Mister Nobody

Chapter 21

Holloway winced as he removed the vest from under his shirt, sensing the large bruise that would be left there in the morning. He waved the paramedic away as he radioed Marcusson. "Give me good news." Marcusson sighed on the other end. "Lost 'em in the chase, sir, but we did manage to figure out they stole a car. We're tracking it now, ended up somewhere in the woods. Sighing, Holloway stood up. "Sweep the woods, find them. We're not letting them get away again." Shutting off his radio for now, he ran his fingers through his hair, and then turned to see Ralston inside of the MCC, speaking to someone on a radio. Frowning, he put his shirt back on and walked into the MCC, standing next to Ralston. "Whatever Alison is telling you isn't the truth. Besides, how can you trust a person you barely know?" Ralston said, and Holloway looked at the analyst sitting next to him. "Who's he talking to?" The analyst looked back at Holloway. "He's radioing the car that DeLancie and Blair are in, sir." Holloway's eyes widened as he turned back towards Ralston, who paused for a few seconds, and when no reply came, he shut off the radio. "It was worth a try." Holloway suddenly got up close in Ralston's face. "What the hell were your men doing?! They endangered innocent civilians and got our targets caught in a crossfire. They could have been killed, and I would have had to put your ass under a court martial!" Scoffing, Holloway leaned back in a chair. "Maybe I should have let you do it anyways just for the satisfaction." Ralston still didn't flinch, which Holloway was beginning to find particularly annoying, and he stood next to him. "Deputy Director, as much as you think otherwise, I want to apprehend Jack and Alison alive as much as you do. My men were simply defending themselves." Looking at the analyst, Holloway frowned. "Who the hell owns this place anyways?" The analyst showed a picture of an Asian man on the screen. "We managed to trace ownership back to one Randall Chen. We're still working on how he got the firepower." Rubbing his face, Holloway sighed. "Christ." He'd never needed a drink more in his life.

Pulling a chair out from one of the consoles, Ralston sat down in front of Holloway. "If it is any consolation, Deputy Director, I believe that I may have put another piece of the puzzle together." Looking up at Ralston, Holloway leaned forwards. "Please enlighten me." Ralston placed both his forearms on his knees. "We have been trying to wonder how and why DeLancie went rogue in the first place. Well, I think I may have the key to that." Pulling out his phone and scrolling to a picture, he showed Holloway a headshot of Alison Blair. "Her." Holloway looked at the photo and back at Ralston. "Continue." Ralston placed his phone on his lap. "DeLancie was a perfect agent, one of our finest. Followed orders to the letter, never questioned any authority, and could kill at a moment's notice. He needed influence to break out of that mold, someone he trusted and knew from the inside. I believe that Blair is that someone, that influence." Shaking his head, Holloway leaned back. "But why her? And why would she need DeLancie?" Ralston pulled up his phone again, and kept talking. "Blair was different. She was at the top of her class physically, but psychologically always seemed to stand out from the others. She was forward thinking, but always had a sense of doubt that would appear. This was one of the reasons why we kept such a close eye on her. That is, until she went rogue and took DeLancie with her. But now that she's here, I have an idea of what they are planning to do." Holloway leaned forwards. "And what's that?" Swiping a few times across his phone, Ralston pulled up an audio recording. "This was taken from a conversation she had with an unknown associate over the phone." A voice came through, slight tinny, but it was clearly Alison's. "So it's settled then? Everything is in place? Good. I'll make my move in a few weeks time. If everything goes right in Washington, the assassination should go off according to plan. Just make sure Denholm is there." Stopping the recording, Ralston could see Holloway's eyes go wide as he recognized the name. "I believe you have a few calls to make, Deputy Director."

The assistant heard the phone ring next to her, and her eyes widened once she saw which phone it was. It was coloured blue, and was one that she wished would never ring. Because she knew when it rang, nothing good could be on the other end. Picking it up, she spoke clearly. "Secretary of Defence's office." A serious voice spoke. "This is Deputy Director Donovan Holloway of the FBI. I need to speak to Secretary Denholm." The assistant swallowed nervously. "Mr. Denholm is currently in a meeting, sir." Holloway spoke up agin. "This is a Code Black Clay scenario. Priority Alpha. I need to speak with him, now!" Recognizing the code, the assistant nodded. "One moment, please." She clicked a number of buttons on the phone to transfer the call to the meeting room. In the meeting room, Denholm was speaking with other members of the National Security Council. "Our troops have managed to take substantial ground in the Middle East. We should be able to take the rest of Tehran by the end of this month." He said to the Secretary of State, who nodded. "Alright, I'll inform the President by tomorrow." The centre speakerphone rang suddenly, and each member at the table frowned. Leaning across the table, Denholm turned on the speakerphone. "Denholm." His assistant from his office spoke up. "Sir, you have a call from the Deputy Director of the FBI." Wondering what this was about, he patched the call through. "This is the Secretary of Defence." Holloway stood up back in the MCC. "Sir, this is Deputy Director Holloway. I have some sensitive information that I need to share with you in private, sir." Directing the call to his personal phone, Denholm stood up. "Excuse me." Stepping out of the Situation Room, he placed the phone to his ear. "Just you and me now, Holloway." Holloway leaned against the wall of the MCC. "Secretary, I have reason to believe that a man named Jack DeLancie plans to assassinate you in Washington D.C. in less than two days time." Denholm was taken aback at the sudden news. "What exactly makes you think that?" Holloway sat down in his chair at the MCC and began sending information on DeLancie and Blair to the Secretary's system. "I'm sending you data about these two now. But they have been currently tearing across the US with the intention of assassinating you during your speech in Washington." Denholm paused. "Holloway, while I appreciate your concern, I'm not the type of person to stand down when there is probable threat. I promised the American people a speech, and I'll give them one. We'll keep a lookout for this DeLancie person. But for now, handle your business on your own." Holloway straightened up. "Sir-" Denholm cut him off. "Thank you, Holloway." With that, Holloway was left with the dull tone of a dead line.