The White House: A Flynn Carroll Thriller by Whitley Strieber Read Free Book Online

identifier isn’t recognizable.”
    It wouldn’t be, not to them. There was no way he would tell them anything about it, nor reveal that files with that identifier were only stored physically, rather than being scanned into the electronic system. Electronic files are open doors. Paper files locked in underground storage facilities are far harder to access.
    â€œI need to see the body.”
    â€œWho are you, Mr. Carroll?”
    The inevitable power play. “You have my ID.”
    â€œWho do you work for?”
    â€œFreelance.”
    â€œWe’re not stupid,” Forde said. “We’re thinking, with the resources you probably command, you can help us.”
    Flynn said nothing.
    â€œLook, you’re talking about the most incredible security breach in history. It’s the White House, for God’s sake! Tell us what you know.”
    Flynn said nothing.
    The room crackled with tension. Flynn had identified the positions of all the guns. He could take these men out before they could get off a shot, all of them, even the ones with decent pistols.
    â€œDIA? No, too low-level. NSA? No, too operational. NRO? Not a techie. So where are you from, Mr. Carroll?”
    What he knew about that file was that its loss was the most serious problem he could imagine, not only for him personally, but for his entire operation.
    â€œI need to see the body,” he repeated, his voice carefully modulated, expressing a calmness that he did not feel.
    Forde glared back at him.
    â€œI need to see it now.”
    Silence.
    â€œDirector Forde, I have the authority.”
    His face was stone. His eyes bored into Flynn’s. “The body’s been moved to the Navy Yard. There’s a coroner’s facility there. We’ll let them know you’re coming.”
    â€œThank you.” He stood up. “I’ll want the coroner’s office cleared of personnel. I don’t want anybody to observe me.”
    â€œWhat about the doctor? To explain the wounds?”
    â€œNobody’s to be in the facility.” He tossed Forde a cell phone. “When you’ve got me included on your White House detail for tonight, call me. All you have to do is press talk. The phone will do the rest.”
    â€œOn the White House detail? Are you serious?”
    â€œNot really. Jacking people like you up is my hobby.”
    â€œWe can’t put you on the White House detail. You have no idea how things work.”
    â€œNobody will see me.”
    â€œWhat if they do? The president wanders at night.”
    â€œNope. Bill Green sleeps like a hibernating grizzly and Lorna wakes up at five, so I won’t worry about him and I’ll avoid her.”
    â€œI can’t let you impersonate one of my officers.”
    â€œOK, then, let’s be clear: If I’m not in there, there’s a reasonable possibility that they’ll be murdered in their sleep. You will bear responsibility for that.” He pointed from man to man. “You. You. You. You. Your responsibility.”
    There was an uneasy stirring around the table.
    Simon Forde looked down at the phone. “I’ve never seen one of these.”
    â€œIt’s from the future.”

 
    CHAPTER FIVE
    HE LEFT Forde staring at the small instrument in his hand. It was GSMK CryptoPhone modified to support quantum encryption. The phones had been especially created for the detail by a high-end Russian hacker who called himself “Dimitri Kronos.” He thought the work he did was for the Russian mafia, and so was afraid to provide anything but his best. If he’d known that his real client was an American intelligence unit, he would have provided his worst.
    Back in his car, he called Diana. “We have a problem. This kid was walking into the White House with our paperwork in his hands.”
    â€œ What? ”
    â€œOur core file. No question. Organizational structure, identities, all the fundamentals. I saw