and I are okay. Tommy is in a hospital in Greece, but I think
he is going to make it. We had him flown there after the attack. I didn’t think
it wise to keep him in Egypt. Security would have been too big of an issue.”

Joe agreed. “Good call. Where are you now?”

“Adriana and I are in Istanbul.”

“Istanbul?” Joe almost shouted, but kept his voice low so the wife
wouldn’t hear the conversation.

“Yeah,” Sean replied. “We flew here earlier today from Luxor. It’s a
long story. Don’t ask right now. I’ll tell you all about it when we get state
side. The reason I’m calling is I need you to do something for me.”

Joe cast a quick glance out the front windows. He could see the top of
his wife’s head just beyond the railing on the porch. It was cold out, so she
was wearing a thick cap to keep her head and ears warm.

“Sounds interesting,” Joe said in a hushed, secretive tone. “How can I
help?”

“Have you ever heard of Biosure?”

Joe thought for a few seconds before responding. “Yeah. I’ve seen
their commercials. I think they have some kind of alternative to Viagra or
something like that. Right?”

Sean laughed for a second on the other line. “I don’t know about that.
But I do know they are one of the world’s largest suppliers of influenza
vaccinations.”

Joe wasn’t sure where this was going. “Okay. So?”

“They have a distribution center in Atlanta. Adriana and I believe the
guy behind Golden Dawn is also the main stock holder in Biosure. We think he is
getting a shipment of bad flu shots ready to send out.”

“Bad flu shots? What do you mean?” Joe was lost on the idea.

“We think he has created some kind of super virus or something. We
don’t really know. That’s why we need you to get a sample and get it to the lab
to have it analyzed.”

Joe’s face twisted, perplexed by the proposition. “A sample? What do
you mean a sample?”

Sean cut through the bull like he usually did with Joe. It was
something his long-time friend appreciated. “I need you to sneak into their
facility, steal a sample of a shipment of flu vaccinations, and get it back to
our friend Jenny Solomon at the CDC. She will take care of the rest.”

“Wait. I don’t even know how I’m going to get into this place. You
want me to just break into a high security pharmaceutical company and steal a
sample of their flu shots?”

“Pretty much,” Sean confirmed what Joe feared. “You’re the only one
who can pull it off, Mac. This thing could be huge. If Lindsey is up to what we
think he may be up to, there could be a worldwide epidemic coming. We have to
find out what is in those shipments and shut down Biosure from sending them.”

Joe took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He had another idea. “What
about Emily? Why can’t she send in some of her agents to snoop around and get a
sample?”

“No good,” Sean countered. “She is still part of the Justice
Department. There’s no way she can get anyone on it that fast, and even if she
could, I’d wager there would be too much red tape. But if we can get a sample
to CDC, and it proves to be something bad, she can send in the cavalry.”

Joe’s dog looked at him with droopy, sad eyes. They always looked like
that, even if he was getting his belly rubbed. Joe scratched his beard for a
moment, contemplating his options. He was a government worker. If he got caught
breaking and entering a pharmaceutical company, it would mean his job. Not to
mention the bigger issue, who was outside raking leaves. His wife had put the
quietus on his adventurous activities for the last few years. Recently, when
he’d been shot, he thought his wife might actually finish the job that the
gunman hadn’t. That’s how angry she’d been.

Back in her day she had worked for the FBI, and had seen enough to
know that she didn’t want to be in that world very long. He wished she wouldn’t
be so overprotective. In a strange way, Joe took it as a compliment.

As far as Sean’s request, Joe had a few days off coming up. It
wouldn’t hurt anything to cruise down to Atlanta and check out the Biosure
facility. He had a uniform that closely resembled a private security outfit.
All he would need was clearance codes to get into the building. One of the tech
guys with IAA could probably help with that.

It was starting to seem like Joe was running out of excuses.

“Okay, Sean. I’ll do what I can.”

“I really appreciate it, Mac. I’ll be in touch.”

Joe hung up the phone and looked over at the dog then let out a long
sigh.

A female voice cut through the silence of the rustic living room.
“Just what is it you’re planning on doing?”

Joe started at the sound of his wife’s voice, and looked over to see
her standing in the doorway that led into the laundry room. She must have come
in through the garage though he never heard her. She had her hands on the hips
of her work jeans, and an accusing look on her face. Dark hair hung down to the
shoulders of a gray jacket.

“Hey, dear. You scared me,” Joe tried to stall. He could tell from the
sustained glare that there was nothing he could do to get out of it.

“What is it Sean Wyatt wants with you now?” she took a menacing step
closer.

It wasn’t that Joe was afraid of his wife. She was his best friend.
And that was why he didn’t want trouble. He just didn’t want to make her
unhappy or cause her to worry. And she was the queen of worriers.

“You know, I can’t do this anymore,” he said after a moment of
thought. “I am a man. And I don’t need you bossing me around or telling me what
I can’t do.” He was a little surprised at the tone he’d taken.

So was Mrs. McElroy. She froze in place, hearing Joe speak like that
to her for the first time.

“Sean needs my help, Helen. And honestly, I could use a little help on
this one, too.”

Her eyebrows pulled together slightly, and the expression on her face
was slightly disarmed. “What has Sean gotten himself into?” Helen’s southern
accent was something Joe had loved about her immediately. When she was angry,
it was terrifying. But right now, she seemed to have taken on genuine concern.
Maybe she also appreciated being included.

Joe decided to tell her everything, thinking a little transparency
might go a long way. He calmed his tone as he spoke.

“We aren’t sure, honey. But it sounds like it could be something big.
That bombing we’ve been seeing on the news over in Egypt? Sean said that was a
direct attack on him. Tommy is in a hospital in Greece right now. Sounds like
he will be okay. Sean and Adriana are in Istanbul right now. And they need our
help.”

Helen shuffled sideways over to the edge of the big leather couch and
propped herself on the armrest. She seemed more worried than angry. “What is
all this about?”

“A man named Alexander Lindsey, the head of a secret organization
known as Golden Dawn, is also the founder and primary shareholder of a company
called Biosure. They have a distribution facility in Atlanta.” Joe let out a
long breath before continuing. “Sean said they might be about to send out a
large shipment of bad flu shots to several countries. We need to get a sample
of whatever it is he is sending out and get it to Jenny Solomon over at the
CDC. She can get it analyzed and tell us whether or not there is a threat.”

Helen was having trouble understanding. “So, you are just supposed to
sneak into a pharmaceutical company and grab a sample of some flu shots? How
are you even going to get in?”

“I thought I could get one of the tech guys at IAA to work out the
access codes. Then it would just be a matter of getting the sample.”

She shook her head. “Joe, I never told you this before, because I
didn’t think I could. But you know I worked for the FBI for a few years before
going into teaching.” He nodded. “Well, I worked in the electronic crimes
division. One of my jobs was to hack into secure sites to test out how strong
their defenses and fire walls were.”
 
She crossed her arms as she finished.
 

Joe was flabbergasted. He knew she was proficient on the computer, but
he had no idea she was a hacker. Helen had kept it hidden from him for the
years since she’d left the bureau.

She spoke up again before he could say anything. “I could probably get
you into the building. But it will be difficult to get in and out without being
noticed or setting off any number of alarms. And if you are dealing with
something that could be a biohazard, you’ll need to be careful.” She stopped
talking for a minute. Joe could see her mind was running through other options.

“I think I have an idea,” she said finally, her face twisted with a
mischievous grin.

Joe hadn’t seen this side of her. And he was shocked and surprised all
in one. Still, he had reservations about involving his wife in what was turning
out to be an international conspiracy.

“Helen, this could be dangerous.”

Her eyes narrowed in a broad smile. “Not with my plan. It will be like
takin’ candy from a baby.”