Double Vision by Vicki Hinze Read Free Book Online Page B

love that. Add that twinkle in his eye and it was a combustible mix. “I think so.”
    “No, no one has filed harassment charges against me, Captain Kane.”
    “Kate. Please.” It was friendlier, and they were to be allies on this mission.
    He nodded, acknowledging her, but she didn’t hold out hope that he’d actually call her by her given name, or explain his penchant for visibility.
    “So why is a Code Two critical in this situation?” He poured a cup of coffee from a maker on a table beside his desk and slid it across the desktop to her. “The truth, please.”
    Kate started to smile. S.A.S.S. had no choice but to fabricate plausible scenarios all too often. And it appeared that all the commanders knew it. “Are you familiar with GRID?”
    “Yes,” he admitted, then elaborated. “Largest black market seller of U.S. intelligence and weapons in the world.”
    He was definitely in the loop.
    “That’s right,” Kate confirmed. “But there’s more to them.”
    “Disclosure is authorized, Captain,” he said softly. “Colonel Drake informed me that you would brief me in detail.”
    “You said it wasn’t necessary.” She frowned at him.
    “I’ve changed my mind.”
    Kate tilted her head, stared at him a moment. Amanda had relayed the authorization to rely on him. Kate couldn’t very well do so if he was assisting her from the dark. “What do you know about GRID operatives?”
    “Covert. Experienced. Very highly skilled, and they’ll do anything to anyone for money.”
    “Anything is right,” Kate said. “Some have undergone plastic surgery, mind-altering therapy sessions, and only God and Thomas Kunz knows what else, Major. They’re doubles for real, live counterparts currently holding classified, intelligence-heavy positions throughout the government.” She paused for a second to let that sink in. “Obviously we don’t know who is genuine and who isn’t.”
    “That explains how he’s getting his intelligence.” Forester sipped from his own steaming cup. “What happens to the real employees? Does he kill them?”
    “We have reason to believe he holds them permanent prisoner so they’re available to fill in any blanks that arise for the GRID doubles.” Actually, S.A.S.S. knew that for fact.
    Surprise flashed through his eyes. “Just how well has Kunz done at this?”
    “Very.” Kate frowned. “We know of thirty cases and we strongly suspect there are at least that many more. How many more is anyone’s guess.”
    “He’s been at this awhile, then.”
    Kate nodded. “The truth is, we don’t know exactly how long.”
    “And these doubles are still functioning within our ranks?”
    “Until we weed them out, yes,” Kate replied.
    Forester set down his cup. It clanked against the gritty desktop. Sand got into everything here. “How the hell does he duplicate our people? That takes time—”
    “He preys on loners, Major. People making permanent changes of station, so their co-workers are new and their habits unknown. He’s also been known to abduct them during remote tours where no one knows them, isolate them by feigned illness, and various other methods.”
    “Incredible.” Forester shook his head, rubbed at his nape.
    “He keeps them out of commission for three months, studying them. Only, thanks to a combination of drug-therapy and psych-warfare processes, the captives don’t realize they’ve been away for three months, and they have no recollection of what happened to them during that time.”
    Kate realized how this sounded. If she hadn’t seen evidence of it firsthand, she would have been skeptical of the process. But she’d seen it twice personally, and reviewed more than a dozen case studies of other victims S.A.S.S. had already discovered. “It’s a complex process, but very effective.” She paused to drink from her cup and motioned for a tissue.
    Forester passed her one from the box on his desk.
    She wiped at her eyes, still bleary from the trek to the