Page 105 of Red Zone Awakened

CHAPTER45

CommTECH headquarters

New York City, Northern Territory

Along with therest of the world, Miriam Shepherd had watched her press secretary jump off the sixty-sixth floor of the research facility in a misguided attempt to save a reporter, only to be scooped up by a waiting shuttle.A Freedom shuttle, one that was now in flames on Buffalo Bayou.

“Survivors?”The cameras in the area had cut out just before the shuttle hit the bridge.Miriam now watched the blazing aftermath on the screens in her office.

“None.”Daniel Mercer stood in the middle of Miriam’s office: a hologram projected from the crash site.Although his arm was bandaged, he showed no signs of pain.He was as calm and controlled as usual.

She knew she was talking to Daniel, because Charles was in the hospital.Someone had managed to get in a lucky shot, one that struck his femoral artery, so Charles was temporarily out of action.Unlike Keiko Sato.

“Are we sure she was in the shuttle when it blew up?”

“There’s no way to tell for certain.”

“Is it possible they escaped, maybe jumped from it before impact?”

“No.There are no signs of anyone having escaped, and definitely no signs of a rescue vehicle in the area waiting for them.”He stared straight into Miriam’s eyes.“Keiko Sato, the reporter, and the Freedom pilot are all dead.There is no evidence to the contrary.”

Miriam had complete confidence in her heads of security.If Daniel Mercer said there were no survivors, there were no survivors.

“Is there any evidence that Keiko and the reporter were working with Freedom?”

“Negative.So far, our investigation hasn’t uncovered any links between Ms.Sato or the reporter and Freedom.”An Enforcement agent tried to get Mercer’s attention, and he waved him away, judging rightly that reporting to Miriam took precedence.“We did, however, find out that the shuttle was heading to the terrace in an attempt to pick up the Freedom leader.”

Miriam smiled her usual icy smile.That nasty little Freedom woman was no longer a problem.“So you think it was purely coincidental that the shuttle was in place when Ms.Sato tried to save the reporter’s life?”Although how she thought she’d be able to pull him back onto the terrace would remain a mystery.Still, that was exactly how she’d spin it to the press.Keiko Sato would go down as a hero.And her heroics would reflect well on CommTECH—Miriam would make sure of that.

“Yes.”The Mercer twin waited for further instruction.

“Clean up the mess,” Miriam said.“Then get yourself and your brother back to New York.”

The hologram blinked out, and she knew her orders would be obeyed.

Now it was time to find a replacement press secretary and tell the world how Keiko Sato died a hero.