The New York Dragon was located a block west of the East River, where the small boat that would depart Manhattan Island waited in hiding. The authorities would undoubtedly shut down both bridges and tunnels as soon as they learned of any assassination attempt, thereby trapping all suspects on the island.
A withdrawal under cover of darkness was preferable, but the point was now moot. There was no need for a withdrawal.
Kelly watched Carl pace over the worn brown carpet. He’d returned at eleven, one hour earlier, after gluing the circles of glass back into the window, wiping down all surfaces, and packing his tools into the golf bag.
She felt ambivalent about his failure. A part of her ached with him. He was struggling to control his emotions, which threw him into a terrible funk. Confusion raced through his eyes. Her own feelings for him had grown far deeper than she had expected over the last month. Not only could she feel his pain; she found herself wanting to lighten it.
But she now suspected that she was supposed to feel this way. Her own feelings were part of the design. Surely they knew she would come to respect, perhaps even love Carl.
“Do you mind if I tell you what I think happened?” she asked.
Carl slid into the metal chair at the table and formed a teepee over the bridge of his nose, eyes lost on the wall.
“I think you’ve progressed exactly how Agotha expected you would. She told me that you’d fail the first attempt. She told me that you were meant to.”
His eyes darted toward her. “That makes no sense.”
“Neither did any of your training at first. But look at you now.”
“Why was the target switched? They want me to kill the president—”
“Does that matter to you? Or does it matter more that you trust me? You’ve always believed in me, and nothing’s changed now.”
“I failed now.”
She took a deep breath and told him what she’d been waiting to say. “You failed by design, to strengthen your resolve.”
He didn’t look her way.
Kelly walked over to the table and sat down across from him. “Listen to me, Carl. Look into my eyes.”
His round brown eyes turned to her.
“I’m about to tell you something that might confuse you, but I want you to resist that confusion. For my sake. It’s very important that you trust me now, like you’ve never trusted me before.”
“I’ve always trusted you.”
“I know you have. But you have to dig even deeper. Can you do that?”
“I love you,” he said.
“I know you do. And I love you. We trust each other, even when the worst happens.”
Kelly reached across the table’s Formica top and offered him her hand. He took it.
“Do you remember your last treatment in the hospital?”
He thought for a moment. “No.”
“No. You always put them behind you, don’t you? But you were treated with drugs and shock therapy on the hospital bed the day before we left Hungary. During that treatment, you were led to believe that you could never take the life of Robert Stenton because he’s the father of Jamie, a son. You, too, want—need—to be a son. That’s why you hesitated. Only because Agotha wanted you to hesitate.”
“Why?”
“Because this is your first real mission for the X Group. You may not think you can differentiate between real missions and the training, but your subconscious mind can. It’s important that you understand that even in the field, you will feel only what Agotha wants you to feel.”
“She wanted me to feel confusion.”
“Yes.”
“But I still failed.”
“Yes, you did. But the next time you feel any hesitation or confusion, you’ll remember that those feelings can’t be trusted. You didn’t really have any feelings for the son or the father, did you? The feelings were planted by Agotha.”
A light grew in his eyes.
“The next time you feel anything in the field, you’ll know. Even the feelings that break through aren’t to be trusted. You’ll know that they are simply tests from Agotha and you’ll have the strength to set them aside.”
“I’m not sure I understand. I don’t want or need a father?”
“No. Why would you? You’re twenty-five years old.”
He grunted, then frowned at his own failure to recognize this.
“Agotha’s methods are strange, but only because they are so advanced. I think you hold a special place in her heart. For all practical purposes, she’s your mother. You can trust her with your life.”
He grunted again. Shook his head and grinned sheepishly. “So it was all planned. I haven’t failed, then.”
Kelly stood and walked behind him. She placed her hands on his neck and messaged lightly. “Not really, no. You’re as strong as ever. Even stronger.”
She bent over and spoke gently behind his right ear. “How do you feel?”
“Foolish.”
“Can you set this feeling aside?”
“Yes.”
“Then please do it. How can the man I love feel foolish if he knows that I love him?”
Carl turned his head and looked into her eyes.
“If you’re foolish, is your love for me also foolish?” she asked.
“No.”
“Then you’re not a fool.”
“No.”
She leaned around him and kissed him on the lips. “I didn’t think so,” she breathed. Carl’s breathing thickened.
The idea that I can generate this response from him is without question the most satisfying part of loving him, she thought. And she did love him.
She was meant to.
Kelly straightened, unable to hide the coy smile on her face. She returned to her chair and sat slowly. “The president is scheduled to speak from the same stage that Assim Feroz will use tomorrow. One hour earlier.”
“Then I should get into position,” Carl said, standing. He walked to the window, pulled back the curtain, evidently saw nothing of interest, and turned to face her.
“If you fail tomorrow, they will kill us both,” Kelly said. “You know that, right?”
“Why would I fail?”
“You won’t. The only reason they haven’t triggered the implant yet is because they expected you to fail. If you want proof that all of this is by design, there’s your proof. You’re still alive.”
He nodded. “Then I’ll kill the president of the United States tomorrow as planned.”
“And then we can go home.”
Carl pulled back the curtain again. “I like it here,” he said. “The city is a good place to hide.”
“So is the desert,” Kelly said. “Nevada isn’t so far from here. When all this is over, maybe we can go to the desert where no one will bother us.”
“When what is over?”
“A figure of speech. We both know this will end only if we fail.”
“I won’t let that happen,” Carl said. “I will never let them hurt you.”