Harry stared at him. “You’re talking about the Voynich, aren’t you?”
“Yes. He was able to write us code to brute-force attack Radulov Industries and start a waterfall effect of hacks on all the terminals housing MATRIX. I’d hoped it would keep Ardelean too busy to bother with me.”
“You, the vaunted patriot, cost the world millions of pounds in lost time and ransomware payments.”
Barstow shrugged.
“Does Ardelean know it was you who had someone playing with his code?”
I know what you did. Barstow shook his head. Ardelean couldn’t have meant Temora. There was no way he could have found out Barstow had kept him in a safe house for the past year—just in case he needed him, and he had. “You wish to talk to Temora? He’s all yours. He’ll give you all the details. Oh, here we are, we’re coming up to the theater. Harry, you must kill him. He’s more dangerous than you can possibly imagine. You should—”
There was a brilliant flash of light, and the front of the Range Rover exploded.
Harry felt the burst of white-hot flame, the window give against his shoulder, the cool night air, then he landed on the pavement, rolling as he hit, to protect himself. He rolled into a gutter, the flames hot on his face, sucking out his breath. He covered his head with his arms and waited for another blast, or gunfire. Finally, he crawled to his knees, then stood, wincing at the pain. His arms were scraped, his ribs—were they broken? Even the smallest breath hurt, but he was alive.
He looked at the mangled SUV, an inferno against the dark sky, and he couldn’t see either the driver or Barstow inside.
He became aware of the growing chaos around him, people screaming, shouting for police, some running away, some pulling out their phones and recording videos. One man with a small dog on a leash stared dumbly at Harry, who realized he must look like a war victim.
His mind struggled to catch up. Drone, it must have been a drone, and it dropped a bomb on the car, like the train attack. Only this time the drone did it on the front of the car, blowing off the doors and windows. Harry, not wearing his seat belt, was thrown from the wreckage by the blast. He learned soon enough that Barstow and the driver had not been so lucky.
Harry saw blood running down his arm and pulled out a handkerchief to tie around the gash. He managed to get away from the flames and pressed against the building, scanning the skies as he reached for his phone. He heard the faint noise above him, looked up to see a red eye in the sky. The drone was searching the scene. It zoomed over, back and forth, seeking, but Harry was hidden in the shadows.
Bloody hell, where was his phone? It wasn’t in his pocket. He realized he wasn’t wearing his jacket anymore, either, it must have gotten caught in the car. He was also missing a shoe.
He leaned his head back against the building, hiding from the drone, listened to sirens wailing as they grew nearer and nearer and the noise from so many people as they watched the car burn. He heard the faint hum of the drone, flying away now, its pilot satisfied it had done its job.
Fury filled him.
This was war.
CHAPTER SIXTY-FIVE
The Old Garden
Twickenham
Richmond upon Thames, London
Isabella fell asleep humming. When she awoke, her mind was clear, and she realized she was exhausted. Then it came back. Ardelean had drugged her, and he’d drained some of her blood.
At least she was still alive. It was dark in the room, only the lights from under the cabinets shining down on the desk below, onto Radu’s notes.
She felt a hand on her arm and jerked away. Iago stood over her, nothing showing on his face.
“You’re awake.”
“What time is it?”
“Nearing dawn. The cast will need attending. Before I go, may I bring you anything?”
“You spoke.”
“Yes. I apologize that my accent is so very strong.” Then he shrugged. “Water? Would you like some water?”
“No, I would like my phone to call the police.”
Remarkably, that blank face suddenly split into a smile.
“Madam is amusing. And you are no longer humming. A pity.” He leaned closer. “You are saving my master. For this I am grateful.”
“When will he take more of my blood for your master?”
She heard a yawn close by. Radu called out, “I am still getting your blood, Isabella, only much slower now. He will give you a day to build yourself back up. I don’t think he’ll kill you since it’s possible I will need transfusions from you forever. You will be my private blood bank.
“Thank you, Isabella. It is amazing you came into our lives after all this time.”
She struggled against the webbing, but it was no use. She had to think, had to figure something out. She said, “When is he coming back?”
“I don’t know. It’s nearly dawn, so he’ll be back soon, I hope. I want him to see how strong I am.”
“I would like some water.”
Iago hurried out of the room. Radu said, “When Roman comes back, I’ll have him release the webbing around your neck. Are you very uncomfortable?”
Why would you care? “It’s very uncomfortable, yes.”
“I am sorry. Roman has his ways—I feel good, not the way I really want to feel, but better, with your blood I am so much better.”
“Glad to be of service.” Where had that come from? She was going as insane as the inmates.
Radu said, “I hope Iago will get you my special water. It is wonderfully healthy, perfect to help you build back up.”
There was a loud bang.
“What’s that?”
Isabella heard voices and smelled smoke.
Iago came running back into the lab, slamming the door behind him, a biometric code snapping into place.
He crossed himself. “Master Radu, they’ve come. They’re here. Someone’s attacked the house! The antiaircraft battery shot a missile. I heard it activate.”
Isabella couldn’t do anything, so she closed her eyes and prayed. Someone had come to rescue her?
Radu screamed, “Unhook me, Iago. I am strong now. Give me guns. We will fight them off.”
The whapping sounds of a helicopter rotor grew louder and louder, and, out the window, Isabella saw an explosion, then felt a crush of flame and glass.
“Iago? Unhook me! We cannot let them come in. We cannot let them take her.”
“No, master, no one can get in. The door is barricaded. We will be safe. Hold still, I will unhook you.”
“Call Roman. He must come.”
“Master, your brother isn’t here, but we have the house as a defense. I have the guns. The room is safe. We will be safe.”
“I smell smoke, Iago.” He was whimpering, like a child. He was afraid, she saw his eyes were wild. Again, he whimpered, “Iago, I’m scared.”
“Don’t worry, master, you know Master Roman installed a chemical-fire suppression system throughout the house and in these rooms so there could never be any harm to the equipment. We will be safe enough. Nothing bad will happen to you.”
“Nothing can happen to Isabella, either! They can’t take her from me, Iago. I must have her.”
She saw Iago had been moving around the room, setting switches into new positions, filling the magazine of the handgun.
There was banging, and they heard shots being fired. Calls and screams.
“Prepare yourself, master. Here is a gun. All you have to think about is pulling the trigger. That’s right, put your finger just there.”
The sound of automatic gunfire came through the doors. They all froze, waiting. Isabella prayed harder than she ever had in her life. Iago and Radu had their guns aimed at the door. She heard a noise on the other side of the door and yelled as loud as she could, “Please, be careful. They have guns!”
CHAPTER SIXTY-SIX
The sky around Mike was on fire. As she dodged flying debris, her mind focused on only one thing—Nicholas. She shouted his name again. “Nicholas!” Nothing but the roar of the flames. She remembered an orange glow moments before the helicopter jerked wildly—she realized it had been a missile shot into the fuselage. She thought of Gareth and sent a prayer.
She stood on the roof of the immense house. Where was he?