Page 65 of Need to Know

“Dr. Mai is attending the conference and staying here too,” Agent D confirmed, “Apparently Roux did not take her refusal well. Dr. Mai is deeply devoted to her country and the Communist party. She’s a competitive threat he can’t touch. Over the past few years, we’ve seen tit-for-tat allegations of intellectual property theft between the US and China. Once Téng hú are showcased by China billions will be wiped from the market value of other chip manufacturers,” Deveraux revealed.

“My best guess is that Roux devised this brunch meeting to clear the game board. He’ll make you a huge financial offer in exchange for the chips so that his company can match Chinese capabilities. The official UK stance is this: Roux can’t be allowed, under any circumstances, to get his hands on the Téng hú.”

On that sombre note we left the suite, Agent Deveraux accompanying us to the penthouse where our breakfast trolley awaited. Special Agent Porter and two other people were outside the door.

“Mr. Linden, Mr. Boyd,” Special Agent Porter said. “I’d like to introduce Detective Inspector Lars Baumann from the BKA, the German Federal Criminal Police, and Senior Inspector Séraphine Delort from Interpol.”

Jack opened the door for the suite and we all entered. “We’ve got a lot to discuss!” Agent Deveraux decided.

“Well, our plan is to have our breakfast first, please make yourselves at home,” Jack offered. It was then that a text message alert sounded on my phone. I checked it and my jaw tensed. The message was from Roz.

Nate, flew in alone a day early. My plane lands at midday. I’ll be at the hotel in by 1p.m. so stay put. Lucy is on the way too.

There were three spare rooms in the suite so we could give Roz and Lucy a place to stay for the night, but the timing could not be worse.

****

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

Jack

My gut feeling was that I didn’t want to be within a million miles of Oliver fucking Roux. He wasn't a man to be messed with and as I mulled over the possibilities of what could happen at our ‘brunch’ I became more and more stressed.

Nate and I took our breakfast plates to the smaller dining table in the lounge, as the taskforce members served themselves coffee and settled on the couches to discuss the threat assessment and options for our protection. We were in the dark about how much each agency knew, and clueless about Roux’s preferred play. Apart from Rivera, did Oliver Roux have spies elsewhere, feeding him Intel? It was clear Roux’s hunt for the chips brought him to our door. But his options were limited. He could have a safe cracker break in while he distracted us in his suite, or he could come up with some other way of forcing our hand.

“As I’m sure you’re all aware,” DI Baumann began, “Our budgets have been stretched by the security required for the Conference. Several bad actors are in the city, and now we have the Chinese Ministry of State Security, the CIA, and a very influential US billionaire. I’m sure you understand, my superiors want this op to be as swift and as painless as possible. We can offer a surveillance van, and a GSG 9 tactical unit will be on standby in case things get out of hand.” DI Baumann explained.

I was mechanically eating my breakfast, not tasting or enjoy it at all. I’d zoned out, lost in spiralling anxious thoughts, to be dragged back to reality when the intercom buzzed and everyone stilled. Agent D sauntered into the hallway and we heard him say, “Hello, how can I help you?” The response was inaudible but Agent D called out, “It’s for you, Hadley.” As he strode back in and retook his seat, we shared a look, his shrewd eyes flitting between Nate and me. I got the feeling we were not going to like this interruption. The raised voice of Special Agent Porter filtered in from the hall.

“What the fuck are you doing here Rivera?”

“Come on Porter, I want in the room!” Kirk Rivera whined.

“You’re not a part of my op. Jesus Christ Rivera! How are you still with the company? You’re a terrible fucking agent,” she said in exasperation.

“Who’s in there with you? SIS? Interpol?” he hedged.

“Stop!”

I watched the loaded glances and wincing facial expressions of the international team. This was embarrassing and a far cry from the professional, confident, slick FBI I’d seen TV shows. The reality was a chaotic mess.

“If I could spare an agent I’d have you detained here and now, then taken straight to the airport to be returned to Langley! You’re done, Rivera, go pack your bags, you screwed the pooch!”

I leaned to Nate and grimaced, “Yikes, awkward!” He returned a baleful glare. Right now, everything was so tense, and unthinkably, I was too stressed to finish my breakfast.

When the stony-faced Special Agent Porter returned, SI Delort from Interpol asked “This man you turned away, Rivera, who is he? Could he cause trouble?”

“Kirk Rivera is a CIA fuck-up gone rogue, he’s working for Oliver Roux,” I stated, not giving a tiny shit that I was embarrassing Special Agent Porter.

“Yeah, he could cause trouble,” Deveraux said mournfully. “He’s failed to deliver on his deal. He’s a desperate man. I suggest a BKA officer should keep tabs on him.”

DI Baumann retrieved his phone, “Agreed, I’ll let my team know,” he said as he swiftly typed a message and sent it.

“Rivera’s not a major threat, just an inconvenience, “ Porter insisted, trying to calm the situation. We knew she was just covering her arse.

“This security conference has all of my available agents protecting high value US delegates. I wish I had someone who could get him on a plane, but my hands are tied until the conference is done.” She admitted.

“I understand you guys have tactical training, yes? It was part of the training for your movie?” Baumann asked. Nate and I nodded.