Echo of War by Grant Blackwood Read Free Book Online Page B

guard lying semiconscious near the stone wall on the property’s eastern perimeter. The first police unit on the scene found the guard had been shot once in the back of the head, with the bullet exiting over his right eye. He was transferred by ambulance to Salisbury Memorial Hospital, where he’s in critical condition.
    â€œWhen backup units arrived, a search of the property was conducted. Three other security guards—a number we now know is standard for the estate—were found dead, each shot in the back of the head. We found impressions in the dirt that indicate each man was made to kneel before being shot.”
    â€œChrist,” Carolyn Fitzpatrick muttered.
    Len Barber, the CIA’s acting deputy director of intelligence, spoke up. “You said three guards was the standard complement. Why were four on duty?”
    â€œGood question. We’re looking into it. Upon entering the house, the police found the Roots’ alarm system—which was linked by microwave to a monitoring center in Cambridge—had been bypassed. They found Mr. Root in the upstairs master bedroom, shaken but otherwise uninjured. Upon his release, he informed the police that his wife had been kidnapped.
    â€œThere was little physical evidence left at the scene, but we’ve been able to determine the intruders entered the Root property from the seaward side by boat … here.” Oliver used a laser pointer to indicate a spot on the rocky shoreline. “Once inside the wall, they incapacitated the guards—taking all of them by surprise, it appears—then bypassed the alarm system and entered the house. Though Mr. Root claims to have seen only four intruders, we have reason to believe there were six involved in the operation.”
    â€œWhat are you basing that on?” asked Len Barber.
    â€œPhysical evidence,” Oliver replied.
    Barber chuckled. “What, John, don’t trust us?”
    Oliver smiled back but didn’t answer. The FBI director spoke up: “Agent Oliver’s following my orders. Go ahead, John.”
    â€œWe’re still processing the scene, so more evidence might turn up, but I’m not hopeful. This was a professional operation; it was well planned and expertly executed. As of thirty minutes ago, no ransom demands have been received and no contact has been made. In the event that does happen, we’ve brought in Joe McBride. Joe specializes in hostage negotiation and kidnapping. He’s consulted with both the CIA and the Bureau in the past. We’ve slaved his cell phone to Root’s home telephone number as well as Mr. Root’s cell phone. If the kidnappers make contact, Joe will hear it in real time.”
    Oliver raised the lights and looked around. “Questions?”
    â€œAny idea how the intruders were armed?” asked Len Barber.
    â€œMr. Root only got a glimpse, but he described the weapons as ‘short-barreled assault rifles.’ None of the neighbors reported hearing shots, so we’re guessing the weapons were noise-suppressed.”
    â€œThat narrows the list, at least.”
    â€œWhat do we know about these guards?” the director asked.
    â€œThey’d been contracted from a company out of Baltimore. Their employees are firearm qualified and heavily screened. With the exception of the guard found alive, all four had been working for the Roots for several years. Two were ex-military, one a retired police officer. The fourth had recently graduated from Wake Forest with a criminal justice degree and had applied to the Maryland State Police. We’re digging into each man’s background—bank accounts, credit problems, affiliations.”
    Carolyn Fitzpatrick asked, “The fourth man, the one that’s still alive—do you have anything to suggest he was involved?”
    â€œWe’re working on it, but my initial impression is no.”
    â€œWhat do you base that on?”
    â€œThree