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Anna Montalbano was in the children's room. She'd gotten the twins down for a nap when she heard the front door open.
They must've forgotten something.
She was about to go out of the room and suddenly stopped. Someone was talking. He wasn't speaking English. She thought maybe it was Japanese or Chinese. Whoever it was, he wasn't supposed to be there. That meant he was a threat to the children.
Anna had been working for Selena and Nick for several months. One day Selena had taken her aside. Early on, Selena had told her to call her by her first name.
"Anna, I'd like to talk with you about something."
"What about, Selena?"
"You don't really know much about Nick and myself, our history. I think it's time to fill you in."
"Okay. I'd like that. I admit, I've been curious."
Selena told her some of what she and Nick had done in the Project. She kept it general, but made sure Anna understood that they'd made some serious enemies over the years.
"That's why you and Nick carry guns?"
"I should've realized you would notice that."
"Pretty hard not to. I didn't want to pry. I know you both work for the government."
Selena didn't try to clarify the complex relationship she and Nick had with Langley and the White House.
"How do you feel about guns?"
"I'm not afraid of them, if that's what you mean. My father had a pistol. He taught me how to shoot. Guns don't bother me, as long as they're not pointed my way."
"That makes what I want to say to you easier. I'd like you to begin carrying a pistol. I'll arrange a permit. We have an indoor range where I work. You can practice there. Nick or I will show you some tricks."
"Are you worried about the children? Has someone threatened them?"
"I always worry about the children. No one has specifically threatened them, but it's always possible someone might in the future. Nick and I have talked this over. We think you do a wonderful job and we want you to keep working with us. We'd feel better if you were armed. The chances are small that anything would ever happen, but if it did, we'd like to know you could protect the twins and yourself if you had to."
"This is Washington. You can actually get a permit?"
"Yes. What do you think?"
"I feel like I'm in some kind of a spy movie or something."
Selena waited.
"You really think the twins might be at risk?"
Selena noticed that Anna said nothing about the fact she might also be at risk, since she was constantly with the twins.
"It's always possible."
"I couldn't live with myself if something happened to Jason and Katrina," Anna said. "If you really think I need a gun to protect them, I'm game."
Nick had given Anna a Sig-sauer P229 in .40 Smith & Wesson. She kept it concealed in a penny pack she wore on her belt. Listening to the strange voices in the front room, she took it out. Quietly, she moved to the door of the room and closed it. Still holding the pistol, she dragged a chest of toys across the door to block it. Then she took out her cell phone and thumbed a preprogrammed emergency signal that went to Nick and Selena's phones.
Nick picked up. Anna could hear road noises in the background. Nick was still in the car, driving to work.
"Anna. What's the matter?"
She kept her voice low.
"Someone's in the loft. Sounds like he's Japanese or Chinese, Asian anyway."
"Okay. Keep calm. We're about fifteen minutes out. I'm turning off now. We'll be back as quick as we can. Stay calm. Keep the line open."
"Okay."
"Keep the line open."
"I'm scared."
"You'll be all right. We're on our way. Stay calm."
Someone tried the door, pushing against the heavy toy chest.
"They're coming in," Anna said.
On the phone, Nick heard a noise as the door was shoved open. Someone shouted in Japanese. There was the sound of a shot. Then loud noises and shouts. He could make out Anna screaming and someone yelling in Japanese. Then someone picked up the phone.
"Anna?"
"We want the sword," a man's voice said in heavily accented English.
"Who are you?"
"We want the sword," the man said again. "If you don't bring it to us, we will kill the girl. Then we will kill the children. Such a shame, so young. If you call the police, everyone will die. You understand, American?"
Nick felt rage, then an adrenaline rush. Every sense came alive. He was weaving through traffic, doing eighty miles an hour.
The twins. He'll hurt the twins. Son of a bitch.
"Yeah, I understand."
"Nick," Selena said. "What's happening?"
"Bring the sword, or they die."
"I have to go get it. It's not in the loft. You understand? It's in Virginia. It will take time for me to go there."
"You have one hour," the voice said. Then the connection was broken.
"Nick," Selena said.
"Someone's in the loft. He's after the sword. He says he'll kill Anna and the kids if I don't bring him the sword."
Selena's heart began pounding in her chest.
"What are we going to do?"
It was one of the things he loved about Selena. She didn't panic. Not so you'd notice, anyway.
"We're going back to the loft. We can't call the cops. He said he'd kill everyone if we did. I believe him."
"You're not going to give him the sword?"
"No. It wouldn't do any good. He can't let anyone live. There's more than one of them. We have to kill them or put them out of action."
"Anna. What happened to her?"
"I don't know. We'll worry about that later."
They crossed the river into the city.