"You'll have to ask Earl that."

Dennis snorted. "Yeah right. He's real amenable to having his decisions questioned."

"My point exactly. Blue's already in place and will be meeting with Earl at ten. He told me to tell you to be standing by from eleven on."

"Thanks for going to bat for me, Jim."

"Let's just hope we solve this case real fast."

Dennis hung up the phone and issued an apology that would never be spoken aloud. I'm sorry, Shelby. This guy is probably some cold fish with dead eyes and you're stuck with him.



*  *  *

Kris ignored the admiring looks cast her way as she walked down the main corridor of CIA headquarters en route to a Sunday meeting with her boss. She was used to the attention - it had served her, and her employer, exceptionally well.

Kris was tall, lithe and strikingly attractive. Her black hair flowed over her shoulders and onto her back. Longish bangs in need of a trim were brushed aside, contrasting nicely with an olive complexion. High cheekbones and a full mouth gave her an almost exotic appearance, but it was her sapphire blue eyes that were her most memorable feature.

Over the years, on the few occasions that the operative had been spotted, the witness would cite mesmerizing blue eyes, but beyond that, their memory seemed to fail. Her code name was, appropriately, Blue. And it was for just that very reason that dark sunglasses usually hid her eyes from casual onlookers.

Matter of fact, the operative looked every bit the part of an executive within the agency. She wore a fashionable gray, moderately cut suit with a crisp white blouse. Tasteful gold earrings, a matching brooch and a light smattering of make up, tastefully applied, accented her attire. The handle of a black purse was slung over her right shoulder and the handle of a black leather briefcase was secured in her left hand. Kris excelled at role-playing. She had been doing it for years.

She had arrived in Washington the previous evening and had wanted to be well rested for her meeting today, but troubling thoughts had thwarted those plans and she was operating on sheer adrenaline, worry vying with curiosity.

Arriving at her destination, Kris knocked once and walked into the outer office of the Director of Strategic Planning, commonly referred to as Covert Ops. She passed the empty secretary's desk on the way to the inner office door, knowing she'd been told to report on Sunday so there would be a limited number of people around. She knocked once and the door immediately opened.

Earl backed away from the door enough to allow Kris entry, and then closed it. "Long time no see."

"I would say charmed, except that I'm not."

"That's not very friendly of you."

"What's going on, Earl? You trash an ongoing operation and call me back here at the risk of blowing my cover. What is so damned important it couldn't have waited a few more weeks?"

Earl studied the woman silently, hoping to gain the upper hand in this meeting, but the tactic had no effect on her demeanor. "We have a potential security breach and you're being reassigned here to work with one of our top analysts to get to the bottom of it."

Kris fought against reacting to the news. In her mind, there was only one worse thing that could have happened. She was a field agent, not a desk jockey.

"Potential security breach?" She raised an eyebrow to indicate her disdain for the deliberately vague language. "Do we, or don't we?"

"That's your job. You tell me." Earl handed Kris a copy of the typed report he'd gotten from Jeb and sat back in his chair while she read it.

Kris quickly read the report. The evidence was solid, but there was no proof of any wrong doing by any operative listed. "Strictly circumstantial. Could be coincidence." She wasn't the least bit pleased that her name had been included in the list of "suspects."

"Right. That's where you come in. I need you to work with the analyst and narrow that list down. I figure it should take you a couple of weeks to accurately account for each operative's location. You will have full access to copies of the satellite transmissions, where they were sent to and received from, for each person on that list. Use every other means at your disposal to verify where each one was when the assassinations went down. Best case scenario--all the names are eliminated."

"I can't accept this assignment. I'm on the list. That's a conflict of interest." Kris smiled sardonically. "Besides, what if it's me? I could stymie you at every turn."

The hairs on the back of Earl's neck stood on end. He'd considered that possibility and hoped for all of their sakes that it wasn't true. To have her as an opponent would be catastrophic.

"First off, you don't have a choice. You're the best we have, and I want you on this. Secondly, you're too smart to do anything as dumb as interfere with an investigation."

Earl returned her smile. "Nice try, Kris."

Kris bit off a retort. This would be the assignment from hell for more than one reason.

He stood up. "Dennis McNabb is standing by. He'll answer any other questions you have and set you up with the analyst. Any questions?"

"No. But I want you to know that I am accepting this assignment under duress."

"Duly noted." Earl ran a hand through his thinning gray hair. "I probably don't need to tell you that if word of this investigation gets out, it could get dicey."

Kris rolled her eyes, the action hidden behind her sunglasses. "Yeah, Earl. So what else is new?"

Earl routinely dealt with some of the most cold-blooded men and women in the world, but this one had to be the deadliest of the lot. Her ability to turn the charm on and off at will put people, himself included, at a distinct disadvantage and it wasn't a position he liked being in. Earl had pulled her because he wanted a quick resolution to this case, but he felt a pang of sympathy for the analyst she'd be working with.

Kris was thoroughly enjoying the effect she was having on Dennis. When Earl had introduced her as Blue, he'd been unable to hide his shock and his mouth had dropped open. Since she was being saddled with a desk assignment, she intended to find amusement wherever she could.

Still grinning at Dennis' reaction, Kris would've loved to know what image his mind's eye had conjured up prior to meeting her. She was well aware of the exaggerated rumors floating around headquarters regarding both her and a few of her peers.

Earl had been gone for five minutes, and Dennis was still trying to recover. And it didn't help that she sat there watching him with an unreadable smile on her face, and her eyes covered by sunglasses. You couldn't very well gauge a person if you couldn't see their eyes. Damn, Earl could've at least warned me.

Deciding to keep it brief, Dennis quickly explained how Shelby had come up with the information, totally unaware Kris had already seen the report. Finished, he said, "Um.. if you could be back here tomorrow at nine, I'll introduce you to Shelby."

Kris nodded. "I'll be here," and walked out the door.

Dennis watched her appreciatively, but knew that was all he'd ever do.



*  *  *

Kris paid the cab driver and walked into the Sheraton. She was completely aware of her surroundings and everyone in the immediate vicinity, although she scanned the area so unobtrusively only someone similarly trained would have noticed her scrutiny.

Satisfied, she took the elevator to the fourth floor and entered a room near the far end. Kris was emotionally and mentally exhausted. The constant stress of worrying why her assignment had been terminated and keeping her public persona in place had taken its toll. She quickly removed her suit, hanging it on one of the hangers provided. Most of her clothes were in storage at the Company's expense, and a visit was going to be required very soon if she was to blend in with the Company's support staff.

After a quick shower, Kris walked out of the bathroom and donned a bathrobe before sinking onto the bed. She called room service and ordered a chef's salad only because she knew she should eat something.

Her thoughts turned back to the events over the last three days. She wasn't the least bit happy to be back at headquarters, although her worst fears had not been realized, and that in itself was a tremendous weight lifted from her shoulders.

The analyst she would be working with had to be fairly sharp to have picked up the pattern on the assassinations. That could be both good and bad. Time would tell.

After eating, Kris checked her gun, and laid it on the nightstand next to her bed. She never went anywhere without it. It was the only friend she had. Turning off the light, the tall woman was asleep almost before she hit the pillow.

Kris jerked upright in bed, and breathed a sigh of relief when she discovered the disturbance was the phone ringing. She glanced at the clock and saw it was eleven. She answered the phone more out of curiosity than anything else, having absolutely no idea why anyone would be calling her.

"Yes."

"Your Uncle wants to talk to you."

Still brushing the cobwebs from her mind, Kris said, "You've got the wrong number."

"I don't think so Natasha Lubinyenka."

Kris' head began throbbing as she squeezed the phone until her knuckles turned white, matching her equally pale face. She felt like she'd been punched in the solar plexus and couldn't breathe. No. Not now. Not here. Not while I'm under such close scrutiny.