The Milestone Protocol Ernest Dempsey (best short novels of all time .txt) 📖

Corin considered the question. She had to admit that her curiosity was more than just piqued at the strange disappearance of the article. “Let’s deal with that question when the time comes. Send Mr. Schultz the message and see what he says. Maybe he’ll have an idea about what we should do.”

“Good call.”

Desmond looked up the contact information in his phone for Tommy Schultz and then began typing his message.

12

Stockholm

Tommy led Magnus and Tabitha down the corridor toward his hotel room. He’d done his best to answer Tabitha’s questions before leaving the museum and heading to the hotel, but she’d insisted on driving her own vehicle. Now, as they stalked down the passage, he did his best to get her up to speed.

“We received a message from Kevin when he was in Russia,” Tommy explained. “He claimed he’d seen the attack on his camp but was too far away to get any details about the attackers.”

“That sounds awfully convenient.”

“And that sounds awfully cliché,” Magnus defended.

She passed him an irritated glance, then pressed on. “A man’s entire research team is attacked, and no one knows anything about it? Sounds like a hit, Tommy.”

“I agree,” Tommy said with a look over his shoulder. “But I don’t think Kevin took out his own team. He sent us the email, telling me his best option was to flee to Plovdiv.”

“Why Bulgaria?”

“Only flight available on such short notice.”

“I wonder why,” she said with a hint of fire in her voice.

“Actually, Plovdiv is a fascinating place. Lots of history there. Ancient ruins, great food, people are nice. The traditional women’s dresses alone are worth the trip.”

She pulled her head back, eyeing him with surprise or amusement or confusion or all three.

“Either way, he didn’t want to contact the local authorities for fear that they might have somehow been involved in the attack.”

Tommy turned a corner and pressed the button between two elevators. Within seconds, the one on the left dinged, and the doors opened. It was empty, and Tommy motioned for Agent Strong to enter first.

Magnus followed with Tommy in the rear. When he was inside, Tommy pressed the button for his floor, and the doors closed.

“Luckily for Kevin,” Tommy continued, “I had my best agent only a few hours away by plane. Last I heard, he was able to get to Plovdiv.”

“Wyatt?” Tabitha asked in a whisper, though she wasn’t sure why. People tended to speak lower in elevators than in other rooms, though the social convention escaped her.

“Yes. Sean Wyatt,” he said the name dramatically and with a bad English accent, as though introducing his friend like some super-secret MI6 agent might.

“And did he get to Dr. Clark in time?”

Magnus stood close to the wall with his hands folded in front of his waist, listening to the conversation.

“I don’t know. When we get back to the room, I’m going to find out.”

The elevator dinged and the doors opened. Tommy stepped out into the lavish hallway and turned right, heading toward the penthouse at the end of the corridor.

“Why don’t you know?” Tabitha asked, scurrying to keep up. “Didn’t he call you or something?”

“Sean went dark. Didn’t want to be tracked. I left my burner phone in the room here before I went to the museum for the presentation. It’s possible he may have called.” Tommy stopped at the large double doors and took a key card from his pocket. He pressed it to the lock, and the device clicked.

He opened the door and said, “Just keep in mind that he was looking for someone in a decent-size city. It’s possible he never found Dr. Clark, but we won’t know until he gets in touch with me.”

Tommy held the door open for Magnus and Tabitha to enter.

“That hurts, Schultzie.” The familiar voice startled Tommy to the point his fingers slipped off the edge of the door, letting it close on Tabitha just as she was crossing the threshold.

“Oh, sorry,” Tommy offered and reached back for the door. He was too late. She’d seen it coming and braced it with her palm.

She pushed it open and looked at him like a child who’d just dropped a glass of milk on the floor.

Tommy blushed at the scathing glare but quickly swiveled to search the suite for the source of the voice he knew so well.

“Sorry if I scared you,” Sean said, stepping out of the shadows in the darkened living room. “I hope you don’t mind me letting myself in.”

Magnus grinned broadly and bumped into Tommy as he passed, opening his arms wide. Sean mirrored the man’s approach, and the two embraced in a firm hug. Magnus ended it with a solid slap on the back and stepped away.

“Sean, my boy, it’s so good to see you again.” He looked Sean up and down as if assessing his own son. “You haven’t aged a day.”

Sean grinned back at the older man. “Sure doesn’t feel that way. Things hurt now and then when I wake up in the morning. Or when there’s a change in the weather.”

Magnus boomed laughter. “Maybe you have aged then, at least on the inside.”

Tommy moved closer and interrupted, cutting straight to business. “Did you find Dr. Clark?”

Sean deadpanned for a second, then let out a disappointed huff. “Seriously? You really have zero faith in me. After all we’ve been through.”

“I tried to tell him you’d take care of things,” Magnus hedged with a wink.

“Okay, fine. Where is he?” Tommy said, exasperated.

Dr. Clark appeared around the corner from the master bedroom. He looked tired, with dark circles under his eyes, but there was a sheepish, apologetic expression radiating from his face.

“Tommy,” Kevin said with a nod.

“Kevin,” Tommy replied with a hint of relief in his voice. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”

He strode across the room in three big steps and shook the man’s hand. “I was worried when I read your email.”

For his part, Kevin appeared confused. “You were?”

“Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Well, we’ve never really been on